Standing in the pit, I said to a photographer with West Fargo Events and a security guard that I was getting nervous.
The photographer said, “Do you think you are nervous because you are a fan?” I didn’t take long to respond to her question because she was right.
Charley Crockett and his band were the headliners for the first night of
BUCKAROO: Country Nights at The Lights in West Fargo.
If I didn’t have to work and take photos for the
I might have gone to the show on that cool late August evening.
I have a lot of
in my music library. I saw him play at Fargo Brewing in 2021.
Country singer-songwriter Charley Crockett headlines the BUCKAROO Country Nights at The Lights festival on Friday, Aug. 22, 2025, in West Fargo.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
I started walking to the other side of the stage when a tall young man with short blonde hair and wide-set thin eyes said, from the other side of the security barrier, “Are you getting good photos?” I stopped in front of him and said, modestly, “I hope so.”
He put his fist over the barrier and said, “You’ll get good photos; you’ll get good photos.”
I bumped his fist and continued to the other end of the stage. That little bit of encouragement set the positive tone for the rest of the night.
While I waited by the front of the stage for the show to start, a kid of about 11 or 12 asked me, “What’s your favorite thing about being a photographer?”
I took a beat as I thought about his question. I said I like the responsibility. I like that I can go places, like this concert. I photograph basketball games on the floor or get to see the inside of the newest buildings. I sometimes travel with writers for stories, and I meet so many people from all walks of life.
With his arms folded on top of the barrier, he nodded his head and said, “It’s about the experience.”
My smile widened. I pointed toward the kid — that’s it.
The images I make serve as both a public record and a personal narrative. There were a lot of stellar stories, and I see a consistent body of solid work that I’m proud of, and if it works out, there will be more experiences for years to come. Here are some from 2025.
Justin Stoll is co-owner of the Hawley Spin Depot, in Hawley, MN. Stoll and his business partner, Michael Lemoine, both have full-time jobs, so they only open the record store on weekends.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
Back to Crockett. This is a photo of Justin Stoll, co-owner of the
I drove to Hawley on a Saturday in June to photograph Stoll, co-owner Michael Lemoine, and their 800-square-foot shop filled mostly with records, but other formats as well.
I saw a Charley Crockett record in one of the rooms of the shop. We talked about how good Crockett’s tunes are. I asked Justin to lean against a record bin and stand like Crockett is on the cover of the
album for a photo at the bottom right.
I spent a few hours at the shop. Stoll and Lemoine are my age. We had a similar musical upbringing, and it was a lot of fun talking about music just as fans.
I was recording a video of a Zoetrope record Stoll was playing. The records animate as they spin. I could hear the music, but I wasn’t listening to it. I started paying attention to the song, and after I heard the chorus,
“Hey, I’m going to give you all my love,”
I interrupted my recording and said, “These guys are good!”
It was the first time I ever heard Dope Lemon. I could have stayed longer, but I needed to get to my next assignment in West Fargo for the
in North Dakota.
Traffic comes to a halt Friday, Aug. 8, 2025, on Interstate 94 due to a downed power line. The North Dakota Highway Patrol diverted traffic in the eastbound lane onto the University Drive exit.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
I just pulled into the Forum parking lot from an assignment when news editor
texted me at 1:36 p.m. to go see about traffic on Interstate 94 backed up due to downed power lines on the bridge.
I had baseball game photos to turn in for a 3 p.m. deadline. I asked Thomas to let
know his photos may be late. Thomas suggested I go to the pedestrian bridge over I-94.
It was a good suggestion. I got there fast. The traffic was backed up in the eastbound lane from the University exit past 25th Street.
Highway Patrol blocked traffic and diverted drivers to the university exit. I’d never seen a traffic jam like that in Fargo. It made me think of a time when I was walking across a bridge in Minneapolis and stopped in the middle to look at the traffic barely moving. I could see people’s faces in their cars; it gave me a feeling of unease.
