Like many in the WordPress community, Barry is a self-proclaimed Jack of All Trades. At any give time, you can find him working on projects involving branding, design, animation or development.

When it comes to web development projects, though, WordPress is his platform of choice.

His first introduction to WordPress came in 2007, with version 2.2. The relationship did not flourish and Barry, for a time, moved on.

“It was so clunky back then that I tried it for a couple websites that I dropped it for a couple of years. I came back around WordPress 2.7 or 2.8, in 2009, when image uploads were really beefed up, and that’s when I fell in love with it,” Barry says. “I’ve been using it pretty religiously ever since. There are very few constraints to what it can do.”

Barry’s use of WordPress was all client-driven.

“I needed a content management system better than what I was using… I had been doing my own PHP/MySQL stuff. WordPress in comparison is so easy to get up and going, and allows for such great flexibility for the end user. Not having to go through HTML editing with each client – I love that.”

Working with a platform that is accessible and flexible is important for Barry, whose web development projects typically involve basic business and informational sites. The platform’s continual evolution keeps him coming back.

“I already enjoyed working with PHP, but when WordPress added the featured image option, that got me excited as a developer because of what I could do with it. Meta boxes and custom post-types have made my sites flourish, whereas before I was using categories. Custom post types have been a huge deal to me, and, of course, the ability to write plugins and widgets. It’s those steps forward that keeps me excited for WordPress.”

“The natural progression of WordPress is really cool.”

You can find Barry on twitter at @barrycantrell

As part of the build-up to WordCamp Nashville 2014 Faces of WordPress will highlight members of Middle Tennessee’s great – and growing – WordPress community. We will feature WP users at all levels, newbies to advanced developers. And mark your calendar. This year’s Big Event is May 3, 2014.