Where to focus???

[amironsi]

i was thinking,
if i am doing portraits and group pics that i would have 3 main Aperature sizes and focusing points as follows:
- Full body portraits: i would go for f/2.8 and my focusing point would be to any part of the body
- Face portrait and closeups: i would go for f/4 and my focusing point would be the eye of the person.
- Group pics: i would for f/8 or higher and my focusing point would be either the centre person or A-DEP mode

is that right??? should i change it or what??? Am i even thinking straight?:)

[BradM]

I would wonder why you aren't choosing to focus on the eye on all scenarios, if the eye(s) aren't sharp it was a wasted shot from my point of view. For a group shot choose one persons eye to focus on and then use an aperture that would bring everyone into the dof required to keep them all sharp.

[smorter]

What focal length are you planning you use for the above?

[amironsi]

What focal length are you planning you use for the above?

i can't confirm
but i will be mainly using my 17-55 f/2.8

[daleftw]

I think I'd go for a wider aperture for closeup portraits to make the subject "pop" by using bokeh/blurred background. Oh yeah, always focus on the eyes.

[nwa2]

For single portraits, always focus on the eyes. When we look at a picture of a face there is a natural connection with the eye. If eyes are out of focus that connection is lost.

Choose your aperture to bring attention to the part of the image you want the viewer to look at.

In the scenarios you suggest I would have started,
Face: f2.8
Full length: one or two stops down
Group: f8 to 9

Try different settings and critically assess your own results.. Post a few here and allow us to C&C ... you will learn a lot.

[PhotosGuy]

For me... the eyes, always the eyes! or A-DEP mode Never! If you're in a controlled setting, I always use manual mode so everything is under my control.
Try this to set exposure: Need an exposure crutch? (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=89123)

[Mark_Cohran]

You should have gotten the point by now that any time you do people photography, the point of focus should be the eyes. One thing you should remember, however, that with a shallow depth of field, if you focus on the eyes with the center AF point and then recompose, you may defeat your purpose. In these cases, you're better off to compose and manually select the AF point closest to the eyes in your composition, place it over the eyes, focus, and then recompose. This minimizes the recomposition and the subsequent focusing error.

[gooble]

Depending on the focal length used for group shots it isn't necessarily needed to stop down to f/8. Wide focal lengths will give you wide enough DOF for group shots even wide open.

For example at 18mm, f/2.8 while focusing at 8ft your near and far limits of focus will be about 4ft in front of and behind your main focus point.

I'm not saying you should shoot wide open. Chances are the lenses best IQ is shown stopped down a little. But I think f/8 is overkill.