If getting new or updated prayer cards is on your 2025 to-do list, we’re here to help! We know getting personal or family photos can be overwhelming. Working with a professional photographer is the ideal option, but sometimes budget or time constraints make that difficult or impossible. If you find yourself in that situation – don’t worry! Here are four simple ways to level up your cell phone photography game and capture a quality photo to adorn supporters’ fridges for years to come.
1. Avoid the selfie
We know the convenience is tempting, but go ahead right now and say “no” to the selfie. There are other options! Get a friend or family member to snap a few photos. Use a tripod or prop up your phone and use a remote, smartwatch, or the good old self-timer function if you don’t have an extra person on hand. With just a little extra effort, you can have a significantly more appealing and professional-looking photo!
2. Choose your background
Don’t forget that what’s behind you in your photo can either enhance or detract from your prayer card. If possible, get outside! A local park or even a friend’s backyard might lend a great backdrop. In most instances, less is more. Err on the side of understated rather than trying to find an eye-catching background. The focal point of the photo is you! Most phones have a portrait mode that will automatically blur the background for you which can help minimize the background even more.
3. Leave some space
Let us do the cropping for you! Avoid taking the photo extremely close up or cropping the photo before you send it to us. The more room there is between your heads and arms and the edge of the photo, the more freedom we have in our design. If you have a strong preference for how zoomed in or out you want your photo to be, feel free to mention it in the design notes for your order (e.g. “We’d like our full bodies showing” or “Please crop from the waist up”).
4. Consider the lighting
Outdoor, natural lighting, is the best for your prayer card photo. However, brighter is not always better!While there are going to be problems if your photo is too dark (grainy images, obscuring shadows), you also want to avoid lighting that is too bright. Around dawn and dusk are usually great times to snap a photo. If you can’t grab a photo during those times, aim for a cloudy day or time of day rather than a time with cloudless skies. If all else fails, take shelter under the shade of some trees or buildings.
Take a look at the customer examples below (faces obscured for security reasons). The first photo is their initial submission, and the second photo is one they took after following these suggestions.
We base your entire prayer card design on the photo you send us – from colors to layout. If you put in the effort to apply these tips to getting your prayer card photo, we’ll take it from there! We can’t wait to see what you come up with.