Railroad cars turned over, as seen on Monday, June 23, 2025, east of Page, ND, and north of Erie, ND, from a storm on June 20.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
I witnessed the
damage from a severe storm in North Dakota
on June 20; three days later, I went with a Forum writer
April Baumgarten, to Hunter and Page, N.D.
Volunteers hauled tree limbs hooked up with chains to tractors and side-by-sides to a dump, kicking up dust. There were steady sounds of chainsaws, generators and heavy machinery cleaning up.
Roofs were ripped off, and entire trees toppled on top. Pieces of grain bins were flung far in the middle of fields. There were bins that looked like a giant punched or kicked them.
A train outside of Page was tipped on its side. It looked like a helpless bug.
Bethany Dixon leads more than 200 protesters through downtown Fargo dressed as “Liberty” in a street theater protest called “Let Them Eat Cake” on Saturday, April 26, 2025.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
Rev. Catherine Mulbah speaks during a gathering at Fargo City Hall on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in downtown Fargo, aimed at uniting people of faith and families to take a stand against increasing violence and the destructive impact of drug and substance abuse in their neighborhoods. People marched from Island Park through downtown Fargo to City Hall.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
There were several protests and marches I shot photos for this year. In one,
Twice I was at the Main Avenue bridge, even when it was
. I walked with people from
.
In May I went to a protest that didn’t have a lot of people attending, but a lot of people saw it. I did some research before going to the intersection of 45th Street and 13th Avenue, but online photos didn’t compare to seeing with my own eyes the contrast of men wearing all-white clothes with a dramatic red stain on the crotch.
Mathew Kinnison stands at the intersection of 45th Street and 13th Avenue in south Fargo on Wednesday, May 14, 2025, to raise awareness about circumcision with the organization Bloodstained Men. The group advocates for the rights of children to not be circumcised. Seven men wearing white clothes with a red stain on their pelvic area held signs on each of the corners and the medians at 45th Street and 13th Avenue from 10:30 to noon. They are holding events in the Dakotas and Minnesota through May 18.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
The men were part of a group called Bloodstained Men. They advocate for the rights of children to not be circumcised. The men, mostly middle-aged and older, walked clockwise from corner to corner of the intersection holding signs with messages about circumcision.
They’d stand at a corner for a bit, then rotate, except for Mathew Kinnison, who stood in a median on 45th Street. This striking sight caused a lot of curiosity, and I saw many people driving by with their mobiles recording video or taking photos. I was probably in a few of them myself.
Construction of the Moorhead Community Center Library on Friday, Jan. 24, 2025.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
I follow a page on Facebook called Historic Minneapolis. It’s mostly photos of buildings and everyday life. I like the old photos of the city and reading the comments. Six years ago we ordered an Uber to take us back to our hotel in downtown Minneapolis from the
.
On the way to the hotel, I noticed the driver wasn’t using directions. He drove us through back roads, and I asked him about it. He said he’s lived in Minneapolis his whole life (he was in his 60s) and he knew every road.
The driver reminisced about his other jobs, and when we’d drive by a building, he’d remember what used to be located in a space and would tell a story about it.
Fargo boutique Alina Collective, in the red brick building in this February 2025 file photo, has closed at 716 Main Ave., owner Britt Belquist confirmed Monday, March 31, 2025.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
The photos we take of buildings for articles have historic value. They show how our
through certain time periods. The buildings show the evolution of the
that occupy them.
Louie splashes through the water at the annual Moorhead Parks and Recreation Doggy Dip event on Monday, Aug. 11, 2025, at the Northeast Park Pool in Moorhead.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
When the kid at the Charley Crockett show asked me what I like most, I should have brought up working with animals. This year was the second time I photographed
, and I went to the Natural Pet Center Easter egg hunt, where I made a standalone photo of Kaitlyn Fraedrich and her 2-year-old dog, Henry.
