getting multiple subjects in focus?

How would I go about getting multiple subjects in focus? At sea world, sometimes more than one orca or dolphin jumps out of the water and I would like to be able to get them both in focus. Would I just use the AF point focusing system for this? What are some other options? What's the most effective? I'm shooting with a Canon 50D and limited to a 28-135mm f3.5-5.6 kit lens.

Use Av mode, set a fairly small aperture, raise ISO to get acceptable shutter speeds and focus on one of them.

You could try using A-DEP, but I think it will be difficult to get the AF points hit the proper places.

The depth of field ("DoF"), the range of distances at which subjects appear in sharp focus in a standard print, is governed by aperture (strictly f number), focal length, focus distance, and sensor size. In your situation, you'll be best able to control this by choosing the most appropriate aperture, hence, use AV mode. You may have to adjust your ISO so that you get an acceptable shutter speed for the light conditions.

What aperture?
Experiment with this online tool: http://www.dofmaster.c​om/dofjs.html

The A-Dep mode generally gives you a tiny aperture and a very long shutter speed which is completely inappropriate for Seaworld. You want a small aperture but also a fast shutter speed for your subjects here so you'll probably want to use manual mode Raw files to fix up exposure later with 1600 ISO and a wide depth of field, something like f/10 or f/11 and 1/250 or 1/500 or if manual mode is worrisome then Av mode at f/10 or f/11 with 1600 ISO and hopefully the meter will pick a decent shutter speed for you. The noise on 1600 will be manageable with the 50D, especially with Raw using software for reduction instead of in-camera.

apersson850 wrote in post #9316299
Use Av mode, set a fairly small aperture, raise ISO to get acceptable shutter speeds and focus on one of them.

You could try using A-DEP, but I think it will be difficult to get the AF points hit the proper places.

and if you are inside, buy a 580EX . Never underestimate the value of a flash.

hpulley wrote in post #9316510
The A-Dep mode generally gives you a tiny aperture and a very long shutter speed which is completely inappropriate for Seaworld. You want a small aperture but also a fast shutter speed for your subjects here so you'll probably want to use manual mode Raw files to fix up exposure later with 1600 ISO and a wide depth of field,

If the aperture required is f/11, for example, it doesn't get any better f/11 if you set it manually, compared to if the camera's A-DEP function sets it to f/11. A-DEP doesn't always choose the smallest possible aperture.

I know but A-Dep tries to pick it from all the focus points and it means you often cover more depth than you really need. In my experience unless you are using a tripod there is no point in using A-Dep...

Simple, shoot wide and get a good distance between you and the subjects. Making sure all the subjects are on the same focus plane. Here is a shot at F8 with 700mm focal length. If you are indoor, shooting at F8 is not possible. The only way to achieve it is too using a flash shooting at F4 and shoot wide.

I agree with toomanyshots

Your DOF and aperture are how you'd want to do this, dont rely on AF to get it