Sometimes capturing a great photo means hiking in the dark. Photo Editor Brandon Jakobeit shot the above photo for a 2018 story on scaling five West Texas peaks in a week. While trekking to the top of Guadalupe Peak, the group decided to camp near the summit to capitalize on the morning light at the top. “I had fallen behind my companions stopping to take photos,” Jakobeit recalls. “This image was the remaining sunlight coming across the tops of the mountain just before dark set in.” Despite having to finish the rest of the hike after sunset, Jakobeit counts that experience as a highlight of his decade of work at the magazine.
Enjoying this article?This issue is a celebration of our photographers’ and art staff’s commitment to capturing the most beautiful shots possible throughout our 50-year history. We’ve devoted our feature section to three photo essays, including a selection of our best outtakes of the year and a retrospective of photos from the 1980s-2010s. The latter showcases the work of longtime photographer and photo editor J. Griffis Smith, who took the majority of the magazine’s photos during his 30-year career and set a standard for quality visuals.
We know from many reader letters and emails over the years that the photos depicting our state’s beauty are a top reason for subscribing. “For as long as I can remember, and I’ve been here for over a decade, readers have always commented on our beautiful scenics, our landscapes, and our diverse cultural offerings,” Creative Director Mark Mahorsky says. “They’ve come to expect a certain quality every month and let us know if we missed the mark.” Mahorsky credits relationships with photographers throughout the state—and their talent and care in delivering first-rate photography—as central to hitting that mark. As we close out our 50th year, we hope you receive this issue as a thank-you for supporting our publication for the past half-century.
