For the first time in my life, I’ve entered a photo contest.

I know I don’t stand a chance in the PX3. (Last year’s overall winner was Howard Schatz.)

But I decided recently that—to grow as a photographer—I’ve got to take a chance. So tonight I submitted some of my favorite images from 2010.

In the “Fine art — abstract” category, I offered the stairs from the Galerie Véro-Dodat in Paris. I shot *lots* of frames of this rickety staircase last September, but this image was my favorite:

I also entered one of my favorite shots from Como Lake. I call this one “Zen Duck Butt:”

In the “Portrait” category, I submitted “Tiffany’s wedding.” (Never mind that I don’t know who “Tiffany” is. What I do know is that her photographer was missing the best angle as he was standing to her left, telling her to look at him and smile.)

… and finally, I entered these still lifes (or would that be “still lives”?) that I shot as decoration for my sister’s guest bathroom. I titled this composite “One flower, two ways.”

As I said, I have no hopes of winning my categories in the PX3, but that’s OK. Choosing my favorite images was an education in and of itself: I discovered which photographs I most treasure, and why.