As we celebrated Texas Monthly ‘s fiftieth anniversary, we asked our photographers to reflect on the faces and places that make up our impressively wide-ranging half-century archive, and to add to the body of stories that will carry us into the next fifty years. In photo shoots from Big Bend Ranch State Park to the shores of Galveston, we aimed to continue the tradition of outstanding visual storytelling.
Our anniversary year took photographers to dozens of new and exciting places. Ben Lowy traveled the depths of Spring Creek Cave with caver extraordinaire Bill Steele; Peter Yang had a field day with a few dozen feral hogs at an animal sanctuary in Ennis; Jeff Wilson donned flippers and waterproofed photo gear to shoot at Waco Surf park. We found a few delicious foods, too, including in Mackenzie Smith Kelley’s graphic and colorful take on Mexican sushi, and Brittany Conerly took a portrait of a Fort Worth burger that we’re still drooling over.
But Texas is nothing without its people, something we’re reminded of whether we’re shooting celebrities or everyday heroes. This year’s print issues featured stunning portrait photography, including Hannah Gentiles’ photo of the only hospice nurse serving the West Texas area; framable favorites of country music icon Tanya Tucker by Sami Drasin; and the type of photo we can all cherish: Chad Wadsworth’s shot of two best friends enjoying a meal. Below we’ve selected some of the works we’re most proud of from 2023. Here’s to the next fifty years of Texas Monthly artwork.
Rescued feral hogs at the Atlasta Home Sanctuary, in Ennis. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/travel/texas-feral-hog-problem-swine-country/u0022u003eApocalypse Sow: Can Anything Stop the Feral Hog Invasion?u003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Peter Yang
Charley Crockett at the Cedar Park train depot on March 13. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/arts-entertainment/the-long-ride-of-charley-crockett/u0022u003eThe Long Ride of Charley Crockettu003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Jai Lennard
The Royale With Cheese at Le Margot in Fort Worth. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/food/le-margot-french-restaurant-fort-worth/u0022u003eThe Moulin Rouge Meets Cowtownu003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Brittany Conerly
ATV riders during the 2023 City Kids Adventures Labor Day weekend trip to South Padre Island. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/a-powerful-introduction-to-nature-for-kids-who-rarely-see-it/u0022u003eA Powerful Introduction to Nature for Kids Who Rarely See Itu003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by John Davidson
Friends Hariette Paule (left) and Alma Foster at the Original Kincaid’s, in Fort Worth, in September. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/interactive/the-good-place/u0022u003eThe Good Placeu003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Chad Wadsworth
Evidence collected in the Dietz alligator snapping turtle smuggling case. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/true-crime/alligator-snapping-turtle-poaching/u0022u003eThe Great Cajun Turtle Heistu003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Cedric Angeles
Bill Steele exploring Spring Creek Cave, near Boerne. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/travel/extreme-cavers-texas-grottos/u0022u003eDeep—Very, Very, Very Deep—in the Heart of Texasu003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Ben Lowy
Isis Brantley in Dallas on July 11. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/style/isis-brantley-crown-act-natural-hair-texas-discrimination/u0022u003eThe Latest Victory for Natural Hair in Texas Can Be Traced Back to Isis Brantley’s Arrest Three Decades Agou003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Jasmine Archie
A sign taped to James Reyos’s mirror reads “I KNOW in my heart—I DID NOT KILL Father Patrick Ryan!! I am TRULY INNOCENT!!!”| u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/james-reyos-exoneration-texas/u0022u003eThe Apache, the Irish Catholic Priest, and a 40-Year-Old Miscarriage of Justiceu003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Christopher Lee
Deacon Jeff Willard, port chaplain at the Galveston Seafarers Center, in October. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/galveston-port-chaplain-deacon-jeff-willard-working-life/u0022u003eGalveston’s Port Chaplain Is a Godsend to Weary Ship Workersu003c/au003eu0022u003cbru003e
Photograph by Brian Goldman
Opal Lee on May 22, in Fort Worth. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/opal-lee-fort-worths-grandmother-of-juneteenth-is-still-marching-at-96/u0022u003eOpal Lee, Fort Worth’s ‘Grandmother of Juneteenth,’ Is Still Marching at 96u003c/au003eu0022u003cbru003e
Photograph by Rahim Fortune
Kimberly Mata-Rubio at her daughter Lexi’s memorial mural in downtown Uvalde. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/uvalde-shooting-mother-grief-one-year-anniversary-gun-control/u0022u003eAmor Eternou003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Dan Winters
Amtrak service attendant Brooke Bailey boarding the u003cemu003eSunset Limitedu003c/emu003e in El Paso. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/travel/west-texas-amtrak-sunset-limited/u0022u003eWhy the Amtrak Sleeper Car Is the Ultimate Way to Travel Across Texasu003c/au003eu0022u003cbru003e
Photograph by Tamir Kalifa
Jim Mazurkiewicz, president of the Polish American Council of Texas, in traditional Polish folk dress in the South Texas town of Cestohowa, on September 17. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/texas-polish-heritage/u0022u003eIn Search of Texas’s Hidden Polish Heritageu003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Andrea Mendoza
The U.S.S. u003cemu003eTexasu003c/emu003e in dry dock earlier this year at the Gulf Copper shipyard, in Galveston. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/battleship-texas/u0022u003eThe U.S.S. Texas, Once the World’s Most Formidable Battleship, Gets a Dramatic Makeoveru003c/au003eu0022u003cbru003e
Photograph by Dan Winters
Hospice nurse Karen Ramirez at a patient’s home in Alpine, on August 4. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/hospice-care-nurse-alpine-death/u0022u003eIn Far West Texas, One Hospice Nurse Brings Comfort to the Dyingu003c/au003eu0022u003cbru003e
Photograph by Hannah Gentiles
A Mexican-inspired sushi roll with carnitas, jalapeño, cream cheese, avocado, and spicy mayo. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/food/mexican-sushi-rolling-across-border/u0022u003eMexican Sushi Is Rolling Across the Borderu003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Mackenzie Smith Kelley
An aerial view of the wave pool, including the concrete grid on the bottom, at Waco Surf on June 9. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/travel/waco-surf-waves-drawing-californians/u0022u003eWacowabunga! Why California Surfers Are Descending on Central Texasu003c/au003eu0022u003cbru003e
Photograph by Jeff Wilson
Morty Parsa, the owner of restaurant Kasra, with his son Adam, in Houston. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/interactive/the-good-place/u0022u003eThe Good Placeu003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Arturo Olmos
Tanya Tucker on her ranch in July. | u0022u003ca href=u0022https://www.texasmonthly.com/arts-entertainment/the-outlaw/u0022u003eTanya Tucker, Outlawu003c/au003eu0022
Photograph by Sami Drasin