Case study
Atlas of My Skies began as a way to keep sky photos from becoming another unsearchable camera roll. I wanted each image to carry enough context that it could be read like a small journal entry.
Reasoning
A full CMS was more machinery than the project needed. Static pages with structured metadata gave me the archive behavior I wanted without a database.
Choice
I built the site with Next.js and local content metadata, then kept the visual system quiet so the photos carry the page. The map and archive structure provide context without turning it into a dashboard.
What I'd repeat
The useful detail was pairing each photo with place and moment data. That made the archive browsable by memory, not only by file name.
Outcome
The result is a personal portfolio that is simple to maintain and specific to the work. It also gave me a reusable pattern for visual archives with structured context.
Postmortem: I would add a faster batch-editing flow before the archive grows much larger.
Impact: Photography · mapped archive · personal publishing
