Group shots


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iltriumph

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Feb 23, 2005
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Saigon, Vietnam
www.vietnam720.com
Dear guys,

1.Why is it generally encouraged to have a large f number (eg, f22) when doing group shot?

2. If i shot at f5.6 for the same group shot, what will happen? Only people in the middle will be in focus?

Thanks for taking time to reply :)
 

How big is your group and how are they positioned? (diagonally?) Usual 2 to 4 rows perpendicular and 3metre from the camera? - f5.6 should be enough. what lens you using?

f16 is good if you shoot with camera in potrait position to capture foreground to mid ground for DOF. for scenery/landscape...
 

Personally, I don't really take group shots at large f-stop simple because I don't need everything to be in sharp focus. A shot at f8 or f11 is sufficient to have all the people in focus.

Answer to your question:
1) Generally, the bigger the f-stop number, the more your picture will appear in focus.

2) If you are shooting at f5.6, whether or not all your group will be in focus is depending on their distance from the camera and also their arrangement in position. I take group shots of tables during wedding and at f5.6 the entire group are usually in focus and sharp.

Hope this answer are able to shed some light.
 

too small a apeture, your shots might be underexposed and experience defraction.

For my wedding group table shots, I normally go at 1/60 or 1/80 @ f/5-5.6, flash.
I line them up in 2 rows, as close to each other as possible. Darker skin guests (e.g. malays or indians)in the front row, followed by lighter skin (e.g. ang mors or chinese) in the back row whenever possible. half squat to almost eye level and shoot, leaving some space at both ends of my shots (to avoid distortion and to crop out later after applying distortion correction).

Hope these helps.
 

Dear guys,

1.Why is it generally encouraged to have a large f number (eg, f22) when doing group shot?

2. If i shot at f5.6 for the same group shot, what will happen? Only people in the middle will be in focus?

Thanks for taking time to reply :)

the aperture adjusts the amount of light that comes in through the lens
the size of the aperture affects the amount of Depth of field you have (front to back in focus)
with less light (bigger f number eg. f22) you will need a slower shutter speed to get the "correct" exposure
the focal lenght of the lens used also affects the amount of DOF you get
the shorter the focal lenght, the greater the amount of DOF at a given f-stop

so taking into consideration all of the above, you can decide what is the best aperture to use (also some experience)
 

Dear guys,

1.Why is it generally encouraged to have a large f number (eg, f22) when doing group shot?

2. If i shot at f5.6 for the same group shot, what will happen? Only people in the middle will be in focus?

Thanks for taking time to reply :)
Please read up a bit on DOF. Here's one for you to start with:
http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/depth-of-field.htm

If you have further question, you can ask us again.

BC:)
 

thanks guys again (and again) for all yr kind inputs.

i have a photographer friend but he's not very forward with my question and take 3 days to reply.

i put up a question on teh net and strangers reply them within 22 mins.

how ironic :embrass:
 

Well, that's because you came to the right forum where there are a lot of nice people who are willing to share their knowledge & experiences. :thumbsup:
 

thanks guys again (and again) for all yr kind inputs.

i have a photographer friend but he's not very forward with my question and take 3 days to reply.

i put up a question on teh net and strangers reply them within 22 mins.

how ironic :embrass:
He/she may busy, and here we are not busy :dunno: .

Regards,
Arto.
 

1.Why is it generally encouraged to have a large f number (eg, f22) when doing group shot?
The recommended term for "large f number" is small aperture. There is nothing wrong to use f22 but you will have very slow shutter speed to freeze the movement of the people moving. If you are using DSLR, more dusts will be visible in the photo. My recommendation is use f8 to f16 for large group shot.
Click here to see 1 of my group shot taken with f11.

iltriumph said:
2. If i shot at f5.6 for the same group shot, what will happen? Only people in the middle will be in focus?
Depend on your focal length and group formation. Wide angle will have wider DOF. Use the DOF calculator to check.
 

too small a apeture, your shots might be underexposed and experience defraction.

For my wedding group table shots, I normally go at 1/60 or 1/80 @ f/5-5.6, flash.
I line them up in 2 rows, as close to each other as possible. Darker skin guests (e.g. malays or indians)in the front row, followed by lighter skin (e.g. ang mors or chinese) in the back row whenever possible. half squat to almost eye level and shoot, leaving some space at both ends of my shots (to avoid distortion and to crop out later after applying distortion correction).

Hope these helps.

Do you normally switch to Program or Auto Mode while shooting wedding group table and TTL flash?
 

Do you normally switch to Program or Auto Mode while shooting wedding group table and TTL flash?
Usually M mode. There you have control over your Aperture for DoF, and Shutter speed to capture environment.

Regards,
Arto.
 

Usually M mode. There you have control over your Aperture for DoF, and Shutter speed to capture environment.

Regards,
Arto.

Similar style of shooting as me. :thumbsup: :D
 

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