2024 has certainly been eventful, up until May it was great, then everything changed with news etc, all will be revealed further down the post, however, this post is mainly to show my favourite shots of 2024, so let me start off with January, as I made a trip to Northumberland, this trip was for my birthday, and I wanted it to be a photography trip, however, it the storms made sure I didn't get too many photos, and it was absolutely freezing, I did get some shots I was happy with though, and here is only of my favourites.
Also in January, we had some fantastic sunrises, here's a shot of one with a Kestrel looking for it's breakfast.
I also managed to get a shot of the Super Wolf Moon that was shining brightly in January.
February:
I had to get the drone up for this one, another beautiful sunrise for the start of the day.
I had a drive to Donna Nook in Lincolnshire to try and photograph the seals and seal pups there, however my timing was a bit off by about 5 months so there wasn't any there, I wasn't too far from Skegness so decided to go there for some fish and chips, I also managed to get the drone up too for a few shots at sunset.
March:
In March, I took my parents to Norfolk for a break, with my two dogs, Holly & Charlie, sadly this would be Charlie's last holiday, little did we know he would pass away a few months later, I still miss my little lad.
The weather was rubbish up until the Thursday, we'd paid to stay until the Friday, but was going to come home Thursday due to the weather, then it changed and it was beautiful, so we decided to stay and make the best of the better weather.
A trip to York, here's a mobile phone shot of the Shambles, very Harry Potter don't you think?
April:
In April, I did a photoshoot with the wonderful Cazza Hoops in some woods in Lincolnshire, it was a great shoot, although I found my camera wouldn't work correctly with high-speed sync and adapted lenses, but I so want to do this shoot again, as you can see, the theme was a sexy red riding hood.
May:
The 10th of May 2024, my favourite ever day, well erm, night for photography, I still get a buzz when I think about this night, but not long after, everything changed.
I was so happy with the above shot, I had an email from the BBC saying they will feature the shot on their Sky At Night program, I was so happy with this, I couldn't get over it, I still feel honoured to this day that they used my image.
I was over the moon when I got this shot, I put a thing in the garden to help solitary mine bee's, and I found one in it, I was so pleased, and I love this shot too.
May was the month that changed everything, my Dad got diagnosed with cancer, he had been in and out of hospital with issues, and after tests they found he had prostate cancer, not the news we wanted or what anyone wants, but the good news is that they said it is treatable and that my dad is still getting treatment right up to this day.
I told my girlfriend that I don't ever want any good news as there's always something to bring me down even further.
June:
So here it is, the month that finished everything off for the year, sadly Charlie had been poorly and couldn't go to the toilet properly, he had been on tablets for this as the vet initially thought it was his prostate, anyhow we had to take him back as he had got worse, the vet did scans on him and found tumours in his bladder, they pumped him out so he wasn't in pain, but said that it will fill up again and the tumours are blocking everything, the poor brave little lad, he was feeling fine after they had cleaned everything out, but the vet said that nothing could be done, and they put him to sleep, I am still heartbroken and shedding a tear as I type this, he was my best friend.
Due to what happened, I was in two minds whether to go on holiday, as I'd got one booked to Wales, I was talked into going and I certainly needed it, but the thought of our Charlie was with me constantly, I wasn't happy until we got his ashes back, he was such a good lad.
I'd just missed the perfect light when I got to Penmon lighthouse, but I still love this shot.
There was a walk I'd been wanting to do for a few years in Snowdonia national park, I'd seen Llyn Idwal on google maps, this was when I worked at a call centre board out of my brain, I used to look at google maps for photography locations and this one wasn't too far from where I was staying, I loved the walk, it was a lake in a valley in the mountains, that even had a beach, I got the drone up and enjoyed the wonderful location, I'd love to see it in the snow.
The pier at the beautiful town of Beaumaris.
July:
Not many shots from July as I didn't get out much with one thing after another, however I did have a lovely walk around Upper Burbage in Derbyshire as I wanted to photograph the packhorse bridge.
August:
August was a month of experimentation and not many pictures, however I went out with @fastchrisuk and shot this, I have to admit, Chris is a great photographer and knows his craft well, he also has some fantastic lights for light painting, they are on my amazon list lol.
September:
September saw me visit Norfolk again, this time without Charlie, although we did take his picture, it might seem strange, but it really did feel like he was with us, especially when we took Holly (his sister) on the beach for a walk.
(Horsey Windpump, one of my favourite places)
October:
Didn't travel too far in October, but got some lovely shots of a local monument in the beautiful autumn light. Not only that, but we had another Aurora light show, not as good as my shots from May as I was recovering from a viral infection, so I just went locally to get some shots.
October also saw Comet A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, initially thought to orbit the earth every 80,000 years, but now they have discovered it's millions of year and scientists aren't sure if it will ever come around again. I did get my timings wrong so was stood in a field as the light faded and so did the temperature, but YES, I got the comet.
November:
November brought the first snow of the winter, I just had to get the drone up and get a few shots.
This month also brought a Heron on the roof.
December:
No photographs for December as yet as I've not had chance to go anywhere, I am off to Whitby in a couple of weeks, so hoping for some photography then, fingers crossed the weather will be ok for photography.
I have to admit, 2024 has been absolutely rubbish, although I am happy with the photography that I've done, that has been the best part of the year, especially with the Aurora.
I hope you've enjoyed this post, and thank you ever so much for reading this far.
All the best :-)
Man, i'm sorry to hear about your dad and your dog! No matter how trash this year has been to you... your photography would almost convince me otherwise! hahaha Thanks for sharing your shots and feelings with us here in the community! Hopefully, this next year will be much much better.
Thank you ever so much, I'm really hoping next year will be completely different and a much happier year. Thanks again, I really appreciate it.
What a beautiful photos and such a great idea to mame a post of your best photographs.
Also confronting for you to see photos of your beloved dog 🙏
Wow, you show extraordinary images and my favorite falls on the September image.
A whole year in great pictures, no matter what. Thanks a lot for sharing so much beauty.
Thank you ever so much, I’m glad you like the pics 😊
Cool, you grabbed some bangers this year pal. A good idea for a post too lol
Cheers mate, really appreciate it, the one at needles eye is one of my personal faves, thanks to your expertise :-)
Great photos, congrats!