Tips for a large group photo

Well i was forwarded here from general photography...

So ill just link ya there, but i fell the question is more then flash. Like where to aim FP, etc.
https://photography-on-the.net …/showthread.php​?t=1198761

Get above your group. The higher you can go, the deeper and narrower can be the group. You can get more of each person in the frame and avoid the edge distortion of WA glass.

Just be sure you have sufficient depth of field for front to back sharpness...

You mentioned shooting from a balcony; that is ideal. Figure using f/8 or so. Try to focus about mid way into the group; DOF extends about 1/3 in front of your focus point and about 2/3 behind, but you will probably be shooting almost at infinity, so at f/8 DOF should be enough. Would not use flash; too many potential problems with exposure using one unit remotely, causing spotty exposure. A longer focal length, as FlyingPhotog said, will help minimize edge distortions. (Use the 5D2, with the 24-105; not the 7D)

Trying to arrange everyone so they will all be visible will be a challenge; without some help from people "on the ground," you will be doing a lot of gesturing! (unless the group is very quiet and can follow your directions!) Would also suggest firing off a number of frames in a row. If you look over your camera after the first shot, some may think the session is over, and start to move away. Let them know you will be taking 4-5 shots, and then for each "shot" fire off a burst of 3-4. This way your final take will be about 20 or so frames to edit from.

What will the final use be? If 8x10 prints, then remember to actually leave some space at the sides of the composition to allow for cropping. If for use online only, then crop in tightly

FlyingPhotog wrote in post #14610263
Get above your group. The higher you can go, the deeper and narrower can be the group. You can get more of each person in the frame and avoid the edge distortion of WA glass.

Just be sure you have sufficient depth of field for front to back sharpness...

OK awesome. Thanks for the advice folks!

Ditto the above. I regularly get drafted to take the Christmas card shot for my in-laws' family of about 25 people. Height is the key. Trying to do it straight on is a challenge.

Try for height either in your position as the photographer, or something that you can arrange the group on different levels. Many years I take the shot from an 8 foot folding ladder. Though not as much height as a balcony or window, still it often provides enough of an elevation in perspective to make the shot work.

Other times I have arranged them on something that varied their elevations. The most recent was arranging them around a farm tractor my father in law had recently gotten (including putting some of the older kids in the bucket loader on the front and raising it off the ground). Another time we used an outdoor staircase. By doing this, you can arrange so that you can see all faces, and usually in a smaller area than on flat ground...but, you can't zoom in quite as much, or use as shallow of DOF, as if you raise yourself instead.