I tried to run away rather than take the photographs, and prayed for ten good shots
December of 2007. As New Life Assembly of God Church's official photographer, my first assignment was to capture the Children's Christmas Drama. All that I knew then was to set my frame and click, standing among the crowd. I was in a situation where I had to put my weakness, shyness and fear in a box and shut it for a while in order to click — or alternatively hand over the camera to someone and run away.
I tried running away and refused to click. But I was reminded of the commitment I had made as a volunteer to the media team. I thought about it and prayed: Lord, help me to stand in this huge congregation and still be able to click without my hands trembling. Help me, Lord, get at least ten good shots, so that the Media Director won't get mad at me for trusting me with this job.
And the drama began, and even before I realised, it ended. I let my Media Director take a look at the pictures I clicked. He was kind enough and helped me understand how I could click better. And he told me:
Don't you ever back out before giving something a try.
Lesson number one
That was my lesson number one to be a better photographer. And lesson number two: “Don't miss the moment — if it's gone, you can never get it back.”
My act of worship
I now truly believe that this was God's big master plan to use me, a total amateur, to click for His Kingdom. Every time I held the camera, this was my prayer: Lord, help me hold this camera right and never to drop it down. Help me hit the shutter button at the right time. Holy Spirit, I don't know what to click — please take charge of my eyes and vision and capture God's moment happening in His house of worship. I can't sing and worship as I need to click; this is my act of worship. Please accept it. Amen.
This is how the Lord taught me during every event in His house, and took me to new levels. Within no time, I knew the camera settings on my fingertips and managed shoots without being nervous and shy. Soon the church upgraded its photography equipment and I just saddled in with the handling of it. I was really encouraged, and soon our church released the 25th Anniversary Souvenir which had my pictures in it.
I now realised that I was using my talent and gifting to document all that God was doing in church and blessing His people.
My community is my generation
By involving myself in the church media department, I planned to do my B.A. in Mass Communication. I saw how effective visual communication affected my life, and this is what I wanted to do. I wanted God to use me to reach out to my generation through visual media.
My community is my generation. My friends that I hang around with in college, the wonderful people that end up making the pictures I click “picture perfect.” They ask me about my photography story and I tell them that it all started in the house of God. The church where I first knelt down and asked my God to take hold of my life is the same God who has given me a new career lead.
He has not forsaken me and has set me up on higher ground. The work I do makes me depend on Him for creativity, and when I submit to Him and trust in Him, like always, I end up getting beautiful pictures that make me super happy. The events, weddings and portraits I click always have my Father's touch of creativity, because I ask Him to help me — and people do appreciate the pictures. I myself can see the difference: when I do it in my strength I get pressurised, but when Jesus helps me, it's a happy story.
Weddings
I stepped into wedding photography because people told me they liked the pictures, and according to them I clicked much better than the professionals they invested in. And wedding pictures are what families hold dear to their heart. It's once in a lifetime, and I decided that I would want to help them have a beautiful memory of their wedding day. This is my calling — help them preserve their love, because after a few years the pictures I clicked will bring back a smile.
This is what I do today. I freeze precious moments for people and all that they love. Today I cover weddings, birthdays, capture portraits, do baby photography, and enjoy every moment of my dream, believing that one day in God's time I will be a renowned photographer for my Lord and saviour Jesus Christ.
The children on the streets
I have seen myself grow in these six years, from the first time I held the camera till date, and it was all the move of God in my life. I never dreamt of being a photographer — at one time I wanted to be a missionary.
Apart from being passionate about photography, I love to minister to the less privileged children who are homeless and have made their homes on the streets of Hyderabad. I spend time clicking their pictures and playing with them just to love them. One fine day they will know the God who loves the world, as He makes me love them.
Today I'm a freelance photographer depending on Jesus for my career, but I look at myself as a missionary photographer who ministers to kids of my city streets.
Photography was a tiny dot in my life six years ago, but now it's becoming a huge picture in the hands of Jesus — pixel by pixel, every year. This talent which He put in my life is helping me reach out to the world outside my church, and I am enjoying it every bit. Jesus has blessed me to be a blessing, and that is what I will choose to be.
Deepakshi Satman
Wrote the Talent Search interviews across the magazine's first year. Appears on the 2013 masthead as publisher.
Photography · Women · Hyderabad · Vocation