Favorites of 2021

Favorite images of the year: I haven’t done this sort of thing religiously, but I’ve posted something similar at least once before on this blog. What follows is a set of some of my favorite images made during 2021. Were they my best images of the year? Who knows. What does “best” even mean? But I digress…

In keeping with the casual spirit of the exercise, I didn’t spend a ton of time making the selections. I tried to reverse engineer the process; I tried to focus on what I felt were my most memorable moments and endeavored to find images that were evocative of those instances.

I’ll keep the commentary to a minimum.

My first photo opportunities of the year involved satisfying a longstanding urge to photograph the Texas spring wildflower bloom, which produced many memorable moments, including those captured below.

Bluebonnet Field at Sunset, Ellis County, Texas

Bluebonnet Field, Ellis County, Texas

Bluebonnet Field at Sunset, Ellis County, Texas

Bluebonnet Sunset, Ellis County, Texas

Bluebonnet and Indian Paintbrush Intimate, Ellis County, Texas

In the spring, a trip to the desert southwest provided another set of memories.

Prairie Dogs, Potter County, Texas

Prairie Afternoon Black & White, Union County, New Mexico

White Pocket Black & White, Vermillion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona

White Pocket, Vermillion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona

Clay Beds, Vermillion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona

White Pocket, Vermillion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona

Willow Gulch, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

Blue Valley at Dawn, Skyline View, Wayne County, Utah

The Castle, Capitol Reef National Park, Utah

Capitol Wash, Capitol Reef National Park, Utah

Lower Calf Creek Falls, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

Coyote Gulch, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

Sunset Arch, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

Spooky Canyon, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

Canyon Abstract, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

Little Cut, Coconino County, Arizona

And then, at the end of the summer in the Lower 48, it was already well into fall in the Alaska interior.

Atigun Pass, Dalton Highway, Brooks Range, Alaska

Moose, Grayling Lake, Dalton Highway, Brooks Range, Alaska

Brushkana River, Denali Highway, Alaska

Tundra and Spruce, Denali Highway, Alaska

Autumn Mist, Denali National Park, Alaska

Forest Floor, Denali Highway, Alaska

Meadow Morning, Hatcher Pass, Alaska

Birch Forest Fall, Hatcher Pass, Alaska

Aurora Borealis, Maclaren River, Denali Highway, Alaska

A Room with a View, Savage Alpine Trail, Denali National Park, Alaska

For all the troubles that reared their metaphorical heads over the past 12 months, 2021 was a memorable photographic year

Happy New Year, everyone.