Well, 2020 has come to an end...and many are happy to see it in their rearview mirror. It's been one heck of a trying year for everyone. And definitely not typical, which you will see reflected in my Top 10. You will see half of the images are not in Detroit. Yes, I did shoot in Detroit, but I also made an effort to get out of town to keep my sanity. Not as much travel as typical, but instead kept close to home because, well, pandemic.
My stats this year will not reflect art fairs or events/workshops, since there were none. In September, I realized it was time to find a "job" that would provide stable income, but yet still allow me to photograph. I was thankful that Andy at Stylish Detroit brought me on and I now shoot residential real estate all over southeast Detroit. It doesn't leave as much time to pursue my "fun" photography, but for now it works.
Photos taken: 8,760
Photos processed: 164 (clients and fine art images)
New job: Real Estate Photographer at Stylish Detroit, started September 2020.
My Top 10 images of the year are below, in no certain order.
1. Elmwood Cemetery with Detroit Skyline. With the great fall color this year, I wanted to visit Elmwood Cemetery. To me, it has some of the best fall color to be had in Detroit. I sent my drone up in the air to capture this image, and was glad I was able to capture both the cemetery and the skyline in the same scene. I wrote a photo story documenting my fall color in Detroit series.
2. Cadillac Stamping Plant Machinery. I visited the plant in December 12, 2020, with hopes to take last images before it is torn down. You can read more about this in my photo story as well as see the rest of the image set.
3. Cadillac Stamping Plant Elevator Door Reflection. It is always fortuitous when you visit an abandoned building when it is raining. Reflection shots are always at the top of my list of images to capture, especially when they also have a pop of color and texture.
4. Ren Cen and Detroit Skyline with Sunburst. Captured on October 27, 2020, this image was only possible with my Mavic 2 Drone. It offered the ability to line up the sun with the corner of the Ren Cen to capture the sunburst.
5. Pittsburgh Frick Building. The Frick Building, located in downtown Pittsburgh, is an architectural marvel. It was my favorite building we visited in our trip to West Virginia and Pittsburgh in November. You can see other images of it's interior here.
6. Manistee River High Banks Rollaway Scenic Overlook, Michigan. Captured with my drone, this 9-image panorama highlights the Manistee River curve in this wonderful fall scene. This was my first time even hearing this overlook existed and was so happy the weather was good to capture this. We stayed in my photo friend Bruce Kantor's cabin in Harbor Springs and visited various surrounding areas to capture the color. This fall had wonderful color and did not disappoint! You can view the rest of the images from my up north excursion in this photo story.
7. Lanternman's Mill, Youngstown Ohio. On our way home from Pittsburgh, we planned to visit Lanternman's Mill and a few waterfalls on our way back to Detroit. This mill is located just outside Youngstown, and is a must-visit if you are ever in the area. There is a bridge over the river you capture this scene from, which was under construction at the time. Thankfully the workers were at lunch when we arrived which afforded us this view.
8. Great Falls of Tinkers Creek, Ohio. Little did I know that Cleveland is known for its waterfalls. What? 🤔 It's only 2.5 hours from Detroit and the Great Falls of Tinkers Creek is just one of dozens of falls throughout the Cleveland Metroparks. I like the images with my drone better than the photos I took from the ground. It was a challenge to get the angle I wanted, and the drone did just that. We visited after the fall peak color, but next year plan to go.
9. Abandoned Schoolhouse in the Michigan Thumb. This year is my first time ever photographing the Milky Way, thanks to Scott Shields, who inspired me to give it a try after seeing the images he captured. I couldn't round out my Top 10 without including one of these images. I did learn, however, taking the photo isn't as challenging as processing the photo. Definitely a learning curve! Taken on the evening of November 3, 2020.
10. Tiny Planet Detroit with Cobo Parking Ramp. I was downtown shooting a home for Stylish Detroit when I looked up at the sky and saw there was some sunset potential. I drove over to where Joe Louis used to stand, as I had wanted to experiment with my drone in this area. The "tiny planet" is a 26-image panorama, and processed using the Hugin software. They are fun to create as you never know what you will get until you are in front of your computer. Someone commented on my image that the Cobo Hall parking ramp looked like a lower case "D". So...extra bonus! Taken December 14, 2020.
Thank you to everyone who has supported my work, whether from purchasing a print, hiring me or liking images on social media. I appreciate it all!
