Fun Photos to Send Off 2025
I try to avoid doing “TOP 10 FAVORITE X” lists because I often find myself with too many favorite whatevers, and narrowing them down to a specific number feels so reductive. Maybe next year, I’ll try doing it as an exercise in decision-making, but, today, I’m just going to share some photos I’ve shot this year that I really liked.
We’ll start with the banger above: a can of the nectar of the gods on a pier. While taking in the gulf’s sights, and sounds, I looked down, and spotted the can. Being a Dr. Pepper enjoyer, I found it to be a beautiful scene that I had to capture.
Slow shutter speeds, and lights just GO together, right? Walking around SeaWorld during the holiday season with a camera is always a great time for noodling with that kind of thing.
For this year’s fiesta festivities, I decided to mosey myself over to downtown (with a camera, of course), and just walk around, seeing what I could find. I took a number of shots that I really liked, but this one always made me smile.
Groove City was brought on to shoot for an event at a golf course, capturing the attendees, but, hidden away in the trees that lined the fairways, there were TONS of deer that my camera needed to see. I happened upon this one, and it locked in on me before I even brought up the camera, staying still the entire time. It’s almost as if she said, “yes, you may photograph me.”
Another photo opportunity courtesy of SeaWorld, this little owl was so cute! And, even though it looks like a baby, I was surprised to hear that this owl is 8 years old, and this is their adult size.
This shot is also one of the first ones I ever took on color film!
I have some cool friends that have a band called Viatorum, and they brought me on for shooting a performance they had at the missions. The building was so beautiful, that I had to take a moment after their performance to capture a wide shot of the interior.
On the way to a restaurant downtown, these were just chillin’ in the middle of the road. I wonder if they’re still there.
Before I took it to the San Marcos Film Lab, I had to use up the roll of film I had in the camera! Right next door to the lab is Old Soul, a retro clothing & stuff store. Inside was this poster, and I just took a shot of it, thinking it’d be a cool shot. Once it was developed, it became a favorite of mine; something about the framing, angle, the grain, and colors just grabs me with this photo.
Here’s a shot from a recital of my friend’s music school, the Institute of Musical Arts. He brings me on to capture photos of the students for his Spring & Winter recitals, and, during this year’s Winter recital, I slipped towards the back, with the Elan that I had just picked up, and took a shot. It’s also one of the first photos I took with a film camera. I wanted to shoot on black & white for my first roll because b&w has always had this ‘sacred’ feeling to it in my mind, and I’m glad I did.
And, that’s all for this one! Again, 2025 had me shooting a ton, and it’s hard to select a few favorites out of the thousands I’ve taken over the year, but I hope you enjoyed looking over these. I’m excited to see what 2026 will be bringing into frame.
Thanks for reading!