2009 was a great year for the Shutter Photo @ Flickr Group.  In only seven months, the pool garnered 240 photo submissions.  I’m proud to say that our pool contains a great number of inspirational shots.  I would very much like to feature all of them here today, but I cannot.  Instead, I will share with you the ten most interesting photos from the pool for 2009 – in no particular order.

Teeth by David Clark

We featured David in the Photographer Spotlight back in October, and for good reason.  David’s work is inspiring.  Through his photography, we find ourselves in abandoned warehouses, dilapidated old mines, burned out industrial buildings and places that just don’t look safe.  All of his photos are great, and his gallery is certainly worth exploring.  But if I had to pick one of his shots as the most interesting, it would have to be Teeth, as shown here.  Close-up photography of unused equipment, some sort of cog wheel in this case, can be beautiful.  The texture and color of the rusty teeth, the angles formed by the teeth and by the framing, the contrasting light and of course the repetition are all great assets that set this shot apart from all others.  It is truly a unique capture.

96th Street Subway Platform by Chris Allen

This particular photo was featured here in October.  On the surface, it is such a simple photo, and that is its best feature.  The repeating pattern of the joists and columns, the vanishing point effect of the rails, the yellow lines and the overhead lighting pull you deep into the image.  But there’s no light down there, and you find yourself being pulled to a dark space – the unknown.  As simple as this shot may appear, it’s setup is quite interesting.  As I mentioned back in October, Chris stood much closer to the edge of the platform than would be comfortable for most people.  What Chris is really doing here is sharing a perspective not often seen – at least not without a train in the station.  The photo creates an uncomfortable feeling for the viewer.  A feeling of loneliness, and fear.  We feel trapped, and the end of the tunnel yields no comfort.  So as simple as it appears, this shot deserves a spot on our year-end Top 10 Most Interesting Photos of 2009.

Sunset by Vmaddalena

Some will debate over color in photography with a portion of the masses arguing that true fine-art photography should be completely absent of color.  I am not among those.  However, I do believe that if you’re shooting in color, you might as well do it right and make it interesting.  Man made color is certainly eye catching, but to find unique color combinations in nature is the ultimate pinnacle.  Sunset is usually the best time to capture such colors.  But in all the sunsets I’ve seen, let alone all the ones I’ve taken photos of, none have been more compelling than the one captured here.  No two sunsets are alike, and nearly each and every one of them is worth capturing.  This is reason enough to carry your camera all  the time.

Closing the Door by Mark J. Sanders

When we speak of photos that tell a story, there is no better example in the
SP @ Flickr pool than Mark’s photo shown here, Closing the Door.  We featured this photo back in August, 2009.  At the time of our feature, we didn’t know too much about the photo.  We did, however, know that it was taken just before the cargo door was closed on a C-130 Plane on its way into Baghdad.  Knowing nothing more, we could feel the emotion of the passengers – whose faces couldn’t be made out.  We had a lump in our throats.  This is such a great example of photojournalism.  Little did we know how fantastic the background story truly was.  Thankfully, Mark was nice enough to write a detailed description of everything leading up to the shot for us in response to our article.  To read the fantastic story, check out his comment.

When You Have to Stay Inside by Sue Thompson

Macro Photography seemed to be a popular theme in the SP @ Flickr pool in 2009.  There was no bigger contributor of macro shots than Sue Thompson, who’s photo, Star Drops, was featured here in August.  Sue’s work was no disappointment this year, and I wish we could highlight more as part of this article.  But when it comes down to her works, I think the shot that clearly makes the top 10 is this beautiful shot, When You Have to Stay Inside.  I think the title is more about her situation at the time, and when you have nothing better to photograph…I guess Sue is one who finds something to photograph.  She certainly creates her own inspiration.  Though she provided no description for this one, I am assuming this is a shot of feathers (she has a lot in her gallery).  She takes advantage of the narrow depth of field here to create a dreamy effect as a good portion of the feathers are clearly out of focus.  It’s a mesmerizing effect and inspirational to all.  And as is the case with lots of Macro Photography, Sue introduced us to a world vastly different from our own.

Cell Structure by Chuck Wendig

In keeping with the macro theme, I bring you Chuck Wendig’s contribution to the flickr pool.  This particular piece is interesting for several reasons.  First of all, as I already mentioned, Macro Photography in and of itself introduces us to a world that is unknown and bizarre to many of us.  But this blends in a common photography meme, with a twist:  Water Drops.  Dozens of us have shot the popular water droplet shot – it’s one of those things that macro photographers experiment with at one time or another.  There’s nothing wrong with that, and many of the results are absolutely beautiful.  But Chuck took it several steps further and used his water droplet as a lens.  It’s an interesting concept to me:  Taking a photograph with a lens of a lens which is now functioning as a microscope.  And like a true microscope, this lens allows you to see the cell structure of the surface of the leaf.  This is one for the botony books.  PS – though it has less to do with photography, I have been thoroughly entertained by Chuck’s other projects, serial fiction and his sarcasm filled blog at Terribleminds.

