It’s always a tricky thing picking out what you think are your best exposures of the year.  As much as I try to distance myself from my art it’s nearly impossible.  There is emotion and love attached to my photos, a sense of care.  And sometimes that can and does get in the way of a sound mind when selecting the absolute cream of the crop.  So here is my best attempt to showcase what 2010 brought in front of my lens.  These I consider to be my favorites and best of the year.

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Rachel. The Studio 60 Project concluded with Rachel, a dancer who’s work and dancing I wasn’t too familiar with but in the end this was no problem in the least.  The following exposure is an exercise in trust.  When you have a dancer who trusts you the barriers of their technique can shatter and transcend your expectations.

Lessey.  The idea of a portrait is to capture the quintessence of your subject.  In all the posed shots with Lessey I didn’t quite achieve that yet her having a smoke out on my porch proved much, much more in tune with her personality.

Courtney.  I asked for something that looked like a brisé.  I got this instead.

Veronica.  I can’t quite put into to words why this photos strikes me so.  From my time with ODT it is my absolute favorite and that’s saying a lot with all the talent in that company.

Emily.  A very conceptual frame with an amazingly talented dancer who was willing to do anything to match my vision.

Remy.  Somehow, all the parts that make up Remy are in this frame.  All the ways I feel and have felt for her are all there laid bare, written in light – a language I can’t decipher but understand intuitively.

Dayna and Eldon.  These two were easily two of the most important subjects of this year, selecting a single frame for either them proved to be an injustice.  So I’ve selected this that showcases grace, tenderness, strength and beauty.

Olivia.  Sometimes I find myself looking at the photos I take wondering how and why the muse grants me images thus.  My muse is an angel and Olivia looks like one.

Chelsea.  This is the single most important photo I’ve ever, ever been graced with.  It is simple and in its simplicity lies its beauty.  So much of the beauty is what excess has been trimmed away and what we’re left with: the singular expression of dance and joy.  They are, for the dancer, entirely inseparable.  Our joys, our dreams, our very existence lies within our bodies, our dance that gives that body flight.  Hans Bos once said: “When I dance I cannot judge, I cannot hate, I cannot separate myself from life.  I can only be joyful and whole.  That is why I dance.”  Hans Bos has never been a dancer.