Anaheim First Presbyterian Church

 

This is the inside courtyard of the church, small, but nice.

 

Overview

   The congregation of Anaheim First Presbyterian Church is very fortunate to worship in a sanctuary reminiscent of the beautiful churches of Europe. The authentic neo-gothic architecture is complemented with a rich carved wood interior, soaring stained glass windows and a resounding pipe organ. The exterior was once featured in a Lexus commercial! It truly is a place of inspiration and devotion.
       Presbyterians understand a wedding service to be, first of all, an occasion to praise God. The service begins with a focus on God's providential caring for all creation, for the love seen in the coming of Jesus and the meaning of this for all humankind. The secondary focus is on the couple being married and every effort is made to create a service which meets their needs and makes the wedding an occasion of joy and celebration. A printed Order of Service can be made available so that everyone can participate fully in the service.  CLICK HERE for additional information about wedding preparations at Anaheim First Presbyterian Church.

What Type Of Bridal Couple Would Like This Place?

Perhaps a very easy going couple that is looking for a nice traditional church that is clean and beautiful. 

Photographic Potential

As far as churches are concerned, this is a nice looking one.  From the outside it appears much larger than it really is.  It features the flying trusses and A framed roofs like you would find in churches in Europe, however it's a bit smaller and more humble.  With a radio controlled camera I was able to shoot a different angle during the service.

Possible Distractions/ Work Around

We understand that the church is free to set up any rules that they seem fit, and as long as they clearly explain it to the brides before they sing up, we're fine with it.  Yet, that being said, their rules are more or less out of whack with reality.  They want the photographer to stay outside the church sanctuary during the service and take pictures through a window.    We can break down a whole series of things you won't be getting if you use this church. Sure, they will let you take fake shots after the ceremony.  Do you think you're dad can cry again giving you away like he did during the ceremony?    What was worse was the wedding videographer was allowed to stay at the front of the church during the ceremony. This was very disappointing and left me with a very bad taste in my mouth.

 

Overall Evaluation

The church is lovely, the coordinator was very nice, however there are many more churches that are as good looking if not better looking that this church with more flexible rules towards photography.  If you are desperate because you picked a popular date or started out too late and this is the best church you can find, we can work within the confines of their rules and and get some good images.   Things will be okay.  If you feel that photography of your service is important and you want better than pictures from the back of a church, you may want to look elsewhere.

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Front view of the church.  Notice the A framed roof?  This helps keep the snow from collapsing the roof.  Thus its a popular design for ski lodges and towns where it snows a lot.  It's unique looking in places like Anaheim where it doesn't snow. 

 

  

 

 

Image on the left is the actual window cut into a a door that the church requires photographers  to shoot from. The image on the right is what we can get from this distance.  It's not bad, still it would be better if we could get closer.

 

 

This is a side view shot of the ceremony taken with a  radio controlled camera. It was set up next to the videographer.