I first photographed for L.L. Bean back in 2016 and have been lucky enough to be invited back for a variety of projects in the years since. Each trip feels like a walk through my childhood memories of what it’s like to be out in nature without commitments. We’re building real fun and it’s my job to document it. These are the kinds of projects where we actually get dirty, wet, and tired as we try and fit in as many different outdoor activities as we can before the sun rises and as the sun sets.

Rather than exclusively hiring professional models, L.L. Bean has put together a really amazing cast of athletes like Olympic Gold Medalist Seth Wescott and professional mountain biker and Little Bellas founder Lea Davison as well as employees and their children. Everyone wants to be outside and we’ve had some pretty wonderful weather over the years. Good dogs are always a must.

These photography trips are also a wonderful excuse to visit the most beautiful parts of New England. On the first trip, we hiked the Bigelows and stayed on Flagstaff Lake. I thought both were so perfect that when my Wife and I set off on a bike tour around Western Maine a few years later, camping on Flagstaff was a non-negotiable must do for me.

We’ve also visited some more local spots like Wolfe’s Neck in Freeport (home of L.L. Bean) for family camping fun.

One year, they needed to find the last easily accessible snow for a late spring snowshoe shoot and we probably snuck the project into the last day the snow was still OK quality.

It’s all required some strenuous hiking by all involved on very little sleep. If you want to be on the summit of Mount Lafayette for first light, you’ve got to have a very committed team and we’ve had such happy hikers over the years.

As I think about creating my own family adventures for my son, I’m drawn to revisit these L.L. Bean trips and can’t wait to show Ezra the views of Lake Onawa from Borestone.