Westport is filled with locations that make it a memorable place for both current and past residents. From the stores and lights that line downtown, the iconic bridge at Old Mill beach where children and teens enjoy jumping into the water and the Minute Man statue that welcomes residents as they drive to Compo Beach, Westport has a distinct character and personality. To capture the beauty and the community that makes up Westport, 06880 founder Dan Woog and Lyah Muktavaram ’22 published their book “06880: Pick of the Pics” on Feb 6. 

“Westport is a very beautiful place… but my favorite photos are the ones with people in them, because people are the heart of this community,” Woog said. 

The book contains photos from “Pick of the Day,” a column on Woog’s blog where he posts a photo of Westport everyday, which he began in 2017. The photos in the book and Woog’s blog are contributed by current and former Westport residents. Muktavaram completed her senior internship with Woog, where she completed much of the book.

“The minute Dan proposed the idea, I knew it would make for an exciting and interesting project. I was especially intrigued by the project’s focus on community,” Muktavaram said. “Over the past few years, ‘Pick of the Day’ has highlighted over 3000 photos of various locations, subjects and people in Westport. I loved the idea of sharing different aspects of the town through a book.” 

To create this book, Woog and Muktavaram brainstormed layouts, got photo approval and eventually published the book. Even with a jam-packed schedule, Muktavaram made sure to devote time to choosing the most special pictures to be featured.

“I wanted to make sure the photos encapsulated the complexities of Westport,” Muktavaram said. “Some of the photos should be relatable, some of them should be of recognizable locations and some of them should be of more hidden gems.”

Though the final book includes photos that are of high quality, one of the toughest challenges Woog and Muktavaram faced when creating “06880: Pick of the Pics” was making sure that all the photos were in a resolution high enough to be printed clearly. With the help of graphic designer Miggs Burroughs, the resolution was upgraded and Muktavaram was able to replace the lower quality photos with clearer ones. 

“Many of the photos were from cell phones, so they looked fine on my blog but not necessarily when published on paper,” Woog said. “Lyah researched many options, and finally found one that worked.”

Working on the book allowed Muktavaram to explore the layout process, a novel skill to her.

“My favorite part of the book-making process was laying out and formatting the photos,” Muktavaram said. “This part of the process pushed me out of my comfort zone. I wasn’t super familiar with the layout or its intricacies, so I definitely learned a lot.”

The purpose of “06880: Pick of the Pics” is to connect former, current and future Westport residents by showcasing special places around town. Woog hopes to see similar projects in the future that will continue to unify the Westport community through photography. 

“I could definitely see a sequel, or perhaps another book utilizing a different part of “06880 [Pick of the Day],” Woog said. “The whole idea of the blog is to help build community, so the more ways we can do that, the better.”