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]]>Few places show off the understated beauty of the Valley like Heritage Port in Wheeling.
A few weeks ago, I had wrapped up a senior portrait session (those sunset shots are gonna be awesome!), and had a chance to take some night shots of the bridge—something I've been wanting to do for a long time. I didn't have all the gear I'd really need to take the shot in my head, but I was able to improvise a little and ended up getting a shot that I think shows off some of what is best about my community.
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The final recap video will be at the end of the post.
Here are just a few of the hundreds of photos I took. You can see the full gallery of 400+ my images on Facebook, and you can see some more photos and videos at the MOVWC Facebook page. Enjoy!
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]]>I spent a couple evenings visiting Senior Week to witness and document some of the awesome stuff that was happening during the week.
It was a little wet...
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I had the chance spend a couple hours on a beautiful evening photographing Bailey for her 2nd birthday, with her mom a grand parents. Here a few of my favorite photos:
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& Chloe inside their home. It was a quick shoot, in the dead & dark of winter...but the girls shine!
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Oh yeah, I got lost trying to get there, and trying to get home & ended up in a few situations that reminded me of some horror movies I've seen—but it was worth it, because I got some good sermon stories of it!
That's part of why I love photography...it reminds me of the inherit goodness in the world around us. If you pay close enough attention, there's always something worthwhile, something beautiful, something good. The story of my faith tells me that when God created the heavens and the earth, it was very good..but before long, by humanity's selfish arrogance, the very-goodness of the world (what the Scriptures call shalom), was fractured and broken. So as one theologian says, "Through faith we can see that God made the world...but the world is not the way God made it." We are all aware of the violence, pain, and suffering that is an ever-present companion.
But God has not abandoned the world. That's what the cross is all about. And that means there is always a current of love, a buzz of reconciliation, a spark of beauty, and a glimmer of hope.
Photography helps me to look for it.
It's always there, even at the county fair.
A good friend (an amazing graphic designer) mentored me into the world of photography by showing me that photography could be a lot more than lifeless posed studio portraits. He captures the story of a week camp with nothing more than a keen eye and a camera. With his guidance, I bought my first DSLR (a Pentax K-x, with a Sigma super-zoom). I've developed a lot as a photographer since that first DSLR (and I've since jumped ship to Canon), and I've expanded my photographic interests, but it all is really still about camp for me.
Here's what camp taught me this summer: God still does stuff. For a week and a half, I got to witness God working in the live and 11-14 year olds. I got to baptize several kids during one week, and it was so humbling. It was humbling because I knew it had nothing to do with me. I have a tendency to become cynical and distracted. But for a week or so in July, I witnessed God break into the hearts of young people.
The first image below is one of my favorite photos I've ever taken. It was on a Monday or Tuesday night at Intermediate Week. We were on our way to dinner, and I was running late. I remember distinctly reflecting on the previous week, which had so obviously been blessed by God and which had given me so much hope. I was bone tired, but my heart was full. That's when I saw it—the most golden sunlight I had ever seen, just kissing the side of this cabin.
This image is an image of hope. It's a reminder to me that God is active, no matter how cynical I become.
The above image is another moment of incredible sunlight, in another village at the same camp. It's from 2013, and from about 6:30 or so in the morning.
Man, I love this place.
]]>At the end of the post, you can see the Before & After video, edited by Andrew Moore. (If you're a photography nerd, you can tell most of my images from Andrew's because I was using the 70-200 2.8 and he was using a 24-70 2.8.)
God does amazing work through a few hundred students and youth workers. This year, we painted something like 36 houses, all for free, all for the glory of God. These moments are why I got into photography.
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We got to shoot with Devon on a gorgeous afternoon and evening in Wheeling, WV. It was a blast! Here are a few of my favorites.
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]]>This wedding was my best friend's wedding -- and I got to be the best man! So I wasn't the photography, but still was able to capture some of day for Kyle & Jess.
