My Faves from 2016

OK, so following Davidtrout posting his fabulous set of personal 'best of 2016' images, here's my take. No comparisons with David's excellence please

These represent my 12 favourite images from this year - not my 'best of each month' (some of them were taken on the same day!), or necessarily even my best quality 12. But images I really enjoyed making for reason's I'll try to give in wee summaries.


12. Sutton Beach
Possibly the most boring beach in Britain for standard landscape photography, so you have to try something different. And going for the swoosh left me with very wet boots and trousers on a cold March day .





11. Fellside
Taken whilst climbing Hallin Fell on the east side of Ullswater to snap the standard (wonderful) wide landscape image from it's top, I took this study of the hillside across the valley. This was the moment that cemented a growing interest in abstract landscape images, which I've dabbled with ever since.





10. Curtain
Snow showers over the Arenigs, Snowdonia, on an April day of incredible changing weather conditions - snow, hail, rain, wind, bright sunshine... the lot. I've done fewer B&W conversions this year, but felt it worked for this.





9. New Red Sandstone
Abstract of the fabulously weathered and patterned rocks at Merkland Point on the Isle of Arran. Taken early one morning on a family holiday. I could have spent all day there





8. Bracken in the bracken
Our dog, in classic 'hoping for biscuit' mode. I had the Ricoh GR in my pocket, without which there are quite a few images like this I would have missed this year.





7. Storm over Y Garn
Looking south from the middle of Snowdonia to Cadair Idris in the distance, shortly before I took #10. Another lesson in how great rapidly changing weather is for landscape images.





6. Tryfan
A much photographed mountain, but a 4:30am start and hike up the hill in freezing April conditions was rewarded with this .





5. Autumn Birch
Image of a tree 2 minutes from our house, which I love due to its wonderful shape. But I've never been able to get a decent image of it due to clutter in it's background and difficult angles. October brought an opportunity for a more abstract image, and having staked the tree out for so long I'm quietly satisfied with this.





4. Samarian Tree
The Samaria Gorge in Crete is just astonishing (go if you can!!!). I was really pleased to spot this moment as changing light falls into its depths.





3. Pen yr Ole Wen
Another from 'that day' in Snowdonia, which was actually on a photography workshop run by Greg Whitton. Going on a couple of workshops this year has been great fun, forcing me to get out and seriously snap and really helping me focus my photography. I like this particular image as I went a bit off piste compared to the other folk on the workshop, who all stayed the other side of a wee ridge, facing 180 degrees in the other direction. They missed this





2. Sea of light

The Hope Valley from Mam Tor during a decent temperature inversion is one of the great sights of the Peak District. I've a set of images from this morning in September, all of which I really like, but this was the moment the rising sun lit up the surface of the fog. Just magical.





1. A rock, two trees and some bur-reed
This is an image of two much photographed trees reflected in Llyn y Dywarchen, again in Snowdonia (although not on 'the day' ). It's my favourite of my own images from 2016 as it's an abstract landscape image, it's in 4x5 portrait (a format I'm increasingly drawn to) and I had to work bloomin hard to make it work, getting the angles exactly right, getting the filtering right (polariser and ND), and being patient with the light. One of the few times I've genuinely pre-visualised what I wanted and then got there






Thanks for looking everyone, and happy photography in 2017!

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Tim

Some of my vaguely better stuff

Fantastic, I've never captured anything like any of those (maybe some cat photos that could compare with your lovely hound) These are really what Pentax is all about.

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What a great Landscape selection - One Subject with such varying images - Simply Superb, Thanks for sharing

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LennyBloke

Superb photos

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Pentax hybrid user - Digital K3 & K200D, film 645 and 35mm SLR and Pentax (&other) lenses adapted to Fuji X digital
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What an excellent set. I particularly like the North Wales mountain scenes in winter, the contours of the Fellside photo and the Samarian mountain gorge.A really good selection Tim.
David

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PPG: http://www.pentaxphotogallery.com/artists/davidtrout

One can immediately tell how much of a hard work was involved in production of these inspiring photographs. I particularly like your "Curtain", obviously the dog's tale too, and the reflection of tree in the river. Sutton Beach can make you feel dizzy But in a positive way, of course. Lovely set, thanks for sharing

I think we should all 'go for the swoosh' a lot more, based on that great result! You really made something from that most boring beach ....

The best for me are the Red Sandstones and Pen yr Ole Wen ..... I'm glad you were facing the other way for that one!

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Holy crap! The best 2016 round up image calendar for me. Stunning, that is all, just stunning

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Gareth
Welsh Photographer

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The landscape abstracts are wonderful and I totally endorse your comment about the Samaria Gorge. It is a stunning sight (or sights) and a fantastic achievement to go from the top to the bottom.

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Both the *istDS and the K5 are incurably addicted to old glass

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stunning images, especially the ones in snowdonia..

Gosh, thanks for all the comments folks, very much appreciated . 2016 was an excellent photographic year for me , so I'm hoping for more of the same in 2017



That's really exceptionally generous Gareth and, coming from you, just hugely appreciated . Mind you, the 2016 portfolios are still coming in, so hopefully some cracking work still to see

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Tim

Some of my vaguely better stuff

Tim - some spectacular images! I love the Snowdonia stormy looks (nos 10 & 7), and also the lighting in Samaria Gorge - I too can thoroughly recommend a visit there!

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Andy

Real quality here... what a wonderful year you've had Tim... particularly atmospheric and evocative images... my personal faves 9, 4 and 1... the Samaria Gorge is quite something...

Best

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Bill

BillWardPhotography
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