Houston’s First Baptist Church

Volunteer Photography Team

Training Guide

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 Table of Contents
Select any title to be taken directly to the listed section

Utilizing Your Gifts According to the Scriptures…………………………………………………. 3

Convey the Story

Know the ‘Why’............................................……………………………………………………4

Know the ‘What’............................................……………………………….……………..5-7

Keep Improving…………………………………………………………………………………………………..8-9

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Utilizing Your Gifts According to the Scriptures
Christ has given you a good gift: James 1:17
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the
heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

Use your gift to grow His Kingdom: 1 Peter 4:10

“Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful
stewards of God's grace in its various forms.”

God will grow your gift if you use it well: Matthew 25:29
“To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have
an abundance.”

God has allowed us to grow His kingdom: Ephesians 2:10

“For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God
prepared in advance for us to do.”

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Convey the Story at Houston’s First
God is moving. How will you share through photo and video?

Know the ‘Why’

Why do we take photos and videos for the church?
As creatives, we are utilizing our God given gifts as a form of worship. Photographs
and videos are used to relay the story of the Gospel and the essence of the church. As
God works through our church, we have the opportunity to partner with Him to convey
His plan and handiwork with our individual talents.

Prayerfully plan what you will capture.

To encapsulate the Gospel and the ways that God is moving throughout the church, you
need to plan. What is the setlist? Where will people be positioned throughout the
location? Anticipating moments allows you to
capture amazing interactions while they are
happening, rather than frantically trying to take
a photo following the exchange. Take time to review
the shotlist and ask God what He wants
to do today. There are stories unfolding all
around us and it’s up to us to capture them.

Put things into perspective.

As you capture shots of the room, consider the
people who aren’t there. Think about what the photo
or video would look like on social media.
If someone was only able to view your content to
learn about what happened, what would the photo
or video tell them? Try to capture the full scope of the event.

Find your target.

Depending on the ministry that you are serving, you have to adjust your approach. It’s
important to understand the demographic of the room and the target audience so you
can take the best photos and video possible.

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Know the ‘What’
Remember the basics.
Cameras
Your settings and tools will always be the foundation of photography. Remember
to continually check these basics, along with some of these other fundamentals
so that our photos remain consistent from photographer to photographer. Be
aware of your settings as you change environments so that you aren’t caught in a
situation of capturing the right moment with the wrong settings.
- F Stop - Lowest possible aperture for your lens is usually recommended.
- Lower Number = More light hitting the sensor and more potential blur
of your non- focused area.
- Higher number = Less light hitting the sensor and less blur of your
non- focused area.
- Shutter Speed - It is recommended to stay between 1/80 and 1/250 for
most service settings.
- Lower the number = More light hitting the sensor but the more
potential blur in the image.
- Higher number = Less light hitting the sensor but less potential blur
in the image.
- ISO - Lower number = Darker image but less digital noise.
Higher number = Brighter image but more digital noise.
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 - Focus Modes
- Single Shot AF, Automatic AF, Continuous AF, Manual Focus.
- Focus Areas
- Center, Wide, Zoom, Flexible Spot, Expand Flexible Spot.
- Drive Mode - How many shots per second you’re taking. Single, Lo, Mid, Hi,
Hi+, Timed shooting, Bracketing for example.
- White Balance - Represented in 0000K.
Lower number = Cooler image.
Higher number = Warmer image.
Smartphones
Changing your phone’s camera settings can completely alter the quality of your
photos and videos. Below are the most common smartphone settings
recommended to improve your content.
- In the Settings app, select the Camera tab.
- Set your Formats to High Efficiency.
- Select Record Video at 4k at 24 fps. This will make your videos clearer
when taking a video.
- Under Preserve Settings, turn on Live Photo. This is helpful for those with
shaky hands to ensure a better-quality photo.
- Turn on the options for Grid, Mirror Front Camera, and View Outside Frame.
The grid is especially useful in helping you find symmetry when taking a
photo.
- Turn on Scene Detection, Prioritize Faster Shooting, Lens Correction, and
Smart HDR. These will help your phone camera to develop a better
adaptation pattern when taking pictures more rapidly.
While your phone’s camera settings can help improve the quality of your content,
implement these other tools to improve content quality.
- Make sure your lenses are clean and do not have scratches
- Tap on objects in the foreground to focus on them.
- Tap on the screen for the yellow box to appear. This will help you to adjust
the amount of light hitting your camera.
- Remember to adjust your zoom ratio - typically seen between 0.5x - 5x.
- Utilize your phone’s unique qualities; pano, portrait, time-lapse, etc.

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Composition conveys the story.
Using the correct composition will help you to emphasize or de-emphasize certain
aspects of your photo. All these subtle changes can result in a wildly different image
and can alter the story you are trying to tell.
- Rule of 3rds - Understand the 9 parts of the image. Where are the points of
interest and where did you place them?
- Shot Framing - Wide, Medium, Close-Up, Cowboy, Over the Shoulder, Profile,
Behind, In Front.
- Leading Lines - Pay attention to vertical or horizontal lines in your frame.
Make sure they are oriented correctly
- Background, Mid-ground, Foreground - Separation between the two or three
areas of your image on a horizontal plane
- Angles - Low angle, High angle, Dutch angle, and Skewed angles.
- Negative Space - Understand what isn’t in your image —what are the things
you’ve left out.
- Headroom - Typically keep your subject’s eyes in the top third of the image

Edit the message.

Be sure to look through all of the photos that you’ve taken and choose the best frames.
Scan the backgrounds for unsavory poses that could ruin the message. Edit the photos
and videos using similar settings and applications listed by the Communications
department to ensure a consistent voice across all content.

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Keep Improving.
Think like a leader.
Look over the service or event plan you’re scheduled for. What is the ministry trying to
accomplish and convey? Take the time to plan how to best capture these moments and
represent how God is moving at Houston’s First. Once you start to take responsibility
and ownership over what you’re accomplishing, your view on how to best capture the
message will shift toward a servant’s mindset. Ask yourself how you can best serve the
church and community with the photos and videos that you produce.

Timing is everything.
Create a personal schedule that works within the service and the shotlist that allows
you the time to shoot what you need to without being rushed. Give yourself time to find
the right moments and think about the composition and settings of each photo. Arrive
early to review your plan and set up your equipment, and consider leaving a little later
to capture as many God-moving moments as you can.

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Anticipate big moments.
Work toward being proactive and not reactive during events. If you notice two families
that look joyful to see each other weekly, prepare for the next week to capture their
smiles and hugs. If there is a special ‘call to the altar’ moment in the service, position
yourself where people are more likely to move to for these stories. Be sensitive to these
emotional exchanges and don’t interrupt, but try to capture how God is changing the
lives of the people in the church. Planning for these moments will allow you to capture
the photos with the right settings and angles rather than rushing over from across the
room as you see something happening.

What is the style of Houston’s First?

Finding the culture and design aesthetics of the church will give you a direction to
follow. Don’t be afraid to try new things and help the church to evolve, but be sure to
showcase who Houston’s First is. Capture raw emotions, real responses, and create
content that allows a guest who has only viewed your photos to see the love and joy of
Houston’s First. Think on what words best describe the church, and capture those
through your photos and videos.

Keep it interesting.
Look for ways to evolve the photography and video content of the church. Try several
unique angles of the same shot. Change the lens and settings up to find a new feel for
the image. Finding ways to diversify the settings, angles, and lenses can keep similar
content concepts from feeling repetitive. Through photography and videography,
always find freedom in searching for new ways to communicate how God is moving in
and through our people.