I’ve written up drafts of how amazing a year 2023 was countless times – they’re all terribly wordy. Just know that I am blessed to have had as great a year as I had this year. Let’s look at my twelve best images from the year.
Winter
Franconia Notch Snow Shroud
This first image was from the morning that I hiked to Lonesome Lake in Franconia Notch. While I love the images that I got that morning at the lake, my favorite image from the day was when I was driving around the parkway. I saw the fog shrouding the Franconia Ridge trail side of the valley and had to take this photo.
The Beast Of The East
Still deep in winter, my second favorite photo from 2023 was this image I captured while skiing down Killington with some friends of mine. I’d never have been able to capture this image if I didn’t have the pocket-friendly X100V.
Spring
Local Lakes
After celebrating my brothers college graduation I began to drive home. On the way it began to rain as I passed a local lake, but the hole on the horizon indicated that we’d be getting a vibrant sunset. I decided, “Traffic be damned” I’m photographing this sunset, and I am so glad that I did. The conditions only continued to get better.
Lilies & Charles
Jackson, Liam, and I went to Buttermilk and Bourbon on June 29th, 2023. After dinner, we walked down to the Charles. Of course I had my camera on me. Once we arrived, we walked along the waters edge for a bit before reaching a section with all these lilies. When I saw the lone floating log in the scene, I knew this was a photograph I had to take.
Summer
View Facing West
On a special someone’s birthday we were up very high celebrating. After a thunderously stormy day, near the finale of the day the clouds parted and we were treated to possibly the most vibrant sunset I saw all year. I was lucky enough to be positioned in a vantage point where I could capitalize on this view.
Fall
Fences Of Byway 28
The first image I adored of my Fall 2023 photo-trip. After landing in Salt Lake City I drove quite some time to reach Salmon Idaho. On the way I rode Byway 28 for a long-time and at one point I reached these beautiful prairies and fields along the valley floor. I pulled off and took in the scene and found this fence.
Grinnell
From a drama and subject perspective I acknowledge this is most likely the best image in the set. After a lovely morning I didn’t entirely rush to reach Grinnell Glacier. I enjoyed the drive there and enjoyed my hike and I’m lucky that I did. If everything hadn’t gone on the exact timeline that it did, It’s very likely I wouldn’t have been where I was when the light shown here was popping off as it did.
The One That’ll Surprise You
The reason this one might surprise you is that with a year filled with stunning sunsets sunrises and mountain scenes, how could a simple photo of a prairie cow and some clouds make it to my top twelve list? The answer is that when I took this photo I felt at peace. Completely unfazed by the world around me and completely present in this moment. It doesn’t hurt that I love the light on display and the contrast of the shaded foreground and brightly lit rolling hills of the background.
Meet Me In Jackson
Upon arriving in the Tetons I had an amazing first day. I took several images this day that I was proud of, but my personal favorite was this image I took on the Park Road. The gradient in the sky combined with the blurred taillights lead to an incredible composition.
Sage Brush Branches
After a morning of struggle where the subject I was aiming to shoot wasn’t cooperating (due to clouds blocking the light hitting the subject) I needed to pivot. I began looking at the area around me instead of focus in on the subject I wanted and focused on the subjects I had. That’s when I got this belter of an image
Mormon Row – Moulton Barn
This is my favorite image of the year.
Fallen Foliage
Upon returning to New England and back to my “day-to-day” after the Fall 2023 trip, I visited Vermont with Sophie to see her family. While there I snagged this image of the leaves on the ground. I quite like the colors and composition on display.
I really hope you enjoyed the work I put on display here. This was a great year for my photography. If you want to see more of my work, check out my Flickr or visit my print site, CHNO.co.
Subscribe to the newsletter to keep up to-date with my latest work!
Note: 2023 is not over yet – and after Christmas I’ll be in the snow covered North of New England. If I get a great image there that I think makes the cut I’ll release an update with that image! Stay tuned!
Grinnell and meet me in jackson are beautiful. All the pictures are
Spectacular. Keep them coming. 👏🏼👍👏🏼👍
Very nice pictures Zack you really had an awesome time.