Derek grew up in New York, while spending part of his summers in Maine, where he developed an appreciation for its wild landscape and natural beauty. Moving from a metropolitan area to the wide-open spaces of Maine felt like an escape to an earlier time when life was simpler, he says. The air seemed pure and the dark night skies were both quiet and alive. After graduating from the University of New England in Biddeford, Derek started his photojournalism career at a newspaper in White Plains, NY. In 2004, he moved to Scarborough and joined the staff at the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram. He lives with his wife and three children in Scarborough. His favorite assignments are photographing the outdoors of Maine, especially along the coast, and covering local sporting events.
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PublishedJune 12, 2023
In photos: Spring is in the air
For gardeners, it’s tilling the ground anew. For beachgoers, it’s the first bracing dip of the year. For anglers, it’s the first bite from a striper along Maine’s warming coast. And for the Press Herald’s photographers, it’s a little of everything as they capture spring across southern Maine.
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PublishedMarch 20, 2023
In photos: The Baxter Seagulls basketball team takes to the court
The Seagulls represent the Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing/Governor Baxter School for the Deaf. For the first time in years, the organization fielded a middle school basketball team.
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PublishedMarch 7, 2023
In photos: See the action from Tuesday’s high school postseason games
Check out some of our favorite images from Tuesday’s high school basketball tournaments.
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PublishedNovember 13, 2022
One of Us: Perhaps you’ve seen him out running. They call him ‘the Route 1 Boxer.’
‘It’s the most fun I’ve ever had in my whole life – just on top of the world.’
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PublishedOctober 10, 2022
In photos: A sunrise celebration of Indigenous Peoples Day
On Indigenous Peoples Day, a group gathers at the Presumpscot River in Westbrook at sunrise to greet and honor the day. Photos by Press Herald photographer Derek Davis.
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PublishedApril 24, 2022
‘Like giant Legos going together’: Watch a time lapse of the I-295 bridge replacement
Watch the first 400-ton bridge section being rolled into place Saturday afternoon. Drone footage by staff photographer Gregory Rec.
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PublishedMarch 7, 2022
In photos: A memorable February
It snowed, and thawed, and sleeted and thawed, and snowed some more. On the 23rd, we claimed spring for a day, breaking records when the temperature soared to the mid-60s. It was a month of bad ice, high energy costs, good skiing and great high school sports. Here are some of the best photos from the month by Press Herald photographers.
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PublishedFebruary 24, 2022
Photo Album: Thursday’s Maine high school basketball tournament games
High school basketball players made the shots and our photographers caught the action. Here are some of our favorite photos from Maine’s high school basketball tournament, Feb. 24, 2022.
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PublishedFebruary 7, 2022
In photos: Scenes of a frozen Maine
Portraits of winter in Maine by the Press Herald’s photographers
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PublishedDecember 25, 2021
2021 Photos of the Year: Photographers’ Choice
2021 was a roller coaster ride. It started with mobs attacking the Capitol to try to overturn the presidential election and is ending with a new surge of the coronavirus. There was enough bad news – fires, floods, disasters of every natural and manmade kind – to make you want to bury your head under the covers and stay there. But there was also the miracle of vaccines – by the end of June, hardly any vaccinated people were dying of COVID-19. We gained a new appreciation of the simple but deep pleasures of meeting with family and friends, going to a country fair or a high school baseball game, looking for beauty in the flight of an owl or a solar eclipse at dawn. For our 2021 Photos of the Year collection, Portland Press Herald photographers voted on one another’s photos, then selected their own favorites from the top vote-getters. We hope you enjoy looking at them as much as we enjoyed taking them.