The 10 best moments in photography 2015

2015 has almost come to and end and what a year it’s been! Here are ten things photographers will remember long after we’ve sung Auld Lang Syne and toasted to the new year ahead.

1 The day a weasel took a ride on the back of a woodpecker
Talk about decisive moments! The #weaselpecker picture, photographed by Martin Le-May in a park in London, was the talk of social media in March. It fostered some fantastic photoshop responses too who doesn’t remember the picture of a barechested Russian president Vladimir Putin riding on the back of the poor bird. We’re hoping for an #owlkitten or a #magpieferret moment in the new year!

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The weasel woodpecker photo: the REAL story of how the photographer got the shot!

2 The blood moon
On 29 September this year photographers were given a gift from above: a bright, blood-red supermoon lunar eclipse, the first of its kind since 1982 and the last we’ll see until 2033. Those who had the stamina to wake up in the middle of the night to capture it were rewarded with some absolutely stunning photos.

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How to photograph the moon: an easy way to shoot moon pictures full of detail

3 Cats with Trump hair
There are technically accomplished pictures and then there are pictures that deserve to be remembered purely for the giggles they gave us. Pictures of cats with the same hairdos as Donald Trump belong in the latter category. Styling your feline with mini toupees of cat hair became one of the biggest Instagram trends of the summer, to the delight of ‘grammers’ worldwide (and the dismay of their cats, presumably).

4 The Caitlyn cover
A link to the Kardashian family undoubtedly helped, but we reckon Annie Leibovitz’s stunning photo of Caitlyn Jenner on the cover of Vanity Fair’s July issue really brought attention to the story of the Olympic champion formerly known as Bruce, now known as Caitlyn Jenner. By depicting Jenner in a feminine and not too sultry way, Leibovitz contributed to a dignified conversation about diversity and tolerance and her cover photograph helped Vanity Fair’s newsstand sales a great deal too.

5 A smile amid tragedy
In the last few months, the world has witnessed some brilliant but mostly heartbreaking photography of refugees struggling on their journey to safety. But there were also a few happy moments inbetween, and photographer Claus Fisker’s photo series of a Danish police officer playing a game with a young refugee will be remembered.

6 Pirelli’s new direction
Leibovitz really smashed it this year. With her un-airbrushed photos of women known for their professional achievements, Leibovitz caused a stir by taking the Pirelli calendar in a whole new direction. We particularly love the portrait of comedian Amy Schumer looking towards the viewer with a surprised expression, as if she were the only person who didn’t receive the memo about wearing clothes.

7 Beyond the square
Your memorable moments don’t all happen within the boundaries of a square, and neither should your pictures unless you want them to of course. This year, Instagram finally thought outside the square box and allowed us to use whatever format best suits each picture. It saves us having to use external thirdparty apps for the same purpose and means we can get on with taking more beautiful photos in all aspect ratios.

8 Climate change captured by drones
A few years ago they would have been prohibitively expensive, but lately drones have become affordable and accessible to ordinary photographers, giving us a whole new perspective to play with. But it’s not just about fun and games. This year Dronestagram, a site that allows users to share their aerial photos, held a competition to find the best aerial photograph that illustrates climate change and its possible solutions. It’s great when an awesome hobby can be used for the good of the planet, and the shortlisted images were breathtaking.

9 Unlimited photo storage
If you, like us, are sick of the the constant popup message on your phone saying ’storage almost full’, but too stingy to fork out and pay for more storage, then this was your lucky year; Google Photos, introduced at Google’s developer conference in May, allows you to store as many photos as you want for free!

SEE MORE: How to take good photos: 10 simple ways to boost your hit rate

Image courtesy of NASA

10 First ever photos of Pluto’s surface
Over the last few months, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft has been flying by Pluto taking continuously more revealing photos of the planet’s surface. The latest picture is so detailed that you can see what looks like ripples left in sand as the tide goes out. Craters, mountains and glacial terrains are outlined, and thanks to NASA’s space photography prowess, 2015 was the year we found out that Pluto has blue skies and frozen water.

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