TOP 10 IMAGES OF 2021 - January 1, 2022
HAPPY NEW YEAR 2022!
2021 didn't seem to be much different than 2020, in terms of life getting back to normal. I am starting to believe that we are now living in a "new normal" and we won't be getting back to life pre-pandemic anytime soon. As in 2020, I didn't capture many photos of Detroit, mainly because of working full time which has taken up much of my shooting time pre-Covid. I did, however, take trips to Cincinnati and West Virginia this year (which you will see in my Top 10 below).
This year I had made the decision to not participate in art fairs or events/workshops, mainly because the pandemic is still affecting our daily lives. It makes more sense for me to stay with my real estate photography job which has kept me very busy in 2021. I cannot say at this point whether I will go back to art fairs in the future, I haven't made any definite decisions. Here are stats for my fine art photos:
Photos taken: 3,552
Photos processed: 60
Continued to work full time as a Real Estate Photographer at Stylish Detroit.
Started to capture video with my drone and made several video clips.
My Top 10 images of 2021 are below, in no certain order. A few of Detroit, mostly of my travels. A couple of these are images I am sharing for the first time.
1. Glade Creek Mill, West Virginia. It all started with a photo I saw on Facebook in 2020 that pointed me towards this particular mill in West Virginia. I've come to learn it is one of the most photographed mills in the country. I can attest to that based on the number of photographers who were there at the same time as we were on a Friday in October. We had to be very patient in waiting for the photographers who were shooting in the waterfall area to capture the mill with no people. It took blending a few different exposures to get that final result, actually. I have now become a bit obsessed with mills and plan at some point in the future to travel and photograph them around the US. Be sure to check out the drone video I captured of the mill!
2. Marine Terminal Machine Room Panorama. This 21-image panorama was created using my Mavic 2 Pro drone, during what I would say was my last trip inside the Marine Terminal (and hearing it will be torn down in the near future also gives me that feeling). The cold storage warehouse was a favorite location to photograph the remaining machinery on the first floor, reflections of the graffiti and pillars on upper floors, as well as the views of Detroit and the river from the roof.
3. Cincinnati Union Train Terminal. While this was not my first time photographing Cincinnati, it was my first time photographing the Union train terminal. It is beautiful! Inside and out. I love the fountain! This is a 15-second long exposure image (f/22, 21mm, ISO100). Be sure to also check out the video I created with my drone!
4. Highland Park High School Auditorium. Back in 2012 when I explored this school for the first time, the auditorium was encased in darkness. At the time I decided to not take a photo since there was so much to see in this massive school. Almost 10 years later I returned, and this time there is light. My main reason for coming back was to photograph the auditorium and so glad the opportunity presented itself. This is a 9-image panorama.
5. Whites Covered Bridge, Keene Twp MI. On our trip to photograph fall color at the Frederick Meijer Gardens in Grand Rapids, there were also three covered bridges on the list to visit during our trip. It had been raining prior to arriving at this bridge, and then the sun came out and lit up the changing landscape. Captured with Mavic 2 Pro drone. Watch the video I took of the covered bridges!
6. Edmund Mansion, Brush Park Detroit. I captured this mansion with my drone after I had photographed two newly-renovated apartments inside for Stylish Detroit. It was beautiful! I am always thankful when I get access to an old historic building in Detroit. I did some selective coloring to help the mansion stand out amid the Detroit skyline.
7. Wolf Creek Mill, Ohio. We hit this mill on our way home from West Virginia. It was closed for the season, so we had the place to ourselves! It had a cute little creek curving around it. I captured the mill from several vantage points with my drone, and also took some video (watch it).
8. Frederik Meijer Japanese Garden Fall Color. Who doesn't love fall color? You cannot live in Michigan and not appreciate it immensely. I had never visited the garden in the fall, and even though the color was late in coming this year, I still saw some nice red Japanese maples.
9. Cincinnati Skyline at Night. This was one of those images that we like to call a "challenge". Before a trip we find images of a city that other photographers had taken and we challenge ourselves to find where the image was taken from. This one was a bit hilarious because we went at night into the hills of Cincinnati where it is dark, and of course, hilly. Not much light to guide you. We tried three different streets (at different elevations) before we found the one we believe is the one it was taken from. The funny thing is we had to make our way through thick trees to get this view. We think the photographer may have take it from a rooftop, but hey, you can find other vantage points in a pinch. Do what you have to to get the picture I always say.
10. Clifton Mill, Clifton Ohio. I found out about the holiday light display at the Clifton Mill while I was researching mills in general. Once I saw an image I knew I had to go and photograph it! It is so unique and considered one of the best holiday light displays in the US. Read the blog post of my visit.
Thank you to all who still appreciate my work, even though I am not working as a fine art photographer full time, and not as active on social media as I used to be. I hope in 2022 I will have more opportunity to get out and take more photos.
No comments yet.