Photography

Our Style

Our photography style is very bright and full of warmth and color. We use 99% candid and unposed photos for our website, graphics, and social media channels. We want to show what real life is like here at Westside, and for people to have a desire to come and join in when they see our photos. We edit very naturally, but with contrast, warmth, and vibrance boosts in most cases. We want potential visitors to see our photos and be able to feel the warmth and friendliness that is here at Westside.

A Few Technical Tips

If you’re shooting manual but new to it, be sure not to let you shutter speed go below 1/200. Even if you’re shooting at 1/100, camera shake can still happen and make photos blurry. If you’re in low-light situations, be sure to shoot with a very wide aperture so that you can let in the most light possible- but be cautious that your focus point is in the correct spot since it will also focus on less of the image. For example, in the sanctuary during worship settings tend to look like: ISO 3200, f/2.8, 1/400sec. This will depend on your camera and what kind of situations it can handle best (in most cases, for instance, a Sony handles low-light very well and can keep the ISO much lower than a Canon). Please shoot in RAW file format and do not use “dutch angles” (camera slanted to one side). 

File Transfers

If shooting on Westside equipment:
Leave the SD card in the camera and we will access and download the files.

If shooting on your own equipment:
We use Dropbox for file transferring. We will send the Dropbox link to you so that you can download the images for us to access. Please download it within 48 hours of the event. If this will be an issue, please let the team know ahead of time. 

Top Types of Sunday Photos Needed

  • Candid photos of people interacting- e.g. shaking hands when they walk in the doors, talking with friends and family, grabbing a coffee at the cafe, etc. 

  • Kids- try to get photos that don’t show the name tag, but we can edit them out if needed

  • Pastor(s) speaking

  • Members listening to the message

  • Worship