When I sat down, and began the process of thinking through a website refresh, to be honest, I wasn't quite sure exactly what I wanted. As a general rule, I knew the following were important things to solve for:

1. The ability to show off images to give site visitors a good sense of what I can do, and the type of photographic work I excel at. This was easily accomplished with my images section.

2. Something that is definitively mine to write things when the mood strikes, to give the site some dynamism, and a reason for return visits. I've made this the homepage to this site. It seemed like the obvious, and ideal choice.

Beyond that, I just wanted to see where things went organically.

As I began creating content, I very quickly realized that a simple post on the homepage, that, depending on my posting frequency, might disappear into the archives rather quickly, was not the sufficient for all types of content that I'd like to share. My photography is at its best when I have a story to tell. Sometimes that's a longer trip that includes hundreds of shutter presses, hours in front Lightroom culling, and a definitive set of images that attempts to drag the viewer into my life for that period of time. Other times, a simple photo walk produces a few nice moments where the light is just right.

Stories & Vignettes

As of today, I'd like to officially announce the solve for these two problems, Stories and Vignettes.

Stories act a landing spot for longer form, more narrative-driven content. I unofficially launched this with Acadia National Park, recently, and have gotten some very good feedback. I look forward to adding stories for some of my previous travels, as well as journeys that I have yet to make.

Vignettes are as the word implies: short posts that use a combination of my words and my images to paint a picture and set a scene. My walk around the Tidal Basin was the first of such posts, and Chicago Commute is another. I look forward to experimenting with different types vignettes, and expect to have new ones often.

As my life evolves, so will this site. I look forward to the next swerve, and will look forward to meeting that challenge.

This domain has seen various incarnations, and had different purposes over the years, but previously it's been mostly a home for my professional design portfolio. I'd add a few projects, find a new job, let things go stale — rinse, repeat (reasons for this stagnation have varied — sometimes professional and sometimes, very personal).

Hello again

This year, I've begun to take what was an enthusiastic hobby, photography, a bit more seriously. Along with Brandon and Erica, 202 Photography has become a "thing". I've also taken a few solo gigs, and would like to continue doing so (feel free to contact me for a booking!). It seemed like it was time plant a flag, and call somewhere home.

I hope you enjoy what I have to offer. I won't promise frequent blog postings (they'll pop up occasionally), but I do have some ideas for content that will supplement my selected images. Hopefully you'll be seeing a bit more of that soon :)

Mark