Photo Favorites 2010

I missed doing this post in 2009, but liked the time of reflection from doing Photo Favorites 2008 & Photo Favorites 2007.  I thought it would be really hard to find enough photo favorites for last year since I hadn’t “kept” this up & had to go back through over 16,000 photos to make my picks.  Luckily, Lightroom is awesome & made finding my favorites, including the one above of an iceberg from the Tasman Glacier in New Zealand, super easy and quick.  There are several New Zealand pictures in my favorites- both for their stunningly beautiful landscapes & for the fond memories I have of exploring the amazing South Island with my husband.  These floating icebergs were so impressive- beautiful, colorful, larger than life, infinite shapes & sizes.  We’d been longing to get a peek at Mt. Cook for 24 hour & finally caught a little glimpse of it towering over us & even making the gigantic icebergs pale in comparison.

This isn’t actually a photo that I took myself, but it makes the list because I can’t think of any better photo from our trip of us, mid-heliflight from Milford Sound back to Queenstown, that exemplifies our adventure & the striking beauty of the landscape & even the moody weather in the clouds below us.

I’ve taken many great photos of my husband- he is so handsome & photogenic, but this is my favorite of the year for the moments capture on film (can I still say that??).  Our whole trip to New Zealand was us spending days on end together driving from one breathtaking town to another, but on this particular day we’d stopped to take a little side hike & we were all alone, H had wanted to “touch the water” all day as we drove alongside the winding rapids.  He finally had the opportunity to get some use out of his hiking boots & North Face gear as he experienced the bone chilling cold of a glacier fed river.

My last favorite photo from New Zealand was from my absolute favorite activity- hiking on Fox Glacier.  There are no words (but lots of pictures) to describe the amazing patterns & sheer sizes of the ice field.  We were there on a perfect day with blue skies, lots of sun & a great guide for our trek.

I’ve obviously got many photos of my dad, but this one I snapped during our family fishing trip in April is far and away my favorite- it so personifies my father in his fishing mode like no other photos show him doing the one thing he loves most in this world- wading with a stringer full of fish.

My three favorite things in the world all come together in my next favorite photo I took one casual afternoon when hubby came up to my office to hang out & the dogs begged for attention.

So many pictures from our summer trip to Pennsylvania, but my newly found love of Pittsburgh made this an easy favorite from the trip.  Anytime I can sneak up some elevation & get a shot looking out or below, it’s such a powerful perspective.  Again- perfect weather &  I love the leading lines of all the bridges headed into downtown & how this shot embodies the town & my many fond memories made here.

My brother & sister are getting so big & grown up!  Taking them out for a weekend in Austin offered me a glimpse into the very special relationship that they have as brother & sister- the way they laugh & wrestle, how the whisper & share jokes, the way Hunter watches out for Haley.  It’s rare to catch them in a genuine smile- not the forced kind I’d been accustomed to for so many years, so I was glad to have this photo, among many from the weekend, to remember them in their last few years of high school.

This is a surprise photo for me- I didn’t remember it being anything special when I took it or posted it, but going back through my photos, it really jumped out to me as the regal Capital Building of South Carolina was framed perfectly with the blossoming trees & cloud-speckled sky.  We were there with just the right light & sky conditions, no other people in sight to obstruct our view & I was once again just out for a lovely stroll, spending time with my hubby in downtown Columbia.

My sister Haley is so crazy photogenic & I’m always catching her at family functions & events, but she indulged me when I rented a sweet lens & let me practice some portrait shots with her.  I was able to get a few I liked in the 15 minutes we had to spare, but this was my favorite- her beautiful smile, her sparkling eyes, her gorgeous hair, her sassy attitude is all 100% Haley.

I took another big chunk of photos in November when I visited Stephanie in Philadelphia to run the marathon, but this was by far my favorite of the weekend.  Stephanie & Ginger have such a special bond with all the miles they have covered together & I was so happy to be able to take a cherished picture for them.

Usually more sunset photos make my list, but this is my favorite sunset photo of 2010.  It’s not full of fiery red skies or brilliant landscape, but it’s the atmosphere of this picture & the context of the night that makes this photo a favorite.  Looking at this photo, I’ll always remember the romantic weekend I spent with my husband in Fredericksburg exploring beautiful wineries, discovering some delicious Texas wines & hanging out with the love of my life at Grape Creek Vineyards.

I’m actually surprised there aren’t more puppy photos, but I wasn’t as good about taking them out for adventures this year & was much worse about taking my camera when we did actually go out.  This photo makes my favorites list because I love that it’s in the woods (one of their happy places) & they are both sitting so pretty together waiting to go chase something.

Another elevated shot that made the favorites list- New York City is so much larger than life & you can’t even fully appreciate it until you rise up into the skyline to take in all the magic of the Big Apple.  I love the clear skies & the warm glow that the early evening sun cast upon all the buildings.

I ended up with a lot more photo favorites that I thought I would when I stared writing this post- it was a great year for photography, travel, friends, family and adventure.  A photo favorites post wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t share some of my favorite photos by somebody else- Kristen at K. Holly Studios for the amazing photos she capture of Mark & Pam’s wedding in Puerto Vallarta  (the Rehearsal, the Ceremony, the Party)

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY:  So glad to finally be up to full-size on the blog at 900 pixels