The Best of 2010 – Light Trails

As the year is drawing to a close, I thought I’d put together a short list of what I consider my  most memorable shots of the year. The selection is based on both viewer feedback and my own attachment to a particular shot. For behind each photograph is a story to tell, a little something for me to remember them by, and some have proven to be more memorable than others. If you have not followed my work on Flickr, this is a good sampling of my work.

I’ve decided to categorize them into such : (1) REFLECTIONS (2) BRIDGES (3) FOUNTAINS (4) LIGHT TRAILS and  (5) MY PERSONAL FAVORITES.

#4 MOST MEMORABLE LIGHT TRAILS

It’s no secret that successful photographs are the products of perfect light and perfect timing. Capturing great light trails definitely needs perfect timing, and obviously, it helps to be in a location with a good flow of traffic, but not necessarily. Sometimes, all it takes is one bus to come at the right time. But there are other factors to a successful light trail shot other than perfect time – and those are – lots of patience and being on the safe side of the road.

My Top Ten Most Memorable Light Trails of 2010:

VALENCIA, SPAIN - Torres de Serranos. The flow of traffic was not ideal on this night so I had to wait quite a bit; in the meantime, the light in the sky was changing fast. I knew that buses, instead of cars, would complete my vision here, and fortunately 2 buses came to a halt just when the last bit of blue hour light was fading away.

[...Click for the rest of my Top Ten Light Trails...]


The Best of 2010 – Fountains

#3 MOST MEMORABLE FOUNTAINS

I think a fountain is water breathing life. And I think that fountains look their best and should be better appreciated at night when it’s lit in all its glory. It could be simple or it could be ornate , and it could be on – flowing into a basin or a pool, or it could be off and create beautiful reflections. There is indeed more than one way to look at fountains. I’m just glad they’re around.

My Top Ten Most Memorable Fountains of 2010:

WIESBADEN, GERMANY - Dual Fountains at the Kurhaus. Who would have thought a small city and an old spa town like Wiesbaden could have a gem like this? Make that dual gems! I've seen photos of these fountains, mostly day shots, and have always envisioned them at night where I know they'd shine even more. The triple-tiered fountains on an almost windless night made the water fall so gracefully.

[...Click for the rest of my Top Ten Fountains...]


The Best of 2010 – Reflections

As the year is drawing to a close, I thought I’d put together a short list of what I consider my  most memorable shots of the year. The selection is based on both viewer feedback and my own attachment to a particular shot. For behind each photograph is a story to tell, a little something for me to remember them by, and some have proven to be more memorable than others. If you have not followed my work on Flickr, this is a good sampling of my work.

I’ve decided to categorize them into such : (1) REFLECTIONS (2) BRIDGES (3) FOUNTAINS (4) LIGHT TRAILS and  (5) MY PERSONAL FAVORITES.

Starting off with my Top Ten Favorite Reflection shots of the year.

#1 MOST MEMORABLE REFLECTIONS of 2010

I love to shoot where there is water – rivers, canals, rain and puddles, fountains, moats, pools, even a baptismal font as I’ve recently discovered. So I have many photos to choose from in this category. If I had to guess, I’d say about 80% of my shots has water in it, and probably half of that involves rain before or during the shot. When planning for travel, I usually go where there’s lots of water; if there’s none, I’ll find it. Or sometimes it finds me, in the case of rain.

STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN - View of Gamla Stan from Slussen. Stockholm is without any doubt a beautiful city, but by nightfall it loses its luster, at least to a photographer. I would have liked to have seen more light in the city. This shot of the popular district Gamla Stan was taken on my second night after a disappointing rainy previous night. Scandinavian countries have long blue hours and I must have shot non-stop for at least an hour-and-a-half this night, walking about a mile and a half from Slussen to Skeppsholmsbron with hardly any people on the streets.

[...See the rest of my Top Ten Reflections...]