I remember watching “The Wizard of Oz” on TV every year and noticing that as I got older, I got more confused by Dorothy’s quote near the end, ” if I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, I won’t look any further (NOTE: should that have been ‘farther’) than my own backyard because if it isn’t there, I never really lost it to begin with”. I remember immediately going on the defensive in my mental debate, “What the heck, is that telling me… that travel isn’t important, is that saying I won’t find happiness outside of my own neighborhood. Why my husband is the result of a long distance relationship?” It sounded like a lot of hooey.
Ultimately I came to the conclusion that “my own back yard” isn’t a step off the back deck. It’s ourselves. Our heart’s desire starts within our hearts; we have to work on our own issues before we can begin to open up to what the world has to offer. And that sounded profound and good, and I was satisfied with my interpretation, except I was still getting hung up on the part that she “never really lost it to begin with.” So I did what any sane person would do with a decades old conundrum – just focused on the backyard and all it has to offer.
We’re having up to 4 snow storms in under two weeks (one alone swamped us with 18 inches of the stuff). Between the snow and the pandemic, I’ve been feeling a bit more trapped than usual, feeling sorry for myself because I just can’t get out and explore new places for my photography. So today, as the plows honked their horns at 8 a.m. to evacuate all vehicles from the condo parking lots, I took my camera and ran…. around town, well, small city actually – Haverhill, Massachusetts. I gave myself an hour and a half off and looked for every joyful thing I could find within the confines of my 35 square mile city and the 90-minute deadline.
These are the photos of what filled my heart in Haverhill today after the second of four storms. They aren’t all award winners, but they are all heart elevators, at least for me. I hope I can share my joy with you.
During a tour of Chris’ Farm Stand, one of Haverhill’s many large tracts of agricultural space, for an article I was writing for a local paper, I noticed that despite the absolutely packed schedule of the day with tentacles of mayhem trying to drag me/pull me into stress and chaos, I felt calm, and what was that sensation…. happiness. Being outside with a farm dog to pat and the explosion of growth in the fields, provides me with a serenity and clarity that little else can. And this is in Haverhill, just a couple of miles from the urban center of our small city, a city more often thought of in terms of its bustling downtown than the agricultural expanses that actually make up more of the city than the downtown area does.
Haverhill is home to over a dozen farms that provide everything from Christmas trees, sunflowers, and raspberries, to eggs, meat, produce, and honey. So it is no wonder I had plenty of choices when it came time to enter the Topsfield Fair Farm photo competition.
And while the chance to share a side of Haverhill that is often overlooked was reward enough, I was pretty dang excited to harvest a crop of ribbons for my efforts. I entered four photos; won three ribbons, including one first place and two honorable mentions in a crowded field.
So I’d like to salute Haverhill’s farms, sustaining me not just through their food, but also through their beauty (I won $10!!! for my first place ribbon.)
The photos of me with my entries were taken by my supportive husband, Jonathan Campbell who knows how to show a girl a good time at the Fair – Learneds Blueberry cobbler, a quart of Leavitts darkest maple syrup, and a willingness to judge (in our own amateur way) the flower entries and dahlias. (c) Jonathan W Campbell
Here are my copyrighted photos of my entries: Tattersall Farm – Farm Equipment (1st place), Chris’ Farm Stand – Farm people (Honorable mention), Kimball Farm – Farm Animals (Mark and Mike) Honorable mention. The photo of draft horses Mark and Mike at Kimball Farm was selected by the readers of my Facebook page, The Heartbeat of Haverhill. Good choice readers. Thank you! I may not have won a ribbon with my fourth entry, but I was so impressed with the beauty of Turkey Hill Farm Christmas trees that I entered an image into the landscape category, and also included that picture in my The Heartbeat of Haverhill calendar last year. All photos (c) by Alison Colby-Campbell
Tattersall Farm — Antique farm equipment in snow. 1st place farm equipment category (c) Alison Colby-Campbell
Chris’ Farm Stand – negotiating for a pumpkin. Honorable mention
The Heartbeat of Haverhill’s readers’ favorite Mark and Mike at Kimball farm Haverhill reaped an honorable mention (c)Alison Colby-Campbell
Turkey Hill Farm – Unique tree marking technique. (c)Alison Colby-Campbell
I also entered two framed photographs (beautifully and expeditiously framed by Ideal Frame of Haverhill) into the Fine Arts competition, no ribbons there, but was so pleased to see my friends who love photography, arts, quilting, and knitting did grab some top honors. And not surprisingly some of my favorite farms took home ribbons for the wonders that they grow.
Plug Pond Fishing – The Last Cast in memory of my father who made his last cast at Plugs Pond in 2018 (c)Alison Colby-Campbell
Relay for Life at NECC Haverhill, my photo captured all these angels dancing wildly at the event. (c)Alison Colby-Campbell
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The Farms of Haverhill, Massachusetts provide a balm to stressful lives. If you are looking for good food for the body, heart, and soul, check them out. (I am definitely missing a few, add names in comments.)
Chris’ Farm Stand Known for: Poultry, eggs, veggies (especially corn and tomatoes), CSA and activities. Vendor at Haverhill’s Farmers Market
Crescent Farm Known for: Ice cream, cider donuts, Northeast Tractor Pull competition, supplying silage to feed the Richardson Dairy Cows
Fays Farm and Orchard Known for: pick your own and already picked apples and peaches, cider. Vendor at Haverhill’s Farmers Market
Very very honored to have been commissioned by State Rep Diana DiZoglio to create a photo collage. As Diana explained – she wanted to share the beauty of the Merrimack Valley communities she represents: Methuen, North Andover, Lawrence, and Haverhill. And she wanted mostly winter scenes and as many as she could fit on her card, so I was thankful the weather cooperated and I was able to get a few more images with snow before she printed.
