Teamwork
The New England Newspaper & Press Association recently held it’s annual awards banquet in Boston. While I was not there with my former co-workers, needless to say they made out like bandits. Nicole Goodhue Boyd was awarded the Photographer of the Year for Weekly Newspapers (among five other awards). David Sokol won First Place for Feature Photo and Kirk R. Williamson won two First Place awards, one for Pictorial and one for Video.
While those individual honors are to be lauded, I am also proud that as a team we won First Place for Digital/Print Convergence for our multimedia project on the building of the schooner Ardelle. The Ardelle is a pinky schooner, a traditional New England coastal vessel, built by master shipwright Harold Burnham of Essex. He and a dedicated group of volunteers worked tirelessly to see its completion and our team captured the building process from when the first several of the boat’s ribs were built to the launch of the Ardelle. Writer Laurie Fullerton and Cape Ann Beacon editor Jane Enos as well deserve a lot of credit for their time and efforts at making this idea for a project live and breath in the newspaper and on the website.
To see photo galleries, videos, written stories and profiles of “Harold’s Helpers”, please visit the Cape Ann Beacon Ardelle page.
Gillette Stadium Memories
As the New England Patriots head into the Super Bowl this Sunday, I began thinking back to some of the memories I had photographing the Eastern Mass State Finals football championship games at Gillette Stadium, home of the Patriots. For almost all of these kids it was a thrill of a lifetime to play on the same field as Brady, Harrison, Branch and so many other greats had. While the roar of the crowd wasn’t anything like that of any given Sunday, these players played with passion, intensity and a desire to win.
One of the things that I love about photographing high school sports is that there is still that sense of pureness to the way the game is played. Sure, the players showboat and mimic their favorite NFLer but they play for the love of the game that I don’t think can be matched at the collegiate or professional level. Case in point, the Masconomet Chieftains Division 2A Super Bowl game against Marshfield. After getting down 13-0, the Chieftains clawed back into the game with an Evan Bunker touchdown run to cut the lead to 13-6. With the time winding down late in the fourth quarter, the Chieftains drove deep into the Marshfield zone. Bunker scrambled, avoiding the sack, and through a touchdown pass, making it 13-12 as precious time continued tick away. Instead of going for the extra point to tie the game, Masconomet opted for a two point conversion and the win. It was a gutsy call and luck turned out to not be on their side. The pass was broken up in the end zone, ending the Chieftains year.
Here, Evan Bunker and Chris Splinter hug as the Chieftain faithful file out to the exit after the game. The moment was all the more poignant as this was the last time these two, both seniors, would play alongside each other as they had been doing since they were little kids. To me it illustrates the bond forged through tough days of training, long hours spent preparing for their opponents, all with the same common goal, to win.
From the Archive: Hockey
With the NHL season finally underway I can breathe a little bit easier. As much as I love football, which none of my friends or family would question, there’s something really special about hockey that always keeps me coming back for more. It doesn’t matter if I taking pictures at a Pee-Wee league game or watching the Pittsburgh Penguins on TV, I’m going to be glued to it. With that in mind I wanted to post a few hockey photos I’ve taken over the last year or so.
Reflections on Nantucket, Pt. 2
When I think of the places that truly offer me a chance to slow down, breathe and relax, Bufflehead is one of them. Bufflehead is the rental home some of my family and I recently traveled to on Nantucket. This is the view looking west over Hummock Pond. Here we watched as the sky changed color as the sunlight faded and listened as the waves crashing on nearby Cisco Beach could be heard in the background. When the cold wind and deep snow return again in winter I will surely look back and remember the days we spent on the deck admiring nature’s beauty.
Reflections on Nantucket
I was fortunate enough to have recently taken a very restful vacation on Nantucket. Staying at a house overlooking beautiful Hummock Pond brought me a sense of peacefulness I have not found in quite some time. I did bring my cameras but vowed not to go too crazy with taking photographs. I wanted to simply exist in the space I was in rather than get caught up in “capturing” what I was seeing and experiencing.
We were treated to what seemed like an almost endless parade of birds either flying or floating by. I never really considered myself a bird enthusiast but hearing the different calls and seeing so many different kinds of birds in one place was such a treat and certainly a highlight of the trip.
Boston Harbor Islands – Boston Light
Despite the unpredictable weather this spring, I can’t help but be thinking about summer. Last summer I took my mom on the Boston Harbor Islands tour of Boston Light. It was a very pleasant tour out to Boston Light with great views of the harbor, Castle Island and some of the other nearby lighthouses and islands. With temperatures in the low 80s and plenty of sunshine, we couldn’t have picked a better day to be out on the water.
Motif No. 1, Rockport
Motif No. 1 in Rockport, MA is probably one of the most recognizable fishing shacks in all the country. Sitting at the edge of Bradley Wharf in Rockport Harbor, the building receives really great afternoon light that lends itself to some great photography. As spring finally gets going I hope to be able to make the time to do more landscape photography around Cape Ann as it is such a special place.
