My Favorite Photos Of 2022

This was a year of adapting and trying new things. I tried to make more photos for me this year which led to it being one of the most fun years that I have had overall. I sort of quit using the top 22 of 2022 thing earlier this year, but for this final countdown it comes back. Of course there are photos that I left out of this countdown that could have made it. The order is also pretty much made up for the most part.

22. This year we had a loofa plant growing in our yard. I don’t know why, but this simple photo of a ladybug on what would become the flowers of the plant really was one of my favorite photos of the year. Maybe it has something to do with finding photos everywhere.

21. I love this little scene from a rainy night on campus. This is what I set out to photograph more of this year. To find little ways to show off campus. More photos for me. You can see more of my favorite Purdue images here.

20. This past year I had the chance to photograph swimming and diving for Indiana State and Minnesota. I love making swimming photos so those opportunities were very welcome. For some reason a lot of sports photographers do not like to photograph swimming, but I have always loved it.

19. This year the joke started to be that I had a bird studio in my backyard. As the year went on I started thinking that a few setups would not be a bad idea. I kind of let the see that I throw down in the winter grow up this year. It does not look the best, but it is a great environment for the birds. Here is one of my favorite photos from the backyard studio this year. You can see more of my favorite backyard bird photos here.

18. Another rainy night on campus led to a photo on this countdown. I love blue hour reflections, and here I struck gold.

17. I went down to the Wabash River to make an eagle photo like this one in the snow. This ring-billed gull was the only bird that would play though. I still like how the photo turned out. This year I need to find more time to hang out with the eagles.

16. After a couple of years off the Lafayette Roller Derby team skated again this year. This was the team that gave me my first shot at being a team photographer and I always try to make it to the games. Here are more photos from that bout.

15. I knew early on in fall ball that this past Purdue team was going to be fun. When spring came I couldn’t wait to photograph them. They really play the game hard and with emotion. Both of those together makes for great photos. I don’t know that I will have a role this spring, but I will try and make it out to some games as this team is fun to photograph. Here are my favorite baseball photos from last year.

14. This year I did not make as many heron photos as I have in years past. Here are two of my favorites though. This year I need to get out to the bog more and spend time with the herons. You can view more of my favorite Celery Bog photos from this past year here.

13. This prothonotary warbler posed in the perfect spot to make a photo of it. The sunny day made the water very blue and the perfect background. you can view more of my favorite warbler photos from this past year here.

12. This year I was lucky enough to get to watch a fox den in action. There were two in the same woods, but I liked one a little more than the other because I was farther away from the kits so that I wouldn’t disturb them as much. This was my favorite photo from my time with them. You can view more of my favorite critter photos from this past year here.

11. As a baseball fan I am very lucky to have a diamond in my neighborhood. This year I was lucky enough to see two no-hitters on that diamond. Here are a couple of my favorite photos from both of those games. You can see my favorite high school baseball photos here.

10. This year I photographed a few Harrison football games. I set a goal to photograph the team run out a little different each week. Early in the season the light was really on my side. You can see more of my favorite high school football photos here.

9. The lights of campus along with the blue lights from the Voss model led to one of my favorite photos of the year. A little snokeh doesn’t hurt either. You can see more of my favorite campus photos here.

8. Two owls, same hole, similar ideas. This year I was lucky enough to see a four eastern screech owls. The two above became the parents of two little ones this year. I photographed both of these owls in different times of the year from the same tree. With the grey morph I went with a small in frame idea. With the red morph (Ruby) I really cropped into the photo to show some of the details. One thing that the photos show though is the size difference between these two owls.

7. This year it took a while, but the hummingbirds finally found my backyard. Photographing birds can much like photographing a team for a season. You spend a lot of time building trust with them so that you can make the really good photos later in the year. That was the case here. The hummingbird came to know me, and didn’t care that I was around. You can find more of my favorite backyard bird photos here.

6. This year I had a great time messing around with my infrared camera. In the past I had rented one, but I finally pulled the trigger and bought one. One great trip was out into the country trying to find subjects and see the light a little differently. Above are a couple of favorite photos from that trip. You can see my post from that day here.

5. I only found the Harrison softball team the last two weeks of this past season. They were an amazing two weeks though full of emotion. This was my favorite photo from that time with them. I guess if I only had two weeks with the team I picked a great two weeks to follow them. This year though I need to find them much sooner. Here are my favorite softball photos from 2022.

4. Every year I have a blast making photos at the Lafayette Aviator games. The stadium has changed, but the fun remains. It is great to get back out there and work with a team again. It is hard to take an entire season down to a photo or two so I chose some of my favorite walk off moments from this past year. You can see my favorite Aviator images from this year here.

3. I have not covered a road game for Indiana State since 2017. Before that I had some fun traveling with the team. Heck every home game for them was a road game for me. This year their road game was a home game for me, and I was able to make photos of them again. This photo actually won FCS photo of the week. At the end of the day that doesn’t mean much, but it was a great confidence boost when I really needed one. You can see more of my favorite college football photos from last year here.

2. This year a large group of pelicans made the Celery Bog their home for a few days. I had one great day where they came fairly close to me and just did their thing. This is my favorite photo from that day. You can view more of my favorite Celery Bog images here.

1. This year I set a goal to incorporate the moon into my photos more. I wanted to get out and plan some photos with the moon involved. There is no feeling quite like planning a photo and seeing it come out. This coming year I want to expand on this a little more. I love the idea of planning more photos like this. You can see my favorite moon photos from last year here.

So there are my favorite photos from this past year. One thing that I always love about this list is how different the photos can be. You have macro, snokeh, sports, wildlife, and astro. I know that to be successful I should focus on one area, but the fun of photography is making a wide range of photos. This year I feel that I did a good job of doing that. Looking back at my photos I realize what a great year it was. I think of photos that I missed putting on here. In 2023 I hope that I can top this list. That is the fun in doing this after all. Growing every year makes the journey worth it. If I am being completely honest at this time last year I was thinking about quitting this whole thing. Over the course of this year I realized though that I love making photos, and I will make them anywhere. Focusing on the photos that make me happy really invigorated me. I hope to build on that this year. If you missed any of my best of countdown you can always click here to see more of my favorites from a fun year.