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Photo by Derek Davis
The family of Madison, 2, and Murphy, 4, Doyle of Portland recently moved to Maine from Colorado. The kids walk across a footbridge at Deering Oaks Park on Oct. 16.
It was an unseasonably warm October day and I was looking for a feature photo for the local page. I headed to the park, thinking I would find plenty of opportunities, only to discover that it was almost empty. The park was also very quiet until I heard raucous laughter suddenly from an opening in the trees. I could see a man running after some little figures with a blur of blonde hair. “Might that be a feature?”, I asked myself, but then dropped the idea, deciding they were having too much fun for me to interrupt. I wandered around the park a little more and after coming up empty, started heading back to my car. Then, as I approached the footbridge, I saw the two siblings walking with their arms around each other, framed by the empty park and fallen leaves.
Photo by Derek Davis
Kevin Bellefountaine Sr., 59, is a homeless person living in Biddeford. City officials are discussing what they can do to address the growing number of people experiencing homelessness in a community that does not have a shelter.
I met Kevin at the Seeds of Hope Neighborhood Center, which offers food and connections to resources in York County’s biggest city, yet one without a homeless shelter. After spending the winter in a tent by the Saco River, he moved into a room at the Thacher Hotel, paid for by the city’s General Assistance office. After spending half of his life homeless, Kevin is grateful for the help he is receiving, including access to medical and mental health treatment. He is optimistic that he’ll be able to follow all the steps he needs to in order to secure stable housing. Kevin choked up when describing what it felt like to move out of his tent and into the historic hotel. “A sense of hope. A sense of humanity,” he said. “I grabbed a little tiny thread off the end of the coat and I’m still hanging on.” I made this portrait of him outside the Thatcher, using an off-camera flash to light his face and underexposing the background.
Photo by Derek Davis
Seen through the bus shelter design of local artist Ebenezer Akakpo, a man steps off a bus on Congress Street in Portland. The bus stop was voted best bus stop in the country by readers of Streetsblog USA.
I was hanging around the city making photographs for a story about a $7 million grant through the American Rescue Plan Act that would allow public transit agencies to lower fares and expand services. I had some good photos already when I came upon this shelter with the great art designs by Akakpo. I decided to try to frame the bus and make something a little more “artsy” than my other images, when BAM, this guy steps off in brilliant yellow pants, a red jacket and hat to match the pants.
Photo by Derek Davis
A 38-year-old asylum seeker from Angola, going by the alias Patrick, stands for an abstract portrait at Portland’s Health & Human Services Department.
In February, I accompanied a reporter to talk to asylum seekers about a bill introduced by Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-1st District: the Asylum Seeker Work Authorization Act, which aimed to reduce the waiting period before asylum seekers are eligible to work. Under a federal law passed in 1996, asylum seekers were required to wait at least half a year before being able to work. The law required that a person, after filing an asylum claim, wait 150 days before applying for work authorization, which could be granted no earlier than 180 days after filing the asylum claim. Patrick, who asked that his real name not be used because of safety concerns, also did not want to be recognizable in a photo. I looked around the room and noticed that one of the glass panes had a covering that would conceal his identity. It worked well and created a shadow effect which helped the overall impact of the image, along with the cool tones from the fluorescent lights in the room.
Photo by Derek Davis
When Russian forces invaded Ukraine in February, Ben and Victoria Bernard searched for vigils or demonstrations where they could express their support for Ukraine. Unable to find anything close to their home in Portland, the couple decided to create their own. They made large Ukrainian flags and waved them for an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening at a prominent spot in the East End that faces Interstate 295.
At the start of the invasion I saw many subtle hints of support for Ukraine, such as tiny flags taped to telephone poles, or small flags outside people’s homes, but nothing that visually showed people’s reaction, at least not in southern Maine. I think, like the Bernards, many people didn’t know how to show support. It was a bright, spring morning with a strong breeze, making it ideal to capture this image. I hurried down the hill so I could shoot up at them, thus framing them and the backlit flags, blowing against the backdrop of the blue sky. I shot a few frames that would have worked fine, and then saw them reach for each other’s hand and I made a much better picture.
