The votes are all in and counted, and here are my top photographs of 2023!

We had a great response this year: 478 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.

To express our gratitude we’re giving away a print to one of the voters. We assigned a number to each person who voted, and used a random number generator to pick the recipient. And the winner is… Brad Rank! Brad will receive a signed and numbered 16×20 print of his choice from among the 45 original selections. Congratulations Brad!

I decided to make this final list a top twelve, rather than a top ten, because two of my favorites didn’t quite make the top ten. Number 17, Mud tiles in late-afternoon light, Death Valley, and number 11, Fingers of yellow, Coast Ranges, were 14th and 15th in the voting, respectively, but I feel pretty strongly that they’re two of my best images of the year, so I’m including them in the final twelve. So here’s the list of my top twelve images from 2022:

1. Image #39, Crashing wave, Washington coast, 241 votes
2. Image #24, Redwoods, ferns, and rhododendrons, northern California coast, 203 votes
3. Image #3, Frosted cottonwood, Mono Lake, California, 173 votes
4. Image #26, Melting ice on an alpine lake, Inyo NF, California, 169 votes
5. Image #13, Desert candles above a flower-filled arroyo, Coast Ranges, California, 155 votes
6. Image #29, White-lined sphinx moth and larkspur, Yosemite NP, California, 136 votes
7. Image #18, Star trails over sand dunes, Death Valley NP, California, 132 votes
8. (tie) Image #14, Stream rivulets in salt flats, Death Valley NP, California, 121 votes
8. (tie) Image #22, Evening light on lupines and oaks, Redwood NP, California, 121 votes
10. Image #34, Swirling leaves, Inyo NF, California, 110 votes
11. Image #17, Mud tiles in late-afternoon light, Death Valley NP, California, 87 votes
12. Image #11, Fingers of yellow, Coast Ranges, California, 83 votes

In case you’re curious, numbers 33, 8, and 32 were 11th, 12th, and 13th in the voting.

The image that received the most votes (number 39, Crashing wave, Washington coast), is one I’d never posted before, so I didn’t know how people would react to it, but I’m glad so many of you like it!

The final selection includes a wide variety of images – even a wildlife photograph. There aren’t really any grand, epic landscapes in the top twelve, but then there weren’t many among the nominees, mainly because the opportunities to make those kinds of images didn’t often present themselves last year. But overall I think it’s a great collection. Good work everyone! 🙂

Again, thank you so much for your participation. This has been really fun for me, and I hope you’ve enjoyed it also. Here are the top twelve images:

39. Crashing wave, Washington coast

24. Redwoods, ferns, and rhododendrons, northern California coast

3. Frosted cottonwood, Mono Lake, California

26. Melting ice on an alpine lake, Inyo NF, California

13. Desert candles above a flower-filled arroyo, Coast Ranges, California

29. White-lined sphinx moth and larkspur, Yosemite NP, California

18. Star trails over sand dunes, Death Valley NP, California

22. Evening light on lupines and oaks, Redwood NP, California

14. Stream rivulets in salt flats, Death Valley NP, California

34. Swirling leaves, Inyo NF, California

17. Mud tiles in late-afternoon light, Death Valley NP, California

11. Fingers of yellow, Coast Ranges, California

Related Posts: My Best Images of 2023: the Nominees; My Top Photographs of 2022; My Top Photographs of 2021; My Top Photographs of 2020

Michael Frye is a professional photographer specializing in landscapes and nature. He is the author or principal photographer of The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite, Yosemite Meditations, Yosemite Meditations for Women, Yosemite Meditations for Adventurers, and Digital Landscape Photography: In the Footsteps of Ansel Adams and the Great Masters. He has also written three eBooks: Light & Land: Landscapes in the Digital Darkroom, Exposure for Outdoor Photography, and Landscapes in Lightroom: The Essential Step-by-Step Guide. Michael has written numerous magazine articles on the art and technique of photography, and his images have been published in over thirty countries around the world. Michael has lived either in or near Yosemite National Park since 1983, currently residing just outside the park in Mariposa, California.