Top 10 photos of 2023

While I didn’t photograph as much as I would have liked over the year, I was outside a lot more and captured different subjects outside of my usual repertoire. I photographed more landscapes and that was a new challenge. Still, my favorite thing is to photograph people and I did plenty of that in 2023 as well. Here are 10 of my favorite images from the year:

This was the first backpacking trip I took with my wife, and as we neared the end of a long first day, we took a break on this log. As I went to pick up my trekking pole, I noticed this gecko. I love the understated colors of the lizard.

I use this photo to illustrate my growth as a photographer. A year prior, I captured a very similar photo in the same place of the Tacoma Dome. The image was grainy and the composition poor. But this frame — a screaming coach in front of a clean black background — was a big step forward for me.

When I woke up on this day during my nine-day backpacking trip of the Wonderland Trail, I said “that storm will take awhile to build on the mountain”. About five minutes after this picture was taken, the sky opened up and soaked me on the trek up to Golden Lakes. No camera gear was harmed!

I don’t often get to shoot photos for news stories any more, and this piece on affordable housing didn’t exactly scream “great photo opportunity”. But a photogenic city planner, colorful housing and a green space merged to create this fun portrait.

You ever been so dominant at something that you can laugh while you’re pinning somebody in a state championship match? Me neither. But Toppenish’s Justyce Zuniga was having fun on his way to a state title.

Pole vaulting is one of the most fun events to shoot in track and field. After years of photographing the event, you learn some tips and tricks. And on a bluebird day, this capture highlighting the focus and form of this Columbia River vaulter comes together.

This is probably the coolest picnic shelter in the state, and played background to this engagement session at Manchester State Park. The castle-like background, though, is just that when put up against the way this couple looks at each other.

Portraits are not usually not top priority when photographing sports, but they’re always welcome if you get the chance. The sweat beads, the focused eyes and those classic neon lights of the Tacoma Dome make this one of my favorites.

The morning light eclipsing the trees and this bright smile gives this black-and-white shot a timeless feel.

I liked the colors of this image so much, I printed it out big, framed it and gave it to my mom — an avid lighthouse lover — for Christmas. The North Head Lighthouse in Ilwaco, Washington, is the less photographed of the two lighthouses in Cape Disappointment State Park, but I found it the more photogenic of the two.