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Photo by Ben McCanna
Portland quarterback Kennedy Charles, center, and Remijo Wani celebrate after the team won the Class B South championship game against South Portland at Fitzpatrick Stadium.
Two hours before this moment, I apologized to the sports editor. The forecast called for heavy rain, and I was wary of ruining my cameras, so I decided to shoot the game with one camera instead of two to limit my gear’s exposure to the elements. However, because the camera would be wrapped in tape and plastic, I wouldn’t be able to quickly swap out the long 300mm lens for a wider lens to shoot the postgame celebrations, so I decided to stash a second plastic-wrapped camera with a 35mm lens under the bleachers, and out of the rain, until I absolutely needed it. “There may be some gaps in coverage,” I messaged Don Coulter. “Sorry in advance.” As the clocked ticked down to the final minute and it was clear Portland would beat South Portland for the Class B South championship, I hustled to the bleachers to grab the second camera. It was then I discovered I’d inadvertently placed it near a downspout that was splashing water all over the exposed eyepiece. I didn’t have a dry cloth to wipe the glass – the best I could do was smear the moisture away with my thumb. It wasn’t much of a solution. Visibility was nil. As the opposing teams retreated to the sidelines after the game, and before the trophy presentation, I kept looking for quarterback Kennedy Charles, whose name was mentioned over the PA system all night long, who rushed for 203 yards and scored three touchdowns. When I spotted his jersey, I made a quick calculation of where he was heading, got into position, and peered through the camera. All I could see were lights and blurry silhouettes. Nonetheless, I did my best to move my body to compose those shapes in relation to the floodlight, and I pressed the shutter. Because the camera was wrapped in opaque plastic, I wasn’t able to check the monitor to see if I’d gotten the shot. It wasn’t until I returned to the car and loaded the images into my laptop that I let out a little shout of glee.
Photo by Ben McCanna
Oars drizzle droplets into Belfast Bay while propelling the Belle Fast.
I was spooked. It was a cold afternoon in early February when I prepared to board a 32-foot-long wooden boat in Belfast Harbor for a story on winter rowing. Not only was the water literally icy with intermittent floes, but I was carrying thousands of dollars’ worth of electronics into an open boat: two DSLRs and a GoPro attached to a monopod. There’s an adage that says don’t bring anything on a boat that you aren’t prepared to lose. If we tipped over, not only was survival questionable, but I would ruin a career’s worth of equipment. I was assured, however, that the boat had never capsized. Also, the other eight occupants made it look easy, so I took the precarious step from the floating dock into the Belle Fast and settled into my seat in the bow. The next challenge was to photograph the boat, and its rowers, while nestled nervously inside it. It was especially difficult because the rowers were facing away from me. That’s when the GoPro came in handy. By extending the monopod to its full length and propping it skyward, I could get a bird’s eye view of the boat and everyone in it, and I was able to trigger the shutter remotely from my smartphone. As an afterthought, I gripped the monopod tightly and stretched it out over the glassy water to mimic the oars. I could tell immediately from the cellphone screen that this would be the image of the day.
Photo by Ben McCanna
Sharoan Cohen, left, Liberty Chestnut and Dr. Kate Domenico hold Millie while Domenico clips the Sheltie’s claws on Thursday on Peaks Island. Domenico is part-owner of Island Veterinary Service.
Summertime, and the workin’ is easy. At least it was on this day in June when I accompanied Dr. Kate Domenico and her vet tech for a day aboard the Rita Joan – a boat that motors to the lovely islands of Casco Bay to offer dockside veterinary services. All I had to do was make sure this image was in focus. Sweet-faced Millie did the rest.
Photo by Ben McCanna
Gov. Janet Mills dances with supporters during an event hosted by the Maine Democratic Party at Aura in Portland on Nov. 8.
