In the Moment:
Michael Frye's Landscape Photography Blog

My Top Photographs of 2021

The votes are all in and counted, and here are my top photographs of 2021!

We had a great response this year: 562 people looked through my initial selection of 45 images and voted for their favorites. A big thank you to everyone who took the time to look through these photographs and voice your opinions! I also really appreciate the kind words so many people posted in the comments or sent by email. I wish I could respond to everyone, but please know that I’ve read them all and am very grateful for all your support.

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My Best Images of 2021: the Nominees

Happy New Year!

It’s become a New Year’s tradition on this blog to pick my best images from the past year, and once again I’m inviting you to help me make these difficult choices. I’ve posted 45 of my best photographs from 2021 below, in chronological order. After you look through these, please use the form at the bottom of this post to list your ten favorites.

Please don’t post your votes in the comments, or send them by email, because they won’t be counted! Use the form at the bottom of this post instead.

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Happy Solstice!

Pink light on El Capitan at sunset, Yosemite NP, CA, USA

Pink light on El Capitan at sunset, Yosemite, last Tuesday evening. 50mm, 1/8 sec. at f/11, ISO 100.



We’ve reached the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, and this year it actually feels like winter here in the Sierra Nevada. In some recent years the weather has been warm and dry in December – and that’s the way this month began. But last week two separate storms brought over five inches of precipitation to Yosemite Valley.

The first storm was the biggest. It rained hard in the Valley on Monday, but by Tuesday morning rain had changed to snow, eventually piling up about eight inches of white stuff. Our workshop group had to wait out some of that rain on Monday, but then we photographed almost all day Tuesday, with some brief breaks to dry out and warm up.

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Autumn on the East Side

Aspens and pines in a snowstorm, Inyo NF, CA, USA

Aspens and pines in a snowstorm, Inyo NF, California. 141mm, 1/250 sec. at f/16, ISO 1600.

In early October Claudia and I traveled to Utah and Colorado, and on our way we made a brief stop in the eastern Sierra.

Forecasts predicted a cold storm with low snow levels (for early October). That meant we might get to photograph aspens in snow, with autumn color, if we made it over to the eastern Sierra before the storm. So we packed hurriedly, hoping to make it over Tioga Pass before the road closed – which we did, with about 30 minutes to spare.

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Last Chance to Get My Lightroom Courses Before Prices Go Up!

Sunrise from Tunnel View after a spring snowstorm, Yosemite NP, CA, USA

Sunrise from Tunnel View after a spring snowstorm, Yosemite (2015). In my Landscapes in Lightroom: Advanced Techniques course I show how to subtly enhance the inherent qualities of light in photographs like this.

If you’ve been thinking about getting one of my Lightroom courses, today’s the day, because the prices will be going up at midnight tonight Pacific Time. And until midnight you can still get 15% off the current price for Landscapes in Lightroom: The Essential Step-by-Step Guide, and Landscapes in Lightroom: Advanced Techniques (or the complete set that includes both) by using the code MASKING15.

Also, if you purchase any of my Lightroom courses you’ll be able to attend the live Lightroom processing webinar I’ll be giving on January 8th, and submit images for possible inclusion in this webinar.

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