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As a preacher, by Bible is my primary tool on a daily basis, so I'm looking for just the right Bible, that will hold up, etc. Here is a post comparing two similarly designed Bibles: the Crossway Personal Reference Bible and the Cambridge Clarion. I prefer the Crossway Personal Reference bible, but unfortunately it doesn't come in any decent, durable editions.
I decided to get an ESV Personal Reference Bible rebound by AA Leather Bindery. It's goatskin & lined in goatskin. Overall, I'm really pleased, and I will almost for sure being going back to Andrew again. I eventually hope to get a pocket New Testament sometime in the future.His work is very good, the price is very good, and his turn around time is great.
I'm happy with the bible, there are a few negatives, but none of them are big deals. Sometimes email communication was a little slow. I had asked for "goatskin" or something similar on the inside cover, but that wasn't included. On the order form sent with the Bible, I was undecided on the ribbon colors, and then passed on my decision via email, but the ribbons on the rebind were different. The other negative (which is a little biggerdeal, though not a deal-breaker) is in relation to the leather liner. In email correspondence, I had asked about using a different leather for the liner. I had suggested lambskin, but Andrew suggested calfskin — so the plan was to have a goatskin cover, and a calfskin liner. But his apprentice made the cover, and used goatskin and goatskin by mistake. Andrew was very gracious, offered to remake it, or to go with it as-is at a slightly discounted price and free shipping, so I decided to go with it with the goatskin liner. The goatskin liner is really great — but for reasons I'll show below, it may not be right for me. If i could do it again, I'd almost for sure go with the calfskin liner.
Hopefully these photos give you an idea of what AA offers. It's really good stuff. I'm really happy with it.
So for some photos — these are after a week or so of very heavy use.
Besides the price and the turn around time, the quality of his imprinting was one of the reasons I went with AA over Leonards. It's really good.
I asked for semi-yapp edges, that he conformed around the text block. It turned out really well.
The grain for the goatskin is really nice. It's very similar to Leonard's soft-tanned goatskin. It's the softest leather I've ever seen on a bible.
The corners are not as "finished" as a publisher or Leonard's, but it's still very good. Here you can see the seam where the liner and the cover meet.
This is also the limpest cover I've ever seen. Compared to Abba Bibles, Allan's Bibles, and other similar bibles, this is the limpest, softest, most pliable cover.
Another shot of the corner. This shows the grain well, but the lighting in this photo makes the leather appear glossier than it really is.
Opens flat at Genesis 1.
Opens flat at Revelation 22.
Bible yoga. It excels.
It springs right back after yoga. It's incredibly flexible. The photo is seconds after yoga.
Below are some photos of it compared to an Allan's ESV Personal Size Study Bible (which is also a brand new bible).
The AA bible cover is significantly softer and more flexible than the Allan's. It's thicker too. Personally though, I prefer the Allan's. It's grain is more pronounced, and I actually prefer that the leather is stiffer. The AA has no need for really any breaking in—it's already crazy soft. Allan's is going to be coming out with the PRB in the next year to year and a half—for financial reasons, I doubt I'll buy one, but if it was out now, I'd do it. But I need a bible to read, teach and preach from now, and this AA bible will fit the bill nicely.
Compared to a Goatskin ESV Clarion. You can see my post here where I compare the Cambridge Clarion with the Crossway Personal Reference Bible.
I prefer the pronounced grain on the Cambridge, but it is glossier, which I don't prefer. Plus the AA is leather lined, which is nicer. I still use the Clarion quite a bit--thought something about it just doesn't quite work for me. It's not that much bigger than the PBR, though the font reads a lot bigger—for some reason the PRB just fits with my usage better. The Clarion is awesome, but it doesn't work for me as an all-around bible.
Below, you can see just how soft, pliable, and flexible the leather is. It's probably too pliable for me. The more I use it, the more it grows on me, but if I could do it again, I'd get the calfskin liner, which is a little bit stiffer.
It offers almost no resistance being crumpled up.
Immediately after being crumpled up. And below, you can see that after smoothing it out, it's like it was never crumpled up like a ball.
