Top images by Mark D Phillips on southbrooklyn.com
2024 brought different kinds of images to my best for the year. I took advantage of time and spent more hours on the water, exploring the Farmington River in my kayak. Europe featured heavily with returns to Barcelona and Paris, and new excursions to Pairi Daiza in Belgium and black sand in Iceland. Sports are still a passion and skiing has stayed a constant. Mikaela’s crash at Killington was hard to watch. She is my favorite athlete of this generation.
An elusive green heron flew into my life as I paddled my kayak along Connecticut’s Farmington River this spring. We linked eyes for a moment, as if checking each other out. I brought my camera to bear and witnessed the bird I named Rapier, begin the hunt in a secluded corner of the watershed. I captured a moment when the predator seemed ready to strike. For me, it was exhilarating.
“On the Hunt” won the top prize in the prestigious 2024 photo contest held by the Eastern States Exposition. Since 1916, the Big E has grown into a behemoth celebrating the people, the food, the livestock, wildlife, shopping, agriculture and music of the six New England states.
What a balancing act by an Eastern Painted Turtle on a rock. I came to call this magical location Turtle Bay in Curtiss Park during my Farmington River kayak trips in Simsbury, CT. With the river running high and feeder streams swelled to passable levels, I found two small ponds deep into the thick overgrowth of the Simsbury wilderness.
Within these ponds, hundreds of turtles became my friends for four total visits. I couldn’t believe the lack of fear from many of them. I tried to be as unobtrusive as possible, keeping my movements and paddling to a minimum. Watching this magnificent reptile the size of a large frying pan resting precariously on a point felt like a visit to Jurassic Park.
The Okra flower lasts for one day. A Katydid, also called a longhorned grasshopper, made it home for a full day on my deck in Simsbury, Ct. Katydids are a family of insects that may also be called grasshoppers, because of their super-long antennae. Many resemble green leaves, an effect accentuated by prominent veins on the outer wings.
The Okra flower was totally unexpected. I looked out on the deck to see it first thing in the morning and immediately noticed the grasshopper within its petals. I was sure that as soon as I stepped outside it would leave. To my surprise, it didn’t… or at the noon photo session… or at the sundown magical moment when all the variables aligned. I took advantage of the full life of the flower and the grasshopper that found its home for a day.
Like a dinosaur crawling from the primordial soup, an Eastern Painted Turtle crawls out of the water covered in detriment from the trees. Curtiss Park was my go to location while kayaking on the Farmington River in Simsbury, CT, in May 2024. The craziest thing I learned about them in my research:
In northern parts of their range, painted turtle hatchlings are known to literally freeze in their nests during the winter and thaw out in the spring. Along with diamondback terrapins, painted turtles are the only known reptiles that can withstand freezing.
It was like Count Dracula staring at me, evil eyes and the sharpest beak i’ve ever seen. Awarded “Best Zoo in Europe” on several occasions, and certified “Three Stars” in the Michelin Green Guide, the five continents within Pairi Daiza in Belgium hold over 7,500 animals in large territories.
Giant pandas, elephants, polar bears, orangutans, rare birds, gorillas, walruses… all the animals that I love. Pairi Daiza literally translates to paradise in English from Old Persian. We left Paris to visit Paradise, and by God it was. Read my story Once upon a time in Pairi Daiza
The Goslings swam in single file trailing their mother’s large form. Where the mother was big, brownish, and black and white, the Goslings were cute, like Ryan Gosling in his first appearance on Graham Norton Show.
Yes I had to make the jump from Canadian Geese to Canadian movie star. I followed them for a while on the Farmington River, but they were not very social, kinda down right rude. Helicopter parents has a whole new meaning when dealing with Goslings.
Lulu, our wonderful 14-year-old chihuahua, left the world on December 18, 2024. She was our Covid-19 gift, coming home with our daughter when classes were suspended in 2020. We didn’t get enough time with her but every minute was cherished. She spent hours with me kayaking, traveling and at her favorite Talcott Collective, and outdoor bar that became our hangout for almost two years.
Her tongue was her trademark. When she came to us, her teeth were so rotted, she was in constant pain. The tongue is character, the dog dentist told us. And her character grew. My daughter always said she reset as a puppy. Her love was genuine.
The Total Solar Eclipse with Venus over Mill Pond in Franklin, VT, took place on April 8, 2024. My daughter and I camped in the small town near the Canadian border for the second hole-in-the-sky in America in seven years. The journey paid for itself in dividends.
