I hope you’re all having a soothing vacation season. This week didn’t deliver a lot information within the images world, so let’s take a while as an alternative to look again on 2025 for some inspiration as we journey into 2026.
Pictures Information
The few important bulletins we did see this week are…
- Nikon ME-D10 shotgun microphone introduced: A small however dear miniature shotgun mic made for the Nikon ZR. It options 32-bit float audio and prices $337.
- Leica Noctilux-M 35mm f/1.2 rumored: Not a lot is thought about this rumored high-end lens, however it might be Leica’s brightest 35mm lens but. For the reason that Leica Summilux-M 35mm f/1.4 already prices $6415, don’t anticipate it to be low cost!
- KEH is having a site-wide sale: By means of December thirtieth, it can save you as much as 20% on a few of their overstock gear. The code at checkout is OS2025 – and for the reason that gear is pre-owned, it’s unlikely that you just’ll discover decrease costs than this except you get a fortunate discover on eBay.
That’s every little thing price mentioning this week! It’s a slower time of yr for images information, as digital camera corporations reset for the brand new yr. I’m positive there can be lots extra information subsequent week.
However as an alternative of ending this text prematurely, let’s have a look again at 2025 by means of the eyes of our writers at Pictures Life.
Pictures Life in 2025
2025 was a giant yr at Pictures Life. Listed here are the numbers:
- In 2025, we’ve revealed 243 articles on Pictures Life (up to now)…
- Plus 166 further posts on our Member Web page…
- Together with 12 picture critique livestreams and 9 Q&A livestreams…
- Together with 2 multi-hour On-line Workshops…
- All whereas displaying zero third-party advertisements on Pictures Life!
Though we largely targeted on the written phrase, we additionally revealed 4 YouTube movies this yr, only a trace at what’s to return for 2026.
And what did our workforce of photographers take into consideration the yr? Listed here are some highlights from every of us.
Libor’s Highlights
Favourite picture I took this yr:
This {photograph} of two male Fiery Topaz hummingbirds sits on the very high of my private rating of this yr’s pictures. Not as a result of it’s the greatest, essentially the most artistic, or essentially the most stunning {photograph} I’ve taken. It stands on the sheer fantastic thing about this charismatic hummingbird species—and on the problem of observing, not to mention photographing it, in its Amazonian house.
Favourite picture from our workforce:
Massimo’s {photograph} Deer within the Fog, with a stag rising like a ghost from the bluish haze of an early morning, caught my eye again in April—already as a small thumbnail. That is precisely the form of wildlife images that goes past easy description. Massimo’s deer is a wonderful {photograph} of a wonderful animal. While you have a look at it, you may virtually really feel the uncooked animal power and a sacred respect for the majesty of the king of the forest. It might even make you are feeling the damp chill of the morning air—simply because it does for me proper now. And that’s although I’m scripting this whereas sitting subsequent to a lit hearth. An ideal instance of the mixed psychological impact of cool colours and private reminiscences from photographing deer. Excellent work, Massimo.
Favourite article I wrote:
If I have been to decide on my strongest visible and journey expertise of the yr, it might be photographing condors excessive within the slopes of the Ecuadorian Andes. I imagine the ability of that second discovered its means into the picture story Below the Wings of the Condors. And since I sometimes prefer to trace at upcoming initiatives right here, I can reveal that this yr’s strongest story is presently within the enhancing room and can quickly be accessible on our YouTube channel.
Spencer’s Highlights
Favourite picture I took this yr:
That is positively my favourite of the images that I took in 2025. I took it from a kayak on some very uneven waves, so it was each a technical and a bodily problem to get the shot I had in thoughts! The exceptional sample proven right here is the pure results of erosion, and the blue within the water is because of glacial silt. To me, the types on this marble rock remind me of bushes, mountains, and galaxies. I feel they trace at grander tales of the earth’s creation and the passage of time.
Favourite picture from our workforce:
You don’t should be a day by day Pictures Life reader to know that Jason’s favourite topics for images are birds. And he did take many fowl images this yr that I loved, in addition to some nice wildlife images of deer within the Canadian grasslands. But it surely’s this picture of the moon that actually stood out to me. I’m positive you’ve seen many images of the moon, however what number of seem like this? I feel this picture proves that there’s room for private inventive expression even with topics which were photographed thousands and thousands of instances already! It’s a wonderful and evocative picture.
