Born and raised in Morris, Illinois, a small city seventy miles southwest of Chicago, my landscape growing up consisted mostly of farmland and prairie grass. After high school, I attended Eastern Illinois University and earned a degree in Finance. From there, I went to law school and received by Juris Doctorate at Northern Illinois University. I returned to my hometown and the family law practice where my oldest brother and I were following in the footsteps of our father and grandfather. But I was restless and unfulfilled -- and thus began a long search. I eventually felt called to seminary, not the usual career path after law school! My minister recommended I check out Emmanuel Christian Seminary in East Tennessee. I had never set foot in Tennessee – didn’t know a single person there, but liked the idea of living and studying in the mountains. After much soul searching, I headed for the hills of Tennessee and began a new adventure. While I never did complete seminary, I did find a way to integrate my faith and my legal background and my love of photography at Milligan College, where, in addition to teaching Digital Photography, I taught courses in business ethics, business law and various other legal studies courses.
Starting in 2012, Colorado became a frequent destination for me. I had been to the Centennial State twice before, once in high school and again after law school -- both times visiting Rocky Mountain National Park and the Maroon Bells. Coming from Appalachia, I was in awe of Rocky Mountains -- so majestic and mammoth. I fell in love with the area and made it my mission to find work and move here, which I did in 2017. Wanting to have a place to share my discoveries (and my photos), I created this blog as a way of documenting my journeys and (hopefully) helping others to discover the wonderful Colorado communities and all the beautiful places I've visited for themselves.
My grandfather taught me that photography is storytelling. It's capturing and then sharing life’s journey and its beauty with others. My hope is that those who live in or visit the the Southern Appalachians and the Colorado Rockies will be encouraged by my photography to step out and explore, to look a bit closer, experience the wonders of nature, and to then share what they find with others.
Thanks for visiting my blog and happy trails!
Mark W. Peacock
Cañon City, CO