Lens-Artists Challenge – Favourite Images of 2022

I was in the car a few days back, taking my son to his swimming lesson, when he asked me about Art. “What is Art, mum?” Art is what we make that has no obvious purpose, except to make us feel and, possibly, think. We feel when we create, we feel when we see/hear any artistic creation. He enjoys music to the point of making up his own little tunes. “Music is art”, I said. “Oh, I know that”, he replied. And that was it, point taken.

For John’s challenge, when I started this herculean task of picking the favourite photos from 2022, I’ve followed my heart. They might not be the most accomplished technically, but they are the ones that warmed my soul has soon as I took them and made me feel incredibly lucky to have been there to do so.

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I open with a photo taken at the Botanic gardens in Lisbon, a field of Madeira Island Geraniums. I love geraniums and these ones are different, taller, the stems covered in those strange looking little things that the light caught so beautifully. It was a small section of the garden, covered with them and it was like being somewhere else entirely.

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I always try to take photos around the year, the New year kicking new resolutions into place. Sometimes they are just good intentions, life get in the way, the weather doesn’t always help and soon enough spring changes everything. Last year we had a spell of good weather quite early on, in March, and there was life everywhere, calling me to join in. A trip to one of the local gardens gave me so many good photos and I’ve posted some of them before. I had to share this once again, though. It’s one of my favourites, it paid off to squat for what felt like ages…

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September brings the Doors Open Day Festival to Scotland, one of the highlights of the year. I love the chance of going into buildings that would otherwise be off limits to the general public. The biggest surprise for 2022 was the Ottoman Coffeehouse in Glasgow. The festival gave us the opportunity to see this place empty, talk to the lovely owners, have coffee and cake and take some shots of what is an amazing place.

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After a few good years I managed to finally visit the wonderful Botanic Gardens here, in Glasgow. I shared some of the photos from that visit on our Lens-Artists Challenge of Textures. These ones are slightly different, no textures but a lot of strange plants and insects. In awe, all the way.

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There are places I return to every time there’s an opportunity to do so. The MAAT in Lisbon is such a place, hundreds of shots, all good but this one really worked for me. It’s almost abstract and surreal, like the building itself.

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And there are places I’ll be longing to return to but with the knowledge of how unlikely that will be. This beach, St Cyrus, inspired me so much, beyond words or images, that it deserves a triptych.

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After years of planting bulbs in my garden, I must confess I have no clue of what’s out there. Spring and Summer are therefore exciting times, when things start to grow and even more when they bloom. This was my one and only Iris for 2022, after years of nothing. I spent quite a bit of time snapping the joyous occasion and this was my favourite of them all.

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I finish with the lucky shot, nature’s own lensball, on my Japanese Maple, that is growing softly like a painting all on his own.

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Thank you to John for hosting this trip down the small memory lane of last year. I’m looking forward to seeing your very favourite photos of 2022. If you’re joining us, please visit John’s original post, full of his wonderful images, and link back to it. Also remember to tag with Lens-Artists so we can easily find you. May 2023 show more wonderous places or occasions and that we are there to capture them all.

Next week is my turn to host, I invite you to visit my post on Saturday 14th and see what I’m up to…! Until then, take care.

Posted for John’s Lens-Artists Challenge

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