Photographs of 2010

Lavender Fields

Photograph by Gerd Ludwig

Purple tints land and sky as night falls over lavender fields at Tasmania’s famed Bridestowe Estate. The plantation is one of the largest lavender farms in the world.

Serra da Leba, Angola

Photograph by Kostadin Luchansky

This is Serra da Leba, a landmark in Angola. It has been one of the country’s postcard images for decades, but all shots were taken by day. I needed something different. I decided to try a night shot, but it seemed impossible: pitch black, foggy, an altitude of 1,800 meters (5,000 feet). My Nikon can stay open as long as 60 seconds max. But a car takes a few minutes to climb and descend and complete the “drawing.” The fog was blocking! Suddenly the fog cleared, a car went down, another went up, and they met in the middle in under 60 seconds. Painting done.

Puffin, Shiant Islands

Photograph by Jim Richardson, National Geographic

Dapper black-and-white razorbills (at right) and bright-beaked puffins (at left and in air, at center) find a haven on the Shiant Islands, just a few miles southeast of Lewis, Scotland. Nearly 8,000 razorbills and more than 200,000 puffins are estimated to use these islands as their breeding grounds each year.

Manarola, Italy

Photograph by Paul Hogie

A scene of the tiny village of Manarola on the Cinque Terre coast of Italy. I camped on this spot for some time waiting for the right balance of light as the sun set. I was rewarded with many great shots of the late afternoon and even in moonlight. This long exposure captures the essence of the village with the locals all joining for a party near the boat ramp.

Cherry Trees and Walkway, Japan

Photograph by Thomas Simonson

This picture was taken in Iwakuni, Japan at the Kintai Bridge. The Cherry Blossom (Sakura) festival had just ended and that is when I decided to go and get some good pictures.

Tarpon and Silversides, Grand Cayman

Photograph by Mike Sutton Brown

The picture was taken at Eden Rock, Grand Cayman. For just a short time every year these silversides swarm caves and swim-throughs at Cayman’s dive sites. The picture was taken late afternoon just as the sun was going down. I was hiding behind the silversides, low in the rocks. As the tarpon swam through the silversides, they eventually saw me and turned away. Just like you see in the picture.