Many calendars are simply utilitarian, a way to keep track of this and that. They may be erasable white boards or soulless electronic grids. Some printed calendars, while they appeal to a wide variety of interests, are impersonal. Robert Mitchell bucks the trend. Each year he selects among favorite photos he’s taken in the Boothbay region and publishes a remarkable collection that follows the seasons. This year’s “Around Boothbay Harbor 2014” calendar, now available, just might be his best yet.

Mitchell always includes a separate page with a family photo and letter to those who use his calendars, and this year’s ranges from the weather to daughter Morgan’s wedding, with news about Susan and Bob’s daughter Mae’s theater career, and even a lighthearted mention that they might want to relocate and sell their home on Southport Island.

The monthly pages are full of all the basic information you expect from a good calendar. But, most of all, each page is accompanied by a stunning photo. Staring at January’s photo on a summery day would be a good alternative to air conditioning. Evergreens heavy with snow line an Edgecomb shorefront, where a skim of ice interrupts the sparkling reflection. February offers a snowy view of Ocean Island in East Boothbay, monochromatic except for the transparent blue-green of a wave. For March, the colors warm up with the weather; a rectangular stack of lobster traps, yellow and green, is in the forefront of a tranquil snow-covered Barrett Park waterfront in Boothbay Harbor.

The low horizon in April’s photo allows the brooding sky to take center stage, where it earns its place with dramatic clouds, some reflecting a brilliant orange sunset above the silhouetted shapes of Seguin Island and other shores in the distance. For May, and the cover, a perfectly blue sky tops the intriguing terrain and structures of Ram Island, with Ocean Point surf in the foreground.

June’s photo of McKown Point in West Boothbay Harbor has it all: an appealing Maine “cottage,” a pair of American flags straightened by a stiff breeze, a navy blue sailboat at rest, rockweed-covered ledge, and, for good measure, a gorgeous windjammer under full sail. For July, a cheery view of Cozy Harbor on Southport, Mitchell’s home base, shows the cove dotted with a variety of watercraft and edged with interesting buildings. August’s image is a cooling view of small sailboats racing in Boothbay Harbor on a perfect summer’s day.

As fall arrives, Mitchell takes us on a September journey to Monhegan Island’s enormous cliffs, with a view north along one of Maine’s most spectacular shorelines. With chart in hand, we could identify the barely visible islands. October brings us a sunset to beat all sunsets, with Boothbay Harbor islands and waterfront set against a fiery sky and gently rippled reflections. Colorful fall leaves above a cedar-shingled shed on a pebbled shore represent Autumn in the November photo. That brings us full circle to December and a scene that few people experience, Hendricks Head lighthouse and the surrounding shore under a deep blanket of snow. The red roof caps off the building – and the year – on a clear, bright note.

“Around Boothbay Harbor 2014” is available in stores, through Connections Publishing, Inc., 504 Hendricks Hill Road, Southport, ME 04576; by phone at 207-633-3136; or at www.mitchellphoto.com.