If you want to just see the photos click here to see the gallery version, or click on any of the following images.

Branching Out

I’m starting my list at the end. The end of the year, that is. The image taken latest in 2020 of all my favorites. Shot in November to be exact. It’s also the one I have spent the most time thinking through and working on. This was due in large part because it was so close to home. All the closures and cancellations due to pandemic gave me ample opportunities to explore this beautiful grove of oaks 15 minutes from my house.

It’s not that I avoid shooting locally, just that it requires more work to find natural landscapes I find interesting enough to shoot near my home in the heart of suburban Southern California. I found the proximity of this location gave me plenty of chances to scout it, revisit the scene, and really sit with the place for a long while.

Discovering these trees reaching for the light made me feel like I was in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. Specifically, when the trees of Fangorn Forest moved to Helms Deep to exact their revenge on the Uruk-hai who had felled their fellow trees. The sense of reaching and motion also reminded me of something reminiscent of a scene from many a classical or romantic painting.

In the Kitchen

You could call this my “shelter-in-place” image. Taken shortly after all the lockdowns went into effect last spring. Like many people I found myself in the kitchen a lot more than usual. Inspired by all my additional time in the kitchen I pulled out my macro lens and explored some of the details and textures.

The macro photography was also a happy diversion in a chaotic time. This past year was a really tough year personally. My girls and I moved to a new house three weeks before the shutdowns. I also had my worst and longest bout with seasonal allergies and asthma of my adult life which mirrored a lot of the COVID-19 symptoms. And in the midst of that I was juggling work, keeping my kids on task with their distance learning, and unpacking from the move. On top of that the loneliness of isolation from the locked downs was (and continues to be) tough. Yet at the same time, as a parent, I have been grappling with a dissonant longing for quality alone time all introverts long for.

Needless to say last year was stressful.

A Hazy (or Smoky) Autumn Sunset—San Bernardino Mountains

After things started to open up again in the summer we had another challenge to contend with in California, wildfires. We had one of our worst fire seasons on record this past summer and fall. Did I mention I had my worst year of allergies and asthma? This was the first year I ever recall having to check the air quality index to see if I should go outside for any length of time.

All that being said it did create some surreal settings and atmospheres. There were even times I felt like I was on Mars. The image above was taken after a day trip to nearby Big Bear in the San Bernardino Mountains. All the major fires at that time were under control, but the smoke from them lingered for quite a while. Once we descended down the mountain the haze was so thick it looked like fog in San Bernardino.

Last Light on Fire Canyon—Valley of Fire State Park

I was able to squeeze in one trip this year, though not the trip I had planned. My brothers and I had a wilderness permit to hike the High Sierra Trail in Sequoia National Park. Throughout all the lockdowns and fires I was constantly checking Sequoia’s web site hoping our trip would not get cancelled. Everything looked good until two days before our trip. I got a call from the Sequoia wilderness office recommending that we not to come to the park due to the fires.

At that point all the state and national forests/parks in California were closed because of the fires engulfing most of the state. So we made a quick change of plans and drove out to southern Nevada and Utah. So, we were almost blown away by intense winds our first night on the trip. Taking the above shot I had to firmly hold down my tripod to keep my camera gear from flying off while taking this shot. It was all worth it to be able to take in this scene.

Fairyland Trail Illuminated—Bryce Canyon

While the first image on this list was the product of planning and spending a lot of time in a scene this photo was pure serendipity and required working quickly while the light was good.

I had only been to Bryce once before in the middle of winter, during a snow storm. I think we might have seen the sun for about 30 minutes the whole time we were there. So I had no idea what to expect when we arrived. The first morning we were there I went to all the usual sunrise spots in the canyon and quickly left, they were all too crowded for my liking. The second morning I did more exploring on the edges of the canyon and enjoyed my views. But as I was packing up, I decided to wander a bit more and stumbled onto this scene. I was so grateful I stayed long enough to experience this inspiring moment. Some of you may have seen an alternate vertical composition of the scene which I shared on Instagram, you can see that version here.

One unexpected challenge I discovered in my early morning explorations. Wearing a mask while shooting in freezing temperatures will make the ground glass on your SLR camera fog up. I ended up doing a lot of chimping when I was setting up my compositions those mornings.

Morning Light in the Canyon—Valley of Fire State Park

This was another great find on my only trip of 2020. As you can see there there’s a wide range of striking colors in the strata that makes up the uniqueness of this park. Witnessing the morning light work its way through the canyons was one of the highlights of my time in Valley of Fire. This was my first visit of the park, but it’s definitely not my last. I have passed it countless times en route to other locales. I am definitely grateful I took the time to stop during this trip. I’m eager to come back and spend more time there hopefully in the near future.

Looking Through the Oak Grove

Another photo I captured in that oak grove I discovered near my home. I shot this at the beginning of fall as all the underbrush was starting to change color and lose their foliage. I always enjoy seeing how much a newly discovered locale can change its appearance through the seasonal transitions. Even in Southern California you can see some distinct seasonal transitions in spite of the region’s lack of drastic weather shifts. I’m eager to see how moving from winter to spring will affect this place. Stay tuned to see more.

