2022 Top Twelve Photographs

“Twelve significant photographs in any one year is a good crop.” – Ansel Adams

It is that time of the year again, for me to share with you my Top Twelve Photographs of the Year 2022. This is the 10th edition of a tradition that began in 2013, inspired by the Ansel Adams’ quote above. Ansel Easton Adams (February 20, 1902 – April 22, 1984), is one of the most recognizable names in American landscape photography. His black-and-white landscape photographs of the American West, especially Yosemite National Park, have been widely reproduced on calendars, posters, books and prints.

I began 2022 with the hope that it would be much less restrictive than the COVID driven lockdowns and social distancing requirements that dominated 2020 and 2021. While that hope did eventually become a reality, proof of vaccination , and a negative test were still a mandatory requirement when I traveled to Australia in February. While these requirements were dropped later in the year, I still traveled wearing a mask when I entered any airport until I exited at my destination. The only time that I did not, a flight to photograph the White Sands National Park in New Mexico, I returned home and developed a massive dose of the flu!

My travels in 2022 included two trips to Australia (mostly family related issues), a trip to Virginia, the Outer Banks, North Carolina, and a trip to White Sands National Park, just outside Alamogordo, New Mexico. For the first time in forever I did not visit Yosemite, nor the Eastern Sierras this year, which I hope to rectify in 2023!

As in previous years, I determine my Top Twelve, and the order of the selections by the amount of unsolicited responses (Likes) the images received on my social media Facebook page.

I will begin with Number 12, its title, some background about each image, and some basic EXIF data.

#12. ‘An Eye On The World’ – a shot of the colorful staircase at the Currituck Beach Lighthouse, Corolla, NC, a new and beautiful, extremely photogenic discovery. First lit on December 1, 1875, the beacon filled the remaining “dark spot” on the North Carolina coast between Cape Henry and Bodie Island lighthouses.

October 14, Currituck Beach Lighthouse, Corolla, NC; expo. 1/4sec @ f/4; 24-105mm lens @ 24mm; ISO 2000.

#11 ‘New Beginnings’ – my first image of 2022, an evening’s beautiful sunset at a local spot we call ‘The Three Sisters’, because of the three Oak trees on the hill..

“Dreams are renewable. No matter what our age or condition, there are still untapped possibilities within us and new beauty waiting to be born.” – Dale Turner

January 11, Rancho Murietta, CA; expo. 1/40 sec @ F/8; 14-35mm lens @ 14mm; ISO 125.

#10 ‘Smokey, Harvest Moon’ – the Harvest Moon rising, near the LDS Temple spire. NorCal had experienced a brutally hot summer, recording a highest temp in history of 116° F in its capitol Sacramento, as well as twelve days of triple digit temps in a row. This creates many wildfires nearby, and lots of smoke in the skies, which then accentuates the color of the rising moon.

September 9, Nimbus Overlook, Fair Oaks, CA; expo. 1/4 sec at f/6.3; 150-600mm lens @600mm; ISO 640.

#9 'It's How The Light Gets In' – this is my novice attempt at shooting multiple images in-camera, and then blending them in Photoshop. Loved the results of this image created of the staircase at the Currituck Beach Lighthouse, Corolla, NC, and the second image of the staircase to appear in my Top Twelve List!

October 14, Currituck Beach Lighthouse, Corolla, North Carolina; ; expo. 1/4sec @ f/4; 14-35mm lens @ 35mm; ISO 2000.

#8 'A Sanderling Sunset' – sunset in the backyard of the home of our wonderful host, Karen, whose hospitality, and generosity has brought together three photog old friends, who very much enjoy each other's company, and creating images together in the Outer Banks, NC.

October 13, Sanderling, NC; expo. 0.6 sec @f/11; 24-105mm lens @ 24mm; ISO 100.

#7 ‘Hallelujah’– I have wanted to grow California poppies in my front yard forever, and finally on this spring day, with a little help from my friends, I was given this little gem! I have sewed a lot more seeds this year, so looking forward to a more prolific crop of these joyous flowers next year.

April, 30, Gold River, CA; expo. 1/60 sec @ f/3.5; 100mm macro lens; ISO 125.

