Favorites of 2022

By Dominic Trapani January 5, 2023 1

Here we are, starting a new year! I thought it would be fun to look back at all the images I’ve captured this past year and share some of my favorites with you. Some of these images I have previously shared, but there are few that I have not released before. Let me know in the comments which image is your favorite!

1.  Sea Fire

This was one of those bitterly cold mornings on the Maine coast that brought with it the elusive weather phenomenon of sea smoke! I think the temperature was around -1 degree on this morning, and I was meandering along the Rockland waterfront trying my best to find some compositions. The lighthouse out on the breakwater is always a nice subject with sea smoke, so I grabbed my telephoto lens and composed a few different frames. Watching the plumes of vapor silently drift and dance across the harbor and past the lighthouse created an awesome scene. All I had to do now was wait for the sun to break over the Owls Head peninsula and bathe the scene in it’s golden-orange glow. Not an easy task when the temperature is this cold, with your extremities and camera fighting to stay warm. After a few minutes the sun appeared, and the scene came alive with color. I snapped a few frames before stowing my gear, and heading for the glorious warmth of my car, but this image captured the moment!

2. Surging Storm

On this day, the seas at Marshall Point were as kicked up as they get in this relatively sheltered spot. Winds from the southeast were driving a light rain which was making it difficult to keep my camera lens clear of raindrops, but the waves were rolling in hard over the rocky ledges that hang off the shoreline. I really love the action that I was able to capture in the foreground of this image, and the rolling wave that is cresting just behind the lighthouse was perfect! Action like this is not easily captured here at Marshall Point due to its somewhat sheltered location. Interesting story though…as the height of the storm was passing by it generated a storm surge of about 2 feet along the coast that peaked right at high tide. I remember as I was photographing these waves, the storm must have started to pull just far enough offshore that the water level suddenly dropped at least 2 feet in ten minutes. It was incredible to see how quickly the storm was able to move such a large amount of water, and it’s a cool memory that goes along with this image.

3. Rockport Ice

Ice provides such interesting photographic opportunities that I always get excited when I find large swathes of it around harbors during the winter. With this image that I captured around midday in Rockport, about half of the harbor was covered in a thin layer of cracked ice. I spent some time grabbing different images of lobster boats in the ice before deciding to focus on more intimate shots of the ice. What drew me to this image was the way the ice patterns led up the middle of the scene. I love how the backlight added deep contrast by lighting up only small sections of the ice near the cracks. Far different from the grand landscape—I really enjoy creating images like this.

4. Swirled Snow

Another intimate scene—I was instantly captivated by the swirled patterns across this section of snow-covered rocks while exploring after a storm. The light was low, which created some beautiful shadows, and I began photographing a number of scenes. This one was my favorite, with that beautiful S-curve through the center of the frame, complemented by the contrast of the numerous shadows.

5. Pemaquid Sunset

This was from one of those days where you have a preconceived idea for what image you are after, and end up with something entirely different. It had snowed the day before and I planned on capturing the fresh snow on the rocks below Pemaquid Point Lighthouse during the golden hour. The sky was clear except for what seemed to be a few thin clouds to the northeast. With the sun setting below the horizon, I packed up my gear with what I thought were some nice images. As I neared the parking lot, I looked to the north and saw some beautiful pastel pink colors on what was a wispy cloud bank. I ran as fast as I could back to the lighthouse and quickly looked for a composition. This was what I captured. The lighting was beautiful, and I love the leading line of the rock formations that are sticking out of the snow as they lead you up to the lighthouse and the pink sky.

6. Sunset Sea

Capturing the many shapes and colors of the surface of the water is one of my favorite abstract subjects. On this particular evening, I was in Camden waiting for what I hoped would be a colorful sunset over the harbor. The sky unfortunately was not cooperating, as a large cloud bank quickly obscured the sun, leaving a lone cloud to catch the setting sunlight. I noticed its reflection in the water and loved the contrast of the pink cloud with the dark blue shelf of the large cloud bank below. I grabbed my camera and snapped a few images. The pattern of the sea constantly changes the shapes of everything, and every image looked unique, but this one was my favorite. I absolutely love the contrast of light and dark, as well as the pink and blue. I may not have found the sunset I was looking for, but this image sure was a wonderful consolation prize!