Morning Light on the Hoodoos—Bryce Canyon

Similar to my previous Bryce Canyon photo I really enjoyed spending more time on this trip focusing in on smaller sections of the canyon rather than the grand vistas on the rim of the canyon. Seeing the light first hit the hoodoos made for far more interesting images in my opinion.

Light Through the Slot Canyon—Valley of Fire State Park

Anyone who is familiar with my work knows that I do love to photograph texture and color, and the red sandstone of southwest provides ample opportunities to capture both. Especially when said rock starts to get reflected light in the canyons of the region. I didn’t have any plans to explore any slot canyons on my trip through Nevada and Utah, I just happened to be in the right place at the right time when I found this composition.

I hope you have enjoyed this recap of my best photos of 2020. What are your favorites are? I would love to hear! I also posted my favorite photos I rediscovered in 2020 from my back catalog of work. If you would like to see my past yearly recaps use these links: 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015

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The span of these images go all the back to my first digital camera (and it’s whopping six megapixel sensor) to just two years ago. Photos taken in 2019 were not included in consideration for this list because in my mind that was too recent. There’s something about the whole process of searching for these lost treasures I really cherish it’s like reliving the fond memories of the trips. I also love the challenge of the rediscovery process. Being able to creatively bring back these discards and give them new life. Some even made it into my 2021 photo calendar (I still have a few left in stock as of this posting).

If you want to see a larger version of image click on the image or it’s caption, or click on this link for the full gallery. Later this week I will post my top images of 2020. I hope you enjoy this collection of images I rediscovered this year. What’s your favorite?

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Another year is winding down, so it’s time to reflect on the year that was. Thankfully this year was not nearly as life-changing as the previous couple of years have been. 2018 did have it’s fill of great trips including a trip through Nevada and central Utah, a very wet backpacking trip to the Big Pine Lakes in John Muir Wilderness, and fall color trip spanning both sides of the Sierra Nevada. Here are my 10 best images of 2018.

You may notice looking at my favorite images of the year that I am starting to do more panoramic images. I am not entirely sure what has drawn me to do more these large-scale scenes, maybe it’s my film-making roots rearing up as I look for that epic cinematic vista. I hope you enjoy the images below, if you wish to see a larger version of the images you can visit this gallery or click on the caption of each individual image.

I hope you enjoyed my 10 best image of 2018. What did you think? Did you have any favorites from my various trips in 2018 not on this list? I would love to hear it. Here’s to a new year full of new adventures!

If you want to view my favorite images from past years click on the following links: 2017 | 2016 | 2015

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It’s that time of year to reflect on the highlights and low-points of the past year. Every year at this time I pick out my favorite images from the year that was. I also like to look back at all the rediscovered images I found in the past year from my personal archives. I like to revisit old images from time-to-time to find hidden nuggets within the catalog of all my old work. Whether it was a change in taste, getting lost in the shuffle, or a reinterpreted concept it’s always inspiring to find these newly-found gems that were long forgotten.

The image above is by far my favorite of the bunch. Taken at Owens Lake (a dry lake bed) driving back from Death Valley on Highway 190. My current reading of Cadillac Desert by Marc Reisner, which chronicles the many water issues in the American West over the past 150 years, inspired me to find this image again which I shot almost 10 years ago but I never did anything with it. In the book a key chapter chronicles the water war spurred by the city of Los Angeles rerouting most of the water in the Eastern Sierra Nevada and Owens Valley to supply the growing city 100 years ago.

Now days when you drive through the Owens Valley you see some water back in the lake bed, due to all the court rulings ordering Los Angeles to return the water, but it’s far from what it used to be. I haven’t finished the book, but it has been fascinating to read about engineering marvels, and their ecological and social impact that have shaped the western U.S. as we know it.

I hope you enjoy the rest of the collection of my newfound treasures, and stayed tuned for tomorrow I will unveil my 10 top images of 2017.

Summer Storm in Bodie

El Capitan, Yosemite National Park

Summer Storm Gathering Over Convict Lake

End of the Day from Observation Point, Zion National Park

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The Girls

The girls are doing pretty good, all things considered. We have had our share of anxious moments, emotional breakdowns and sleepless nights, but those have lessened as the days go by. One of the mixed blessings of the last few months of Heidi’s life was as her body was slowly shutting down, the girls were able to slowly pull away from her. From Thanksgiving on Heidi spent most of the day sleeping, and as the sleeping increased the girls went into her room less and less.

The challenge with the girls right now is finding a new routine. The past few months there has been no routine: we had the holidays, Heidi being sick, family and friends visiting and now my return to work. Now that I am back to work full time the girls have been extra clingy to me, but I am sure that will lessen once we have a more set regular schedule.

