Centenarians

Living to 100 is not small feat, and turns out is completely out of your hands! In 2019 I spent time traveling around the state of Maine to photography centenarians living in Maine. Maine’s Bicentennial is this year and I thought what better way to capture this state than to look to the residents that have been here for half the time! This story was photographed for Down East Magazine and interviews were conducted by Maine Public Radio. Do yourself a favor and head over to Maine Public to listen to all the interviews.

If you’re wondering what the secret is to living to 100 is? I’d say good genes, and a sense of humor.

Alfreda Dumond, 102

Dorothy Kern, 100

 

Dan Donnell, 101

Dorothy Murray, 100

Eva Deschaine, 103

Rev. Dr. Wilbert Gough, 103

Jeanette Jandreau, 100

Ruth Endicott, 103

Dorothy Buchanan, 100

Maurice Bouchard, 102

 

Client: Down East Magazine
Interviews: Maine Public Radio
Photo Assistant: Clayton Simoncic 

Maine Cannabis for Maine Magazine

The longer I am a photographer the more I realize that curiosity is truly what drives me. I have always loved science with the nearly the same passion as photography. Heck, I went to school for medical photography. This curiosity was never more evident than when I was working on this Cannabis story.  I sometimes worry that I ask too many questions when photographing subjects and don’t take enough pictures. I strongly believe that often times being well informed makes for more compelling images. Enjoy a brief glimpse of Maine’s blooming Cannabis industry.

Client: Maine Magazine

Belgrade, Maine

Sometimes assignments come along where you find yourself working really hard and simultaneously really really enjoying yourself! This is precisely how I felt when Down East Magazine sent me to the town of Belgrade to photograph some of the magic that is Maine in the summer time! The biggest challenge here was photographing a summertime lakeside town, after labor day. There was a very small window between when the leaves started to turn and there were still enough people around to have everything feel like summer. Fortunately, I had a couple of really amazing connections, and some committed friends to help out! There is no way this story would have turned out without their help!

Client: Down East Magazine – https://downeast.com/belgrade-lakes-maine/
Photo Editor: Benjamin Williamson – https://benjaminwilliamson.photoshelter.com/index
Writer: Jennifer Finney Boylan – http://jenniferboylan.net/
A Special Thanks to Ben Ford for boating me around the lake at all hours. A very Special thanks to Kit McCann and Viva (https://www.instagram.com/seevivasing/) for fighting traffic and chilly water and making this extremely fun!

Woodsmen & Woodswomen

You may have guessed this at this point, but I am kind of obsessed with logging and the forrest products industry. So when Down East Magazine asked me for some story pitches, the top of my list was this story about colligate woodsmen competitors. I have only ever seen these competitions from a distance, and wasn’t quite aware of the level of intense athleticism that this sport demands. Equally impressive and challenging was the speed at which these events take place. The challenge was trying to move half a dozen small strobes around in a tight space as fast as possible. I am so grateful for this opportunity and suspect I am not done with this project.

Also, I would really like to make a move to get the term woodswomen officially into the dictionary!

Client: Down East Magazine
Writer: Will Grundwald
Assistant: Clayton Simoncic*
*Extra hardcore assisting award for this one!

Bednark Studio

As an assistant in New York I had the pleasure of working with Bednark Studio on so many projects over the years! They are master builders and master prop stylist for any and all needs! What started as a small garage is now an epically sized warehouse in Brooklyn.  On a recent visit to New York I had the pleasure of photographing their manufacturing facilities and some of the workers creating some fabulous stuff.

 

Check out Bednark Studio’s work: http://www.builtbybednark.com/site/
Assistant: Lauren Juratovac – https://www.instagram.com/ljuratovac/

Maine Wild Blueberries

Every year one billion pounds of blueberries are produced worldwide, 100 million of which are Maine wild blueberries. If you’ve ever had Maine wild blueberries you already know they are very different from the larger cultivated variety most people are familiar with. They are smaller in size, richer in flavor, and have been reported to contain double the antioxidants of cultivated blueberries. This year, between new trade tariffs, a weaker Canadian dollar, and a growing production worldwide the wild blueberry farmers of Maine have been advised to leave some of their fields unharvested to help steam the falling prices of wild blueberries.

Camp Ellis, Maine

The fishing village of Camp Ellis in Saco Maine is in the midst of fighting a losing battle against shore line erosion. in the past 60 year near two dozen homes have been swelled by the sea. These images were made for a Down Eat Magazine story that focused on the community of Camp Ellis.

Client: Down East Magazine
Photo Editor: Benjamin Williamson
Story Author: Virginia M. Wright

Turning Ideas Into Images

Recently I ordered two iced coffees from Startbucks, one black and one with “room for cream.” When my order was up, they had misheard me and in fact given me one black and one with lots of cream. As I stood there holding both coffees in my hands I thought how beautiful it would be to have an overhead image of 16 different cups of iced coffee filled with differing amounts of cream. Over the next week I couldn’t shake this image, and decided I should do something about it. I don’t spend very much time photographing food, but I am always looking for challenges and any way to expand my skill set.

I made a quick drawing with some crude math and set out for supplies. I started thinking maybe a few different images of coffee would be interesting! I thought maybe some fun background colors as well. Once back in the studio, I begin making an epic mess, but totally worth it. I felt like I had something fun on my hands but it was missing a human element. I thought diptychs could be fun. A few phone calls later I had some willing participants. I wanted to focus on how refreshing iced coffee can be in the summer time.

Behold the most refreshing summer time iced coffee imagery, created entirely from a passing thought.

I wanted to have fun images that made people smile and maybe buy an iced coffee?

 

 

Covering New England!

Well, nothing makes you feel like you’ve been accepted into a region and community like have two covers published at once! Growing up outside Chicago I sort of thought of New England as this mythical land of trees. In the fall time that Land would turn into something otherworldly landscape! So how delightful that this September I have two separate covers on two separate New England centered Magazines!

The First cover is for Yankee Magazine. This was part of a much larger shoot of some autumn leaves from a whole back. I remember shooting this exact picture and thinking I bet this would make a great cover! Well, turns out somethings I’m right!

Client: Yankee Magazine: https://newengland.com/yankee-magazine/
Subject: Maple Leaves

 

Second the Down East Magazine cover, featuring The Rangeley Inn In Rangeley Maine!

Client: Down East Magazine, https://downeast.com/innkeepers/
Photo Editor: Benjamin Williamson; https://www.instagram.com/benjaminwilliamsonphotography/
Subject: The Rangeley Inn: https://www.therangeleyinn.com
Photo Assistant: Clayton Simoncic: https://www.instagram.com/claytonsimoncic/

 

 

Maine to Guatemala… In a freakin’ Kayak!

I recently had the pleasure of photographing Deborah Walters for Rotary International! She paddled her kayak from Maine to Guatemala, a staggering 2500 miles to raise awareness and money for Safe Passage. Safe Passage is an organization dedicated to helping children living in garbage dumps in Guatemala find shelter and schooling.

Client: Rotary International; https://www.rotary.org/
Subject: Deborah Walters
Lighting Assistant: Clayton Simoncic: https://www.instagram.com/claytonsimoncic/
Safe Passage: https://www.safepassage.org