i am expecting a range of reactions to this post, from “oh, yes!” to “oh, no!” but, yes or no, this is the new STILL blog. after five straight years of daily photographs in the same format on the same white background, i needed to make some kind of change. but i couldn’t bear the thought of leaving behind the exhilarating daily practice of STILL blog, nor the way it required me to be present and observant in nature, nor the way it brought me in contact with a world of creative, supportive, inspiring, and affirming colleagues, followers, and friends. i have spent the better part of the last couple of years trying to figure out what STILL 2.0 should look like. one obvious solution was simply to switch the background from white to black, which seemed too obvious for a while, until I took my first actual photo on a black background (this breathtaking queen anne’s lace), and suddenly several years of new possibilities opened up. the new black background will lend itself to new subjects, new colors (it was nearly impossible to photograph white objects on a white background), and new, more emotionally nuanced compositions. the new format will be divided into three galleries or realms: the realm of “day” of “night” and of “dawn.”  all of my prior five years of white images will be available and archived in the “day” gallery. all of my new images on a black background will accumulate in the “night” gallery. and my new project, a collage-a-day challenge, will be featured in the “dawn” gallery (as in “dawn of a new era”). there is more information about this new project in the gallery itself. i think this new format is gorgeous, and will lend itself to a newly expansive vision of what STILL blog can be, while hewing to its original vision of pared-down minimalism that encourages everyone to be still for a part of every day, and look at one thing at a time.  i hope you love it, and if you don’t love it yet, i hope you will give yourself time to fall in love. whatever you think, I’d love to hear from you, whether in the comments section, or by email. thank you all for spending these last five years with me, and adding kindness and magic to my days.