This video was particularly fun to work on. Thanks to my partner-in-crime, Jacob, we set out one night to make a “cool video”. I had been feeling down about not having the opportunity to make videos that were rich and impactful- the kind of videos that attempt to reveal something deeper than “buy this”, “look how cool this is”, or “you should like this”. Generally, that’s the motive behind most videos. No, the kind I like to make are the ones that no one will pay me for. In essence, they are the ones about human nature. Even more, they are the ones that reveal our connection to our Father and how that guides our every move and desires.
So one night, Jake comes to me and says “I have a date planned for us”. I was curious to see what he had in mind. It ended up being the absolute, most wonderful, perfect date. He said, “We’re going to get up before the sun comes up and film a video in the woods”. Did I say perfect? Yes, I did. It was exactly what I wanted, and also what I needed. It’s curious how God works sometimes. Because no more than an hour later, a HUGE thunderstorm came. Production value. We grabbed my gear and started prepping to catch this amazing storm. The next morning, we got up at around 5:00 am to get some early dawn shots over at Possum Creek near Chattanooga, TN. We were familiar with the area and knew it would make for a great place for our shoot.
So the idea of the video was to create something centered around the theme of Romans 8, particularly verses 18-25. We had been focused on this passage at our local church and felt like it would make a great framework for a story. We played around with a “lost & found” theme, too. I tend to think that I’m closest to God when I’m with loved ones and nature. Therefore, we have Jacob, Shadow (his German Shepherd-wolf hybrid), and the woods. So, Shadow has run away in our story, and Jake is on the mission to find her despite the unforgiving weather and terrain. Much like when we seek God in unrelenting times, we also tend to believe more in what our eyes can see and our hands can do. To have faith, hope and belief in something that is unseen is something entirely different. It’s scary, it’s unpredictable and out of our control.
Just like Jake searches for Shadow in the darkness, we too are called to seek God in the darkness. And we are told that if we seek God with all of our heart, we will find Him.
“For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees?”
-Romans 8:24
This video was shot on a Canon 5D Mark II with a 50mm Sigma lens. A lot of the moving shots are just me and the camera with no support. The coloring is practically untouched. Every lens flare is 100% natural. Music licensed through The Music Bed.
I find it interesting that such an organic process on such an organic story could turn out so good with such little effort.
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