Guide
First communion photo booth: frames, wording and planning
By La Cabine Bretonne · published
Whether it is a first communion or a confirmation, the celebration after the ceremony often brings the whole family together, godparents and grandparents included. A photo booth leaves memories the child will enjoy looking back on years later. Here is how to choose a soft frame, find the right words and run the booth without weighing down the day.
Why a photo booth works for a first communion
First communion photos often look alike: the child in white outside the church, then a few formal portraits. A photo booth adds freer pictures taken during the party: the child with cousins, with a godparent, with grandparents, and everyone leaves with their own print.
It also keeps the children busy while the adults linger over the meal. They come back again and again, invent poses, and the afternoon flies by. For the child being celebrated, it is a chance to be photographed with each of the guests who came for them.
Soft, bright frames
Our catalogue has no design made specifically for a first communion, but several frames created for christenings and new babies share the same gentleness. Since the celebration often takes place in spring, Apple Blossom is a natural choice: pinkish-white blossom and arching branches, for an April or May party. First Buds, with bare branches showing their first tender green, speaks of new beginnings.
Petal Shower scatters petals diagonally across the print, with a light movement that recalls leaving the ceremony. For a more classic style, Soft Ivory pairs ivory peonies with watercolour foliage, and Perfect Circle frames each photo in a floral medallion, with a heading line you can rewrite on the one-photo strip. More soft shades await in the pastel christening collection and on the christening and new baby page.
What to write on the frame
On a first communion frame, the child’s name stays at the centre. A few simple lines:
- “My First Holy Communion”, with the name and date;
- “Leo’s Confirmation”, for older children;
- the name of the parish or village, as a second line;
- “Thank you for coming”, as a thank-you to the family;
- the date written out in words, more formal than figures.
Each design shows sample text where your words go: replace it, and move or resize a text box if your line is longer. Have someone check the spelling of the name before you download. Our guide to birthday and christening photo booth wording has more lines that are easy to adapt.
Running the photo booth during the party
A first communion party usually centres on a meal, at home, in a hall or at a restaurant. Set the booth up in a bright corner, reachable without crossing between tables, and open it after dessert or during drinks, when guests are moving around.
- Set the camera at a height that suits children, or provide a sturdy step.
- Keep props understated: flower crowns, bow ties, small chalkboards for writing a message to the child.
- Suggest a few group photos: the child with godparents, with grandparents, with all the cousins.
- Ask someone to reload paper and tidy the props from time to time.
A guest book where everyone sticks in their print and writes a message to the child makes a lovely keepsake of the day; our photo booth guest book guide explains how to set one up.
Matching the frame to the favours and decor
A first communion party often has a common thread: the colour of the sugared almonds, the invitation, the flowers on the tables. The printed frame can pick it up. In the editor, the background, each of the design’s colours and the colour of an individual line of text can be changed freely: an almond green, a sky blue or a very pale pink is enough to tie things together.
Stick to two or three shades, no more, and keep good contrast for the name: light text on a light background becomes unreadable once printed. If in doubt, compare two versions on screen before downloading; our guide to customising a photo booth template covers these settings.
Print size, files and printing
A 4×6 print holds one large photo and readable text; a 2×6 strip lines up three poses, which children love. Our guide to choosing a photo booth print size compares the options.
Once the design is personalised, you download a high-resolution PNG overlay, transparent where the photos go, ready for your software; our guide to installing a template in dslrBooth covers the setup. Print a test copy on your own paper before the day, at 100% scale, with no fit-to-page option. Customising Apple Blossom takes a few minutes, with no account needed.
From christening to first communion
If you already had a frame for the child’s christening, there is nothing to stop you reusing it with new text and a new date: the text of your design can still be edited from your account. Side by side in the album, the two prints tell a lovely story. For a strip frame, see the christening photo strip collection.