Favorite Pics of 2025

Welp. Fair warning. After being sick for over a week, it looks like this post is just a little late...

During 2025, we were able to get out more often for photo trips than during the previous year or two. So I'm going to highlight a few of my favorites from the year in this post. Starting my choices, from one of our last outings of the year, "Rainy Day Mood" became a favorite for the

"Rainy Day Mood"

spotlighted, single, yellow tree in the gloom. The day had started sunny, and then just got wetter and wetter. It was the start of several days of rainfall from the remnants of a tropical storm that stalled out over southern Colorado, and that hit Pagosa Springs hard, leading to

"Rainy Day Mood" (warm version)

significant flooding there. This view features the Conejos River near the base of Cumbres Pass in southern Colorado.

I've played with this one a couple of different ways, and I'm still on the fence about my favorite; I can't decide if I like the more wintery version shown at the top, or the greener, warmer version, above. I have different reasons for liking both, so I'd love to hear about your preference, and why you like it.

Closeup of Pasqueflowers which bloom in early spring

From last spring, I got two images of wildflowers that I'm notably happy with. The first is this one of pasqueflowers (Pulsatilla nuttaliana or Anemone patens) in bloom. They're much easier to identify than they apparently were to categorize taxonomically! As a result, not only are they known by multiple common names (including wild crocus and prairie crocus), but their Latin names have changed several times over the past century or two.

The second wildflower photo I'm really happy with is this gorgeous globemallow (Sphaeralcea sp.). At the moment, I'm not sure which species it is, although I'm reasonably sure it's not desert globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua), more often seen in Utah

Brilliant globemallow blossoms

than in Colorado. That leaves scarlet globemallow (Sphaeralcea coccinea) and small-leaf globemallow (Sphaeralcea parvifolia) as more probable candidates, and means I have more research to do. These plants were found beside the highway along West Creek, a few miles north of Gateway, Colorado. Cropping both images square highlights the delicate details and colors of the wildflowers, and I suspect they'll be added to my website soon.

One of my more whimsical finds of the year was the 'waving hands' pictograph and its accompanying 'white bird' that are found inside a good-sized alcove under a cliff in the Canyon Pintado National Historic District. Canyon Pintado means Painted Canyon, and was named by the Dominguez-Escalante expedition in the late 1700's. The many artifacts, pictographs, and petroglyphs found in this area are fascinating because they all leave more questions than they answer. For example, "Could people live in this dry, harsh climate?" and "Did a culture thrive here?" The answer to both questions is, "Yes." However, just a few of the unanswered questions include, "What do the symbols mean?" "Why did they

"Waving Hands and White Bird"

choose these locations?" "Do they relate to religious practices, or are they something like the equivalent of a map, or a letter to family, or even the ancient version of 'Kilroy was here'?"

For example, this particular alcove was once much larger, but part of the roof has collapsed, and the fallen slab is actually upside down; the rippled effect matches the design on the remaining ceiling. However, it was far too even to feel natural. That means that if it was a man-made design, it took ages (maybe months, or many artists?) to shape with the stone tools they

"Sisters"

would have had available, and was much higher than could be reached by the presumably small people of the time, likely requiring at least some form of platform. And that just leads to more questions.

I picked this angle for the photo because it's funny to imagine someone stuck behind the slab, trying to get out. Can you just picture them wiggling their fingers?

Of course, fall is always my favorite time for photography, and this year was no exception. The image that's captured my own attention most significantly is this one, "Sisters." I love the family vibe of those bright white aspen (Populus tremuloides ) trunks clustered together, with the wild splash of the colorful leaves around them. I'd really like to know what comes to your mind when you see it. Let me know in the Comments.

My choice for abstract of the year is, "Aspen Dance." I used intentional camera movement (ICM) to blur the hard lines of the trunks and twigs, blending the leaves into colors and tones

"Aspen Dance"

instead of distinct shapes. I kept the colors soft, since too much contrast or saturation takes away the dreamy sense of veils and scarves. I'm thinking about making it a 16x9 ratio to compress the height and highlight the impression of movement, and because the hint of blue sky at the top is a little distracting.

I'm probably going to make a Favorite Pics of 2025 - Part 2 because I keep finding others I'd like to share, too. For example, a fun error that includes the Orion constellation. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, Shop Art, see what catches your fancy, and visualize it on your own wall at home or in your office! I'm preparing new works to add, so be sure to check back. As always, I invite comments and critiques. You can reach me directly here. Thank you for following my posts!