Things got a little crazy for me in 2023 photography-wise, and that is reflected in my top ten pictures from this year.

A behind the scenes look at my post-processing techniques for Leica Monochrom image files using Lightroom, Silver Efex Pro, and Photoshop

At one point, there was a subtle cacophony of squealing and we realized that we were hearing bats up in the darkened ceiling out of eyesight. Creepy. Where was Bruce Wayne when you needed him?

I had my student setup her tripod a few feet behind where we stood so that she could get a better view of the water, bridge and surrounding rocks. As she stepped away, I noticed a group of geese in the water. And as the sun was setting, a large sunspot appeared on the surface of the water just a few feet away from the geese.

As we approached this tree I thought to myself that it might make a nice photo. I had to have the usual wrestling match with the lazy part of myself because all my gear was nicely tucked away in my backpack. Thankfully, my photographer self won the battle and I took out my monochrome camera.

The fog. It makes for such wonderful photographs but it comes rarely in the area where I live. So when it happens, I have no choice but to get dressed and drive to a ravine close to our house to take pictures. But I was tired. I didn’t want to get dressed and go out into the cold. I hadn’t even had my coffee yet!

It has been a fruitful wildflower season during the Spring of 2022, but I felt like I still hadn’t gotten “the” shot. The Lupin had already been in bloom for a couple of weeks, surely there wouldn’t be any left to photograph?