“Are you a jumper or a diver? And, just try not to look scared.”
These words are coming from the photographer Michael Prince. I innocently phoned Michael weeks earlier to ask if he might allow me to profile him for The Cricket. His response was “Yes! And how about you jump off the pier and I photograph you so you can know what it’s like?” I love my job and was delighted he had agreed so naturally I said yes. And then immediately drove to the pier to see what I had gotten myself into. Now here I was standing on the rail of the Magnolia Pier preparing to jump.
The first time I saw Michael’s images I found myself holding my breath. Stunning photo after stunning photo of kids launching themselves off of the Magnolia Pier into the air captured in all manner of ways, always with a little bit of risky surprise. The images are gorgeous, crisp, and artful. These photographs are part of Michael’s “Jump!” series which chronicles kids jumping off the Magnolia Pier for the past 18 years.
Michael swears he was a terrible photographer at first (I am not sure I believe him). His mother let him borrow her camera and while determined, he was definitely not a natural. Growing up in Florida being an artist was not an option in his house and his parents were not at all supportive of his photography. He never imagined he would be successful, but he just loved taking pictures.
And so he did, and of course he got better, much better, and has gone on to have an enormously successful career shooting 10 covers for Forbes magazine, so far. He has taken portraits of Malala Yousafzai, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, the Rock, and Jeff Bezos. His photographs can be found in the permanent collections of the Brooklyn Museum, SF Moma and the Library of Congress to name a few and, of curse, most importantly —the cover of this summer’s Out & About on Cape Ann supplement of the Manchester Cricket, generously donated by Michael.
The day I showed up to jump, a group of kids, around 16 or 17 years old, had gathered on the pier. Michael was early and ready, and I was not. Some of the kids knew him. One of the boys said, “I was on your Instagram when I was like eight!” They jumped and flipped and dove off the pier, each in turn. They seemed fluent, carefree, with a kind of summertime innocence. One young woman wanted to jump off of something particularly high and perhaps a bit more dangerous; reactions varied. As the mother of a teenage girl I simply said, “You can do it!” My daughter was more pragmatic noting that the most dangerous part was getting up on top, where the young woman currently was, so “… well ... you’re already up there …” But Michael was the most worried of all. He helped her get sorted before she climbed up. He coached her. He fretted and tended. And then, he took the most gorgeous image of her as she did a slow perfect backflip off of her hard-earned perch.
Michael explains that the physical aspect of the images, people moving through space, is intriguing to him. Combine this with the stunning background of the pier, Magnolia Harbor, and there are a million variations. He likes the technical aspect of having to capture something moving so quickly. He also shared that he loves the transition. Little kids growing into young adults. No matter how young or old, they still jump and talk. Older kids look out for younger kids. Adults jump too, and everyone is very supportive. Michael notes that it is just a great community - and a blast to do.
I visited Michael in his beautiful Magnolia home, minutes from the pier.
Here, in his space, you can see that not only his work, but his general way of being, suggests someone who is at once meticulous and carefree. An enviable combination. Throughout his home is amazing and varied art that he and his wife have collected, interspersed with some of Michael’s photographs. When I ask him which is his favorite he identifies an image I noticed in his kitchen; I thought it was a painting. In fact, it is a drone shot Michael took of a cranberry bog when he was first becoming fluent in drone photography. It is insanely beautiful, vibrant, and modern. We spoke about the change in photography now that anyone with a smartphone can manipulate an image to solve for all manner of things that previously required technical expertise. Michael noted that the one thing which cannot be “fixed” or given a photo filter is composition. This image of the bog is a stellar example of this. His eye makes it art.
Michael’s connection to the sea and Magnolia goes beyond the pier. A lifelong beachcomber, he walks Magnolia beach daily with his dog Romeo. On these walks he finds and has collected all manner of oddities and treasures which he keeps in carefully curated collections, artful and intriguing, throughout his home. Growing up, beach combing with his little brother, he found a crazy hard hat from Cuba that he still has. At his Magnolia home there are arrangements of gradient sea glass, a torpedo bottle, a vertebra, old golf balls, skulls, and shells. He explains that he absolutely believes that everything looks better once it has spent time in the ocean. He loves the idea of this mathematical equation: object + ocean + time = something new. Something better.
At the end of our time on the pier, Michael decides to jump. He has my daughter hold his camera. When he thinks out loud about what to do, one of the kids, the one Michael photographed when he was eight, says “Do the up and over!” As it turns out this is Michael’s signature jump. I am stunned to see that this means doing a handstand on the rail of the pier (just think about this for a moment) that turns into a dive off of the pier. It requires a boatload of strength and even more bravery; Michael does it.
The images Michael has taken and shared over the past 18 years are such an incredible gift to the kids who have grown up jumping off of the pier. To not only see themselves over time, but at a moment in time. A sun filled sky high glimpse of their adolescence perfectly captured in a beautiful singular moment, it takes your breath away. Object + ocean + time = something better. Agreed.
Kris McGinn is the features editor at The Cricket. If you would like to see more of Michaels extraordinary work you can visit his web site at www.michaelprince.com.
Kris McGinn is the features editor at The Cricket.
