Mike Chowla
Annual 10 Best:

My Ten Best of Images of 2018

I travelled more internationally than I had since 2014 but eight out my ten selections this year are from the USA. The western USA has so many beautiful locations. There are still many international renowned scenic locations I want to visit including Torres del Paine, New Zealand and Iceland but having easy access the Western USA has spoiled me. This year I went to the famous Amalfi coast and my reaction to the scenery was that California's coast is more beautiful. Italy of course of has history, culture and food that worth seeing even though general annoyances of the country. But in terms of sheer scenic beauty, California, particularly Big Sur, crushes it.

One of the things I'm reflecting on this year is trophy shots. I've got a few in this year's collection, which looking over previous years is acutally more than usual. However, my favorite image of the year is the last one at Coconut Beach on Kauai. Surprisingly, I created this image just a short stroll from the hotel I was staying at and is not a an iconic location.

I enjoyed discovering that both Colorado and Hawaii are awash in scenery and have many beautiful spots that are not famous but are incredibly beautiful. Even though I had visited both states before, this year I visited new sections of each and immensely enjoyed both trips.

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