#6 ‘HAPPY THANKSGIVING!’

This is an in-camera multiple image of a coffee cup, then blended with an image of a poinsettia plant, that was growing in the front yard of my cousin’s home in Elanora, QLD, Australia.

'Reflect upon your present blessings of which every man has many, not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.' – Charles Dickens

November 4, Elanora, QLD, Australia; 1/160 sec @ F/4.0; 24-105mm lens @ 70mm; ISO 1600.

#5 ‘Eclipsed Moon Rising’ – this was the May version of the total eclipsed moon, captured from a favorite place of mine a few minutes from my home. In North America, the next chance we get at a total eclipse will be April 8, 2024.

May 16, Nimbus Overlook, Fair Oaks, CA; expo. 1/2500 sec at f/6.3; 150-600mm lens @600mm; ISO 640.

#4 'Moon Rise, Paradisio' – This is an image captured the day before the actual full moon, in the backyard of the home that I have been staying in since arriving Down Under. The reflection seen here is on Pine Lake, and the lights are hanging on the glass wall of the backyard deck of their beautiful lakeside home.

November 5, Elanora, QLD, Australia; expo. 1/10 sec @ f/8; 14-35mm lens @ 19mm; ISO 1250.

#3 'We Have Lift Off!' – this happened during my daily morning's walk. An Australian Pelican captured just as it lifted off from the Currumbin River. At least for me, birds in flight are one of the most difficult subjects to photograph well, so I was simply thrilled, and lucky, to capture this with my iPhone!

November 6, Currumbin, QLD, Australia; expo. 1/950 sec @ f/2.8; Apple iPhone 14, 9mm lens; ISO 32.

#2 ‘A Slice of Heaven’ – I’ve always said when it comes to landscape photography, ‘You get what you are given’. Sometimes, when you’re given this much, you are left in awe of the beauty before you, and grateful for the miracle that is Mother Nature. The Fair Oaks Bridge, and a special colorful sunset...

December 6, Fair Oaks, CA; expo. 1/30 sec at f/11; 14-35 mm lens @ 14mm; ISO 125.

#1 'Le Grand Sunset' – This is an image captured in the backyard of my cousin’s home, Michael and Sharlene, that I had been staying in since arriving back Down Under. The reflection seen here is in Pine Lake, and the lights are hanging on the glass wall of the backyard deck of their beautiful home, the same location as the image shown above in image #4. One big difference, this was an impromptu, low light shot with my iPhone 14 Pro, which has a new 48 MP sensor, the largest in the history of Apple’s iPhone cameras.

November 4, Elanora, QLD, Australia; expo. 1/30sec @ f/1.8; Apple iPhone 14, 6.8mm lens; ISO 2500.

And there you have it, my Top Twelve Photographs for the 2022 year. I always have fun looking back at the past year, as it gives me an idea of what I created, where and when, and the improvements that I have made to my craft. In retrospect, I really like these beautiful images created in 2022! Deep gratitude to what I was given by Mother Nature, what I managed to do with these gifts, and now look forward to the coming New Year with measured anticipation and hope.

I’d also like to say a big Thank You to all those who expressed their support of my photography on my Facebook page, and for taking the time to do so – it is greatly appreciated! As always, I also owe a great deal of gratitude to the many people who support my art by purchasing my images in various print formats, and especially those attending my private workshops.

If you have been following my photography for a while now you will know that I have been trying to conduct a photography workshop and tour in the country of my birth, Sri Lanka, since 2020. Every year, due to problems associated with COVID, I have had to postpone this trip. This year’s workshop was postponed due to the financial problems the country has endured. I am now planning on going to Sri Lanka in the July to August, 2023 timeframe on a scouting trip. I feel the need to go to the country that I have not visited since 2019, and see for myself what are the current conditions on the ground in some of the major regions of the country included in the original itinerary.

I am looking forward to 2023, with optimism and hope for us as Mankind. Lots of work to be done in various parts of the world, and my hope is that we can work together to look after the environment, and leave it a better place for the next several generations to come, so that they can enjoy and marvel at what we have been given on this beautiful Blue Planet we call Earth!

Happy New Year!