Best of 2016: Most Popular Photos on PhotoTraces

It is the very end of the year and this is when I look back at the last 12 months trying to reflect on different aspects of my photography business.

First, I am trying to define the most popular photos of the year. These are the criteria I normally use when going through hundreds of my photos:

• Social media engagement. How my times the photo was shared, liked commented and so on.


• How many page views the article with the photo generated on PhotoTraces.com


• How many times this photo was requested for licensing.


• And the most subjective criteria of all, how I feel about the photo and if I can relate to it.

Here is the list of top 4

Driving Through Kolob Terrace (Utah)

Utah. Zion National Park
Loc: 37.264811, -113.111445

It was last day of my driving trip through Utah. Due to my poor planning, I did not have anything schedule for my last sunset in Utah.

While driving through Zion National Park I stopped at Overlook Trail for a quick hike a had a short chat with the park ranger. I asked him to help me with the selection of sunset location. This when he suggested to explore less popular and more remote part of the park - the Kolob Terrace.

A couple of hours before the sunset I found myself driving along the Kolob Road toward sunset, not knowing what exactly to expect.

I stopped at the side of the road and took a few shots with the road as the main element of the composition. Five minutes later I was on my way to another discovery.

This photo represents everything I cherish about travel photography.

Fallen Tree At Merced River (Yosemite)

California. Yosemite. Merced River
Loc: 37.717158, -119.662003

When I visit San Franciso I always try to squeeze into my schedule at least a day trip to one of my favorite travel destinations, the Yosemite National Park.

This is exactly what happened last April during the National Park Week.

The Yosemite valley is breathtaking and sometime even looks so unreal reminding me the computer-generated planets you can find in sci-fi movies.

What I also learned in Yosemite is no matter how wide your widest lens is there is no way fit everything you intend into one composition. It challenges you to come up with more creative framing or use vertical panorama technique.

Campground on Grand Manan Island (New Brunswick)

Canada. New Brunswick. Grand Manan Island
Loc: 44.776021, -66.741115

Grand Manan Island is one of my favorite travel destination in Atlantic Canada.

If I had to describe the Grand Manan Island in one word it would be SERENITY. It is isolated from the rest of the world by the foggy Bay of Fundy and it only takes a 90 min ferry ride to quit the civilization.

The featured photo is from the latest camping trip to the island in September. This is the time when most tourists are gone but it is still warm and it makes the best time to visit the island.

Sunset at Valley of the Gods (Utah)

Utah. Valley of the Gods
Loc: 37.275492, -109.864443

The Valley of the Gods is my favorite new discovery from the latest Southwest driving trip.

When you travel by car in Southwest, your main points of interest are National Parks, National Monuments, State Park and Tribal Parks. Valley of the Gods stands apart from the rest because it is a public land. It means there is no access fees and no restrictions. You can visit it any time you want and you can camp anywhere you desire.

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