In December 2025, I did something that felt a little crazy at the time: I completely abandoned my Squarespace website and rebuilt Detroit Photography from scratch using AI. Not AI-generated templates. Not AI "assistance." I mean I had conversations with an AI tool called Claude Code, describing what I wanted in plain English, and it wrote all the code for a custom website.

The Short Version

I built a professional, custom-coded website by having conversations with an AI. No templates. No developers. No coding knowledge required. Just me describing what I wanted, and the AI writing the code.

Since the switch, I've seen increases in the number of indexed pages, impressions, and clicks. My page speed score improved significantly. And I now have over 1,000 pages on my website because I was able to create a local architecture guide cross-linked with my portraiture—something that would have been impossible on a template platform.

How It Actually Works

I use a tool called Claude Code. It's like having a developer on call 24/7 that I talk to in plain English.

I say things like:

"Add a sticky button at the bottom that collects emails"
"Make the review count update automatically from Google"
"This section looks cluttered on mobile, clean it up"

The AI writes the code, makes the changes, and deploys it to my live website—often in under a minute.

I don't understand most of the code. I don't need to. I describe what I want, review the result, and ask for adjustments. It's like directing a very fast, very patient developer who never gets annoyed when I change my mind.

The Tech Stack

For those who want the technical details, the site runs on:

Vercel – Hosting platform that deploys automatically when I push changes
Next.js – The React framework that powers the site
Tailwind CSS – For styling without writing custom CSS
Supabase – Database for storing dynamic content
Claude Code – The AI that writes and deploys everything

Written entirely from scratch. Not WordPress. Not a template. Every line of code was generated through conversation.

Why This Matters for Photographers

Most photographers are choosing between two options:

Cheap and easy (templates) — but limited and generic. You look like everyone else. You're stuck with what the template allows.
Custom and powerful (developers) — but expensive and slow. Every small change means emails, invoices, and waiting.

AI coding is a third option: custom and powerful, but fast and accessible.

I'm not technical. I'm a photographer. But I now have a website that performs like I hired an agency—built through conversations over a few months of evenings and weekends.

What I Actually Built

Here's what the AI helped me create:

A fast, custom site that loads quicker than template sites – Google rewards speed, and my page speed score improved significantly
Automatic updates – My review count pulls live from Google without manual updates
A content library of Detroit architecture – Over 550 historic buildings photographed and documented, driving organic traffic for searches I never could have targeted before
Landing pages targeting specific searches people actually make – Not generic pages, but pages optimized for real search intent
Everything exactly how I want it – Not how a template forces it to be

The SEO Strategy

I've been focusing on owning high-intent keywords—searches where people are actually looking to hire a photographer. My traffic is almost all commercial intent.

But with this website change, I've been able to expand into long-tail informational content. The architecture guide generates impressions for searches like "Fisher Building Detroit" and "Guardian Building history."

These informational pages don't convert directly, but they build authority. Google sees that my site is a comprehensive resource for Detroit photography and architecture. That authority flows back to my commercial pages.

The Trade-Offs

This approach isn't magic. There's a learning curve.

You need to learn how to communicate with the AI effectively. Sometimes it misunderstands what you want, and you have to redirect it. Sometimes it makes changes you didn't ask for, and you have to roll them back.

But here's the thing: if you can describe what you want in words, you can build it. That's the breakthrough.

I can tweak my site at midnight on a Sunday because I had an idea. I can test something, hate it, and change it five minutes later. I can build features that don't exist on any template platform.

Why I Think This Is the Future

I honestly believe that in 1-2 years, all marketing websites are going to be built from scratch, to spec, using AI.

Template platforms made sense when the alternative was hiring an expensive developer. But now there's a middle path. You can have a custom, professional website built exactly to your specifications—without learning to code, without hiring anyone, and without being limited by templates.

I'm an early adopter. The tools are still rough around the edges, but I've seen real improvements.

My website loads faster than it did on Squarespace. It does things that would have been impossible before—like automatically syncing my Google review count, or generating hundreds of architecture pages with consistent formatting.

Getting Started

If you're curious about trying this yourself, here's my advice:

Start with Claude Code – It's the tool I use, and it handles everything from writing code to deploying changes
Learn to prompt effectively – Be specific about what you want. Show examples. Describe the outcome, not just the feature
Don't expect perfection on the first try – You'll iterate. That's the process. The AI doesn't read your mind—you have to guide it
Focus on what makes you unique – Templates make everyone look the same. Use this opportunity to build something that truly represents your brand

The barrier to building a professional website has never been lower. The question is no longer "can I afford a custom website?" It's "can I describe what I want?"

If you can describe it, you can build it.

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