The final collage was similar to the image attached though dimensions were changed and I removed the watermarks (my name).
A recent surgery required that I not lift anything over 10 lbs for 2-3 months. During the first week of my recovery that was fine; I hadn’t been inspired to stray too far from my bed, much less bring a camera with me. But then my real life started seeping back in… a walk to the back deck required a telephoto lens to help identify a bird, my little container garden was offering up the lush orbs of my better looking than tasting purple cherry tomatoes, the deck spider’s web was bedazzled in mist and security light …. I relocated my camera bag.
It is a short distance to carry my camera bag from the top floor to the back deck, but per doctor’s orders, I reviewed the contents for possible editing: extra cameras out, extra lenses out, tripod gone, extra batteries out… no wait I need those, and so first one then another slid into my pants pockets (pocket stuffers can’t count as lifting, can they?) The concern was ignored that fatigue might see me tossing the pants and batteries alike into the hamper upon my return to rest.
From there I road shotgun with my husband just glad to see something visible beyond our plot of land. He carried the bag to the car and waited within for my mini excursions to tire me out. I wiggled out of the car in my new more cautious gait with a single camera and my battery. Foolishly I’d culled even my phone and edged into the woods on a broad short trail. Prizes winners? Probably not, but at least I’d have something to enter into the Middleton Stream Team competition.
Days in bed meant I missed the cut-off for the Topsfield Fair Farm Photo contest, but that would not prevent me from checking out the beautiful backdrop of early autumn at Smolak Farm with an eye to next year, plus I still had a couple of days to switch out my Fine Arts photography entries if I captured something I really loved. Then like a donkey chasing after a carrot on a stick, I edged from one heavily laden antique apple tree to another absolutely perfect display of apples that was just out of range of my one lens.
Between the Middleton wetlands and the farm fruitlands, I probably walked a mile over uneven terrain, up and down modest inclines, knowing full well the next day would, by necessity, be a day of rest…. but I’d be back out the day after that with one camera, one all purpose lens and as many batteries and memory sticks as I can jam in my pocket. Can’t wait until the sun shines again because adding a flash just isn’t in the cards right now.
Tattersall Farm in my city of Haverhill, MA at 542 North Broadway needs to occupy a lot more of my time. I photographed there basically as a fly by, stopping to preserve my mood after a kid missed the bus to the high school or on my way to hike trails elsewhere, or to check out the community gardens.
This photo retrospective reminds me there’s a lot to see in any season. Disclaimer – My initial thought “well, maybe not spring”, shifted when I wrote a recent article for Haverhill Life Magazine on the trails here. I was delighted by the surprise of single daffodils peeking out above the grass and dandelions to mark the trail across the field.
With hiking trails, community gardens, wild flower areas, arguably the oldest living oak on city property, heritage apple trees, a daffodil lined path, and bobolinks, tree swallows, turkeys and hawks arriving for their photo ops along with a few deer, even the barren trees offer a beauty worth sharing.
If you are interested in purchasing prints of these images contact me through this blog. Prices range for matted prints: Up to 90 sq inches $50, Up to 150 sq inches $80. For larger sizes or to license photographs for digital or commercial usage, please call for a quote.
“If I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, I won’t look any further than my own backyard.” Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz
While I can’t condone, never moving beyond your backyard, I can recognize the value therein. Thank you Haverhill, Massachusetts, your fabulous geographic diversity has been my photography muse for five years, now, the source for my The Heartbeat of Haverhill Blog and The Heartbeat of Haverhill Facebook Page, and a resource to draw from for myriad marketing opportunities, contest entries, and calendar pages.
I typically spend less time photographing the urban areas of Haverhill because the urban areas within the City represent such a small percentage of it’s total land that includes vast expanses of suburban, rural, agricultural, park, waterfront and open spaces, but as the City brings new vitality downtown, this area becomes more and more of a focal point.
In my career as a freelance marketer, we just put to print a 12-page pitchbook for Haverhill’s Planning and Economic Development department. The project was co-funded by the City and the Greater Haverhill Foundation. I was contracted to lead the project, of course. because of my marketing acumen but that was enhanced because of my photographic library. Ultimately over 20 of my photos (city, land, river, and business scapes, even my portrait of Mayor James Fiorentini were placed in the book. Billboards and other marketing materials to come! It’s too soon yet but I will provide a link to the digital version as soon as I get the “okay” after the book is presented to City Council.
A new gorgeous waterfront apartment building just contacted me for another photo or two and my random “just walking through the City” photo of perhaps the prettiest commercial street in downtown Haverhill was selected for the cover of the Greater Haverhill Chamber of Commerce Directory.
Haverhill has been very good to me, and I like to return the favor by promoting just what an amazing 35+ square mile city Haverhill is. I mean where else do you have a winery (won a regional contest with a photo from there, a castle (took first place in a regional photo contest with a photo there), a residents’ beach, a river (photo of the urban end of the river took first), and a ski/board family oriented resort. I read a statistic long enough ago that I can’t remember where that said Haverhill had more photographers per capita than most Massachusetts communities. Once I started cataloguing the City’s unique features, it was easy to understand why.
alison colby-campbell photography 