Top 10 of 2013

It's that time of the year again... time for some reflection and to pick my top 10 shots of the previous 12 months.

Picking this year was tough... REALLY tough... mostly for 2 reasons:
1. You are your own worst critic, and if you are constantly improving, you find it hard not to over-critique previous work
2. Some shots had a story to them that made them special, even if they weren't as technically good as others.

Well, after much deliberation, and some peer consultation (yeh... I cheated a little and asked a few friends!), here are (in no particular order) my top 10 of 2013... enjoy!

I love this shot because I had tried to lure a hummingbird to my garden for 2 years, with no success.
This success was a result of a Moose Peterson tutorial on Kelby Training, and a new hummingbird feeder!

Picking this particular one, from a group of this session's shots, was tough - I loved a few of them!
Captured just off the beach at Porteau Cove, I stalked this guy for about 30 minutes,
gradually (& very patiently) getting closer...

My favourite shot from the 2013 Wedding Season. :-)

Top 10 of 2012 | Fraser Valley Photographer

This post is probably a couple of weeks overdue, but my excuse is that I had a hard time picking my top 10 of 2012... and I'm sticking to it!

So, yes... picking a top 10 is a great way of seeing how far you've come, as a photographer, in the past year (or not!)... and you can see where you want to go. After all, they do say that the only photographer you should compare yourself to is ... yourself.

Here is my top 10...

 

Top 10 of 2011

Finally... here they are... my top 10 photos of 2011! (I think... I keep changing my mind!)

At the beginning of every year, I take studio portraits of my children... and while I look at this picture and think of 10 ways that I would now shoot it differently (& better!), it has made my Top 10 because it did show me that I was much improved from the year before... oh yes, and because my oldest would be mad if she didn't appear in the Top 10!

This show was taken near Bridal Falls, BC... and was a personal triumph in that I managed my favourite water effect without a tripod! (A tree stump came to the rescue!) You see, when you travel with 2 small children 90% of the time, your backpack is full of snacks and emergency supplies - no room for useful camera accessories like a tripod!

Captured with the aid of my junior assistants... who were more than willing to oblige in blowing every dandelion clock we could find, along the Vedder Rotary Trail, to get the shot! A great shot with a great memory to go with it. 

Captured at the Vancouver Aquarium - I just loved the grace and calmness of these jellyfish and managed to grab a few great shots of them, that day.

I love this shot for 2 reasons - 1. Because I am proudly showcasing the produce nurtured by my own fair hand in our own back yard (my Dad would be so proud!) and 2. I am (successfully!) using a technique that was taught to us by Scott Kelby at his "Light It. Shoot It. Retouch It. Live" seminar in Vancouver, last year (LOVED the seminar and learned a lot - highly recommend it if he ever comes to a town near you).

Captured on the beach at Whytecliff Park, near Vancouver - I was enjoying a great day out shooting with 2 good friends, and we had just dived under cover to shelter from a sudden rain shower when this little fella popped onto the beach with a slightly unusual snack on his beak - a poor unsuspecting starfish! I braved the wet and tried to stealthily get closer... he kept inching away and turning his back on me! Patience prevailed, and I got my shot just before he threw his head back and gulped it down.

I was experimenting with slightly different angles, and just captured a shot that I love - simple as that!

This was taken as an assignment for a photography course I did, last year. I had not attempted much still life prior to the course and discovered that I actually really enjoy it. 

This shot was taken while I was experimenting with using festive lights to create great bokeh. How could you not love a cute face like that?!

This is probably my favourite shot of the year. Whilst on a "Girls Day-Out Shooting" with 2 great photo-loving friends, this was shot at sunset at Point Atkinson Lighthouse in West Vancouver. My aim of the year was to capture a scenic shot that I would want to hang on my wall - this was it... and was worth the scary walk through the pitch-black forest back to the car!