For more than two decades, photographer David Hills has documented a world that most Cape Cod residents glimpse only from a distance—the working lives of commercial fishermen. His images are not romanticized portraits of life at sea, nor are they exercises in nostalgia. Instead, they are honest, deeply observed records of people whose livelihoods are tied to the water and whose work remains essential to the culture and economy of coastal communities. Yet, the photography that graces the walls of his new gallery in Orleans transcends documentation. It is his ability to capture the fleeting moments in between the difficult and dangerous work, that vault his images into the realm of fine art.                         

A lifelong photographer and commercial photography professional for much of his professional career, Hills spent much of his time creating portraits, lifestyle imagery, and advertising work. Yet it was a personal project that ultimately shaped the body of work for which he is best known today.

“About 20 years ago I had adopted the habit of once a year trying to do a personal project,” Hills explains. “Something that was completely different from the commercial work.”

That search for a new subject led him to Alaska, where a chance connection introduced him to a family of commercial fishermen. What began as an excuse to visit a place he had always wanted to see quickly became something much more significant.

“I was hooked,” he says with a laugh.

The experience opened a door into a culture that fascinated him. In Alaska, fishing was not simply an occupation—it was woven into daily life, family histories, and entire communities. The more time he spent around fishermen, the more he wanted to understand their world.

Returning home, Hills began seeking similar stories closer to Cape Cod. He reached out to local fishing organizations and started spending time on docks, aboard boats, and in fishing communities throughout New England. Over time, those relationships expanded far beyond the Cape. His work has taken him to fishing communities in Alaska, California, Texas, Florida, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Rhode Island, Maine, and beyond.

What distinguishes Hills’ photography is two-fold. First, the trust he has earned from the people he photographs. Commercial fishing is demanding work performed in challenging conditions. Long hours, uncertain weather, and economic pressures are constants. Fishermen are often wary of outsiders, particularly those who arrive with preconceived notions about their industry. Hills approaches them differently. His photographs are rooted in curiosity, respect, and a genuine desire to listen.

Importantly, Hills’ work additionally preserves a record of a way of life that continues to evolve. Fishing communities face changing regulations, environmental challenges, and economic uncertainty. Through it all, his photographs document not only the work itself but the resilience of the people who do it.

The story he tells through his lens brings the unique environment to life in his compositions. The light, the fog, the weather; textures and geometry—they are all supporting characters, utilized as any other artist might paint a fully examined scene. He often says he’s not really shooting fishing, he’s photographing what happens on and around the water—it becomes less about documenting an event and more about distilling an experience. His artistry tells stories that go far beyond the catch and offer the seaside lover unique and intriguing views that evoke familiarity. Thus appealing to art lovers and collectors as well.

Displayed together, the images form a powerful visual archive, as they draw the viewer in to examine the more finite details he has captured. For Hills, each photograph remains connected to a specific memory. “I look at individual images here,” he says, “and I go back to that moment, back to that feeling, back to that place.”

In doing so, David Hills invites viewers to step aboard, stand on the deck, and see commercial fishing not as an abstraction, but as the deeply human story it has always been.  

The David Hills Gallery is located at 57 Route 6A in Orleans and at davidhillsgallery.com.

~Julie Craven Wagner