family reunion .. advice on group shots

Tommorow I am going to a family reunion
I have a t4i . Canon 24-70 2.8 and a 50mm 1.4..and a tripod (nothing fancy)
For the group shot with myself in it I will use the 24-70 of course on the tripod with timer..
Main question is really where should the focus point be ? I'm thinking at who ever is in the middle .. using middle point or top middle?

F8. Lowest possible iso..and at 24mm shutter speed to suit.no lower than 100

This will be an outdoor event .. picnic
It's rare we all get together like this and they are counting on me getting a great shot of us all ..any tips at would be great..
Just a general guide line of what would be ideal.
Individual shots I'm fairly confident with ..i mean i think I do decent considering my lack of experience ..
But previous experiences of photographing even small groups has always been one person super sharp and others not so much(but those were without tripod so maybe that will help)
Thanks

how far will they be away? How many in the group?

http://www.dofmaster.c​om/dofjs.html

How wide will the group be

Sure, focus point in the middle, but forget the f/1.4 aperture. why bother? Take shots at f/5.6 and f/8!

As already mentioned, you want better DOF than you can get with 1.4. Use the highest ISO that still gives you good results and go slower than 1/100 if necessary.

Like all shots, light is a big issue. Be just as careful as you would with a portrait. No matter how much someone might want a background that will result in shadowed faces pose the group for best facial results.

Shooting with a wide DOF does make a busy or distracting background a potential problem so that's another concern.

With a big group I think the toughest part is crowd management. I start by saying something like "This will take a few minutes to get it right." Carefully check your first shots to make sure you have the situation nailed for light, focus and composition. Move people around as appropriate.

I often shoot big groups in short bursts. That way if someone is caught blinking or picking you can use another shot to clone them in eyes open and nose empty. Since you want to be in the picture you might try a variation of this. Shoot a couple with the timer that include you and then get behind the camera to deal better with the whole group.

nwa2 wrote in post #17072268
how far will they be away? How many in the group?

http://www.dofmaster.c​om/dofjs.html

How wide will the group be

I'd like to get them pretty close but all showing from head to toe.. we are a small family .. about 16-18 people showing up

rantercsr wrote in post #17072525
I'd like to get them pretty close but all showing from head to toe.. we are a small family .. about 16-18 people showing up

definitely above f5.6 - maybe staggered in three rows - focus in the middle row

Keep the camera 30 feet or more from the group and get the camera up high (on a 6-ft or 8-ft stepladder for example).

Besides a group "portrait", get a lot of candid shots !! You may find the candid's will get more appreciation than the portrait.

Thanks for all the advice guys.. very much appreciated. . Will post the final group shot..may be you guys can give some cc as well

Snort a line of cocaine just before you get them all together for the picture.
It will clear your mind and improve your focus.

I hate family group shots.

I would use the 24-70 and of course shoot at the wide end. Make sure you have the camera as level as possible otherwise the people at the edges of the photo may be a little distorted. The distortion shouldn't be as bad as a wider lens but still the folks on the ends may look a little odd if there is much tilt to the camera. As others have said stay at f8, shoot with as low ISO as possible, and I would keep the shutter speed at 1/60 or higher. Do you have a flash? Unless you have everyone looking into the sun, and squinting, a flash will help brighten the faces to make everyone more recognizable.