Time Flies: My Year in Photos

2009 is here, and I am, in some ways, still trying to catch my breath from 2008. It was the year of re-connections and creative inspiration. There were a few risks, some adventures, lots of laughs, and many improvements. And on December 31 I punched out for the last time, leaving the place I have worked for the last four years. I am officially on my own. Self-employed. Unemployed. However you want to look at it.

It feels pretty good. So I spent New Year's digging through the photos of the past year, seeing where I've been and how far I've come. Here are some of my favorite moments....

New Year's Day, 2008. I photographed the Annual Lobster Dip, a fundraiser for Maine's Special Olympics. Crazy people jump into the Atlantic Ocean to support a good cause.

The weekend warrior started making animals out of scrap metal. I took a portrait of his latest, the pig.

The WW and I in a garage in Purcelville, VA. We bought an El Camino on EBay, and took a little road trip to fetch it.

This is my nephew, Max, on Easter. It's amazing how young he looks in this photo.

Tom Brady's love child is born in Portland, Maine. I'm kidding. This is Charlie Ellis, and he's pretty darn cute.

Hanging out with friends and therefore lots of kids is common for me. I'm a sucker for a swing set and always love photos of people swinging, no matter what age they are.

In the spring some college friends reunited in Ithaca, NY. First order of business: hit HotTruck. I saw this as a good opportunity to add to my collection of Ben Photos, and the shiny head in the Hot Truck light was irresistible, photographically speaking. Oh, and our friend Jeremy got engaged the next night. Woohoo!

I hung out on a rooftop with the band memebers of The Lomax. Later we hung out in an elevator and a woodworking workshop. It was cool. They are cool.

Just a family portrait I like. They each have their own personality.

A fun wedding shot. Can't remember what was so funny. I have to assume it was me.

Another photo from a wedding. I like it when I can get artsy while shooting weddings.

The El Camino was a hero driving up the East Coast in snow storms. It spent the summer resting and recovering in our driveway. The Weekend Warrior has a mistress.

These crazy bunch of New Yorkers left the city and spent some time in Maine. We all watch Dana as she decides what she thinks about this ocean thing. The next frame showed her running away from them laughing.

Max started Kindergarten. I of course showed up with my camera.

In September I took an awesome workshop on how to shoot film stills. This is Ryan. He was a very good photographic subject.