Perspective

What does it mean to see from a different perspective?
So.many.things.
Specifically I’ll be referencing what it means in photography, but also life in general.

Hey Y'all! Hannah here again. 
I’m what you would call a mediocre/intermediate photographer, so hear me when I say, I’M NOT A PROFESSIONAL, I just love photography. :) All of the photos you see on this website were taken by me (Hannah Porter) as well as all that you would see on my instagram (where the bulk of my photography resides). When most people think of photography outside of just a casual click of the shutter, or push of the phone button, they think of fancy equipment (and lots of it) as well as a fancy and expensive editing software. These things are great and yes, they can help ‘up your photography game’, but they will not make you a photographer, or at least not make you a good one. The only way fancy equipment and programs will help improve a photographer is if they already have a ‘good eye’ and even more so, a unique perspective to expand upon. I don’t have that fancy equipment, I have a basic dSLR camera with it’s stock lens and it’s all cheaper than most point and shoots today, and that’s pretty much how I take all of my photos, in fact, some of my most popular photos were taken on my phone. IT’S NOT ABOUT EQUIPMENT. I have been talking with different professional photographers lately and some of them are ‘gear heads’, others are all about composition, etc. etc. but no matter their focus in photography almost all of them say, ‘equipment is nice if you can get it, but it doesn’t make a photographer’. As I was walking around in the store the other day and realizing I was at least months if not years away from getting my ‘dream camera’, I kept mulling over that phrase in my mind...equipment doesn’t make a photographer, equipment doesn’t make a photographer, more trying to pacify myself than anything. And then two words came to me: perspective and qualification. Owning a camera or having a fancy phone does not qualify me to be a photographer, just like owning a stethoscope doesn’t qualify me to be a nurse, it just doesn’t work like that. At the same time, (though in the eyes of the world this is debatable), taking a bunch of classes and hearing information also does not qualify a person. These things help, but it needs to be a mixture of learning, the proper tools (no matter how fancy), and most importantly, PERSPECTIVE.

I was in Sonoma County months ago and went out ‘shooting’ with my camera to see what I could find. I ended up coming across a really great, semi dilapidated old barn with a huge John Deere tractor out back. Guys, this was my JAM, it’s like it was set up for me. I looked at the awesome barn, took a few pictures to test out my ISO, f-stop, etc. and then took a straightforward shot of the entire barn. Like I said, this was a cool barn, but when I looked at that picture, in my mind, it didn’t look that cool. So I went further down the road towards the barn to get closer and I took the time to explore the area, walk around, and look at my options. Once I did that, I realized the door of the barn was incredible, I went around the side and saw the awesome tractor, and this incredible oak tree made itself visible not only in my eyes, but in my lens. At first I was just excited there was a cool barn and I took a straightforward picture, but then when I took the time, looked closer, and got out of my own original mindset, incredible things showed themselves to me, rather, my eyes were opened to them because I decided to look for and from other perspectives.

I had been struggling with perspective and looking outside of my own circumstances and thought processes at the time because there were a lot of hard things going on. For whatever reason, I brought my camera on that trip, and felt the desire to take pictures again (which I have loved for years, but hadn’t heavily pursued in a long time). That trip, those pictures I took, all because the Lord prompted me to take a closer look, explore, care, try different angles and perspectives...it changed my heart. Because of getting back into photography and looking for unique ‘photo’ opportunities, I began to see the world’s beauty all over again in a fresh way and I became excited about life again (which, because I’m such an introvert just looks the same on me as not being excited, but I promise I have feelings!). :) For me, photography and music are my therapy sessions, they help me look from multiple perspectives, and help me love and see others for who they truly are, better, and to take the hard and difficult in this world and try and find the beauty in it.

Anyone can take a picture of a building, anyone can write a blog, anyone these days can do just about anything, but just because we can, doesn’t mean we should, and inversely, just because we can’t do something initially, doesn’t mean we shouldn’t keep trying. I feel like I do this in life a lot though. I have an idea, I try one method, it doesn’t work out or ‘look cool’ (like the barn photo I took at first) and then I (often) give up and try the next pursuit, friendship, goal, etc. Sometimes things really just don’t/won’t work out no matter how hard you try or what you try, but what I have found is that more often than not, what was needed was time, genuine interest, care, and looking from a different perspective. That barn door photo is one of my favorite photos for many reasons, but mostly, because it prompted pursuit of perspective. I have gained some of my closest friends and dearest goals by taking time, caring, and looking from a perspective[s] other than my own. I know we’re busy, I know life is crazy, trust me, but something I’ve been saying for years is that we need to “make time for what’s important”. No matter whether every second of your schedule is filled, make time for what’s important: Time with God, with family, pursuing passions, checking in with friends, praying, relaxing, learning something new, etc. A friend is breaking down after a life altering event but I have a meeting and then a movie to go see? Make time for what’s important, look from another perspective. It matters more than I could ever, ever begin to express. It’s not about equipment, it’s not about qualification, it’s about trying, it’s about opening your eyes and truly seeings, and it’s about looking from multiple perspectives.

-Hannah

Why Music?

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Hey Y’all, I’m Hannah Porter--the other sister on the All Things New Sisters Website. I know you’re used to hearing from Beth, but I’m going to share a little about something near and dear to my heart today!

