First Communion - in need of advice

Hello,

I was asked to shoot the First Communion at my church this year and I want to be prepared. I am not getting paid for it but figured it will be a good learning experience.
The pastor is actually the photography enthusiast so I will have no limitations as far as use of flash or whatever else. He was the one that actually asked me to do it. Not a whole lot is expected from this as he usually just puts the pictures on DVDs for parents as a gift since no one else is allowed to run around the altar snapping away.
I want to do it best to my abilities, though.

I will be using his 5D2 with 17-40L, 24-105L and 70-200L at my disposal as well. For flashes I will have 580exII and my YN468 (I may get the YN560 by then).

Ceremony is at 10am so I may be able to try going with natural light but since I can use flash with no grief from anybody I thought about placing the speedlights somewhere out of sight and just flash the whole area in front of the altar where the kids will be receiving the sacrament.

What would you do?

What shots/perspective should I go after? Receiving of a wafer will be the most important shot and the kids will be lined up in line and walking up to the priest.

I have shot at that church before but it was with the speedlight on the camera and it was never a ceremony like this.
Since I have a month to prepare I want to get as much info as possible so I can do it right.
I will have access to the church before hand so will be able to set up and practice.

Thank you in advance.

The "action" is probably seen best from the side. If you can get only one angle, I think I'd try for more of the cherubs' faces instead of the pastor. Then, after the ceremony, get the pastor to stand with the kids and their families for the posed group shot.

One of the biggest problems I've had is the people in line crowding the person receiving communion (or confirmation). If you can control the flow to the altar, you'll have a much better opportunity to feature the communicant of the moment. Get an usher to stop the next person/family from standing up or leaving their pew until after the event in front is over. Yeah, it slows it down a bit, but everyone can see, too.

Your shots will stand out from all others is you can rig an OCF or two. If you can't do OCF, at least use a bracket that gets your flash (if you decide to use it...you probably want something for at least a little fill light) well above the camera for red-eye reduction and more flattering lighting.

Good luck with the endeavor!

dave

I would love to go OCF route. I have wireless triggers to get it done. Where would be the best spot for flashes?

I'd go with natural light and look for kids or parents smiling; these are the pictures they'll be most likely to look back on afterward.

Natural light would have been best, but that is unpredictable (obviously) especially in that church.

Anyone care to chime in on the speedlight setup I could go with?

If you can describe the venue setup (height of ceiling, layout, where kids will be facing) that would help.

Absent more info I would:
1) assess not only light quantity but the quality too (racoon eyes ? )
2) if quality is not so good, increase flash:ambient ratio.

Thanks for taking your time to help me Chris.

Here is a shot that may give you an idea of what we are dealing with.
Shot with 24-105mm L and 5D2 (580ex2 on camera), f 4.0, ISO 1000, SS 1/100.

The children would be lined up in front of the priest and walk up to him to receive communion (just like the people in the picture).

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