It’s that time again. Time to look back on a years worth of work to find the best of the best. It’s easier said than done.
Last year, I mentioned that photographers can get attached to an image because of the back story. Some images might be technologically challenging to make. Others might have required hours of anticipation and preparation. When it comes to a contest, the back story doesn’t matter. The final image is all that counts.
This year, it was refreshing to go back through my images and find many that I liked. Too many. My editor asked for each of the photographers to pull our top 12-20 images. My first cut was almost 80. After some collaboration with my coworkers, I was able to cut the field down to 25 which is where it remains. So yes, I’m bad at following directions sometimes.
So without further ado, here’s my crop of 25 that stuck out at me for one reason or another.
MAX GERSH | ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
All breed judge Ron Summers of Indianapolis, Ind., stretches out Phoenix, a Balinese belonging to Shirley Filipello of Crete, Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012, while judging the adult class during the Rock Valley Cat Club Cat Show at the Forest Hills Lodge in Loves Park. ©2012
MAX GERSH | ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
The partially eclipsed sun sets behind the steeple of St. Mary Oratory Sunday, May 20, 2012, in downtown Rockford. ©2012
Khalil Givens, 9, of Rockford, tumbles in the Body Bumperz Sunday, Sept. 2, 2012, during the final day of On The Waterfront in downtown Rockford. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
MAX GERSH | ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
Alec Boswell, 3, plays with his mother, Tina Kobs, on a trampoline Monday, March 19, 2012, in the backyard of his family’s home in Belvidere. Boswell was diagnosed with Leukemia in Sept. 2011. He often plays in his backyard rather than public parks because he is susceptible to getting sick. ©2012
Matt Callan (320) of Alto, Mich., goes down on the first stretch out of the gate Sunday, July 22, 2012, during the second day of racing at the ABA BMX Midwest Nationals at Searls Park in Rockford. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
MAX GERSH | ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
Byron senior Hunter Hill, 17, stands under the net Monday, Jan. 30, 2012, in the gymnasium at Byron High School. Hill recently broke the school record for most career assists. ©2012
Ray Nelson pedals through bend Sunday, Oct. 21, 2012, during the Do the Rock 2012 mountain bike race at Rock Cut State Park. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
MAX GERSH | ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
Boylan’s Adonis Brown (23) loses his hat while scooping up a ground ball Wednesday, May 23, 2012, during the Class 4A regional baseball game against Guilford at Harlem High School in Machesney Park. ©2012
MAX GERSH | ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
Kathi Johnson sits at a table with notes, paperwork and photographs about her family Monday, May 7, 2012, at her home in Rockford. Included is a photograph of her birth mother, Ruby Lundquist. A recent change in an Illinois law allowing children to claim their original birth certificates gave Johnson the ability to find out about Lundquist. ©2012
Cross country runners Alex Childs (from left), Brianna Jepson and Nick Monkemeyer, seen Monday, Oct. 22, 2012, at Rockford Christian High School, will be competing in sectionals at Oregon on Saturday. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
Keith’s Morgan Luther (left) cheers with the team Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2012, before the start of the Class 1A volleyball regional against Hiawatha at Durand High School. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
MAX GERSH | ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
Wayne Lensing stands next to Lee Harvey Oswald’s tombstone in the Oswald Room Monday, Feb. 13, 2012, at Historic Auto Attractions in Roscoe. Lensing has owned the stone for about one-and-a-half years. In the background is the ambulance that picked up Oswald after he was shot by Jack Ruby in Dallas, Texas. ©2012
MAX GERSH | ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
Lutheran’s Tarence Roby (1) moves the ball between Seaton Academy’s Jordan Foster (10) and Brandon Woods (24) Saturday, March 10, 2012, during the Class 2A third place game at the Peoria Civic Center. ©2012
MAX GERSH | ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
Spectators, including those sitting on the wing of a B-52 Stratofortress, watch as an F-16 Thunderbird takes off Sunday, June 3, 2012, during the second day of AirFest at the Chicago Rockford International Airport in Rockford. ©2012
Emergency personnel gather beside a single engine Cessna which made an emergency landing and flipped over in a soybean field near Chicago Rockford International Airport Friday, Aug. 17, 2012, in Rockford. The pilot and a passenger were uninjured in the accident. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
Maria Busio, wife of the late Isidro Duran, gets emotional while talking with the media Wednesday, July 11, 2012, after the sentencing of her husband’s murderer, Rafael Santos, at the Winnebago County Criminal Justice Center in Rockford. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
Jobe Cerny of Highland Park grabs the back of his head after flipping out of his cart Sunday, July 1, 2012, during the Durand Fourth of July festival on the Town Square. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
MAX GERSH | ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
Deanna Dudek of Machesney Park checks her watch while riding her bike Thursday, April 26, 2012, on the Rock River Recreation Path near Sportscore One in Rockford. Dudek, an at-home personal trainer, recommends cycling to many of her clients because it is a low impact, high intensity exercise. ©2012
Volleyball players Trevor Weiskircher (from left), 18, of Loves Park, Matt DePauw, 17, of South Beloit, and Anson Lindsey, 18, of Belvidere, seen Wednesday, June 27, 2012, at Fusion Sports Center in Loves Park will be competing in the USAV Boys Junior National Championships on July 1 in Dallas, Texas. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
Auburn head coach Dan Appino talks to his starters before kickoff Friday, Aug. 24, 2012, during a game against Belvidere North at Auburn High School in Rockford. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
Shadow, a golden retriever belonging to Suzi Juanez of Machesney Park, looks at a kitten at the Illinois Animal Rescue booth Sunday, Sept. 23, 2012, during Woofstock at the Rockford Speedway in Loves Park. “I think he just wanted to know what the cats were doing,” Juanez said. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
Employees take calls Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012, at NCO in Rockford. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
Harlan Jefferson performs on the soprano saxophone Saturday, Sept. 29, 2012, during the Ethnic Heritage Museum’s Blues and Jazz Jam Sessions at the Eldorado Club at the Sullivan Center in Rockford. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
Miss Boone County 2012 contestants line the stage during the swim suit competition Tuesday, Aug. 7, 2012, during the 53rd Annual Miss Boone County Fair Queen Pageant at the Boone County Fairgrounds Grandstand in Belvidere. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
Aaron Bolden sings gospel songs Sunday, Nov. 18, 2012, during the 23rd Annual Mayor’s Interfatih Thanksgiving Service at the Fisher Memorial Chapel at Rockford College. MAX GERSH/ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR ©2012
Be sure to check out the gallery on my newspaper’s site to see the favorites of my coworkers.
For unsurprising reasons, I liked the cat show photo the best, but I do remember the adoption law story — don’t blame you for being attached to the photos from it. Definitely a moving piece.
[…] Favorites of 2012 […]