Kaitlyn Fraedrich with her 2-year-old dog, Henry, at the Natural Pet Center’s Easter Egg Hunt for dogs on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, at MB Johnson Park in Moorhead. It’s the fourth year Natural Pet Center has held the event in support of The Homeward Animal Shelter. All proceeds from ticket prices are donated to the Homeward Animal Shelter.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
The Forum photographers submit photos for a book they put out each year and give to a small group of people. I submitted this photo, but it didn’t make the cut. I think it is a beautiful photo.
A model walks the runway at the Show Your Work: A Look Behind the Seams fashion show on Wednesday, April 30, 2025, at the Oceti Sakowin Ballroom in Memorial Union.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
Throughout the year, I’m assigned to go to some pretty cool events such as
,
,
and the
, but I’d never been to a fashion show. I was assigned to photograph the
. I was not expecting it to be such a big event. There were hundreds of people there. It was so well done. I’d like to cover it again. There was a reporter who used to write
for The Forum. I’m for the style profiles making a comeback.
Fargo Mayor Tim Mahoney speaks during a ceremony marking the rerouting of the Red River of the North through the Red River Control Structure on Thursday, Aug. 7, 2025. Mahoney took off his bright yellow vest that he is known to wear during flood fights and said he won’t be needing it anymore.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
Fargo Mayor Tim Mahoney for a long time wore his bright safety vest during floods. The mayor wore his vest for the last time during a ceremony for the rerouting of the Red River through the
.
Members of the Fargo fire and police departments, Fargo City Hall staff, and city commissioners met on Wednesday, May 14, 2025, at the Fargo City Commission Chambers to discuss how to spend the public safety sales tax. Fargo voters approved a 20-year, quarter-cent sales tax to fund operations, equipment and new buildings for the Fargo Fire Department and Fargo Police Department.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
The stories I read consistently are the public meetings and press conferences, and by going to meetings and the conferences we see who was there. The people involved hold prominent public positions, making decisions or raising awareness about issues. People have said to me it’s just a meeting photo, but I like being there for meetings. It’s the newspaper’s role to be there.
Markus Adams gets some rest in Island Park on Monday, Sept. 8, 2025, in downtown Fargo. Adams, originally from Compton, Calif., said he’s lived in Fargo for 20 years and is now homeless. The night before, some tools he owned to fix his bike were stolen. He said things are often stolen. “The other day, I asked someone for a couple of dollars, and they said, ‘You don’t look homeless.’ What is homeless supposed to look like?” Adams said.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
I had to get a “wild art” photo on short notice. It’s a standalone photo. I was near Island Park, where I live. I thought I had my photo right away. A young man and woman were embracing on a picnic table. It made me think of the painting
I could have just taken the photo because they are in a public place, but I asked first. The young man was cool with it, but the young woman said no. I moved on.
I approached a man lounging on grass and asked if I could take a photo of him. He had a bicycle with a cart attached that had an orange flower that spun in the breeze.
He said, “I’m homeless, and I hate it.” I told him he just looked like he was enjoying the warm, sunny September day. I said I didn’t have to take his photo. He told me it was alright and to take his photo.
Markus Adams told me he was sleeping in the park because the shelter was so noisy the night before that he didn’t sleep well. He told me that the tools he used to work on his bike were stolen. He told me how repeatedly he’d been called the n-word. People just shout at him from their cars. He told me one time a child, about five years old, started singing to him, “Get a job, get a job.” He said a 5-year-old kid doesn’t know to say that. Adams restrained tears.
We shared some of the same life experiences, and I told him about how I was finding it hard to adjust to some new life circumstances. He nodded as he listened and offered his sympathy. He said one day he asked a person for a few dollars. The person said back to him, “You don’t look homeless.” I thought the same thing. “What is homeless supposed to look like?” Adams said.
Aying Zhang in her shop, JOY STUDIO, at 910 Main Ave., in downtown Fargo on July 24, 2025.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
I framed
in her
as she was looking down at a book on the table. I said her name quick, she looked up, and I took the photo. I did the same thing last year with a
. Zhang is so stylish. When I take photos, I base a lot of what I try to do on photos I appreciate. This photo of Zhang reminds me of those photos.