Favourite article I wrote:
I’m largely a panorama photographer, however I actually loved writing the article Bokeh Is Much less About Your Lens, Extra About You earlier this yr. Photographers spend a number of time excited about gear, and I’m no exception, however I favored that this text was a reminder of what actually issues in images. One of the best ways to enhance the standard of your background blur isn’t to purchase a flowery new lens, however to discover ways to use the lens you’ve received. Creativity beats gear virtually each time.
Jason’s Highlights
Favourite picture I took this yr:
It was slightly tough to decide on one in all my very own images, nonetheless, one I actually favored was this raven. Why this picture? There’s a spot close by that’s liked by the magnificent ravens. They play in the summertime and float endlessly on the wind, virtually at all times out of attain, past the bushes.
The blur on this picture means absense, because the ravens are on some days, leaving a unsettling void very similar to the void I really feel after I’m not round birds. The blur, each sharp and disorienting, sketches the North. Sharp for the speedy change of seasons and life cycle of the fragile lifeforms that thrive right here. Disorienting… for the human being by no means actually belongs within the North’s unforgiving sparseness. Sure, the blur is excellent for the raven, as a result of it’s the type of fowl that can disappear, simply as quickly as you suppose you may have it discovered.
Favourite picture from our workforce:
My favourite picture from our workforce this yr is that this picture of Spencer’s. It was the primary picture he chosen for his guide undertaking. I selected this one as a result of it has a wonderful simplicity in the primary topic but additionally presents refined complexities within the background, such because the darkish log with peaceable, flat tones on the backside of the picture. Intimate landscapes inside forests aren’t a simple topic, however this one is deliberate and provides a uncommon glimpse into the lives of bushes. It additionally represents a brand new course in Spencer’s images, and it is going to be very attention-grabbing to see the place it leads.
Favourite article I wrote:
My favourite amongst my very own articles was Pictures: The Seek for Ephemeral Worlds. I very very similar to delving into the extra philosophical features of artwork and though I don’t write about it too usually, it was the closest I’ve come to describing my very own expertise of images.
Massimo’s Highlights
Favourite picture I took this yr:
My favourite picture of 2025 is that this polar bear. There are a number of causes for this, primarily as a result of capturing it was the achievement of a long-held dream: for years, I had hoped to {photograph} a polar bear on the pack ice. This picture embodies that dream. But it surely additionally carries a way of thriller. What interrupted its meal? What’s it getting ready to defend it from? Lastly, it tells the story of the tough lifetime of this magnificent animal by means of the depiction of the setting during which it lives.
Favourite picture from our workforce:
My favourite picture from one other member of the Pictures Life workforce in 2025 is that this one by Libor. What makes it particular is how a quite common topic, captured with such mastery, is pure artwork. A real gem—the triumph of imaginative and prescient and photographic talent.
Favourite article I wrote:
My favourite from this yr is Wildlife Pictures: Is the Artwork Already in Nature?
How a lot does the subject material, and the way a lot is it concerning the photographer’s “imaginative and prescient”? It is a reflection I’ve carried with me for a very long time, and writing this text pressured me to go deeper, clarifying it for myself first. It’s a mindset I need to carry with me each time I choose up the digital camera, and one I want to share and convey to my readers at Pictures Life. It’s what actually conjures up me to put in writing.
Picture Theme Problem, Week #135
Lastly, the weekly information wouldn’t be full with out sharing some images from you, our readers! Final week’s theme was December, and you may see the outcomes on this thread. Thanks to everybody in your submissions! This week’s theme is black and white, and you may submit your outcomes on this thread by Saturday, January 3, 2026!
Week #134 Outcomes
Let’s try among the pictures we acquired for the “December” theme, beginning with Tom Pazol’s picture:
A pleasant and tidy association of vacation lights!
EisenRa’s picture:
The panorama is made cozy by the incoming solar. And it’s a really good starburst, too!
And eventually, Bhoward’s picture:
The movement blur of the wingtips enhances the peaceable and gradual flight of the heron.
Thanks everybody for submitting their images within the problem, and we hope to see extra within the first problem of the brand new yr with the black and white theme subsequent week!