These past two weeks have been rough.

On top of long classes, hot weather, attempting to pay attention with translations, and trying to find my place in the mix, my camera broke. Not just a crack in the LCD screen or a dent on the side. It is fully and truly broken.

Last weekend, I was blessed with the ability to purchase a new-to-me lens, the Canon 28-70 f/2.8 L USM, that would help me on outreach to get better photos as well as video for some projects that our team will be doing. Four days later, I went to the beach with my school for a BBQ and some fellowship. I went off to take some pictures next to the ocean, and after taking some shots of the sunset, I went to rest my camera on my strap, and my camera fell off the caribiner that was supposed to be holding it to me, and it hit the lava rock. The lens had broken at the connecting point to the body, and my camera wouldn’t turn on.

Needless to say, I am devastated. I’ve had my Canon 7D for almost two years and it has been one of my favorite cameras. But even more upsetting is the lens that I only had for four days. We took it to the local professional camera shop to see what needed to be done, and we had it sent off to Canon in California on the 6th. They said we would know in 3-4 days how much it would cost to repair. I’m really worried about the cost, and then they also said it could take up to a month before I get my gear back.

A month without my camera while I’m here trying to do a photography DTS? I’m trying to find a way around it, asking friends back at home for something similar to what I have, I could borrow somebody’s on my team, but that could be tricky to work around, and I have a film camera here with me that I can use, but nowhere to develop film on the island.

I find myself sitting in class thinking about pictures that I want to take and then realize, wait… I don’t have a camera. It’s weird, and frustrating, and I’m trying not to sit here in self-pity thinking “why didn’t I just leave my camera at home, what if I went left instead of right, what if I didn’t go off to take pictures alone, what if, What If WHAT If.” And I’m sitting here punishing myself for shooting pictures, and doing what I love, but that’s exactly what satan wants of me right now.

He’s trying to take me down. He’s trying to take my team down. And he’s targeting us where we’re most passionate. And he’s nagging us where we’re weakest in order to enter our minds, consume them, and tell us we’ve failed before we’ve even begun.

My camera problems this past month are not anything I’m doing wrong. My camera has gone through worse back at home, and has been through worse on many tests done by professionals. But because I’m here, and I’m doing the work of God and learning how to share the love of Christ, the devil wants to stop me in my tracks by attacking my camera, my voice, the tool I will be using to spread the Gospel.

Through me and through my camera, God has been showing the beauty of His creation through people and nature. And I will continue to share that with people as I come across all the wonderful things He’s made during my time here in Hawaii and in Mexico and Panama for outreach. My camera may be in the shop to be repaired, but God has His hand on things.

I loved the way this piece of coral was shaped! It was perfect!

These trees looked so beautiful against the ocean and the sand. It was almost unreal.

This was the last picture taken before my camera hit the stone.

If you would like a print of any of these photos, please contact me at elizabeth.mae.photography@hotmail.com! Tell me if you want “Coral” “Tree” or “Waves.” All proceeds will go toward repairing my lens and camera!

Here are the sizes and prices;

5×7 – $10

8×10 – $15

12×18 – $25

18×24 – $40

And one last thing before I sign off on this one, take a listen to this. It’s really been on my mind today going through all of these camera problems.