Help with manual settings for portraits

I am photographing a group of 5-7 Moms and their infants. I have a Canon EOS 20D, with the following lenses: 50 1.4 and 100 2.8; for flash I have the 580 EX Speedlite. Any suggestions on manual settings I can/should use would be appreciated. I am fairly new to this so feel free to be as specific as possible!

I will likely be inside with only the flash and the natural light or (hopefully) outside.

Thanks,
Steph

All five at once or seperate?

Inside? What sort of enviroment? White walls? Ceiling?

I can almost never give one-size-fits-all settings for this kinda thing... There are a lot of variables, and it never ceases to amaze me that people would rather shoot outside where there's much less control over the light.

My best suggestion, don't shoot full manual on this one unless you're already comfortable with it. Why not use P (with shift) and TTL?

Manual is great - once you know what you're doing. And experimenting to figure it out is also great. But, probably not what you want to do with a group of people with high expectations. I'm guessing since you're asking for a recipe you're not yet at the point where you're really comfortable and confident... So, don't rush it. Let your camera help you out as you progress.

Mike's advice is good.
Do not go outside unless you can put everyone in the shade. If you can, put the camera in AV and turn on the 580. F8 will be a good f stop to use with an ISO of 200 or 100 if you can attain a decent shutter speed. Make sure you set the flash for high speed sync. (check your manual)
A decent shutter speed will be 1/150 to 1/200.
If you are inside use the automated settings. You may want to set the flash to -1.
Read the stickies in the flash section.

Once you figure it out, I think it's more accurate & easier that compensating "P (with shift) and TTL". And you'll always get repeatable results.

The experimenting should be done days before the shoot? Try this, take notes, & see if it works for you: See post #3
Tips for Xmas Ball Please

I agree. Taking full control over your equipment is ideal. But, for someone that doesn't know how - and I think that's what this post shows - then I wouldn't advocate learning on the fly with people that have high expectations. Nothing wrong with letting the gear help you out when you need it... It'll usually get better results than someone taking control over the equipment when the camera still knows better than they do.

Thanks for the link. Good post.

I am all manual shooting RAW+JPEG when shooting portraits. I am not a pro but manual offers much better flexibility. I use RAW for "insurance" in case I miss the correct setting in variable lighting situtions.

I can tell you what settings to use because it all depends on so many factors.

Agree with shooting RAW for difficult WB situations. Yesterday I was in a Barnes & Noble that had big windows with natural light streaming in, overhead flouresent bulbs and tungsten spot lights. YIKES!

As to the OP, grab 5-7 stuffed animals (and their children) and start practicing. It's really impossible to give exact settings as so much depends on the lighting at the shoot as well as the environment (for what type of lens to use) Hopefully the moms won't have high expectations and with a little luck you'll get a few good shots.

Good luck!

poloman wrote in post #6170765
Mike's advice is good.
Do not go outside unless you can put everyone in the shade. If you can, put the camera in AV and turn on the 580. F8 will be a good f stop to use with an ISO of 200 or 100 if you can attain a decent shutter speed. Make sure you set the flash for high speed sync. (check your manual)
A decent shutter speed will be 1/150 to 1/200.
If you are inside use the automated settings. You may want to set the flash to -1.
Read the stickies in the flash section.

I'm really curious, why would you set the flash to high speed sync and then set the shutter speed at or below the camera's sync speed??????????

Note that I advised putting it in AV mode. That means the shutter speed will be adjusted by the camera. If the flash is set to high speed sync, the camera will still be able to function with the flash if the shutter speed exceeds the sync speed of the camera. I stated that a decent shutter speed would be 1/150 to 1/200 because kids are the subjects. You have to watch the shutter speed when using AV as it can drop lower than you would like. If the shutter speed does go lower than you desire, increase the ISO.