Lookback on January

In January, a remarkable 85,829 submissions were made to the Unsplash library. Out of these, we chose 20 exceptional images, each with its own fascinating story to share.

"I enjoy capturing texture with light, shadow, and patterns, and this had all of it!” - Jason Leung 🇺🇸

“This is a picture I took in the Namib Desert this January. I had taken the same image two years ago but I was disappointed with the lighting conditions. I am super glad that I was able to go back and capture this shot, exactly how I wanted it to be.” - Thomas de LUZE 🇫🇷

“Los Angeles has no shortage of run clubs and I wanted to photograph one of the bigger ones called Midnight Runners. The problem was how can I take pictures of fast moving subjects at night when it’s dark? I invented a really unique light setup to help with this. Because I was able to attach two 300 watt lights to my setup and use their bright model lights, I was able to photograph this guy doing sprints and create these light trails. I set my exposure to 1.5 seconds which is slow for fast moving subjects and since my modeling lights were so bright it allowed me to create long trails of the runner. By keeping fill flash vs rear sync, the flash fires a burst of light at the beginning of the pic which captures the subject in focus, and the remaining 1.5 sec exposure captures the light trails of the runner due to the bright modeling light.” - Cameron Venti 🇺🇸

“Vivid sunset in the winter mountains with fresh snow on the trees.” - Ales Krivec 🇸🇮

“Ripe pear and a gentle corn leaf unite in a dance of textures and colors.” - Victoria Druc 🇲🇩

“A majestic king penguin striking a pose. St-Andrew/South Georgia” - Jean Wimmerlin 🇨🇭

“I took this during a full moon in Yosemite National Park at about 1am. It’s comprised of about 80 photos stacked together. It was a freezing night, but well worth the wait.” - Garrett Patz 🇺🇸

“The image was captured on top of Pico de Cerler, nestled in the breathtaking Spanish Pyrenees. The moon, casting its luminous glow upon the majestic mountain range, provided an ideal backdrop for our creative endeavor. Engaging in the art of light painting, we experimented with capturing ethereal moments in time. As I framed this shot, I found myself reflecting on the profound concepts introduced in "Stranger in a Strange Land" by Robert A. Heinlein. The term 'discorporation' from the novel resonated with me, and a connection materialized as I gazed upon the photograph. In this fleeting moment, the two dimensions—physical (body) and spiritual (mind)—seemingly coalesce, frozen in time. The convergence of the moonlit landscape and the play of light paints a tableau that encapsulates a fraction of existence, inviting contemplation on the duality of our earthly and spiritual realms. The transition between body and mind.” - Marek Piwnicki 🇵🇱

“Golden shores, azure waters – Pacitan's beaches are nature's canvas of perfection.” - Mahendra Putra 🇮🇩

“This 3D image is from a series created via custom software I wrote and rendered using the Mitsuba renderer, combining some of my favorite things: glass (for the way it reflects and distorts to add complexity to an image), knot theory (technically this one is a (3, 2) cable of a (2, 3) cable of a (3,2) torus knot) and texture generated using frequency modulation (a sound synthesis technique ubiquitous in pop music during the 1980’s).” - Rick Rothenberg 🇺🇸

“This was the destination of the Wind Cave Trail. I’ve always tried to find unique ways to capture a group photo. And a good silhouette image brings you right back to that moment.” - Jefferson Sees 🇺🇸

"At the end of last year, I was at a point where I wanted to leave my craft because I thought I had already lost the vision and skill that younger people who were more energetic would do a better job. and then I asked my friend Diana to pose for me a little, because I prefer to deal with this condition by taking a new photo. This is a story about how I hide from human eyes and carry my difficulties myself. at these moments it’s just me and my thoughts." - Viktor Zhulin 🌎

“My work often happens spontaneously, and whatever comes to hand goes into the frame. In this case, I had a tangerine with me on the set, which I decided to use in this way” - Sergey Vinogradov 🇷🇺

“Sunrise hike across Bali to view the beautiful Mt. Batur in Bali, Indonesia.” - Carl Raw 🇬🇧

"Halfway to the Amber Fort in Jaipur, Rajasthan, is Panna Meena Ka Kund, an incredible 16th-century stepwell and rainwater catchment. Symmetrical and very labyrinth-esque, it's well worth pulling the car over to explore - dare say its impossible to take a bad photo here!" - Jemimah Gray 🇦🇺

“Cenotes are labyrinths of sinkholes filled with either fresh water, salt water, or both. When it has both, you can see separate layers called haloclines like those lava lamps undisturbed. Angelita is the only Cenote with a cloudy look from the poisonous Hydrogen Sulfide gas released from years of organic matter decaying inside it. With her years of experience, my dive guide swam gracefully  ahead of me on the way back up to the surface in a spiral pattern. We had just finished exploring Angelita's halocline up close. We lined up the wall of the Cenote to our left as a visual guide as it was easy to lose your orientation in the middle of the Cenote. It felt like I was in space who just finished examining an asteroid.” - Thant Aung 🇺🇸

“There's magic to be found in capturing still images of moving scenes. By combining 3D mesh manipulation techniques in a different order, this beautiful piece came out.” - Nick Andréka

"Spending a whole week exploring and camping in Iceland's Highlands was amazing, but the best part was when I decided to stop, climb a peak of Stutur Crater, and launch a drone on a whim. That moment completely changed the road trip, giving me a stunning view of a crater that you wouldn't notice from just passing by.” - Lukas Blaskevicius 🇱🇹

"we took a scenic flight across the Namib desert in a little airplane. To this day, it's the most beautiful thing I have ever witnessed, and it still feels like it was just a dream.” - Joshua Kettle 🇩🇪

“Located in Lysterfield Lake near Melbourne, I was setting up to capture this eastern grey kangaroo and baby joey. I was low to the ground trying to frame the white flowers in the foreground when I got lucky and the kangaroos changed positions presenting this playful 'peek - a - boo' moment. I love funny moments in nature like this.” - Leigh Williams 🇦🇺

See you in a month when we take a look back on February! 👋 (Psst, want to make the next round-up? Include a description with your submission.)