Michael is a Maine-raised photojournalist who has been on staff at the Morning Sentinel since August 2010. He is a 2002 graduate of Sterling College in Vermont where he studied experiential education with at-risk youth populations. Prior to becoming a photojournalist he traveled the United States, Canada and Nepal as a climber, exploring some of the world’s largest and most impressive mountain ranges. Living in a van and climbing 300 days a year led him to the Forest Service as an initial attack wildland firefighter in Colorado. Michael next landed at Metropolitan State University in Denver in 2005 where he continued his education in photojournalism. From there he interned at the Fort Collins Coloraodoan, The Advocate in Baton Rouge and the Jackson Hole News and Guide. His first staff photojournalism job was with the Fort Collins Coloradoan in 2007. In 2010 Michael, a 1994 graduate of Edward Little High School, returned to Maine and a job with the Morning Sentinel. During the last 10 years, he's has received multiple grants from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting to report on topics ranging from the Ebola epidemic, women and children’s healthcare and diamond mining in Sierra Leone to energy and climate in Labrador. He has won multiple national awards, including in the Best of Photojournalism competition as well as the National Press Photographers Association (small market) photographer of the year in 2018, 2019 and 2020.