Election Night is pure pressure. As soon as the polls close at 8 p.m., we all want the results. But that doesn’t happen. The news trickles in slowly, precinct by precinct. We still need to deliver newspapers at our readers’ doorsteps first thing in the morning, however, so we print the best information that’s available to us at deadline. I was covering the Maine Democratic Party’s Election Night event – a party that U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree and Gov. Janet Mills were scheduled to attend. The governor’s race was our centerpiece on the front page, so, ideally, we needed a photo of Mills at the party. Just one problem: There was no sign of her. At 9:01 p.m. my editor, Michele McDonald, sent a me a text. “Get something in by 9:30 with or without her.” At 9:20, with no governor in sight, I uploaded a photo of a lone couple on the dance floor. Two minutes later, McDonald asked me to submit another, wider photo to better show the scene, so I left the cocktail table where I was set up with my laptop and turned my attention to the dance floor where, lo and behold, Mills was dancing with abandon among a small group of family members and supporters. I joined a scrum of other photographers kneeling on the dance floor and clicked away until I was certain I had the shot, then bounded back to my table. “She just got here,” I texted McDonald at 9:29. “I have a shot” “Yay! Get it in,” she replied. I quickly toned this image, wrote a short caption and uploaded it into our system at 9:33, just three minutes past deadline. Suddenly the pressure was off, and I was able to enjoy an evening of making images for the web.
Photo by Ben McCanna
Ada McCarthy, left, Jocelyn Taxter and Wallace Taxter stand on a fence while awaiting the parade on the race track Sunday at the 150th Cumberland County Fair.
My career had entered a rough patch. After more than two years of covering the pandemic, my confidence had suffered. I wasn’t making good images. Part of it stemmed from wearing a mask. Every time I looked through the camera, the eyepiece would fog up, and I couldn’t see what I was shooting. Also, to limit potential exposure to the virus and to prevent others from getting sick, I’d try to shoot assignments in 15 minutes or less. Perhaps most important, there just wasn’t a lot going on in the world. Much of my daily life as a photographer was wandering around downtown Portland looking for images of people wearing masks to accompany our daily COVID stories – a task I struggled with. This accumulated into a full-blown crisis. Even as the masks started coming off, vaccines and boosters were available and events started happening again, I was stuck in a COVID mindset. The 150th Cumberland Fair, however, changed everything. It was like awakening from a coma. I’m not sure exactly what shifted in my brain, but I remember standing in a petting zoo with parents and kids and animals all around and I realized I could make a good picture if I just stuck with it long enough. So I took a deep breath and just stood there. I stood there much, much longer than I’d grown accustomed to and just let the scene unfold. When I finally made a successful picture, I was so emboldened I decided to spend the entire day at the fair making images – including this one of children gussied up for a parade – and it was one of the most memorable days in my career.
Photo by Brianna Soukup
Anna Hernandez cries as she talks about the possibility of her daughter and granddaughter having to leave her apartment with no place to go on Sept. 8. Hernandez lives in public housing and was told by the Portland Housing Authority that her daughter and granddaughter had to leave her apartment in seven days.
Press Herald reporter Megan Gray and I had been spending time at Franklin Towers for a few days before we finally made it up to Anna’s apartment. I had met her a day or two earlier down in the lobby and she told me that her daughter was evicted from a Portland Housing Authority property. Anna, who had lived in Franklin Towers for years, also raised her children in a Portland Housing Authority building near Kennedy Park. She knew how difficult navigating the public housing world can be. Anna was informed that week by Franklin Towers that she couldn’t have her daughter and granddaughter living with her. She began to cry as she told us she would never let her granddaughter and daughter live on the street. In these moments I always feel such a sense of helplessness. I can’t put myself in Anna’s place. I don’t know what it is like to feel like the people you love the most in the world are on the precipice of homelessness. All I can do is hope that this photo helps convey the emotional truth of that.
