I feel like I just sat down to write my January photos of the month column. Maybe that’s because February is a shorter month, but it also ended in the same snowy and stormy fashion as January did.
Here are my pics of the month:
1) I know what you’re thinking, “Didn’t I just see this on the front page?” Yes, yes you did, but this is my column and I make the rules! This ginormous snowman put the biggest smile on my face, and it still is as I sit here and write this. I was driving around Saugus looking for post-blizzard photos to take, but much to my chagrin, Saugus and its residents had done too good a job digging themselves out. The streets were clear and there was a noticeable lack of snowblower sounds echoing through the air. I decided to take one last drive through town when these gleaming orbs of snow caught my eye. “Surely that’s not a giant snowman, right?,” I thought to myself. Surely it was! I dumped my car in a snowbank and hopped out to start photographing this masterpiece in the parking lot of Miss Rina’s Lil Rascals Child Care Center. As I stood in its gargantuan shadow reviewing the images on the back of my camera when I realized there was something missing from the frame. There was no human element, nothing to show the true scale of the snowman, it was just a really nice looking snowman. So I decided to wait it out, I stood there on the sidewalk for 20 minutes waiting and hoping for someone to walk by. I was about to give up when a figure walked out from behind the building. As luck would have it, it was the snowman’s creator, Gio Cardenas, of Lynn. He quickly struck a pose next to his creation and I had my image. “I did it so the kids would be happy to come to school and see a big snowman,” said Cardenas.
2) I’m a sucker for an event I get to cover that involves animals. There’s never a shortage of good images to make and as a bonus, I get to learn about some cool animals. Curious Creatures brought out Susan, a 27-year-old Brazilian red-footed tortoise, for the kids and families to enjoy. Despite the old adage, Susan could MOVE. She tried to make numerous escape attempts, like this moment as she tries to sneak past Fiona Crowley during the demonstration at Nahant Town Hall. I’m always looking for an image that puts a smile on my face, and this certainly did.
3) As I sat up in the photography perch at McVann-O’Keefe Skating Rink in Peabody photographing an intense game between Bishop Fenwick and Peabody/Lynnfield/North Reading girls hockey team one thing became apparent to me, Bishop Fenwick goalie Stella Madarese was having a great game. I knew I had to get a good shot of her and that opportunity came very quickly as I captured this moment of her diving back across the net to make a save. Madarese was able to hold off 51/52 shots on goal from PLNR and helped the Crusaders win the Carlin Cup.
4) I don’t work Saturday’s, but when reporter Deyscha Smith told me that Lynn Public Library would be hosting wedding ceremonies on Valentine’s Day I knew where I’d. I photograph weddings with my wife, Casey, who’s an incredibly talented photographer, and I was looking forward to combining my day job as a photojournalist with wedding photography. The ceremonies were held in the Reading Room, with couples surrounded by book shelves and a stunning mural. Love was truly in the air and I felt so privileged to be there documenting those special moments.
5) Last, but certainly not least, comes from a photoshoot with artist Dr. Eleanor Ruth Fisher. I love photographing people that do things with their hands, and Dr. Fisher certainly does. Her Lynn home is now a continuous gallery of her unique glass shard paintings, a new masterpiece appearing with every corner you turned. I liked a lot of frames from that day, but this one struck me as she walks down the stairs in bright red, surrounded by her art that was on display.
