Guest interview: Connie Wragge of PhotoMission & her visit to Ghana
Back in April, I made an unexpected trip to the U.S. to help out my family and spend time with my older brother who was critically ill in the hospital. As God saw fit, he got better and was released for further recovery making my time so much more happy than it could have been had matters continued to spiral.
While there, I had a coffee with Connie Wragge, founder of PhotoMission, an online stock photo agency with a unique focus that you’ll find out more about in this interview. (I’ve been a member of the site for several years now, but only recently was it refashioned into a more professionally-geared site.) Connie had just returned from a trip to Ghana and was eager to share her experience of Africa with another American who could relate a bit more than most.
I asked Connie to paint for us a mental picture of her vision behind PhotoMission, as well as share some of her favorite images from Ghana.
After I gave my life to Christ, God planted a deep desire within me to see other people give their lives to Him. It wasn’t long after I made the decision to follow Christ that this happened.
I’ve been involved in evangelism all my life and have participated in various kinds of outreaches here in the US and abroad. I’ve initiated and led Bible studies for small groups and have encouraged people I know to be bold in building relationships with non-believers.
I am an American with a home base in Philadelphia. During the time God was growing my faith, He was also preparing me to become an artist with a camera. God took my professional interest in photography and gave it a spiritual twist late in the summer of 2001. As I was sitting in worship I found myself being challenged by the words in Romans 13. Then the pastor asked a question that seemed to be directed squarely at me. The question was: what was I doing to prepare for Christ’s return. By the end of that service I knew that my life was taking a dramatic turn in terms of every experience I had ever known in getting the Word out to a hurting world. It was on that Sunday that the vision for PhotoMission came together.
At the time I had been a photographer for 16 years. I had worked with photographers and having been captivated by the creative side of photography, I had devoured entire books on the subject. All the while I was living the ordinary life filled with daily routines. But again, that all changed ten years ago. In those few Sunday moments the pace of my life accelerated from average Christian to spectacular Christ follower. I took hold of what God had planned, committed to obey Him and ran with it.
How did you first get interested in photography?
Like many moms I wanted to document the childhood of our two daughters. I did a great job at that; and at one time I thought about becoming a wedding photographer.
What types of images do you enjoy most creating?
Photography, for me, is a God-given talent. I think it is for every professional Christian photographer who understands that creating an image is not about boasting in your work or about comparing yourself to other photographers. It’s about service to the King. When I place what I do in the context of that understanding then any composition I’m bringing together through the lens of the camera is God-led.
So to answer the question…I don’t have a distinct preference for certain types of images but I will say that if an image I take conveys a better understanding of God’s world than if I hadn’t captured it, then that is meaningful to me and it validates the work I do.
Tell us about PhotoMission. What is it exactly?
PhotoMission is a Christian stock photo agency that serves as the visual resource for the Church. We provide images related to missions and outreach, creation and its conservation and social issues which run the gamut from A to Z.
Most of the images are one-of-a-kind which reflects the value of the photography found in the Gallery and which makes PhotoMission a one-stop resource for the Christian community.
In your wildest dreams, what would you hope that PhotoMission will one day accomplish or become?
I believe that with obedience comes blessing. I have followed through on my understanding of what God wanted done…to provide an online resource of visual excellence where the Church can come to find support for the expansion of His kingdom and the unfolding of stories which accompany that growth.
The other part of what I believe God calls PhotoMission to do is to witness to lost people who come to the site. For this reason we post the testimonies of all the selling photographers online and provide the means to review and store, as well as purchase, multiple images taken by them. By combining content in this way the user remains engaged for a longer period of time…and I’m hoping he takes away something that he can relate to in his own life.
But to return to your question…one day…I want to hear God say something to the effect that everything I have committed to do or have done where PhotoMission is concerned has made a difference.
This spring Connie traveled to Ghana where she served with a Ghanaian church planting team. She shares some of her impressions and experiences in the following images. (Please note: the following images are Copyright 2011 Connie Wragge, PhotoMission. Use only with permission from the owner.)
Pouring fuel into the van. We’re still a distance from our destination, and the temperature is 100 degrees Fahrenheit, roughly 38 Celsius.
This was the scene at worship taken at a church plant in Ghana’s Northern Region in March.
God’s Word is light, hope & salvation. The image is special because it shows a Ghanaian pastor reading to Ghanaian believers from I Timothy. The village where it was taken is isolated, and on most Sundays the pastor has to walk there over long unpaved roads to reach the people.
I see in this photo a woman who takes pride in her appearance while her face reflects the uncertainty of her daily routine. Will she earn enough Cedis to buy food?
The streets of Accra are filled with despair, at least in my cross-cultural understanding of the word. I saw this scene repeated throughout the city and it broke my heart. The people who know Jesus, smile. Those who don’t, wear hopelessness on their sleeves.
Life in Africa is about survival. This photo shows maize being taken off the cob. Notice the size of the ears.
Water, the most basic of all human needs, is like gold to many people living in Ghana…and throughout Africa. Pumps are dug 70 feet down, and this only happens when there are enough organizations and funds to make them a reality. When there is not enough water, the people drink what liquid they can from coconuts. Other water is often contaminated and unsafe for consumption.
False prophets and deception are found throughout the country. This portion of a street poster in Accra testifies to fake foreign pastors who arrive to prey on the people, take what little money they have and then leave.
In parts of Ghana animism is still popular and until Christian pastors reach the people with the Good News, there will continue to be idol worshipers. The top portion of this idol is filled with a small amount of water and is believed to bring good luck to the family who owns it.
I took this image after Sunday worship, showing an infant being carried on the back of his mother. I have to wonder what the future holds for babies like this one. Like nations in the west, Ghana is now facing changes to its laws that are contrary to biblical decrees.