Most aspects and areas of my life are focused on, involve, or ‘touch’ music in some way or another. I work for a radio station, I have been a worship leader for years and am currently one of the worship leaders at my church, I play/write/sing my own music, and I collaborate with others to achieve a similar goal. Let’s just say, music is everywhere in my life and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Music has this incredible ability to connect with and be relatable to one million people just as easily as it connects with and relates to one person. Not only that but music is widely and universally accessible for listening to or learning/playing. A kid in Ohio (USA) could be playing a piece of flamenco music on the guitar and instantly be transported to Latin America just as easily as someone in China listening to Frank Sinatra could be transported to ‘America’ (USA) and at that point, it doesn’t matter who they are, what their ‘status’ in society is, what race, gender, religious background, age, or how much money they make, music transcends borders and transports them. A mom driving in her car to pick up her kids from school could be having a really tough day and turns on the radio and a song comes on that gives her hope and she feels it speaks directly to her. Maybe that song was written from the perspective of finding hope after a bad breakup, but that mom felt it spoke directly to her in relation to having a hard time with her kids or friendships, etc. Or maybe someone is snowed in during the winter and they turn on some Jack Johnson or Michael Franti and are mentally transported to a warm beach somewhere, not a care in the world, just relaxing. See? Music transcends and transports. One song that I have written called “Why Use Me?” has received feedback from a lady going through cancer treatment saying it gave her hope, another guy said it helped him with self-esteem issues, one other woman said it touched her while she was going through a season of burnout. All different circumstances and people, one song.

Music for me personally is and always has been my therapy, my escape, and the truest form of my heart. I’m not an outwardly emotional person but I am very inwardly sentimental and therefore I’ve always said to people that if you want to know the truest forms of my heart, listen to my music. The rawest parts of who I am are in the details, from the melodies I play and sing, to the words I write, to the rhythm I choose. When I can’t express what is actually going on in my heart (which is most of the time) I put it in music, the good, bad, and the ugly. Music has helped me heal in ways mere words or other forms of therapy never could (but those do help too!).

It has influenced me deeply in many areas and aspects of my day and my life. I mean, one song timely played can either make my day and set my mood to ‘happy’ for the morning, or another song can bring back a flood of memories that could put me in a funk within a matter of moments and affect the rest of my day. I could listen to a song merely ‘for the beat’ and ‘not pay attention to the words’ and then weeks later I’m absently, quietly singing the words and melody to Justin Timberlake’s “Rock Your Body” in my cube at work and wondering why my cubemate is giving me such a confused look. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some JT, but my point here is that music is POWERFUL.

It has been the expression of millions, the voice and catalyst of movements throughout history, and now more than ever, a voice of cultures, people groups, and entire generations. In a society where people are more likely to get their news from Twitter, their visual entertainment from Netflix or Youtube, and their music from streaming rather than a physical copy, music gets either extremely overplayed and overhyped on every social media platform or doesn’t get the time of day at all. There are millions of voices out there right now and people are being bombarded from every direction, so, why this song? Why this artist? Why this album? Are you looking for the next catchy hook and chorus? A smooth jam? An emotional roller coaster? A political statement? A sermon? A masterpiece? Those and so much more are all in music. Choose your music wisely, whether you realize it right away or not, it has a deep impact on you, and for that matter, your kids. With that said, music is also an incredible vessel, teacher, comforter, friend, truth giver, and joy filler--so, enjoy the wonderful gift of music today!

If people only ever hear one original song from me, no matter how deep, sad, happy, random, or simple it may be, I want them to come away with feeling like what they listened to was honest, was possibly their own story, and always feeling the underlying message of HOPE. Music is influential, powerful, and moving; it can tear people down, or it can help and heal on the journey of making All Things New.

-Hannah Porter

Check out the "Media" tab/section of the website to hear some of Hannah's music.

Nothing New Under The Sun

There you are back in high school and it's the night of the school talent show. Of course, anyone performing a dance will be going first and you are one of them. You have spent hours practicing, confident you have perfected the steps and timing you put with the music. Game face on, you are ready! And that's when you hear it, your stomach drops. It's your music...but you're not dancing to it. How can this be!? How could they let two dancers perform the same song? You pull back the curtain with dread and watch the other dancer. After a few minutes of telling yourself that 'everything will be fine' and taking some calming breaths, a slow smile spreads across your face and a glimmer of hope grows that maybe all of your hard work is not lost after all. As you listen and as you watch, you notice the other dancer's timing is different than yours. You notice their movements are portraying something different than what yours will. It is then that you realize that though the background music may be the same, each of your movements and timing are telling a very different story. And your unique story, the timing you have put to your movements; that changes everything!

God designed my heart with a passion to encourage people where they are at and inspire them to grow beyond where they have been. And I am blessed to have a sister who shares that heart (and who can help broaden our audience with her “tech” skills that I have NONE of). For a couple of years now I have felt the Lord prompting me to share my story and my passions with the hope that I can encourage and inspire others. There was only one problem though, me! I could not get the phrase “there is nothing new under the sun” out of my head. Over and over again I would tell myself “your story Beth, the journey you have been on and the things that you find joy in have already been shared so many times before, it's not new, so it's not worth sharing”. It took me months to finally get over this, get my mind and my self out of the way, and let the simple words the Lord kept whispering to me sink in. “It's all about the timing, it's all about the timing”. All throughout history stories of pain, joy, hardships, laughter etc., have been repeated. They can virtually be the same story but the author of the story and the time in which it was shared made all the difference. A word spoken before can have a fresh new impact today and be just as powerful as it was before, if not more so.

It seems so logical right? But how often do we get caught up in not sharing our story, our passions, our joys with others because we don't see the impact and encouragement it might have for someone else? God has designed each of us so uniquely for a reason, but how often do we get stuck in the doubts and fears in our minds instead of what He can do through and in spite each of us?

Imagine the impact we could have if we are willing to let God use our story, in His perfect timing. Imagine if we didn't get caught up in our fears, doubts or worries--if we just breathe and watch God work as we take action and be all He has designed us to be.

With a fresh excitement I am taking the leap to daily remind myself to share my story and trust that God’s timing is far better than I could ever imagine. Will you join me? Let's watch and see what God is up to.

-Beth