This is the third time after 2011 and 2012 that I compile my favorite images of the year. It all started for me by Jim Goldstein‘s project ‘Your Best Photos From 2011’  where he asked photographers to submit their best photos to his compilation (Thank you, Jim!). I think it is very rewarding to go through past photos and review them and learn from mistakes and successes. But it is always very challenging to make the final selection and sad to cut some worthwhile candidates.

Last year was the first time I had a show. I joined Studio Nocturne SF for their Open Studios weekend at San Francisco’s Fort Mason. This was very exciting and influenced somewhat the type of images I took during the year. The night theme went well with my continued quest to photograph special events (eg. SF City Hall illuminated in rainbow colors) and moon alignments (eg. Bliss Dance statue touching the moon). I love to travel and was fortunate to go to Cuba, France, Italy and Switzerland. Some of the chosen images come from these trips.

This was a great year and I hope you will enjoy looking at my images as much as I enjoyed making and reviewing them.

 

Eiffel Tower at Sunset, Paris [link]

Thanks to the rain, I got this nice reflection of the sunset and the Eiffel tower on the granite slabs of the Trocadero.

Dead Tree with Milkyway, Eastern Sierra

The Eastern Sierra is a great place to see the night sky thanks to very limited city light pollution. To create this image, I light painted the tree with my flashlight.

Balloons in the Sierra Nevada [link]

I have a really great memory of this shot: while shooting hot-air balloons getting ready to take-off, one pilot asked me if I would like to join him for a ride. I had a lot of fun up there! Thank you, Jeff, for taking me with you!

Bonsai Rock, Lake Tahoe

I’d heard  about this place for a while, but this past summer I finally made it there. It is an interesting shooting location and I will be back.

San Francisco’s City Hall Shines in Rainbow Colors [link]

During Pride Week in June, the City Hall was illuminated in rainbow colors. I couldn’t resist to go out and capture this ‘on film’.

Touch of Bliss, San Francisco

Bliss Dance is a gorgeous sculpture by Marco Cochrane that is currently installed on Treasure Island. By night, it alights brightly by 1000 slowly changing color LEDs.

Malecón with Sunrays, Havana, Cuba

This was my second day in Havana and I was out discovering the city and scouting for sunset locations when suddenly the clouds broke apart and sunrays shined on the ocean. Then like on command, this girl walked by….

Cupid’s Span with The Bay Lights, San Francisco

Since earlier this year the Bay Bridge is illuminated by The Bay Lights project. This is such a great project that now provides a new compositional element on an otherwise well known landmark.

Basilica del Santissimo Redentore, Venice

I didn’t plan to capture Venus in Venice, but it looks like everything came together when I was out on San Giorgio Maggiore for the sunset.

Red Coit Tower with Moon Crescent, San Francisco [link]

During the 49ers Super Bowl run, several buildings in San Francisco were illuminated in red and gold. One of them was the Coit Tower.