My Top 10 from 2023
As 2023 wraps up I revisited the many photos I made over the course of the year trying to narrow it down to my top 10 favorites from the year. I could’ve easily had 15, getting rid of those last five involved some difficult choices, but these, to me, top everything from the year.
Stevie at Urban Stampede Coffee in Grand Forks, ND. The afternoon February light was coming through the windows perfectly and I needed coffee to warm up since it was well below zero outside. This photo is an outtake from an assignment I photographed for the Wall Street Journal about the proposed (and since halted) Fufeng corn mill in Grand Forks.
A frosty road in McClean County, ND, in February. My friend Joshua was visiting ND for the first time and we happened upon this scene while traveling to the western part of the state. This photo was selected as part of Dodho Magazine’s Monochromatic 2023 book.
Bobby having lunch at Pam’s Cafe in Pleasant Hill, IL, in April. I was visiting my friend Jerry in Pleasant Hill and he introduced me to Bobby, we had a conversation about the feed store his family used to own in town.
Floyd lighting his corncob pipe in Atchison, KS, in April. Floyd came down to a park along the Missouri River each morning to feed “his” cats, some strays that hang around the park. He cuts up cigars to use for pipe tobacco and then watches barges go by or visits with people in the park.
A barn swallow in an abandoned house in Benson County, ND, in May. I was pretty lucky to capture the bird’s wings extended like this at just the right moment. Since I was using a flash there was only one shot to get it. The bird escaped the house right after this photo.
Dairy Queen in Grand Forks, ND, in June. This was an outtake from an assignment I photographed for the German magazine Capital about the Fufeng corn mill in Grand Forks.
Citizens of Butte, ND, watch an Independence Day fireworks show on July 4. Butte has a population of about 70 but was able to raise funds for their own fireworks show and Independence Day celebration. They had enough fireworks to go for nearly two hours.
A Mid-Dakota League softball game in Woodworth, ND. I didn’t even know this league existed, I just happened to come across this game driving through Woodworth on my way to somewhere else. Woodworth has a population of only 44 but still manages to field and host its own softball team.
Dana and his brother Ethan, both of Robson Honey, pull honey from bee hives near Carrington, ND, in September. North Dakota is the top honey producing state in the nation and I photographed a few different apiaries this fall for a project looking at honey production in North Dakota. Right now these bees should be enjoying warm weather somewhere in Texas.
The remains of a grain elevator as seen through an International Scout at Okaton, SD, in October. This was the first day of a two week road trip to the four corners region. I wanted to shoot this elevator at sunset and had planned for it. I didn’t plan on the Scout being there. Late afternoon clouds had rolled in obscuring the sunset, but I got lucky and the sun found a hole for just a few minutes, just enough time to get this photo.