Looking Back at 2025: I Was There

Galleries are better viewed on a computer than a smartphone One of my favorite things to do at year’s end is to look back at the images that made the waning year especially memorable. And each year, I think to myself, ‘Wow—this was probably my best year ever and there’s no way I’ll be able match that success next year.’ You’d think maybe I’d…

Night Vision

When it comes to natural beauty, I’ll be the first to admit that there is nothing like being there. In person we get to enjoy all the movement and simultaneous multi-sensory input that’s lost in a still image—not to mention the synergistic amplification of awe and joy that comes with witnessing a special event with others. But let’s pause for a moment to appreciate…

A Moving Experience

I’ve been photographing Kilauea’s eruptions, in many forms, for 15 years, but never anything close to the spectacular display my workshop group and I witnessed in September. It wouldn’t be hyperbole to say that this was one of the most memorable experiences of my life. (I’ve said that about Kilauea eruptions before, but each time I say it, Kilauea seems to say, “Oh yeah?…

A Diamond in the Surf

With a break in my workshop schedule (and to prepare for my upcoming 2025 Highlights post), I’m working hard to catch up on this year’s unprocessed images. Moving more or less chronologically, I’m really having a blast—such a blast that balancing this processing with family Holiday priorities and the endless demands of running a business, my weekly blog schedule has slipped a bit. But…

Plot Twist

One overcast autumn evening in Yosemite, I wandered an isolated trail on the bank of the Merced River with my 100-400 lens, searching for intimate scenes to isolate. Spotting an assortment of colorful leaves clinging to a beautifully textured log, an opportunity materialized in my mind. Though my eyes could see the log and leaves mingling with a reflection of overhanging branches and yellow…

Moon Chasing

Many years ago I stood with a couple of other photographers on Sentinel Bridge in Yosemite. It was a few minutes before sunset and we were waiting, cameras poised, for the moon to ascend from behind Half Dome. As we chatted, a young woman approached and asked no one in particular what we were all waiting for. When I told her about the imminent…

Let’s Get Vertical (Again)

(This seed of today’s blog is a post from many years ago—but the image and its story are brand new.) What’s your orientation? I’ve always questioned the reasoning behind labeling horizontally oriented images, “landscape,” and vertically oriented images, “portrait.” Despite my profession as a landscape (-only) photographer, nearly half of my images use “portrait” orientation. So it concerns me that this arbitrary naming bias…

Super? Moon

This week’s full moon was a “supermoon”—or, as the media frequently proclaimed, “The biggest moon of 2025!” And while that is technically true, the size difference between a super and average moon is barely perceptible. So, as a public service, I’ve dusted off and updated a prior article explaining the supermoon phenomenon (any hyperbole)—and what better time to share it than just days after…

Open Mind and Open Eyes

As landscape photographers, it’s easy to arrive at a photo location with a preconceived idea of what we’re going to shoot. That’s often because there’s a single perspective that gets all the attention, dominating the images of the location shared online and skewing the perception of what its images should look like. At Mono Lake, despite its sprawling layout with lake views that span…

Among the Aspen

I’m deviating (briefly) from grand landscapes to remind you (and myself) that even the most beautiful scene is abundant with smaller, simple beauty. Case in point: The Eastern Sierra, which is filled with expansive views beautiful enough to easily drown out Nature’s exquisite subtleties. Last week I shared an image from North Lake that featured many of the components nature photographers look for in…