Author’s
note: This article contains
some details about photography techniques. However‚ reading it until the end
will prove highly beneficial.
There is
no secret for anyone that I like photography. I have always been and I always
will be fascinated by the mystical revelations of the dark room‚ where all your
dreams of light and shadows take life under the gleaming shine of the red
safelight. When seen through the camera lens‚ even regular life becomes
something special‚ according to the vision of the photographer; the singular
moment is glorified and preserved for eternity; a lifetime can be contained
occasionally in a frozen frame.
There is
however an unspoken myth among photographers‚ more of a misconception really‚
that‚ for an image to be good‚ one has to use the perfect equipment. With this
in mind photographers are always in a quest for the perfect lens that will
somewhat magically make them the best photographer in the world.
Among
lenses one has to distinguish two kinds‚ the fixed lens and the zoom lens. For
years photographers have been struggling with either a lens permanently
attached to the camera body or the pain of frequently changing lenses to match
their photographic vision. The invention of the zoom was seen as a great
revolution‚ as now with the turn of a dial the world effortlessly comes closer
to you.
The zoom
however has killed creativity in many ways. With a fixed lens‚ that is also
called a prime lens‚ you have to move closer or farther away from your subject‚
you have to participate in the photo you are taking‚ you have to get
personal. The moment becomes alive as
you adapt to the fixed vision field of your lens and adapting to this vision
you become a different person with every click of the shutter. With the zoom you can comfortably stay away‚
bringing the scene close to you as you please‚ like a cold observer that
records life he does not care for. You
do not adapt to the unique vision of the lens‚ but on the contrary you make the
world change according to your vision as you impassibly zoom in and out.
I bring
this up because in today’s Christian world I see people using similar types of
lenses to peek into the spiritual world. I call them the Zoom Christian and the
Prime Christian.
The Zoom
Christian has no particular single vision on his spiritual life; he goes
through life changing his views as he pleases‚ taking only what he likes from
what he observes and experiences. He is not dogmatic and the truth is only
relative to his person. His life is based on feelings‚ hunches and experiences
and he is very prone to change his point of view as easy as turning a dial. He
does not want to adapt to a singular vision on life‚ but he wants the world to
adapt to his ever-changing moods and desires.
The Prime
Christian sees the world through the fixed lens he has inherited from his
tradition and he keeps it unchanged. He constantly works to understand the
spiritual world by adapting himself to the unique vision he upholds. He has to
be creative‚ he has to adapt‚ he has to suffer and work‚ but in the end he
doesn’t just admire this world from afar‚ but he becomes involved in it‚ and by
participation he is changed by it‚ he is integrated in it.
One of
the most famous photojournalists‚ Henri Cartier-Bresson‚ has shot all his life
with one camera with a single lens (a Leica with a 50mm prime‚ if you are
curious). This scarce setting allowed him to concentrate not on the gear‚ not
on the technique‚ but on his vision that became one with the camera. As he said
it himself “It is by strict economy of means that simplicity of expression is
achieved.”
Spiritually
speaking this is also true. It is often by simple means that we attain great
spiritual insight. It is not by our discovery that we find God‚ but is by using
the simple means of fasting and praying that we allow God to finds us. Only by
simplicity we achieve peace and in peace there is God.
We are
born in a society of zoomers that want the world to constantly adapt to our
fluctuating visions of it. We have to become primes and attach ourselves to the
fixed and dogmatic vision of the Church‚ as God revealed it to the prophets‚
the apostles and the saints. Using the purity of their foresight we will be
more focused on changing ourselves‚ by participation‚ into the vision God had
for us from the beginning of the world.
Source: http://dialogues.stjohndfw.info/2013/06/zooms-and-primes/
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