An Atlas of Ordinary Wonders: Dispatches from the Edge is a beautifully curated collection of photographic essays celebrating the extraordinary stories hidden within ordinary places. What inspired you to gather these twenty photo essays into a single collection?

The idea for An Atlas of Ordinary Wonders: Dispatches from the Edge grew out of a desire to bring together photographs and stories that might otherwise remain scattered across different places and different moments in my travels. The twenty photo essays originally appeared in Edge of Humanity Magazine, and I wanted to give them a second life as a single volume.

What connects these essays is not geography so much as a way of seeing. I have always been drawn to places that reveal something about the human experience—markets, streets, neighborhoods, forgotten landscapes, religious spaces, and communities that may not appear on a conventional tourist itinerary. A livestock market in Kashgar, a historic Chinese settlement in California, a night market in Taiwan, or the stark landscape of Namibia can seem very different on the surface. Still, each contains stories about identity, history, resilience, work, and everyday life.

The title An Atlas of Ordinary Wonders reflects that idea. Travel has taught me that wonder isn’t necessarily found in famous landmarks. Sometimes it is found in an old wall, a stranger’s expression, a crowded market, or a place that most people pass by. I wanted the book to encourage readers to slow down and look more closely at the seemingly ordinary world around them.​

Your travels take readers from Kashgar and Haiti to Namibia and South Korea. How did you choose the destinations that appear in the book?

The destinations were chosen less by a checklist of countries than by the stories and visual possibilities I encountered there. Having traveled extensively, I have learned to remain open to places that surprise me. Sometimes I arrive somewhere because I have been fascinated by its history or culture; other times, a location presents itself as an unexpected photographic opportunity.

I am particularly attracted to places where layers of history, culture, and everyday life intersect. Markets are a good example. They are not simply places where people buy and sell things; they are living portraits of a community. Architecture can tell similar stories, as can street art, religious traditions, abandoned places, and ordinary moments of daily life.

I also look for a sense of place that cannot easily be separated from the people who inhabit it. The locations in this collection are geographically diverse, but I hope the photographs reveal a common thread: wherever we live, people create meaning through their surroundings. My goal is not simply to photograph where I have been, but to photograph what those places have to say.​

The book includes discussions of lenses, lighting, and composition. Why was it important to share the technical side of the creative process?

Photography is both an art and a craft. I wanted the book to address both sides of that equation. I started including this information with my previous book, Around the World in Eighty Photos. There, it was focused on the thought process and settings for creating a single image, whereas here it is about creating a series of images.

A photograph may appear spontaneous, but there are usually dozens of decisions behind it—where to stand, which lens to use, how to frame the subject, what to include or exclude, how to respond to the available light, and sometimes, most importantly, when to wait. Sharing those considerations gives readers a glimpse into how I approach a scene rather than simply presenting the finished image.

I also wanted the technical discussions to be useful to photographers who are interested in travel photography themselves. You don’t need the most expensive equipment to create a meaningful photograph. Understanding light, composition, perspective, and timing is far more important than having a particular camera or lens.

Ultimately, though, technique is in service of storytelling. I don’t want readers to look at a photograph and think only about the equipment used to make it. I want them to feel something, become curious about the place, and perhaps imagine themselves standing there. The technical choices matter because they help translate an experience into an image.

How has your approach to travel photography changed over the past decade?

Perhaps the biggest change is that I have become more patient. Earlier in my travels, I was often focused on seeing and photographing as much as possible. Over time, I have become more interested in slowing down and allowing a place to reveal itself.

I have also become less interested in making photographs that simply announce, “I was here.” The iconic photograph of a destination has its place, but I’m increasingly drawn to the quieter, less obvious moments—the details, gestures, textures, faces, shadows, and encounters that communicate something deeper about a place.

My approach has also become more intentional. I think more about the story I am trying to tell and how individual photographs relate to one another. A single photograph can be powerful, but a series can create a much richer sense of place.

And, perhaps most importantly, travel photography has taught me to pay greater attention to people. The longer I travel, the more I realize that geography is only part of what makes a place distinctive. Places are ultimately shaped by the people who live in them. My camera has become a way of listening—quietly, visually, and with curiosity. I hope my photographs reflect that sense of connection and respect.

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