Photo by Brianna Soukup
Nuna Gleason of Gorham was one of six women photographed and interviewed in May, after a leaked draft of a Supreme Court opinion suggested that Roe v. Wade could soon be overturned. Her portrait ran with her story, recorded in her own words, of what abortion rights meant to her.
When people argue over abortion – one of our nation’s biggest divides – they often speak in broad terms, ignoring the humanity of those directly affected by whether the procedure is legal. Politicians do much of the talking – men in suits making statements on the floor of the U.S. Senate. I wanted to hear what abortion rights meant to a diverse group of people – varied in background, age, gender identity. They were all so generous with their time, thoughts and deeply personal stories – and I was honored that they trusted me to share their experiences with the public. Nuna’s story stuck with me. She became pregnant when she was raped and came here from Kenya seeking asylum because she was threatened when she spoke out about what happened to her. She founded an organization, Wounded Healers International, to help others like herself. And she felt good to find herself in a country where women had reproductive rights and access to abortion. I let Nuna and the others in the story speak for themselves, and readers could listen to them, unfiltered. I think, for me, that made the piece even more personal. Here is some of what Nuna said. “I really wanted to do an abortion, but it was not accessible. I took all the chemicals that I could. We were told that you take laundry detergent and diluted juice. I did all that. I really tried, and it never happened. I went through pain. I wished every day that I could have an abortion, but I didn’t get access. That was very, very scary for me. I am happy that I have my son right now – but what I have gone through, especially mentally, I wouldn’t want anybody else to go through. So many girls have died. … A girl died that I knew very well trying to do an abortion, and many, many, many, many other girls (in Kenya) are still doing (illegal) abortions. Being raped is really traumatizing, and realizing that you’re pregnant is even way more traumatizing.”
Photo by Brianna Soukup
Freeport field hockey players celebrate seconds after a goal from Anna Maschino that meant victory over York following the seventh round of corners after two overtimes in the Class B South Regional Final on Nov. 2.
The process to get this photo was a lot. I had to get through a whole field hockey game, two overtimes and several sets of corners. When it was finally over, when Freeport won, a man stepped directly in front of my camera. I thought I missed the celebration shot, or if I had it there would be a man’s leg obscuring most of the frame. I was incredibly annoyed. My co-worker Ben McCanna saw me moments after and witnessed my anger and despair. I felt like I had waited through hours of game to get nothing at the end. By what can only be described as a miracle, I had two frames before the rogue man took his place in front my lens. Not only that, but the expressions were great. I wish I could say I realized in the moment that there was a player from the other team upset about their loss in the corner of the frame, but, like with many moments in photojournalism, that was just pure luck.
Photo by Brianna Soukup
Two couples dance together at the end of Dirigo High School’s prom at Black Mountain in Rumford on May 7.
I was drawn to this photo because it is super simple. Two couples trying to savor the last moments of their prom night. I liked the small details too. The confetti on the ground, the one fallen balloon. I like how one couple is holding each other tightly, while the other are looking at each other. I’ve said this before, but it is getting difficult to find new moments after doing proms for years and this one felt new to me.
Photo by Brianna Soukup
Three young people listen to speakers talk about their personal experiences with abortion during a protest in support of abortion rights outside the federal courthouse in Portland on May 3.
In journalism school I remember being told to avoid signs in photos. I don’t think I thought much about it at the time, but since 2016 I have covered more protests and rallies than I ever thought I would. When I saw these young people intently listening to the speakers at a protest in reaction to the draft opinion overruling Roe v. Wade, I was drawn to them immediately. This is a quiet photo. It isn’t going to hit you over the head. They are obviously holding up signs in this photo, but my eye goes to their faces. It seems like at that moment a very sobering reality is hitting them. The country they live in is entering into a very different moment than they had perhaps pictured for their future.
Photo by Shawn Patrick Ouellette
Chad Kilmartin and Cooper, 5, take a short break from skiing with Cooper’s mom, Kara, and sister Delilah, 6 months old, while skiing at Shawnee Peak. Kara and Delilah came to watch Cooper ski. Cooper, who has spina bifida, was learning to ski with the help of his father, Chad, who is an avid skier.
