Marcus Stratton, Photographer
Experience and Influences
Photojournalism
Great Bend Tribune, Chief Photographer, Great Bend, KS.
Emporia Gazette, Assistant Photographer, Emporia, KS.
Raytown Post, Reporter-Photographer, Raytown, MO.
Wichita Eagle-Beacon, Northeast Kansas Photography Correspondent, Topeka, KS.
Topeka Capital-Journal, Photography Intern
Other Photography Positions and Education
Operated a part time photography business for 20 years, Wamego, KS.
Summer Photography Instructor, Kaw Area Technical School (now Washburn Technical College), Topeka, KS.
Labette Community College, Photography Instructor, Oswego, KS.
Instructor, Wamego Recreation Department photography classes for both kids and adults, Wamego, KS.
Photography volunteer, Project Rescue Amazon Youth Orphanage, Jacunda, Para and Tocantinopolis, Tocatins, Brazil.
Former photography volunteer, Camp Hope, Claflin, KS
Former photography volunteer, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Lawrence, KS
Portrait and studio classes at the Winona School of Photography, Chicago, IL.
Independent studies under Dr. Ed Sturr, Kansas State University Art Department, Manhattan, KS.
Former contributor to Kansas! Magazine and a related book.
Photojournalism classes University of Kansas School of Journalism, Lawrence, KS.
BA in Communications, Washburn University, Topeka, KS.
Memberships
Former member and vice-president, Columbian Artists Group, Wamego, KS.
Past member and board member, Kansas Professional Photographer’s Association.
Co-founder, Ark Bend Image Makers Photography Club, Great Bend, KS.
Awards
Associate Press awards for spot news and feature photography.
Select semifinalist for Time Magazine's Contest for Young Photographers.
James A. Fletcher Memorial Award, Manhattan Arts Council Wrap it Up Exhibit.
Best of Show, Columbian Artists Exhibition at Manhattan Arts Center.
Exhibitions
Portraits of Home, Great Bend Public Library, Great Bend, KS.
Six Painters and a Photographer, Swogger Gallery, Columbian Theater, Wamego, KS.
Numerous shows as a part of the Columbian Artists, Wamego, KS.
Wrap It Up, Manhattan Arts Center, Manhattan, KS.
Two Photographers, Landmark National Bank, Lawrence, KS.
The Kansas Flint Hills, First Friday, Brew Bank, Topeka, KS.
Other
Will begin my 33rd year as a public educator in 2026-27, my tenth year as a school counselor.
My Journey as a Photographer
Early Beginnings
My journey as a photographer has been one of continual evolution—a lifelong exploration that will continue for as long as I am behind a lens. My introduction to the darkroom process began in ninth grade, thanks to my science teacher, Paul Mitschler. He had created a darkroom in his classroom and invited his students to try it out. Only a handful of us did, but for me, it was life-changing. With my parents' support, I set up my own darkroom at home, and I have been making photographs ever since.
Photography has never been something I did just for the sake of doing photography; it has been the vehicle I have used to explore the world. The technical learning of the craft was always a requirement for the exploration I chose to do. Over the years, themes have occurred naturally within my work, and as I review different periods of my career, I can clearly see how they tie together.
Journalism and Transition
Early in my career, I took an interest in both photojournalism and landscape photography. One of the great fortunes of my life was to be born and raised in Topeka, Kansas. As a high school student, I was able to work in the photo lab of the Topeka Capital-Journal, later becoming a photography intern. It was one of the leading photojournalism papers in the country, and the opportunities to learn from the photographers in that department were invaluable.
As I balanced college as a journalism/communications student, I also delved into medium and large-format cameras. I began studying the works of Ansel Adams and his Zone System of exposure and development. Large format photography is best done with a still subject, so most of what I shot in this way were landscapes, primarily in Kansas.
Personal Projects and Evolution
After a decade of photojournalism, I transitioned into education. While earning my education degree, I had the opportunity to work through a couple of independent studies with Dr. Ed Sturr, an art professor at Kansas State University. It was under his guidance that I photographed Cory, a brain-injured boy—a project that fundamentally changed my perspective. For about 20 years, I also operated a part-time photography business, and as I transitioned into digital shooting, I was fortunate to have a friend, Rodger Doherty, help me master the technical nuances of shooting and printing digitally.
The Search for the Extraordinary
This work is a journey of time travel. It is a way of reliving moments while recognizing the themes that have defined my life. During my photojournalism career, I became aware that much of my work captured isolated, extraordinary moments, often missing the meaning found in the "normal" day-to-day.
In my personal work, starting with my time with Cory, I began to appreciate the challenges of everyday life. The challenge for me—and what I hope to achieve with this body of work—is to present the extraordinary in what appears to be the ordinary. It is in these moments that we see the triumph of humanity. And so, perhaps the greatest influence on my work is that through contributing to others, I am connecting with them, thus affirming my own existence.