2006 in Review: The Year in Pictures

I got this idea from someone… 🙂

Frankly, my photos are not on her level. Katya’s (aka Slight Clutter) images are as stunning and brilliant as she is. Check out her series of posts listing her top 10 photos of the year. They are amazing.
I too have my favorites of the year and I figured they would be worth sharing.

10. Scoreboard

Speaking of Katya, I went to an Astros game with her and her parents earlier this year. We both, of course, took our cameras and I managed to catch this guy leaning out of the scoreboard in left field. He looks like he is staring right at me, but I can assure you we were a LONG ways off. I really liked catching this one.

9. “Ming” Joe Green

My only black and white selection for this list was a photo I took during the Rockets Media Day festivities in early October. Representing ClutchFans.net, I got some terrific photos of my favorite team on the planet. This one in the grainy underbelly of the Toyota Center reminded me of that classic Mean Joe Green Coke commercial from the 70’s. Now, I just hope that Yao will be upright like this again soon!

8. Perspective

This image falls into the category of “man, I’m glad I had my camera.” This little girl wandered into the frame as I snapped this shot. Her mom was just off to the left. The contrast between this toddler and the massive waterfall, to me, is so cool.

7. My Favorite Things

A lot of good things have happened to me this year. Meeting her is at the top of the list. Honestly, when I think of Katya, this is what I think of – the smile, the blue eyes and the joy of the moment. Unfortunately, it takes more than a photo to do her justice. If you are lucky enough to know her, you understand.

6. Silent Night

This is the second most recent photo on this list taken at a church in the Heights during their 19th Street holiday celebration. I was fortunate to see the tree’s reflection in a large mirror in the lobby and snap this with the autofocus turned off. I liked it so much, it ended up on my Christmas cards.

5. Bright City

I don’t take many photos that I am proud of, but this is definitely one of them. A fairly long exposure on a tripod behind the Wortham Center downtown on a muggy Sunday night (Memorial Day eve) happened to turn into one of my favorite shots of all time. I’m just glad I was there to press the button.

4. Candy Land

Funny, but this was not a shot I thought was all that great when I took it. I liked the perspective, but it wasn’t my favorite. It grew on me a lot. Taken during “the World’s Largest Indoor Carnival,” I was more thrilled to be inside the Eighth Wonder of the World enjoying some fun and photo taking. The more I see this photo, the more I like it and I’m glad I took it.

3. Golden Child

I wish I could take credit for how beautifully this photo turned out, but, honestly, it had more to do with Mother Nature than with me. This beautiful little girl was part of a wedding Katya and I shot in Galveston early this fall. The light at dusk just before the end of daylight savings time was absolutely perfect and this little girl was incredibly camera shy. The lighting has that diffused 70’s look to it. One of my all time faves.

2. Dark in the Distance

This is the most recent addition to my top 10 list. It was taken late on a very foggy night on the campus of Rice University. When I opened it in Photoshop, I immediately fell in love with the lighting and the dark, eerie mood of it. I love those moments when you don’t know if you got a decent shot, open it up in Photoshop and get completely surprised by something you didn’t expect. There’s something really magical and wonderous about how quiet and still it is late at night when it is foggy. It can be spooky, but it is also really beautiful.

1. Little House on the Prarie

This may very well be my favorite picture I’ve ever had the pleasure of taking. In June, I went on vacation – a long drive out to San Francisco to visit friends and back again. I took nearly 2000 photos on that trip and this is the one at the top of the heap. After leaving Mammoth Lakes early one morning, I made the drive north towards Reno and through the Mono Basin National Forest. Nestled right on this open plain in between the Sierra Nevada mountains was this shack and it’s smaller cousin. I pulled over and began shooting with the car engine still running and dodging gophers and chipmunks. I had to squeeze myself through the barbed wire fence to shoot this shot and I’m forever grateful for the beautiful day and the time I had to stop and enjoy this incredible setting. It was so worth it.

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Those are my favorites for 2006. You can see all my other photos in my Flickr photo stream.