Grand Rapids Minnesota band Wild Horses plays at Drekker Brewing on June 17, 2025.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
On the same day as my Aying Zhang assignment, I had to go to Drekker for an outdoor concert by the band
. The photos were for future use. I spoke with singer Jed LaPlant before the show and told him I saw them play when they were one of the openers for Willie Nelson.
For the last song of their show, they moved into the middle of the crowd from the outdoor stage. They asked people to gather around them. I was right next to them, but I moved back and stood on a picnic table to take the photo. I think I should have stayed put. One of my coworkers was there, but she avoided the camera.
People take a break during a lifeguard pool check at the grand opening of Island Park Pool on Tuesday, June 17, 2025.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
I like photos from
. I was drawn to his photo
before I knew who he was or working as photographer myself. As a kid, I used to think I was going to move to California and become a surfer.
This makes me think of a few of
. It was the first day the
after it was remodeled. The photo above was taken in Fargo in June, during a pool break. It looks like it could have been taken a long time ago and somewhere else.
North Dakota State’s Avery Koenen attempts a shot against North Dakota on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, at the Scheels Center.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
Again, back to the kid’s question. One of the things I enjoy is being courtside at basketball games. Basketball is the sport I like the most, plus it’s indoors. For NDSU games there is less room to roam with all the other photographers, videographers and cheerleaders, but it’s one of the best places to see basketball.
Davies’ Mason Klabo sets the all-time North Dakota Division AA/A boys state scoring record on this layup against West Fargo Sheyenne on Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025, at Davies High School.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
In February, I photographed Fargo Davies player
Mason Klabo making a basket to break the North Dakota Class A/AA all-time boys scoring record.
I was at a game the week before, but his team was beating Fargo North, so the coach pulled the starters.
Davies had a game the following Saturday that a coworker was scheduled for, but Klabo sat the game out. I went back to Davies on a Tuesday night to try again. Klabo needed 10 points to break the record.
Early on, Klabo was just two points away from the record. After West Fargo Sheyenne scored a basket, a Davies teammate inbounded the ball to Klabo, who didn’t hesitate going up the court. I said out loud, “Oh (…), here he comes!” He raced past two defenders, and a teammate sealed off two other defenders for Klabo to make an easy layup to break the record.
The whole action from inbounds to basket took three seconds. I used my second camera, a Panasonic GH5 with a wide lens, and manually focused it. There was still almost a whole half left to play, but I kept thinking about if the photo turned out.
I didn’t check until halftime. When I saw it on my laptop, I let out a yell by the side of the bleachers. The FM Acro team was performing, so I doubt anybody noticed. I uploaded the photo at the gym and then left for the Coliseum in north Fargo for a hockey game.
With basketball, there are arms and hands covering faces and just a lot of stuff in the way, but for this photo it was like everything parted for it to happen as it did. A person asked me why I didn’t crop it tighter, and I said we have a 3×2 ratio for the lead photo and that I didn’t want to cut off any limbs. If it was a free crop, I could see making it tighter, but I like how it is. You can look around the photo and see every eye is on the Klabo. It looks like a painting.
Patrick Springer discusses his journalism career on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, at the Forum in downtown Fargo. He first joined the newspaper in 1985.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
As a photographer and videographer, I work with all of the departments in the newsroom. I like every writer at The Forum. I’ve worked with some writers more than others;
is the winner this year for most assignments. I have had a chance to work with terrific people, and there are few who left The Forum this year.
, and Tom Larson retired, and
left for a new job. I had many positive experiences with them. Tom made things easy. Melissa truly cared about doing a good job, and Helmut and Patrick are two of the best reporters.
Ram Loera skateboards at the Dike West Skate Park on May 28, 2025.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
In June, while
attempting tricks over and over and over, I realized I could do this forever — keep taking photos.
Happy New Year.