Moon shadow is an intoxicating effect. The sky has a color that is only seen during its existence, wrapping all of the earth in our view with an eerie monochrome punctuated by a technicolor horizon. It’s the greatest light show debuting every 18-months, somewhere in the world. I want to witness as many minutes as I can.
Backpacking through Barcelona, Spain, with my daughter, Eliza, in June 2024, was almost a deja vu. Getting out early was the key, making the city feel not so crowded.
I went to Barcelona in 1992 with Andrea, producing travel stories about the city’s upcoming Olympics. 2024 was my first trip back and the difference was striking yet so familiar at the same time. The tourist areas were overrun and the animosity was evident at times. Popularity can be a double-edged sword. At the right hours, the city can still be yours.
When Eliza told me we were going to Tibidabo Amusement Park in Barcelona, I expected a Six Flags of Europe. What I got was the equivalent of falling through the Looking Glass. One of the oldest amusement parks in the world, it has operated since 1905 atop Tibidabo Mountain, and the rides and other services are organized on 6 different levels connected by either elevators, ramps or stairs.
The Avió, which is a replica of the plane that made the first Barcelona – Madrid flight, takes you on a circular flight at the mountain top, powered by an actual plane engine. It debuted on September 23, 1928, dubbed the world’s first flight simulator. Simulator? It is a plane flight over Barcelona.
Sagrada Familia was the highlight of my 1992 visit. Now, it costs way too much to tour it and security is like entering Fort Knox. We were late for our time-designated tickets, and after a little groveling, they let us enter. I was overwhelmed at the crowds and commercialization. The cathedral version of DisneyWorld.
What was better than going inside was going above. Our spectacular Dinners with Stars at the Fabra Observatory atop Tibidabo Mountain started as the sun set, with the vista of Sagrada Familia bursting from the cityscape beneath us. On 7 November 2010, Pope Benedict XVI consecrated the church and proclaimed it a minor basilica. Will it ever really be a church or is it just a monument of Gaudi’s imagination?
Paris2024 was a joy to attend, one of the biggest parties I have ever attended. I was always disappointed to have never photographed an Olympics, After attending with my daughter for fun, I’m so glad that was my first experience. It felt more whimsical and magical this way.
With beach volleyball in a court under the Eifel Tower, the city felt like a child’s dream. When we walked by this Toy store window just blocks from the volleyball stadium in Paris during the Olympics, it made a statement to me of how fun these Olympics were. Almost like a childhood dream.
My 36 hours in Iceland in 2024 during a return trip from Amsterdam became the most memorable hours of the year. I spent nearly all of it in a rental car driving around the country.
The most famous (and notorious) black sand beach in Iceland is Reynisfjara, located next to the town of Vik. Considered one of the top 10 most beautiful beaches in the world, it lived up to expectations. I also met René and Jolanda Jansen from Holland on the beach, sharing my images and a special moment on the beach.
Mark Rye takes the gate below a rise in the New England Masters 2x GS at Waterville Valley Ski Resort on January 19, 2024. For the past several years, I have been documenting New England and Mid-Atlantic Masters Ski Racing around the northeast.
Following these dedicated skiers of all ages has been, at times, intimidating. There were the three 91-year-olds who raced pre-Covid. There are many more 70- and 80-year-olds than you would imagine. The passion completely rivals World Cup action. Many had careers that stretched their first 20 years and just enjoy the camaraderie. Ski racing is life.
Mikaela Shiffrin came to Killington in 2024 at the height of her career, victory number 100 within grasp on her own home turf.
Everyone has called her the “Queen of Killington” and after her first run in the Killington Cup slalom, she stood and watched her time come up on screen as the leader. Her unmistakable pony tail peeking from under her helmet. The morning was bright and clear, and Red, White, and Blue was on top at home.
Many of us were in the depths of despair as we watched Mikaela Shiffrin come down Superstar in a basket guided by Ski Patrol at Killington. The morning had been so full of anticipation. When Mikaela lost her edge in view of the massive crowd at the finish, a switch was flipped, turning the cheers into total silence. No one breathed as figures rushed on the hillside for Mikaela’s stopping point in the b-netting far from the gates she took out.
We would learn later that one of the gates actually stabbed her as she slid over its remains. The accident took all the excitement from the air, souring all expectations of a hundredth victory in Vermont.
Just moments before Mikaela’s crash, Sara Hector of Sweden celebrates as she crosses the finish line in first place after her second run in the Killington Cup GS of the AUDI FIS Ski World Cup at Killington Ski Resort.
“I’m very happy, after going through a difficult period. Obviously, I’m very sad for Mikaela Shiffrin who was skiing so well. I saw her fall. My heart goes out to her.”
