This strange conglomeration of bright colors was my view into the pool this cool January afternoon. When I took the shot I wasn’t aware of the deep blue color reflecting back from the sky.  I know it isn’t a gorgeous photo, but it is special to me nonetheless because I took the shot after bravely putting my fancy dancy camera on “M” for Manual!

Although my left eye feels a bit punchy from all the squinting, I am now familiar enough with the two main dials on my camera to adjust the aperture and the shutter speed until the little scale inside the viewfinder goes to that sweet Zero spot…not overexposed, and not underexposed, but just right!  I think the aperture control is changed using the dial on the front of the camera, and the shutter speed control is changed using the back dial.  I almost wrote “A” and “SS” on the black camera body over the appropriate dial using a white liquid paper pen…but since I didn’t have a liquid paper pen and my husband doesn’t take too kindly to labels on high priced electronics, I made up a jingle instead: A comes before S, so A is at the front.  Somehow ISO and white balance get thrown in the mix, but I haven’t learned that yet.  I just played around with the dials until the little indicator scale hit that perfect zero.

Looking at my photo of a reflection brought to mind a Bible verse dealing with reflections from 1 Corinthians 13:

“¹² Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.”

One day I will learn how to use this camera that God has so graciously allowed me to use. My dream is to one day be able to snap brilliant photographs that reveal glimpses of the Lord’s glory.  I want my photos to capture spirit and truth and beauty and mystery. I hope to shoot brief stills of the specialness that is His creation.  Now if I can only learn to squint without causing shooting pains in my poor eyebrow!