8 Clicks from Nowhere Productions

Tag: website design

Chapter List

  • Photo Excuses

    If they say a picture is worth a thousand words, every one of the posts on this site is at least one thousand two hundred words long.

    You may not have noticed but I attach a unique monochromatic abstract photo (taken by me) to each and every one of my posts. It is not obvious, and chances are you have completely overlooked said pic (unless you are visiting from social media where it tends to get scooped up as the featured image.)

    Also. They are unconnected from the subject of each post.

    So why do it?

    Apart from simply having an excuse to take more photos, my intention with adding a photo to each post is raw abstraction and artistic curiosity. 

    Too often we find ourselves trapped inside the concept of finding a reason: return on investment, increasing marketability, adding context, or something else linked to clicks and sales and revenue. 

    But none of that matters in this case. I do it simply because I want to… and to make a point: that value can be measured in things beyond money. Value can be beauty. Value can be joy. Value can be a secret shared between people.

    These photos? They take time to take. They eat up server space and internet bandwidth. They are nearly invisible and usually unnoticed. But the sheer art of it means I wouldn’t ever stop.

  • Weightless Words

    Who knows what this site will look like by the time you are reading this post, but as I am writing it I have just launched this blog and, bluntly, it’s using a pretty boring template.

    In deciding on a design with which to start I weighed a single consideration: I wanted the words to be the central focus of what I was making. I was not planning on posting photos or art. I was not linking to videos. I was not trying to wow visitors with a unique and clever design.

    I wanted the words to be the point.

    Me of ten years ago would have clutched his metaphorical pearls—or whatever guys who don’t wear pearls might clutch in such a situation. Use your imagination. As it was back then, perhaps lacking confidence in my ideas or writing, I would merrily post but fill the screen with visual clutter and links and metadata.

    Today, I am boldly posting these words without the flourish of fancy headers and kooky fonts and in doing so perhaps suggesting through their simple form and format that the words are sturdy enough on their own merit.