F/Stop - August, 2009

Today started early for me at 6. I left the house at 6:30; it was a beautiful morning to drive; I was heading into the sunrise and was awed as I watched the sky become a radiant tapestry that the Hand of God was painting on. In my opinion there is nothing quite like waking up in that way; immediately seeing the artistry of God; especially on a day like today as I venture into my own flawed efforts to create art that glorifies my Redeemer.

We had a brief session this morning that I would liken to the adage of drinking from a fire hydrant. After it ended, we were turned loose to let our own creative juices flow with a photoshoot in the Nature Preserve. I chose to conquer one of my own “demons” as it were and shot all of my shots in the same location. That way, I could not only attempt to create a story that would flow through all five of our new compositional techniques; but prevent me from taking the “easier” way of taking only shots that I want to. It is really easy for me not to stick with shots long enough to capture what I really want to, so I needed to work through it. I was fairly pleased with some of my shots also. I do have to say that I love this new lens! A-mazing!

This afternoon was a blast of information again, just relating to digital workflow, metadata, keywording, rating and many other fun things. We finished the afternoon with a probe into the vast and confusing world of copyright information. Even as I record the events of today in a very abridged way, I’m watching the sun set from the window of dunkin donuts. What a way to bookend this day; seeing the sunrise this morning, and then watching it go down now!

The verse for today is 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

“Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.”

Our Sanctification is not up to us, it is God that works Sanctification in our lives. That is an amazing truth to grasp. What a “duh” concept, and yet so full of hope for us! Praise God for His sanctifying work in our lives.

This is Ben, and I’m done for today.