A few great memories from photography explorations in 2013

Looking back over a year is something many of us do at this holiday season. I’ve enjoyed looking back at 2013, as it appears in my Lightroom catalog of images captured over the year.

I find it sort of amazing that Lightroom reports I’ve taken 7,697 images in 2013. Good grief! I recently put together a Flickr set of the top 100 images of mine from 2013 based upon views and votes as favorites. But I wanted to also do a more personal look back, choosing just five images from my photography explorations this year.

Much of my joy of photography, by the way, comes from long walks taken a few years ago with InMenlo co-founder Chris Gulker — a very talented photographer who taught me well.

So, here we go…

First up is an image from Drake’s Beach at the Point Reyes National Seashore in Marin County. Shot in January with the sun at a low angle, I opted for a monochrome treatment, balancing the power of the photographer with the joy of the child running across the rocks. I like the layers in this image — where the photographer is standing, where the child is on the rocks, and then down to the beach and the hills beyond.

Next is one of my favorite images from a trip to Havana, Cuba in late January. Shot in a market, the light streaming in behind these two was remarkable — and the smoke from her cigarette added even more interest to the looks on their faces. I smile every time I look at it!

#3 is a local shot — of the Camperdown Elm at Filoli in Woodside. Shot in early March, there was some special light striking the branches of the elm in late winter. I enjoy how those elm branches contrast with the green of the grass and the trees surrounding. A monochrome treatment of this image is also quite striking.

In July, I took a workshop in Bend, Oregon, and, while driving up to Bend, stopped along the way at Crater Lake at Sunrise. The beautiful morning sun just lit up this side of the lake — and the remarkable trees and rock outcroppings. I can almost smell the morning air!

This final image is a bit more unusual. It’s also sorta local — shot at César Chávez Park adjacent to Berkeley’s marina. My photo buddy Doug Kaye and I were exploring the Marina when we came upon some families and kids in the park. This boy was engrossed in exploring the rock – and the beautiful light from the right just lit up the scene.

Hope you enjoyed this look back at 2013 — and some of my favorite photographic memories. If you want to follow more of my work, Flickr is my “home base” — and I share my best work with some of the stories about the images on my personal blog at http://sjl.us.

Have a wonderful 2014!