Myself

As for how I am doing I feel like I am okay. There are times when life feels a bit overwhelming—be it managing the girls’ schedule and the corresponding childcare, or the return to work—my plate definitely feels full. In many ways I have been grieving (and have been a single parent) for the last seven months as Heidi’s health was failing. And yet everything about this grief still feels brand-new and foreign to me. There are still plenty of random moments when the loss of Heidi really hits me hard and I am a heap of tears.

I think the most challenging part is the lonely moments. Whether it’s longing for more adult conversations than talking about Shopkins and Paw Patrol with the girls, or just wanting someone to commiserate with after a long grinding or emotional day. I do have my adult times scattered throughout the week and plenty of help with the girls, but I am still the sole adult in our household.

A New Project

In some of those lonely moments I have been able to channel/process some of my thoughts and emotions through art, my own and others’ work. Throughout the last year I have been writing down ideas that came from our family’s journey with cancer and also inspirations that came from reading the psalms. This idea is still very new to me, and I am not sure what direction it will go, but I plan to sit with this for awhile and see what develops.

Aside from the psalms, there have been two songs that have resonated in tone with how I envision this work taking form. The first song is one I rediscovered around Christmastime, Henryk Gorecki’s Symphony Number 3 (Symphony of Sorrowful Songs). It’s a powerful piece. I recommend listening to it with speakers or headphones; the dynamic range of the piece is pretty large (parts of it are really quiet and others really loud). Being a symphony it’s also a pretty long piece, the first movement alone is almost 30 minutes long.

The second piece is from Andrew Peterson called “Rejoice” which came out about a year ago. His whole album was been a touchstone of where I have been over the last year. The song itself may not be where I currently am personally, but where I want to be.

As I said before, this is just starting to gain momentum in my mind. It may be quite a bit of time before anything tangible comes out of this idea of mine.

I cannot thank you all enough for taking interest in Heidi and my journey through this challenging season of life. I thank you all for the continued prayers and innumerable gifts you have showered on our family.

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It’s not how I envisioned returning to work after caring for Heidi the last seven months, but I am at peace with the situation. In some ways this will be a blessing in disguise. Yes, working a salaried job with benefits does give you a sense of security and consistency, but as this past week proves not even that is certain. Doing contract work will give me the flexibility to be more available for the girls as I adjust to being a single parent. At the same time I can also seek out other clients and take on web and video production projects I didn’t have time to do while at Rose. I will also be able set aside more time to promote my photography and art. One of the first things I want to do is finish migrating my website to a more robust platform which will enable visitors to purchase prints or license images directly from the website.

I know some would call this a tough situation, but it could be worse. I just have to think back to eight years ago. I was coming off the mountain-top experience of helping rebuild a college library in Liberia on a short-term mission trips when I learned that the company I was working for was downsizing and I was losing my job just as Heidi and I were welcoming our firstborn into the world. At the height of the recession I ended up unemployed for 10 months and under-employed for another eight months. We were forced to sell our condo at the time in a short-sale, and yet we made it through. I wouldn’t even consider that season of my life a time of hardship. During my time in Liberia I met people who had been through true hardship. People who had lived 20-plus years in the shadow of warlords, civil war, malaria and other diseases. My present circumstances pale in comparison.

In these moments it’s calming to reflect on one of my favorite psalms: Psalm 139:1-6.

O Lord, you have searched me and known me!  You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar.  You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;   it is high; I cannot attain it.

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With that said here are some my favorite photos from 2016 in no particular order. I hope you enjoy them.

And one more bonus image for sentimental reasons, mainly because I didn’t think we would get to take this photo. Back in June Heidi’s doctor gave her 90 days to live after they found the cancer had moved to her brain and spine. She well outlived that prognosis and all the ones they gave her afterwards. In October we were able to squeeze in one more trip to see the Sierra fall colors up by Mammoth and Bishop before Heidi got too weak to travel.  On the last day heading home she was awake enough, and the girls cooperated enough to get the picture below. Photographically speaking it’s not the greatest image but personally it meant so much to get this fleeting moment documented forever.

So here’s to 2016 and the hope of better 2017 to come.

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My wife, Heidi, and I planned our first backpack together in seven years for the Fourth of July weekend. It was to mark the new chapter in our lives, especially Heidi’s for beating breast cancer the previous year. Our plans changed though as Heidi started experiencing significant back pain the months prior to our planned trip. She was no longer able to sleep on the ground or carry a backpack over miles of rugged terrain. So, our backpack turned into an exploration of the Tuolumne region and other points of interest in the Eastern Sierras. It was a great trip even though it didn’t go as planned.

Little did we know at the time that this trip was just the beginning of our ‘readjustments.’ A month later we learned that the source of Heidi’s back pain was the return of her cancer. It had metastasized and was now growing in her lower back. The months since have been challenging, dealing with the emotions of an illness of this magnitude and readjusting to life with cancer … again. In the midst of it all we hold onto the hope that God is still in control of the whole situation. We have already been overwhelmed by an amazing amount of help and support from family, friends and even strangers that has been truly humbling.

Looking beyond the cancer challenge of 2015, here are my 10 best pictures from the year, in no particular order.

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