Cover: Sunrise at the harbor in Essex, Connecticut.
In late June, I set out on a journey of mostly day trips from Montauk Point, New York and through New England to discover the coast of summer. The idea for the project came out of the need to do something productive as I waited with the rest of the world for the Coronavirus lockdown to be lifted.
The title of the project was inspired by a book of the same name. "The Coast of Summer," was published by Anthony Bailey in 1994. Bailey's version of the trip was done on a sailboat. I used a Toyota and a few ferries.
We are still in semi-quarantine, but if careful, it is easy to travel regionally and stay safe.
A rudimentary map of my trip can be seen at the end of this essay. In short, except for Montauk, my coastal excursion took me from the mouth of the Connecticut River, where interior New England meets the sea, and north along the coast to Monhegan Island in Maine. I stayed in Montauk and on Monhegan for two nights each. All the other stops were done in one day starting from my home in central Connecticut.
The color palette of the shoreline can be monochromatic. Shades of blue, some green, some yellow. From a photographic perspective, the question becomes whether to share the images in full color or black and white. Most photographers opt for color and that makes sense. But since there were many images I didn't use in the first twelve installments of this series, I decided to make this bonus entry in black and white.
Above: Morning abstract of waves at Hampton Beach, New Hampshire.
The light changes with latitude as you move south to north and back again.
Nowhere is the light more conducive to black and white photography than the east end of Cape Cod and Monhegan Island in Maine. In both locations you can see the light and shadow that caught the eye of famous painters like Edward Hopper and Andrew Wyeth. Seeing their light for yourself confirms their talent.
Here then is my final collection of the Coast of Summer series in black and white.
The architecture of Monhegan Island in Maine has a uniquely weathered look. The walls of the buildings look thin, but they stand strong against the elements.
I have always wanted to go on a whale watch, but for some reason never found time to do it until this July. Whales are the most interesting creatures I have ever seen in the wild. So sure of themselves. So trusting. So infused with joy.
Some scenes are always the same, but change slightly each day. The barn (upper right above) at the harbor in Rockport, Massachusetts is known as Motif #1. The Newport bridge provides some of the best views in Rhode Island. The clothes lines of Maine filter the already soft light.
Most of my work for this project was done in the early to mid-morning, but I decided to finish the project in Watch Hill, Rhode Island under a full moon.
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© Dean Pagani 2020
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© Dean Pagani 2020