7. Marshall Point Lupines

Lupines are some of the most beautiful flowers you will find along the Maine coast. Though the predominate species of lupine are not native to Maine, it is quite popular amongst many. When I spotted this small patch of flowers at Marshall Point Lighthouse, I knew I wanted to try and capture an image of them with the beacon. I composed a few images with different arraignments of lupines, but soon settled on this grouping with the lighthouse placed in the open section in the middle. After waiting for a break in the northwesterly breeze, I snapped this image.

8. The Wave

This is one of my favorite images from this summer! Boon Island is such a remarkable lighthouse—a tall and solitary tower amidst the open sea—that I jump at any chance I get to create images out here. In this image, I was focused on capturing the seals that were floating in the water in front of the lighthouse, which I thought would be a cool shot. However, that lone wave crashing over a submerged ledge just off the island was so unexpected that I didn’t even realize I had captured this shot until I got home later that day. A welcome surprise for sure!

9. Fog Harbor

The sun was getting low in the sky on this summer evening, and as I came down into Owls Head Harbor I was greeted by a large wall of fog over the harbor and Penobscot Bay. The fog was thin and dissipating as it reached the shoreline, and I took advantage of the awesome conditions to capture this image of the vessels lined up along the Owls Head Lobster Co. wharf.

10. Fleeting Splendor

Sunrise had looked rather promising on this morning, but a surprise thunderstorm popped up and quickly erased the chance of seeing any color. As the storm cleared away, I could see the remnants of what appeared to be a fiery sunrise, leaving me disappointed and without an image. I decided to hang around and see if the sun would appear and hopefully salvage my morning shoot. After about 5 minutes the sun did appear and a glorious golden light doused the landscape in brilliance! It lasted only about two minutes before it ascended back into the clouds and was not seen again. But what a wonderful fleeting moment it was, and I loved this image I captured just as the sun was going back behind the cloud.

11. Threatening Skies

Watching summer thunderstorms roll across the Camden Hills and out over Penobscot Bay is always an incredible sight. On this particular day I was at Owls Head Lighthouse as a storm was drifting south and black clouds swiftly surged over beacon. I moved quickly to capture this image of the dramatic clouds before a deluge of rain overtook the peninsula.

12. Mountain Light

Mount Desert Rock Lighthouse sits about 20 miles offshore, and the vessel I was on was probably another 2 miles further out when I captured this image. We were motoring toward the north and from my perspective, I could see the distant Cadillac Mountain drifting toward the lighthouse. I grabbed my telephoto lens, thinking it might make for a cool image to capture the mountain behind the lighthouse. I waited for the right moment and fired off a few frames in succession. The image came out exactly as I had hoped, with those clouds over the mountain adding a nice bit of texture to the otherwise clear sky.

13. Northeast Creek Foliage

I was driving to Bar Harbor during the peak of fall foliage and the sun was just starting to come up as I passed Northeast Creek. I could see some beautiful light catching the clouds overhead so I quickly pulled over to catch a glimpse. I knew this was a nice foliage location, but I had never stopped during good weather. But wow, what a perfect morning this was! No it wasn’t an epic sunrise, but beautiful morning light was overhead while the creek was surrounded with vibrant trees. I hurried to find a composition before the light faded away. I settled on this simple view, showing the creek winding off toward the distant mountain, with the beautifully calm creek mirroring the scene above. I was thrilled to capture this totally unplanned image, and continued my journey into Bar Harbor.

14. Light over the Sea

A dark and cloudy evening with storm-driven northeast winds in my face, I noticed the Boon Island Lighthouse that sits about 6 miles offshore flashing its light across the wave-tossed sea. The mood of the scene helped convey the extreme solitary nature of this offshore beacon. The darkness, the isolation, it’s exactly what I was looking for. And I really love that lonely flash of the lighthouse, while the faster shutter speed allowed me to freeze much of the wave action in this scene.

15. Southeast Gale

An image from that big coastal storm we had just before Christmas—you really can’t beat seas like this! This actually isn’t the biggest wave I captured that day, in fact far from it, but this was my favorite image. I really love the double wave here, and to be fair, these waves were not exactly small! Conditions like this are such awe-inducing experiences, in a somewhat indescribable way. The sound of the waves pounding the shore, the wind constantly buffeting you, the precipitation pelting any exposed skin. I feel like this image helps to expresses at least some of that atmosphere.

 

If you wish to purchase a print of these images by Dominic Trapani, check it them on our gallery here