In February I spent the day photographing 5-year-old Cooper as he learned to ski in a sit-ski. I brought my skis and followed them around the slopes getting images of them skiing, going up the chairlift, etc. Cooper is an amazing kid, he was so excited to hit the slopes and he was so kind to me during our day, he kept checking to see if I was going on the next run with them, making sure I wasn’t left out. This image was probably my favorite of the day. I love the way Cooper is looking at his mom, Kara, as she spends a moment with her daughter Delilah. I was glad to include Kara in the images because even though she wasn’t skiing, she was there to support Cooper. I was glad to get the whole family in one of the images.
Photo by Shawn Patrick Ouellette
Young fans watch the Portland vs. Cheverus soccer game, some under the cover of an umbrella, as the rain begins to fall on Oct. 13.
I got the dreaded call late in my shift, “we need a weather feature.” I was already covering a soccer game, so rather than rush off to look for a feature I kept checking the stands in hopes of spotting something visual. When I first tried to photograph the small student section they saw me with my camera and started to strike poses and ham it up for the camera. So I went back to photographing the game. I waited and eventually they forgot about me and that’s when I made this image. I like the blue sky with the light balancing out the composition. The umbrella was a much-needed element that emphasized the fact that it was raining.
Photo by Shawn Patrick Ouellette
High school students from Cape Elizabeth and Portland stand in the rain outside Sen. Susan Collins office during a moment of silence in the wake of another school shooting, this time at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 students and 2 teachers were killed. About 200 students took part in the protest, walking out of school, then meeting in downtown Portland and marching to Collins’ office.
I photographed the students at Cape Elizabeth as they walked out of school in protest. When they marched through the streets of Portland, some Portland High School students joined them as they made their way to Collins’ office. I made several images of the students chanting “enough is enough” and carrying signs, but I think this image, taken during a moment of silence, was the most powerful. You can see it in their eyes, they’ve had enough, they want change.
Photo by Shawn Patrick Ouellette
Don Cook pauses for a photograph as he was sweeping and cleaning out his Redemption Center in South Portland on Aug. 26. Cook has closed Rolando’s Redemption Center after being in business for decades. He cites the rising costs of doing business, including finding help, as the reason.
Cook, who began accepting bottles and other containers around the same time Maine launched its “bottle bill” program in 1978, was cleaning out his redemption center when I arrived. I made images of him sweeping and picking up. I was about to leave when I noticed the window had containers not eligible for redemption attached. So, I worked a portrait of Cook in the window with just the natural light. I like to use natural light whenever I can, I think it gives the viewer a more authentic glimpse of what the scene really looked like.
Photo by Shawn Patrick Ouellette
Tim Dean of Mechanic Falls laughs as he floats in the water during the Lobster Dip to benefit Special Olympics of Maine in Old Orchard Beach on the first day of the new year.
I was assigned the annual Polar Dip in Old Orchard Beach, which is always a fun assignment. This year looked different from years past. With COVID restrictions still in place, they decided to have several small groups take a dip, one after another, rather than everyone at once. I photographed the groups as they ran in and out of the water, but this was my favorite image of the day. After everyone in his group sprinted out of the chilly ocean, Mr. Dean took a moment to float around and enjoy the moment. To me his laugh says it all.
Photo by Gregory Rec
Brother Arnold sweeps out a sheep stall inside the barn at the Shaker Village in New Gloucester. The barn will undergo a multi-year restoration, funded by a $500,000 grant from the National Park Service Save America’s Treasures program. The Shakers need to match that grant with donations.
