Maine I Love - Alison McKellar

A few years ago, I started looking closely at the area of Camden Harbor where Megunticook River meets the sea. In the beginning, I took photos by dumping my iPhone into the water, and was amazed at how different everything looked from this perspective—different and beautiful and intensely interesting. Since then, I have improved my process and rigged a cable to a GoPro on a long pole that allows me to hold the camera under water while seeing the image preview on my iPhone. In the beginning, I could not identify the different species in my videos, but by sharing them on social media, I’ve learned from the many experts and hobbyists who comment on what they see. I’ve lived most of my life in Camden and looked at the harbor a million times, but the practice of looking carefully and regularly has allowed me to see it in a whole new way. From the impacts of sea level rise to the delightful activity of barnacles to the migratory pursuits of everything from brook trout to alewives to rainbow smelt, I’ve often found that the most beautiful moments came when I wasn’t expecting them. For instance, the way the rockweed appears like an underwater forest at high tide is so different from the way we are used to seeing it from above during low tide. When you look closer, you see the infinite number of lives and stories unfolding beneath the surface; an intricate web of interactions that is full of unsolved mysteries and surprises.