We all know the saying that a picture says a hundred words and we talk a lot about ensuring your church website has great photos of your church, to give a feel for what a Sunday is like, and what someone could expect when they visit. 

But how do you get these photos on a hectic Sunday without disrupting the service or making your congregation feel uncomfortable?!

This blog explores the place, if any, of photography in church and how to get great website content, without compromising your church activities. One of the Church Pages team regularly takes photos for her church, but has struggled with how to undertake this in a sensitive, loving manner, without disrupting a service. 

Here are her 5 thoughts for photographers/creatives/anyone involved with creating content for their churches: 

1. First things first

The purpose of a church service is primarily, for the body of Christ to meet together. This means it is not a photo-shoot and nor would we want it to be. The service is to the praise and glory of God and this means that, whilst you may want to (and be very capable of) getting the best candid photos, even your act of taking photos must serve the overall aim of a service. This truly puts you in a servanthood role and I would encourage you to prayerfully weigh up each moment of the service. 

2. Get consent 

It is vital that you have permission from your congregation if you would like to share photos that are taken of them. This could be easily gained by asking your congregation when you add them to your church database or such like. It is important to remember that not everyone in your church will be comfortable with photos of them being used and this wish must be respected. If possible, ask your church leadership for those who have not consented and avoid capturing these individuals from the outset. 

As a photographer, whilst you are not sharing the photos, it is useful to know your church's process for consent as you may well be asked. 

3. Miss some moments (intentionally) 

Further to point (1), as the aim of your church service is not a photoshoot, it is equally important that you intentionally 'miss' taking photos of certain points of the service. I.e. there may be a beautiful time in worship but it is just that, a beautiful time of worship. Enjoy the moment and be present rather than always thinking about the next shot. 

This is a challenge and hence it is a prayerful balancing act. 

It's worth mentioning that certain parts of a service should not, for privacy reasons, be photographed such as ministry time. 

4. Have an idea of the shots you need and focus on these. 

It is very helpful to have an idea of what sort of photos you'll need to have. For example, if your photos are going to be for a church website, they'll need to work responsively and it could be worth reading our guide to responsive church website images, to help you frame your shots and ensure your subject is in the middle. 

Also, if you know your photos are needed to talk about certain parts of your church i.e. a particular ministry, it will help guide who/what you focus on. 

5. A note on the gear/equipment... 

When it comes to taking photos please understand that you do not have to be a pro-photographer to take them, or have the latest professional camera on hand. We use a Canon 6D with a 25-120mm lens, but honestly many new phones would also suffice in terms of quality of image, you may just not get the depth of field that you want. 

So don't let access to equipment stop you from capturing your church visually. 

What do you think? 

It would be great to hear from others who're responsible for creating content for their churches and how they navigate this challenge. We hope this has been helpful and do not hesitate to get in touch if you'd like to talk through your church website or church communications/visual content.