Photography in church lighting...?

i'm going to a baptism, i have a nikon d40 with a 18-55mm and a 55- 200mm lens (lenses?) anyways, i want to know if there are any settings that would help me with my pictures. with a baby i dont want to blind her with the flash, the 55-200mm lens will help with that, but is there a setting on the camera that will help? should i just use 'auto' and hope for the best? what settings can i use to get the best pictures?
as in photography i don't expect every picture to turn out perfect, i'd like some advise on what settings will get me better pictures... i plan on taking 300 picutres, i'd prefer that 100 turn out good not just 2...any help?

roderick_young:
on your wedding the photographer took waaayyy more pictures than were printed, i'm guessing about three times as many as were printed...
i understand that it's holy day and i dont want to disturb anyone with the flash. that the problem, i want good pics with out disrupting anyone.....

Watch your shutter speed if you're using program mode. Don't let it drop to slower than you can handhold. (For many people, that will be equal to the focal length, at 50mm you should be able to hand hold at 1/50th, although if you're steady you can go to 1/30th or maybe even 1/20th.) I would let ISO be the deciding factor here. Use as low an ISO as possible, while still getting a decent shutter speed. But a little noise is preferable to blurry shots from low light. You can always convert to B&W or use Noise Ninja to reduce it. So if ISO 400 is too slow, move up to 500, then 640, 800 etc etc until your shutter speed is at least 1/30 to 1/60, depending on your variable aperture zooms.

No one can tell you what settings to use, we don't know how much light you will have. You may be in a dark cave with lots of stain glass to wreck your WB, or you may be in a brightly lit modern structure with lots of halogen bulbs and bright daylight through clear windows. Get there beforehand and make some test shots. Assuming the light stays the same, you can put your camera on manual and keep the same settings through the entire ceremony. For bigger group shots, you will need an aperture that will produce a wide enough DOF to get everyone in focus.

This would be a great time to add the 50mm f/1.8 lens for about $100 to your lineup. Sharp and great for low light. On your D40 it will act like a 75mm, perfect short portrait length.

Just a comment on wedding photography, regarding Roderick's remark. Until the digital revolution, brides neither expected nor received hundreds of wedding pictures. Twenty-five years ago, getting 100 proofs was a big batch of pictures. Years ago, I shot weddings on three or four 36 exp rolls and considered it covered. That has gradually worked up to the point that some photographers shoot 5000 (!) snaps and deliver most of them, usually on CD or DVD. To me, 300 images of a baptism is overkill unless you're thinking that over 75% won't be useable. Baptisms just last a few minutes. Then the family formals with the preacher or priest and you're done. I shoot between 400 and 500 for a six hour wedding, more if I cover the rehearsal dinner. You want to shoot plenty, though. Good luck

Just dont let the flash get too distracting for her or other people around you.
If people are also 'videoing' then definately try and reduce the flash to a very minimum, as it effects the video.
x

That's a lot of pictures! I'm not a photographer, but 300 pictures is on the order of how many were taken at our wedding many years ago.

My advice would be to remember that this is a sacrament, and not to be intrusive with the camera. They may not want the flash going wild, as if it's Britney Spears getting out of her car. I would just take a few, with the flash if they let me. Focus is the only important thing. Digital post-processing covers a multitude of sins (no pun intended) as far as exposure.

If there is a reception or lunch or something before or after, that's where you can take your real pictures.

No flash. Very distracting.

Set the ISO to the highest--whatever your camera allows (1,600 for yours, I think).

If you're close to the group, use your kit lens (18-55 mm). If you're far away, you might be able to use the low end of the 55-200 mm zoom.

I set mine at P mode. Yes, it's auto. Shoot it in RAW mode though. You'll have to color correct all of them.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3282/2386...

(ISO 3,200 on all except the flower on the bottom. Canon 5D, Canon 24-70 mm f 2.8)

These one below illustrates that with just stage lights (which weren't that bright really), at high ISO of 3,200, you can get by without a flash.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3251/2420...

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3083/2419...

Another one at ISO 3,200

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2151/2267...

One below with just one lamp (from the right side of photo). Again, at ISO 3,200.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2157/2267...