Last Summer’s Roses

photos

Throwback to a day with friends and sisters at the Tyler Rose Garden in Tyler, Texas, and The Foundry Coffeehouse (one of the best coffee shops in East Texas!)

Christ’s Love Compels Me

a day in the life, on my heart, thoughts, words

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. Apart from me, no one comes to the Father.”

In Jesus alone is the gift of eternal life, given to us freely but purchased by His own blood on the cross.

When we put our trust in Him, we are redeemed, we are set free, and we are adopted into the family of God!

Mom and I have been talking about the beautiful thing it is to be part of the family of God. Even when we meet complete strangers who also love Jesus, you can sense that we share the Spirit of God in us. (And my Mom and I experienced that this very morning… at the IRS office! God works in amazing ways.)

There is such joy in knowing the Lord and walking with Him. And it is His love in me that compels me to love the world like He does.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.” – John 3:16-17

When I glimpse the incredible love that God has for the world – and I understand how many people have yet to hear the name of Jesus – my heart breaks.

More than 2.7 billion people in the world today (about one out of five) have never heard of Jesus. They’re without salvation and hope, for both this life and the next. And that means that they are on their way to hell.

It is chillingly clear in Scripture that those who do not choose Christ will not inherit eternal life.

I was struck by the analogy that I recently heard about this. If you are planning a trip to Disney world, and you’re packing, planning your road trip, and start driving there, you’re on your way. A few things might come up that deter you for a minute, but you are still on your way.

If it is true that those without Christ are on their way to hell, like the Scriptures say, how does that impact how I live today?

This is a sobering and challenging thought that the Lord is teaching me through right now.

I’ll close with some lines from a song that has been playing in my head, ‘O Come to the Altar’ by Essential Worship:

Are you hurting and broken within,
Overwhelmed by the weight of the sin,
Jesus is calling.
Have you come to the end of yourself,
Do you thirst for a drink from the well,
Jesus is calling.

O come to the altar,
The Father’s arms are open wide,
Forgiveness was bought with,
The precious blood of Jesus Christ.

Leave behind your regrets and mistakes,
Come today there’s no reason to wait,
Jesus is calling.
Bring your sorrows and trade them for joy,
From the ashes a new life is born,
Jesus is calling.

Oh what a Savior,
Isn’t He wonderful,
Sing hallelujah Christ is risen,
Bow down before Him,
For He is lord of all,
Sing hallelujah Christ is risen.

Read more: Elevation Worship – O Come To The Altar Lyrics | MetroLyrics

developing a roll of film

a day in the life, photos, words

Learning to develop black and white film was one of the best things that’s happened to me. I love shooting film, and have loved it for a while. Learning to develop it on my own made it so much more awesome.

Last semester I took Daniel Rodrigue’s News Photography I at Brookhaven College. I had cool assignments that weren’t really work, because taking photos is awesome and fun. My kind of class, for sure. I made a camera out of a can, I shot with instant film, and spent hours in the school darkroom. Brookhaven has a black and white photo lab, and all of the equipment and space you need for rolling film onto reels, pouring in the chemistry to develop the film, and making enlargements and prints of your photos.

One Thursday I was at the photo lab at Brookhaven, developing film. (Standing at a sink for an hour and shaking a film tank intermittently is not the most interesting thing it the world. It’s a little boring [except that you know that what you’re doing is making photos, so it’s worth it.] I have small hands, so my fingers cramp up from holding onto the film tank. Then there are chemicals spilling, and dripping onto your hands, and then drying just enough to make it uncomfortable. [I’m making this sound horrible. It’s not really this bad.])

So I was at the lab, developing film. I decided that I would instagram the different steps of developing film, just for fun, and for something to do while I wait. I decided that I would hashtag it all #photolabthursday to group all of the photos and tweets together.

And, now I’m going to share the film developing process with you, via my instagram posts. Just a fraction of all the photos that I posted though!

golden hour portraits

a day in the life, photos, photoshoots, stories

Of my sister Clara.

These photos just happened, really. We were outdoors on a late afternoon, in the backyard, just talking. Then it was like “the light is beautiful… your eyes are beautiful… wait, let me grab my camera.” I had some expired Fujichrome film loaded in my 35mm SLR, so that’s what I shot with.

the beauty of film

photos, words

I’m discovering more and more just how much I love the analog medium. With fewer shots per roll/film pack, you have to think about the shot so much more – and that’s really teaching me to think much more about each shot.

I’m learning to be competent in the darkroom too: rolling the film, mixing the chemicals, timing the processes, cutting the negatives, making contact sheets, using the enlarger, and, the best part, in my opinion – developing the prints. Gently sloshing the liquid in the tray, and watching the image grow on the paper is so magical.

A few collages of some recent film photos. 35mm color film, 35mm b&w film, 120 color, 120 b&w, 35mm color reversal, and The Impossible Project Polaroid film.

I’m now offering all-film photoshoots: color reversal film (slide film), true black and white, and polaroid instant film. Contact me about a booking!

my warby parkers

photos, words

I just got new glasses from Warby Parker! The Zagg frame, in Tennessee Whiskey. I really love the split-color plastic frame, with dark tortoise on top and crystal on bottom.

Warby Parker sells designer frames, prescription lenses included, for only $95. And for each pair sold, they give a pair of eyeglasses to someone in need.

taken with expired fujichrome 100 color reversal film

film:: at the beach

a day in the life, photos, words

^ i took lots of pictures of melissa

^ my super awesome (and super cute) parents

^ it was only very very windy. that was actually why i mostly used my film camera, because the blowing sand was reeeaaalllly bad for my digital SLR. (after just a few minutes i was noticing grittiness on my lens.)