At some point today, I will pass 400,000 views on my photography blog. Not bad for an amateur hack who has never been formally trained as a photographer!
I hope you don’t mind, but I’d like to celebrate by sharing my 10 favorite pictures from the past five years. Given it’s a Friday wrapping up a long holiday week, I figured, “Why not?” Here we go!
1) The Eiffel Tower
I took this beauty in late November of 2009. It was drizzling, and I had to take a slow capture to get the light to glow like this. Fortunately the rain didn’t mess up lens too badly, and the shot turned out quite nicely! Taken with a Nikon D-90.
2) The First Presidential Tweet
I had the honor of attending the first presidential town hall, which was moderated by Twitter Co-Founder Jack Dorsey. Somehow, I ended up in the first row on the side, and took this shot of Obama typing out the first presidential tweet. Taken with my Nikon, this shot has Jack reflected in the computer screen. It still gets used frequently in Obama blog posts across the web!
3) The Devil’s Horns
The centerpiece of the W Trail in Chilean Patagonia, the Devil’s Horns are viewed here from across Lake Pehoe at sunrise. This trail kicked my ass and is legendary for trying experienced hikers who attempt its courses in three or five days. Taken with the Nikon. 
4) Virgin Island Sunrise
Taken in St. Thomas in 2007, this photo was shot with a Canon Power Shot! I consider it my first great capture, and it was the photo that convinced me to upgrade to a DSLR.
5) San Francisco at Night
One of my favorite subjects is cities. I travel a lot, and as such a good way to entertain myself and stay out of trouble is to shoot the local city. This night shot of downtown San Francisco was taken this year with an Olympus PEN EP-3, one of those new mirrorless cameras.
6) The Beauty of a Rose
Maybe it’s the zen thing or maybe it’s just learning to appreciate beauty through the lens, but over the past few years, I’ve come to love flowers. These roses were found in the Jardin Boutique in Montreal during the summer of 2009. I particularly like the water condensing on the front rose, as well as the color. Nikon.
7) Washington Monument Shrouded with Cherry Blossoms
Though I use Nikon and Olympus digital cameras, I shoot a lot with my iPhone, and have become relatively decent with the point and click phone camera. This Cherry Blossom shot was taken in 2010 with an iPhone 3GS at the peak of the annual spring festival.
8) Kerry, Gulf Fisherman
This photo became the centerpiece for the CitizenGulf campaign in 2010, which raised $12,000 and caused more than 1000 citizen actions for fishermen in need after the Deep Horizon oil spill. Kerry, pictured here, was put out of work by Deep Horizon, and questioned his ability to continue fishing in the Gulf’s contaminated waters. Nikon shot.
9) Patagonia: The North Face of the Petite Moreno Glacier
While an amazing photo, it can’t do the Moreno glacier justice. The field spans what seems to be a half mile across a lake and the ice stands 40 yards in the air at least. It’s sheer awesomeness. I did get a chance to walk across a glacier and scale an ice wall while in Patagonia, and it’s hard work. And yes, for those of you who know what a klutz I am, I did drive a crampon blade into one of my hiking boots (but not my foot). Nikon.
10) Port Lucaya Marina
Taken this February in Grand Bahama, this photo just says serenity. I love the clouds, the harbor in the early morning without too many people, and the calm water. Can I go back now? Please? Taken with the Olympus. 
You can view these and the rest of my top photos in my portfolio set on Flickr.