Focal points

[jennhunter]

Ok, I know this may be a stupid question, and I apologize if it has been asked and answered before. And this may not be the place to post this but I wasnt sure where else to do it...I understand toggling between focal points on my camera to focus on a certain subject of the frame, however, when photographing more than one subject, or a large group of people, where do I want my focus to be? I have found that when taking photos of more than one person, that only one of those people end up being completely focused (and that is if I am luckyhttp://thephotoforum.com/forum/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif).

[MMURAD]

if the people are different distances from you, then you have to stop the aperture down. You need more depth of field to get more people in focus.

[jennhunter]

I understand stopping down the aperture to get a larger depth of field, but as far as the AF selection points, do I just set it on Auto, or Manual, and if Manual, which point do I choose?

[MMURAD]

when I got a group I usually focus on the the person middle and closest to me, then make sure I have enough DOF to get everyone else in focus.
that may not be the best way and there are people here that know far more than I. :)

[Maureen Souza]

when I got a group I usually focus on the the person middle and closest to me, then make sure I have enough DOF to get everyone else in focus.
that may not be the best way and there are people here that know far more than I. :)
+1:D

[Kristy]

Solid advice... It really doesn't matter which focus point you choose.. just make sure you aren't trying to shoot a group at f/2.8..... I try to keep my aperature at 7.1 or more if shooting 2 or more people. If they are slightly off plane, for sure one will be out of focus. You can always increase your shooting distance to get a greater DOF also.....

Here is a DOF calculator that might come in useful for you as you learn .....http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html

but be assured that the focus point itself has nothing to do with the DOF. :)

[oldvultureface]

Go wide (zoom) with a smaller aperture. This was shot at 21mm at f/8 with fill flash. Focus was on the daughter holding the dog:

http://i735.photobucket.com/albums/ww357/oldvultureface/IMG_8181.jpg