A Celebration of Beautiful New England Homes | Featured Photographer Deb Cohen

A collection of images celebrating classic New England homes in all seasons from Deb Cohen’s “The Front Door Project.”

By Heather Marcus

Jun 03 2021

Edgartown, Massachusetts.

Photo Credit : Deb Cohen

When Deb Cohen was looking for a reason to get outside and exercise a few years ago, she came up with a hobby: snapping photos of her favorite homes during walks in her West Hartford, Connecticut, neighborhood. That hobby grew into a quasi-obsession that saw her venturing farther afield in New England and sharing her finds on Instagram as “The Front Door Project.” Today she has more than 85,000 followers on Instagram. For our 2018 Q&A with Cohen, read on.

What’s your connection to New England?

With the exception of college, I’ve lived all of my life in New England, specifically Connecticut. I grew up in South Windsor and have made West Hartford my home for more than 20 years. It’s hard to imagine living anywhere else, though one day my husband and I hope to retire on the Rhode Island coast. Our requirements are to be near the water and to have an ample front porch and opportunities for long walks with our golden retrievers. And some great local architecture and history would be ideal as well!

What kind of equipment do you use?

While I’ve always been the one with a camera at family events and vacations, it was just a few short years ago that I began to photograph beautiful homes and share them on social media and on my blog. For the first two years or so, I used only my iPhone, since it was easy to carry and I always had it with me. In 2015, my parents purchased me a “real” camera to nurture my photography bug, and I still use that camera today when I need high-resolution photos. It’s a Nikon D5500 with an 18-140mm zoom lens. But the iPhone camera continues to improve, and so I find myself using both fairly frequently.

What inspires you?

While I’ve learned that one can find beauty almost anywhere, I am most inspired by our built environment, especially historic architecture and vintage houses. I love nothing more than wandering the streets of a New England village such as Essex, Connecticut, or Manchester, Vermont, admiring the homes and photographing those with exceptional architectural details or incredible curb appeal. A variety of things catch my eye: a pop of color on a front door, flowers spilling out of window boxes, a tree with glorious fall leaves framing the facade of a home. I am passionate about historic preservation, and I advocate for it through my photography and writing. It gives us a sense of place, and especially so in a region like New England where our history is the oldest in the nation.

To see more of Deb Cohen’s work, go to thefrontdoorproject.com or follow her on Instagram at @thefrontdoorproject.