Derek grew up in New York, while spending part of his summers in Maine, where he developed an appreciation for its wild landscape and natural beauty. Moving from a metropolitan area to the wide-open spaces of Maine felt like an escape to an earlier time when life was simpler, he says. The air seemed pure and the dark night skies were both quiet and alive. After graduating from the University of New England in Biddeford, Derek started his photojournalism career at a newspaper in White Plains, NY. In 2004, he moved to Scarborough and joined the staff at the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram. He lives with his wife and three children in Scarborough. His favorite assignments are photographing the outdoors of Maine, especially along the coast, and covering local sporting events.
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PublishedFebruary 7, 2022
In photos: Scenes of a frozen Maine
Portraits of winter in Maine by the Press Herald’s photographers
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PublishedFebruary 5, 2022
Hundreds turn out for WinterFest in Biddeford
Biddeford hosted the 10th annual WinterFest over the weekend. The event, which began with an adults-only sledding party on Adams Street on Friday night, continued Saturday with more sledding for the kids, yard games, dance and martial arts performances, hot chocolate and s’mores. “It’s really good, especially since people haven’t been able to go to […]
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PublishedFebruary 4, 2022
The best Press Herald photography in January 2022
January is the time we settle into the start of real winter with its bone-chilling cold, its scant hours of daylight, its snow and ice. Take a look at some of our best photography from the month as entertainment during a time of isolation.
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PublishedDecember 25, 2021
2021 Photos of the Year: Photographers’ Choice
2021 was a roller coaster ride. It started with mobs attacking the Capitol to try to overturn the presidential election and is ending with a new surge of the coronavirus. There was enough bad news – fires, floods, disasters of every natural and manmade kind – to make you want to bury your head under the covers and stay there. But there was also the miracle of vaccines – by the end of June, hardly any vaccinated people were dying of COVID-19. We gained a new appreciation of the simple but deep pleasures of meeting with family and friends, going to a country fair or a high school baseball game, looking for beauty in the flight of an owl or a solar eclipse at dawn. For our 2021 Photos of the Year collection, Portland Press Herald photographers voted on one another’s photos, then selected their own favorites from the top vote-getters. We hope you enjoy looking at them as much as we enjoyed taking them.
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PublishedDecember 25, 2021
2021 Photos Of the Year: A Pandemic Story
The wide availability of vaccines was supposed to get COVID-19 under control in 2021. Instead, the pandemic has worsened. With high levels of transmission and the arrival of the omicron variant, the winter months look bleak. But Mainers are resilient and resourceful. Children are in school, live entertainment has returned, and restaurants and other businesses survived – and in some cases thrived. Wearing masks has become commonplace, as has caring for our neighbors. Take a look back at the pandemic in Maine in 2021 through the eyes of Portland Press Herald photographers.
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PublishedOctober 6, 2021
Watch video: Puppy gets training to be Scarborough Beach’s newest lifeguard
Visitors to Scarborough Beach State Park this summer got to see a new face in the lifeguard station: Beacon, a Newfoundland puppy who’s being trained by owner and perennial lifeguard Greg Wilfert and other lifeguards to help save lives. “It is another tool to use with the lifeguards,” said Wilfert, who celebrated his 50th season […]
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PublishedJuly 12, 2021
In photos: Maine summer in full swing
It begins unofficially after Memorial Day, with flowers in full bloom in June and ever-lengthening hours of sunshine. July brings the heat, warmer ocean water in the southern part of the state – and the tourists. It begins to slip through our fingers in August, all too soon. Summer in Maine.
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PublishedJune 21, 2021
In photos: Highlights of the spring season’s high school sports
The sound of a ball smacking a glove or a bat, feet pounding up dust, fans cheering on a warm evening, it’s all ours again as life returns to normal. Peruse these Portland Press Herald photographs of high school sports this spring season.
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PublishedMay 3, 2021
In photos: Scenes of April give way to flowers of May
Our photographers capture the dreary and the glorious of April before it finally yields to the sunshine of true spring.
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PublishedApril 25, 2021
In photos: After 30 years and counting, Becky’s Diner is still going strong
Becky’s Diner is an example of the resilience of the Portland restaurant community, where so many establishments have struggled during the pandemic – but are hanging on.