I have photographed at the Shaker Village in New Gloucester many times over the years and always enjoy visiting with Brother Arnold, one of two Shakers living on the property, the last active Shaker community in the world. For a story about an extensive restoration of their barn, I photographed Brother Arnold as he swept out a sheep stall in the barn early one morning as sunlight cast a warm glow in the stall and on him. Working the land and tending sheep are at the heart of his Shaker faith. “Farming is a part of our daily routines, it shapes our theology and is even expressed in our songs,” Brother Arnold says. “It is our life and our lifeline, as it is for so many others.”
Photo by Gregory Rec
Benicio Paulino, 2, starts to unbury himself while his mother, Paige, still lies buried in the sand at East End Beach in Portland on Aug. 3. The two were visiting Maine from Kansas for 10 days.
Often, Press Herald photographers are asked to find what we call “standalone features,” images that don’t accompany a story and can carry a page on their own merit. Finding these can be difficult, but on a summer day at East End Beach the struggle becomes choosing who to focus on. When facing abundant options, I pay more attention to the way people interact with each other rather than the visual elements of the scene. This family from Kansas was having so much fun I knew that eventually a good image would happen. When the older sibling covered his mother and brother in the sand, I had my photo.
Photo by Gregory Rec
Alewives make their way through rapids in Mill Brook pool in Westbrook on May 27. Thousands of alewives make their way up the brook to Highland Lake to spawn.
I have witnessed alewives migrating in large numbers in rivers and streams in central Maine, but never in southern Maine. When I heard about alewives migrating from Casco Bay up through Mill Brook in Westbrook this past spring, I had to check it out. When I arrived at the southern viewing pool in the Mill Brook Preserve in late May, I was surprised to see hundreds of alewives swimming around the small pool as they rested before continuing their arduous journey upstream. I photographed the masses from the banks of the brook, but quickly realized I wanted to see what their passage looked like from underwater. I returned to the brook a week later and used a GoPro camera to capture video and photos of the fish battling the current on their passage to Highland Lake, where they spawn before returning to Casco Bay.
Photo by Gregory Rec
Kayakers paddle through Castine Harbor at sunset on June 15.
I was in Castine to photograph a restaurant opening when I noticed a group of kayakers heading out into the serene waters of Castine Harbor for a sunset paddling tour. I changed gears and put a drone up to capture this image because the light was too nice to pass up. I like the simplicity of this photo with the repeating patterns of the kayaks and the different positions of the paddles.
Photo by Gregory Rec
Marian Starkey, right, listens as a manager of the building that houses the Planned Parenthood clinic in Portland talks with Chuck Unger about a newly-painted zone where abortion protestors are not permitted to stand. Unger regularly attends the Friday morning protests.
With the leaked U.S. Supreme Court draft abortion decision and subsequent overturning of Roe v. Wade, the abortion debate became a flashpoint across the country in 2022. I covered many rallies and protests in Portland where opposing sides had heated exchanges. I also spent a couple of Friday mornings outside the Planned Parenthood clinic in Portland, where volunteer greeters and abortion opponents converge almost every Friday in every kind of weather. Exchanges between the greeters and opponents are minimal and sometimes even congenial. However, a tense exchange occurred when a new green line was painted on the sidewalk marking an 8-foot medical safety zone around the entrance to the building that houses the clinic. Abortion opponent Chuck Unger set up an easel holding a poster of Jesus inside the buffer zone and stood next to it. Within minutes, a manager of the building came out and informed him that he had to outside the line or risk arrest. The two had a tense exchange that lasted a few minutes and then Unger set his easel up just outside the line and stood next to it the rest of the morning.
Photo by Carl D. Walsh
Sea Smoke, created by sub-zero morning temps, hovered over the Willard Beach Fish Houses in South Portland on Jan. 16.
My idea for a photo on the morning of January 16, with its below-zero temperatures, started with the concept of sea smoke. As I pondered possible locations to capture the phenomenon, I thought of the interesting juxtaposition of the Willard Beach fish houses and the iconic Portland Head Light. I arrived before sunrise when it was still miserably frigid. To capture the photo, I had to just compromise warmth a bit and exercise mind over matter to withstand the painful cold and focus on capturing the shot.
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