2017 Favorites

Well I am back to post my 10 favorite images of 2017. This process has become quite a favorite process of fellow Photographers with more posting their favorites this year than in the past. The 10 images I have chosen are, I think, a nice representation of my work and production this last year but in many cases it was very hard to select one out of many that I believe were excellent images. 2017 was again a very productive year even though my postings do not give credit to the amount of work I achieve.Rather than just posting these images, I though I would give little narrative to each of the image I am presenting. The order of the images are also representative of activity through the year rather than an order of my preferences. Thus, the one above began the year in Bandon with a very rare snowfall on the beach. It was taken in the early  morning on January 5th.

Over the last 9 years, I have traveled to Pennsylvania with my wife as she attended her Board of Trustee's meetings in Chambersburg. These opportunities have allowed me to roam the countryside and become familiar with the local color and scenery of the Amish, Dutch, German flavors as well as the early history of our country. Unfortunately this last year brought an end to these journeys as Susanna cycled off of her position. This image is one of the two black and white images that make up my list of 10. It is a fine example to the typical Pennsylvania barns that populate many of the back roads.  This barn is located South Eastern Pennsylvania, south of East Waterford. The black and white treatment is a tribute to a wonderful book by Steve Rosenthal called White on White, Churches of Rural New England.  (Information here).

April brought a visit to South Florida and Cuba. I have already entered a good summary of that trip with a number of my images which included this one. However, I particularly like this image as I think it captures the mood and essence of life in Havana now. The old modified Chevy, the old woman waiting for a ride, the other Cubans heading off and the cultural heritage of Havana. The picture was taken in the old town, I believe around Trocadero and perhaps Blanco.

At the end of our Cuba trip, we stayed for a couple of days in South Beach, Miami. What a fun vibrant place and full of various Art Deco buildings, structures and elements; from parking meters and buildings to lifeguard stations. I had a lot of fun shooting the various Lifeguard towers with a number of really nice images and fun colors. This particular image of the South Point Jetty lifeguard tower I chose perhaps, because it represents a lighthouse and with a nice view north along the beach. Here is a nice web site with a tour of the lifeguard towers.

Having visited St Michaels on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake before, Susanna insisted that as a treat for her last meeting in Pennsylvania that we visit it together. I would imagine that just about any time of the year, is a great time to visit the Eastern Shore, but May is obviously one of them. We roamed around and saw a lot of the small towns but mostly hung out in St Michaels. This image is of a popular spot in the Chesapeake Bay Museum at Navy Point of the Crabmeat Company dock and their old Chesapeake crab boat before sunrise.

I really like this image. It is, obviously, a small horse barn with a couple of horses feeding in front of it. What makes it such a fun image is the nice field of Crown Daisies in front and leading down to the barn. The barn and horses are along Highway 38 between Elkton and Drain in Western Oregon.

I worried about having too many images that are similar, but it readily becomes obvious what I like taking images of; barns, lighthouses scenic wonders and definitely boats. Not having taken too many images in and around Coos Bay, I ventured up there one morning and captures this shot of the little mirage area around the Coos Bay Boardwalk in the middle of the town.

October brought a visit to England were we visited the Peaks District and the Cotswolds. What an absolutely gorgeous area with the rolling hills, sheep pastures, stone walls, hedge rows, stone and/or wood English barns, walking paths, fall color, etc. While this image is not of the rolling hills, I kind of like it as a representation of the area, a nice oak tree with sheep grazing below, a dirt drive and the shrubs on the hill behind.By the way, if anyone is heading to England on a photo trip, or just a trip I found what I consider to be the finest Photography Guide Books EVER. They are produced by Fotovue (Fotovue.com). As an example, I just received their recently published book called Photographing Scotland. It is almost 600 pages of wonderful images, maps and suggestions of where to shoot and when. There only downside is that they are sooooo good that they are also quite heavy. So buy one and do your work early.

My second black and white, an early morning shot from the sidewalk along the Champs-Elysées looking at the Arc de Triomphe. Again, a lot to choose from but I liked the mood of this image with just the peak a boo view of the Arc de Triomphe.

Last, a nice straight on view of the Hanalei Bay Pier in Hanalei Bay on Kauai  in the  early morning with a person fishing at the end of the pier. Across the bay, one looks at (I think as it was hard getting information on them) is Waikoi in front and the larger range is Wainiha Pali.Have a

Happy and productive New Year everyone.

Earl