About The Project

The Fresh Coast Project began years ago as the endeavor of photographer Ed Wargin to capture the essence of the Great Lakes on film prior to the cessation of film as a photographic medium. Spending decades behind the lens and working with film, he  dedicated this project to discovering, sharing, and preserving the Great Lakes, one frame at a time.

For years, the The Fresh Coast Project Website followed the travel, shooting, archiving, stories, and sharing of this project. The former FCP Blog and social media presence successfully connected with hundreds of thousands of people who love and have an interest in the Great Lakes region.  While the website has now changed to reflect the most recent advancements in the project, the Blog and social media campaign will continue. You will find that all the prior blog postings still remain within the new, updated blog format.

At a Glance.

Past: Over the course of many years, The Fresh Coast Project invested time into the mechanics of where and what to photograph through layered research, scouting and mapping. The locations were physically explored and photographed on film, processed, edited, and managed for sharing with the public during this aspect of the project. Also during this time a comprehensive website that included multiple galleries and blog was created, managed, updated and maintained. The project invested time and imagery into a social media strategy that included press, public speaking engagements, and other media opportunities. 

Present: Currently, the project is in the midst of its planned transition to the process of slide organization, preparation and archiving measures. This stage is a complex process that crosses the platforms of both analog and digital preservation procedures. The project will continue shooting when/where applicable until film processing is no longer viable. The new website, which you see now, was created as the host platform for the special edition digital book, as well as a connection to the social media and blog outlets.

An Exciting Celebration.

Today, you will see that we are announcing and celebrating this work in a Special Edition Digital Book titled Fresh Coast. With generous sponsors, this book is being made available to all at no charge for one year. We hope you'll view it. We hope you'll connect with it. We hope you'll love it. More importantly, we hope you'll share it.

Why A Digital Book?

We made the decision to offer the book in the way that best suits today's evolved marketplace. We've removed the confine of print, and eliminated the barrier of price. We want everyone to have access to the book regardless of their proximity to a retailer or their ability to pay.  Our hope is that this book is shared freely and broadly so that awareness and support of our wonderfully rich region grows. Share it with your friends, your family, your students and your colleagues. Most of all, enjoy!

Mission Statement: The Fresh Coast Project was created by photographer Ed Wargin as the endeavor to capture the Great Lakes as one complete and compelling story on film while branding the Great Lakes as one bi-national region. Our purpose is to provide visual context to the challenges and opportunities we will encounter in forthcoming years. Through The Fresh Coast Project's imagery, stories, and media, we aim to share the magnificent beauty of our Great Lakes with citizens of the Great Lakes basin and beyond, and to show the global community that our Great Lakes, as one ecosystem, is a true wonder of the world. We promote travel, exploration, education, enjoyment and celebration of the Great Lakes, and strive to cultivate an active role of nurturing this region by passing forward to our youth a genuine legacy of concern, gratitude, pride and stewardship.