The Need to Be Clean

by | Nov 12, 2021 | Perspective, Pic of the Month | 1 comment

The beach is such a fun place to play! Riding the waves, building sand castles, scrambling up sand dunes. But when the camera’s out, things are different. I don’t ride the waves. I don’t build sand castles. I don’t scramble on sand dunes. I wade ankle deep in the water. I photograph others building sand castles. I find the path of least resistance to the top of the sand dunes on two feet. Salt water and sand just aren’t friends of expensive camera equipment.

210722_James Staddon_1031 Canon EOS 5D Mark III, 16 mm, 0.6 sec at f - 16, ISO 50

Just water in general isn’t a camera’s friend either. Recently I was taking pictures of the beautiful fall colors on some old country roads. From the bed of a pickup truck. While it was drizzling.  Since dust and dirt turn to mud when mixed with water, well, I was very careful what I touched.

211016_James Staddon_1866 W

Bathed in Glory
Pocahontas County, West Virginia
Subscribe to Lenspiration updates to download desktop backgrounds like this for free

The other day I was weed whacking a hillside in my back yard. It didn’t take long till I was covered from head to toe in grass clippings. No problem. But if I needed to pick up a camera in that moment, I would have hastily brushed off the best I could, and almost held the camera with my finger tips!

I may have been covered in burrs and wet with dew for this shot, but my camera wasn’t.

201014_James Staddon_0951 Canon EOS 5D Mark III, 88 mm, 1-60 sec at f - 4.0, ISO 100

You’ve tiptoed around mud puddles in your dress clothes. You understand the feeling. The need to be clean.

And for good reason. As photographers, what we handle is too fragile and expensive to be handled carelessly.

And perhaps this is why the Bible says things like, “But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes” and “Abstain from all appearance of evil“ and “Every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour” and “Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.”

If I’m a Christian, I handle something too priceless to be handled carelessly: God’s reputation.

Let us live carefully. Discretely. Intentionally avoiding the things that may damage His testimony in us. It doesn’t mean that these will cause damage per se, but they could. And most of the time, it’s not worth the risk.

“Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul; having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.” 1 Peter 2:11-12.

Get each article as soon as it goes live!

Recommended Ebook

1 Comment

  1. Esther

    Great analogy! Keep clean y’all!

    Reply

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Send the next blog post straight to your email inbox!

Thank you for subscribing!