And then here's the seam where the cover meets. It's definitely noticeable. It may bother some folks but doesn't matter to me.
I'd definitely recommend Andrew at AA Leather Bindery.
]]>The old PSR was the first ESV I had, and used it pretty heavily while in college, and then loaned it out to some friends, so it's seen some heavy use, and it has responded amazingly well, especially given that is a very cheap bible. The single-column format with the cross references is a really good format, and the the PSR is a great size. It feels great in my hand for reading, for preaching (I preach without a pulpit, usually), and at the desk. Unfortunately, I easily lose my place when reading for some reason, so I don't really use it anymore.
The ESV Clarion - hailed as an amazing bible. Single column, great layout, good font size, great binding options, hand sized. I read about it, read reviews, and bought one—thinking it would be perfect. And it almost is. I love it. It's almost like reading a large print bible. But, for some reason, it just doesn't feel quite right in my hands. It's a little thick for me, in the way I use it. And that thickness occasionally sucks some of the text into the gutter. I love the Clarion, but I can't quite commit to it. I haven't give up on it yet, but I am not committing either.
After ordering the Clarion, I read about Crossway's update to the PSR called the Personal Reference Bible, that supposedly builds on the design of the old PSR. It has line-matching (meaning that is actual white space between each line, even with thin bible paper). It has a more unified design, and a new (slightly bigger font) face. It basically fixed most of what I didn't like about the old one. You can buy them for about $20 shipped, so I decided to give it a try.
I couldn't find many reviews of it, and no comparisons with the Clarion, so I took some photos to showcase the differences.
I haven't come to any real conclusions yet, to be honest. The new PRB is a big improvement on the old PSR. It's definitely not as well made as the very expensive Clarion. The imitation leather cover was incredibly incredibly stiff. The photos below show the cover after a lot of twisting and bending and abuse trying to loosen it up. But, I'm trying not to judge based on the cover for two reasons (1) my old Tru-tone has aged very well (2) If I decided to commit to the PRB, it will get a new cover on it (and still be cheaper than the Cambridge). The paper is good, the font very readable, and it's a very handy size. it's not much thinner than the Clarion, but it feels a lot different in my hands.
I'm going to use it heavily for a week (I'm a preacher, so that will mean a lot of use), and make up my mind, hopefully, by then. Either there there will be compromises. With the Clarion, I'll lose a little portability, comfort in the hand, and there will be more page turning while teaching/preaching. With the PRB I'll lose the amazing leather edge-lined cover, and the text that is just a joy to read, but I'll still have good text, and I'll gain the portability/hand feel. So I guess we'll see what happens.
Top: Cambridge Pitt Minion
Cambridge Clarion in Goatskin
There really isn't that much of a difference in thickness, but it just feels like it in my hands.
The font in the Clarion is a little bigger than the Personal Reference BIble, with some more line spacing I think. The Clarion is definitely more readable, but the PRB is still very readable.
Both do a good job of opening flat at Genesis and Revelation. The Clarion is a little better, but with use the PRB will be almost as good, I would guess.
The Clarion is like water — it just flows around whatever it's on.
This is the old PSR. It's just as fluid as the Cambridge.
A Very stiff cover — but I'm confident it will get a lot more flexibly as it breaks in.
IIt did like being bent back like that.
This is wear from some intention bending and flexing of the cover to loosen the cover up some. On the old PSR, the inside paper cover is a mess.
I think the page layout and font is very good. You can download actual pages to see it exactly.
The old cover feels great in the hand, but it shows a lot of wear. It has probably seen about 2 years of very heavy use (It's about 5 years old, or a little older). It would have fallen apart by now, had I used it everyday. Though, I would guess some of this damage comes from being carried in back-packs and such.
The extra ribbons are just taped to an index card. Nothing fancy.
The new PRB is a little big thicker than the old, but not all that much.
A subtly improved page design that really goes a long way to improving readability. The line matching really helps.
The beat-up inside cover of the old.
Compared to a Cambridge Pitt Minion.
