This is my favorite because I took the information, planning and preparation that I learned in the workshop, to go someplace and use the skill set. It still didn't come out as planned but I think that's just being flexible and adjusting to nature. Years ago I wondered how to do this. Now I'm excited that I know how to do this and can go out and explore more with others.

My favorite photo of 2015 was taken in late August on the Icefield's parkway just north of Banff, Canada. It was just after midnight and I had planned a shot using the Star Walk app to frame the Milky Way directly over the Bow Glacier after the moon had set. While waiting for the milky way to move over the glacier where it spilled into the lake. There were two other photographers there doing the same thing. I was taking some shots and noticed that the glacier had taken on a greenish color as I was reviewing images. I turned around and a strong aurora was visible above the trees. Having been to Peyto Lake which was a few miles up the road earlier in the day, I knew that the overlook would be a great vista to shoot from so the three of us drove back up the road and I captured quite a few images of the aurora over the lake as well as some nice time lapse footage. I was fortunate to be there on that night since it had been cloudy for a few weeks and seeing a strong aurora there is not common but that night there was a solar storm and the KP index hit 6. It was also the first time that one of the people that I had met had ever seen the aurora.

The arch, carved out by the Ardèche River, is 60m (200ft) wide and 54m (175ft) high. It is a very popular canoeing and kayaking area and is heavily visited by tourists. It is usually described as the natural entrance to the Ardèche Canyon.

This is my favorite, for sentimental reasons as much as anything. I try to include one or all three of my dogs in my travels, which quite honestly make night photography in the backcountry quite challenging. For the Perseids I had a permit to go backpacking in the southern Sierras with one of my dogs but when we got over there the smoke from the Rough fire was really bad.

Catching a clear night during the summer at the CA coast can be a challenge. The coast often fogs over at sunset and into the night. I have made many attempts to photograph the famous Bixby Bridge. But last summer, I was lucky and not only was the night sky clear, there was little wind which made being out until almost midnight much more pleasant. A strong flashlight aided in the light painting since the bridge was quite a bit away. I am pleased to offer this image for inclusion into the alumni group image collection.

Ideal weather conditions and the spectacular geology of Arches National Park gave me the opportunity to capture a variety of night sky photos that I really liked. But this photo of Broken Arch was my favourite. The arch itself was impressive, and the Milky Way provided the perfect background. Then it all came together as the moon rose above the horizon out of frame, providing enough natural light to beautifully illuminate the scene.

This is my favorite photo of 2015. I took this at Moss Lake in Enchanted Rock Natural Area while on my way to Big Bend National Park for the Perseid meteor shower. While I like the photo itself, what makes it my favorite of the year is that this was my first solo camping trip and it wasn't a "Car camping" trip, but I had to hike a little over 2 miles in the summer Texas heat to reach the camp site which was in itself an achievement since I'm not the most fit person on the planet

This one is probably my favorite from this year as it was more than just driving up to a spot and setting up. For a couple of years now I have been wondering what kind of shot of the rare aurora I could get from the Mt Bachelor cone and on June 22, the numbers were looking really good so the time had come to see. In the summer-time Mt Bachelor closes their gates early in the afternoon so I would have to bike in approximately a mile with my gear and then start an hour + climb up the flank of Mt Bachelor and then finally scrambling up the backside of the "cone". The "cone" is an ancient lava cone covered in loose lava rock which made the final stretch a 2 steps forward one step back process. But, by sunset I had made it to my perch for the evening and patiently waited. And by pure serendipity, a partial moon would be setting at the same time lighting the foreground landscape.

Since I attended your (Goldpaint) workshop in Crater Lake, I was fascinated by the night sky. I’ve been attempting to capture the northern light with a beautiful scene for long. I found this unique location for very good potential of the aurora scene. With several unsuccessful attempts, finally I was fortunate enough to be able to capture this image and very grateful and satisfied.

Aurora Over Boise. It is fun and a challenge chasing auroras at this latitude. Addicting. It all came together 6/22, the alarms went off and KP was 8! The moon, Jupiter & Venus added to the comp. I could see the sky was shimmering, and there was a hint of pink. In RAW it is nearly this bright, I dialed down Vibrance to -15, and Saturation to -10.