I've selected this image as it has always been a location that I love and on this one evening I really appreciated the help I got from the rising crescent moon.

Mono Lake felt so other-worldly. We traveled from Lake Tahoe and started the night with strong moonlight which was great for seeing the incredible formations since we arrived after dark.

I can't say this image compares with all the wonderful work I've seen, but I keep coming back to it for what it represents. At one level it's a reminder of the wonderful camaraderie and insight that Brad and the whole group shared in our workshop. And beyond that, it's an expression of the growth and inspiration that I found there.

I picked this photo because it was the most challenging. I did not realize it at the time, but having these perfect conditions, no clouds, warm weather and full arch Milky Way was a gift not many folks get to see in their lifetime.

Mono Lake is a location that is always harder and pushes me a bit further than I expect. But during the alumni class I was happy to get some images I was proud of and this is one of them.

This photo is my stars trail from the Mono Lake Workshop Brad held last June. This was my very first star trail so it is very special to me, both learning the technique of taking the photos and the processing. The intervalometer had totally confused me until that night! Not to mention it …

It's always hard to pick just one image for the year but this image has to be the one just because of the fact that it got 3rd place on the Astronomy Photographer of the Year contest on the moon category. I took this photo early in 2016 (back in January 23rd) at the Pleasure Pier in Galveston, TX. It is actually an 8 image stitched panorama I took with the sigma 150-600mm at 600mm.

This is my favorite image from 2016 as Century Lakes Highway was still closed in May when this photo was taken. So, I packed up my photo and camping gear into a bike trailer and road down to this location and proceeded to enjoy a super peaceful night on Sparks Lake. Now if only Mountain Bikes were allowed in Wilderness areas I would disappear for weeks at a time.

I have a hard time picking a single image to be my favorite for the year. I go back and forth between ones that might be better technically and ones that mean something to me. I ended up with this one because it puts a smile on my face knowing what fun was had on this trip. The lighting on the tent was just a product of sharing a tent with my wife and 3 cattle dogs. Our dogs love our backcountry trips and have turned into great travel companions, though they do tend to hog the sleeping bag.

This image was taken during my first backcountry multi day hike. There is always a element of risk we have to take to achieve highest rewards. The risk that was taken to hike to this place makes it memorable for me and hence i consider this as my best image of 2016. See …