My sister is ever the motivator. She pushed me to go out last night and shoot 15 pictures. Of anything. Anywhere I could. Just make it work. I took about 20 shots, and though most were junk, I did get a couple that could be edited to something “not so boring.”
During our trip to Ohio, I had opportunity to read some of Martin Luther’s writings. I brought a copy of “Three Treatises,” which ends up not being all that focused on theology proper, but was a highly enjoyable read. The first treaties is An Open Letter to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation Concerning the Reform of the Christian Estate. This was written in 1520, and Luther was apparently quite aware that his relationship with the Catholic Church was damaged beyond repair by this point (by this time in his life Luther had clearly proclaimed his questioning of papal authority and numerous specific practices of the Church). Even in his written word in this essay it is possible to see the passion he must have had regarding the comprehensive lack of discernment and holiness in the Church, and specifically in the person and office of the pope.
There were numerous passages in the essay that were noteworthy and concise enough to quote, but one related generally to politics really jumped out at me. He was crying out against the actions of Rome (referencing the Church) in its dishonorable acquisition of the Roman Empire from the Greek Emperor, and then his giving it to the German Nation in order to establish a “Second Roman Empire” under his own rule. Luther’s statements are still relevant today:
For the Lord God it is a small thing to toss empires and principalities to and fro! He is so generous with them that once in a while He gives a kingdom to a knave and takes it from a good man, sometimes by the treachery of wicked, faithless men and sometimes by heredity, as we read of the kingdoms of Persia and Greece, and of almost all kingdoms; and Daniel 2 and 4 says: “He who ruleth over all things dwelleth in heaven, and it is he alone who changeth kingdoms, tosseth them to and fro, and maketh them.” Since, therefore, no one can think it a great thing to have a kingdom given to him, especially if he is a Christian, we Germans cannot be puffed up because a new Roman Empire bestowed on us; for in His eyes it is a trifling gift, which He often gives to the most unworthy, as Daniel 4 says: “All who dwell on the earth are in his eyes as nothing, and he has power in all the kingdoms of men, to give them to whomsoever he will.”
This is indeed a good reminder that it is God who gives and takes kingdoms and establishes rulers. Beware of those who suggest that God is any less capable of or active in doing this in a democratic republic!
We just got back this morning from nine days in Akron, Ohio, visting Tami’s family. We stayed with Grandpa and Grandma Rhodes (with John, Tara, and four girls, too!), and got to relax a bit. There are so many things to post about, from the airports and plane rides, to the 60th anniversary party, the annual July 4th picnic, Wall-E, and more. I think I’ll create separate posts over the next weeks with pictures, but for now, here are a few of the 700+ images I captured:
I understand that the thought of a garden, for many, conjurs visions of boring work, dirty knees, and weeds. But my simple mind continues to be amazed by the growth of these plants. I’ve already figured out that zuchini take a lot of room (much more than we gave them), and peas don’t really care what they wrap their tendrils around. So far no pests have damaged anything, and our only losses are a few seedlings killed by late cold weather, and one tomato to curious fingers.
My sister and her family often drive down near the end of the Portland Airport runway with bags of Burger King Goodness and watch the planes come in. I’ve been in the area for more than 20 years and have never been down Marine Drive, so tonight Tami and I decided to borrow Amy’s idea and see how the kids liked it. We stopped at Little Caesar’s for a couple of “Hot-and-Ready” pizzas (”hot,” but 15 minutes from “Ready”), and then crossed the bridge to see if we could find plane-watching nirvana. It wasn’t all that busy tonight with incoming flights, but we did have a blast and will be doing it again soon.
Pictures tonight were a bit of a bomb. I found out that I have a rather large piece of dirt on the 18-55, and getting lighting right with the setting sun, shadow, and bright sky was impossible. But I was able to grab a few shots that weren’t completely awful.
There are lots of debates about the value of the Canon EF 1.8 II lens, especially when compared to the EF 1.4 (here’s a very clear, level comparison). Dad let me borrow his 1.8, since he has much (much!) nicer glass, and I took some shots of the kids to see what I could get. I’m not smart enough about all of this to be picky yet. I’m sure the 1.4 is a far better lens for a multitude of reasons, but I’ll take the 1.8 over nothing any day!
Vignetting is manually applied. These are cut down and converted to JPGs from RAW, with no non-ACR processing, and only white-balance and exposure in ACR.
After my last post, Dad asked why I didn’t just use Bridge to manage photos. I started playing around with it, and am quite impressed with what it will do. I have a lot to learn, both with Bridge and in Photoshop with proper photo editing, but I know I have access to some great teachers (thanks, Sis and Dad!).
I got a new camera today, and Dad let me have an extra lens he doesn’t use. Amy and Dad were patient, kind, and unselfish enough to meet Tami and I and the kids at a local park and let me use all of their equipment (thank you both SO much!!). Man, I learned a lot, and got a taste of how much more I have to learn. I hope to study a few specific styles and really focus on them, but for now I’m shooting all I can.
Here are a few shots from tonight:
These all have pretty minimal post-processing done on them, since I haven’t figured out a good flow from iPhoto to Photoshop and back again, but I’ll work on it. There are a few more from the shoot on our Flickr stream if you are interested.
This past Saturday was the Nutter Corporation’s Dozer Day in Vancouver. The sun was out, and the temperatures must have hit the 90’s. There had to be thousands of people at the event this year, and the lines were slow-moving and exhausting. But the kids really enjoyed getting to drive some heavy equipment, eating hot dogs, and scrambling for candy at the Dan Jones candy-throwing conveyer truck. And I really have to commend the volunteers and drivers, because every one of them I saw was just having a blast. The driver of the excavator the kids got to ride in was laughing and looked like he was having so much fun, despite the heat and constant flow of children.
Here are some pictures and videos from the day. And as soon as I get some links to the pictures Amy and Dad took, I’ll include them here as well.
We decided a few months ago to start a very small garden this year, both for the fun and for the fresh vegetables that we hope it provides. I had seen a post on LifeHacker regarding square foot gardening and thought it looked like fun. So a week ago we bought some seeds for string beans, snap peas, tomatoes, cucumbers, and a few other things, plus a starter container of “peat pods” for 24 plants. And after about a week, we have plants!
It’s been pretty amazing to watch these things grow. We took a seed and put it in a pile of wet dirt. That was it. Maybe I’m just really simple-minded, but that has got to be one of the coolest things in the world. And to think that one little seed will give us dozens of beans, and another will provide a host of peas. Wow.
Genesis 2:8-9: And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground the LORD God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food.
Thank you, Lord!