Looking Past the Wall by Lisa Newton

Lisa Newton’s blog, Travelin’ Local, has taken her to some fantastic places and has afforded her some wonderful sights – all without traveling very far from her Southern California home.  Her photography is part photojournalism, part landscape photography and part architectural photography.  But of all of the shots that she’s shared with the SP @ Flickr Pool, none has been more captivating and more powerful than this one.  This is a hook that once held large slabs of concrete together between East and West Berlin.  That’s right, this is a shot of the Berlin Wall, the pieces of which apparently travel the world as an exhibit.  But lets stand back from the historical aspects of this shot.  This close-up shot shows us a series of interesting and unique textures from the concrete aggregate to the coarse rusty texture of the hook and then the silky bokeh texture of the background (thanks to the narrow depth of field).  Without truly knowing what this was a shot of, its age is readily apparent from the photo alone.  An interesting aspect about this photo is the use of negative space.  When speaking of negative space, the first inclination is to think of the dark spaces back-grounding the subject.  But in this case, it’s the lighter areas.  That being the case, I find it interesting that the next section of the wall is slightly visible to the right.  Was it a casual framing technique?  Or was Lisa’s choice for the subject something other than the hook?  Perhaps the hook is simply the representation of the barrier between that which can be seen and the unreachable – the other side of the wall.  Now isn’t that an interesting thought?  Just imagine what it must have been like when this was was in place, and the restrictions and oppression that it represented.

The Very Different Sides by Sharaff

Sometimes, the most simplest of concepts and the most understated imagery make the greatest photos.  IN Sharaff’s description of the shot, he suggested that the framing of this shot was not his first choice due to ships and other objects that would clutter to photo.  So he “settled with the obvious and easiest” way to form the shot.  The adjective that was left out was probably “the best”.  I don’t know what he would have ended up with otherwise, but the angles, the contrast and the textures and it’s pure simplicity have earned this shot a  place on the 2009 Most Interesting Photos from the SP @ Flickr Pool.  Lines, especially at angles, are very appealing to the human eye.  Especially with an aspect ratio as this photo is cropped.  Sharaff further improves the photo by going to black and white for this one.  A simple photo deserves a simple color space.  If you want to see it in color, click the photo to view it on Flickr, and he posted the color version.  I am much happier with the black and white version.  Like this shot, there are some photos that nearly require black and white.  It makes the textures pop, it helps to more clearly define the contrast in the shapes and lines.  The only question that remains…which side is the right side for me?

Motion by Nethel Flores / LoneUrbanist.com

Before I get into the photo, I have to admit that I don’t know the actual name of the photographer who took this shot.  Whether intentional or not, the artist does not clearly define his name on his (or her) profile, nor is it readily available on their website.  I don’t see why one should hide their formal name in the photography world.  After all, credit alone is difficult to apply if names are not given.  [ Editor's Note: Not long after publishing this article, the photographer, Nethel Flores, posted a comment.  Now I know the full name, and I credited appropriately above.  Sometimes, the best way to learn about someone is to write about them, I guess.  That's for responding, Nethel.] That said, this is perhaps one of the most interesting uses of long exposure I have seen in a long while.  If you can’t tell, this is a shot of a train or a subway leaving the station.  There is another version of this scene, which is almost as appealing.  But I like the shot shown here the best.  The reason is because of the slight hint of a passenger a third of the way from the right edge of the photo.  Well, it probably isn’t a passenger, but it’s just enough of a hint of something to suggest that this is a passenger train.  And that window is just well defined enough to help give us some context.  Add the incredible contrast of the ceiling into the mix, and this is an incredibly dramatic scene.

Mosaïque by Jean-Baptiste

We featured Jean-Baptiste’s wonderful photo in September, 2009.  As we mentioned back then, there is another version of this shot that provides a bit more perspective which is titled Unprocessed. The interesting thing about depth of field and mirrors is that the laws of physics treat the reflection as if you were looking through a window without glass.  Instead of focusing on the subject material reflected in these tiny mirrors (as he did with Unprocessed), Jean-Baptiste focused on the mirrors itself.  The edges of the mirror are crystal clear, and the reflections are a blurry bokeh lover’s dream.  The result is an abstract and beautiful blend of colors, lines, shapes and forms.  As stated in our feature review back in September, this image is proof that a clear and identifiable subject is irrelevant so long as one can create a well balanced composition.  This is a fantastic photo.

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