[DENNIS ODA]

An interfaith service was held Sept. 13 at the National Cemetery of the Pacific for Sept. 11 victims. Returning to my car, I spotted Schoen Safotu and his wife, Nenny. Their solemn expressions lighted by candles with the flag backdrop quietly tells the story. Sometimes you stumble onto these moments.

"Favorite pictures" is a misnomer; pain and suffering are certainly not favorite subjects ... but the stories and pictures are all too memorable and unforgettable. The accidental sinking of the Ehime Maru was one of the biggest local stories of the year. A funeral service for one of the victims, Jun Nakata, was held Oct. 27. At left, it was cold and rainy as the media waited outside Nuuanu Mortuary for the funeral service to end. Suddenly, the casket appeared and the wind and rain stopped. Grieving family and friends followed. The brake lights on the hearse provided the only light on their faces. I felt guilty for complaining to myself about being cold and wet; my discomfort was nothing compared to their misery. As photo journalists, we cover these types of stories to inform the public. If no one knew of their loss, no one else would care. If no one cares, there would be no change and another accident could happen.

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[GEORGE F. LEE]

My shot above of the USS Greeneville circling the oil slick left by the Ehime Maru illustrates the scope of the open-ocean accident scene. The oil slicks dwarfed the Greenville as it searched for survivors. This shot traveled worldwide and appeared in the New York Times and Washington Post. I got the still-photo exclusive due to Star-Bulletin Managing Editor Frank Bridgewater's on-the-fly decision to send me up on a helicopter, not yet knowing the international repercussions of the incident. To this day I do not understand why the Honolulu Advertiser never put a man in the air that Friday.

This photo was taken the Sunday following the USS Greeneville and Ehime Maru collision, as relatives of those killed were greeted by American military officials at Honolulu International Airport. This shot captures the formality of the rescue and recovery effort, and the military disciplinary proceedings.

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[RICHARD WALKER]

The stage was dark at the Tool show at Andrews Amphitheatre on Nov. 10, and I was panicking about getting a shot. Then the hellish projections started, and I knew I had the photo.

A glimpse of the mosh pit at the Cypress Hill Smokeout. I've been there, and it sums up what it's like to be up front at a show. A crowd-surfer went face-down during the Pennywise set at the concert at Kualoa Ranch on Oct. 21.

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[KEN SAKAMOTO]

Christine Snyder, 32, was aboard United Flight 93, which left Newark, N.J., bound for San Francisco the morning of Sept. 11. After being hijacked, the plane crashed in Pennsylvania. Snyder, of Kailua, had been on the mainland to attend the American Forestry Conference in Washington, D.C. This picture of her was taken July 28, a month and half before the tragic event. Snyder was a certified Arborist and project manager with the Outdoor Circle of Honolulu and was instrumental in having this monkeypod tree, valued at $141,000, named an "exceptional" tree with city and county of Honolulu.

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