Sometimes I do get to places just when God's ready to have somebody click the shutter. - Ansel Adams

The Seven Contrary Virtues (Of photography...)

Humility, kindness, abstinence, chastity, patience, liberality, diligence

I discovered that the Contrary Virtues were derived from the Psychomachia ("Battle for the Soul"), an epic poem written by Prudentius (circa. 410). Practicing these virtues is alleged to protect one against temptation toward the Seven Deadly Sins: humility against pride, kindness against envy, abstinence against gluttony, chastity against lust, patience against anger, liberality against greed, and diligence against sloth. I am lead to believe it is Prudentius that gives us the word prudent in our vocabulary.

In the spirit of Prudentius my next series of 'sins' articles will cover the seven contrary virtues of photography. That is things you should do to improve and develop your photography and avoid the pitfalls of the seven deadly sins.

The next series will focus on the positive. The things you can do right, rather than the things people tend to do wrong. I'll begin with kindness the contrary virtue to envy.

"The virtue of the camera is not the power it has to transform the photographer into an artist, but the impulse it gives him to keep on looking.
- Brooks Atkinson, 1951, "Once Around the Sun"

Wrath is disproportionate and uncontrolled feelings of hatred, frustration and anger. These feelings manifest as a denial of the truth, both to others and to ourselves. Our anger is often our first reaction to the problems of others. Impatience with the faults of others is often related to this.