Shooting group of 11

[kitkatdubs]

i am taking pictures for a friend this weekend of 11 adults and 3 children. I have two prime lenses 24mm + 50mm and a 70-200mm lens. My question is, which lens is the best for a group this size? I'd obviously love to use my 70-200, but will it not be wide enough? I feel like the quality of my 24mm prime lens is mediocre. Should I rent the 24-70mm lens? Thanks!

 

[Designer]

How much room do you have in which to back up? Is this going to be inside or outside? Outside, you should have enough space.

 

[tirediron]

For a relatively small group, I would avoid the 24mm altogether. As Designer mentioned, if you're out of doors, then you should have the space for the 70-200, but if not, then go for the 50.

 

[ronlane]

Shooting a group of 11 will require and extra clip, unless you can somehow get 2 with one shot, in which case will only require a 10 round magazine (and I'd suggest really good lawyer). Oh wait, PHOTOGRAPHING a group of 11, that's an entirely different scenario. For that I would refer to Designer's questions and Tirediron's comments.

 

[kitkatdubs]

For a relatively small group, I would avoid the 24mm altogether. As Designer mentioned, if you're out of doors, then you should have the space for the 70-200, but if not, then go for the 50.

What's the reason you would avoid the 24? Yes I'm shooting outdoors. I shot some kids portraits a month ago at the location and it's tight. Just concerned my 70-200 won't be wide enough. Also what should my f/stop be at? 11?

 

[tirediron]

For a relatively small group, I would avoid the 24mm altogether. As Designer mentioned, if you're out of doors, then you should have the space for the 70-200, but if not, then go for the 50.

What's the reason you would avoid the 24? Yes I'm shooting outdoors. I shot some kids portraits a month ago at the location and it's tight. Just concerned my 70-200 won't be wide enough. Also what should my f/stop be at? 11?

Short focal lengths tend to impart distortion; they "curve" verticals, and "enlarge" that's nearest the camera. If you have to use, you have to, but if you can avoid it, the 50 or 70-200 would be better options, IMO.

 

[ronlane]

I would think that you could start at f/8 and be okay with a group this size. (You might shot some of both just to see)

 

[Designer]

What's the reason you would avoid the 24? Yes I'm shooting outdoors. I shot some kids portraits a month ago at the location and it's tight. Just concerned my 70-200 won't be wide enough. Also what should my f/stop be at? 11?

As Tirediron has pointed out; shorter focal lengths tend to introduce distortion, and that's the main reason most portrait photographers use longer lenses. You're correct in wanting to use your 70-200, and for my preference, I would use it at the longer end of the scale.

You say the venue is tight. So if you can't get all 11 people in a close group there, you'll be forced to use a short lens. Sorry.

Your aperture needs to be such that your DOF will cover the entire group all in reasonable focus. So run some sample calculations for DOF before you go to the shoot. If you find that for f/11 you need to keep everyone within 3 feet of distance, front to back, then that is your limit. Three feet deep is not very deep at all, especially if you have two rows of people. So figure out how deep your group is going to be, and allow for a little extra to make sure nobody is oof. Take the preliminary DOF results with you so you can do some quick measuring and refer to the calculations. BTW: if you have a "smart" phone, you can download any of several DOF calculators so you will have the ability to do the calculations in real time. Still, I would rather not have to do all that when people are waiting, so I would rather have my preliminary calculations on a note card to make it go smoother.

 

[KmH]

Location info in your profile would sure be helpful for answering so many kinds of questions.

For a group of 11 people and shooting outside I would use the 70-200 @ 200 mm.
If I had a 300 mm lens I would use 300 mm.

By shooting from further away using a long focal length background elements are magnified which minimizes the chance of distracting background elements.
Using the same lens aperture with a longer focal length you would use closer in with a shorter focal length lens gives you pretty close to the same depth-of-field you would get with a shorter focal length.
Understanding Depth of Field in Photography

Lighting is likely going to a problem unless you have a suitably oriented outdoor location and are able to make photographs at a time of day that the Sun can provide light from a flattering direction and with a flattering light quality.

Here in central Iowa I can shoot groups pretty much any time of day this time of year because I'm far enough north that the mid-day Sun never gets more than about 45° above the southern horizon. If you are further south the Sun will be higher in the sky. As the Sun gets higher in the sky the light direction becomes less flattering and eventually will cause shadows in peoples eye sockets (raccoon eyes) and under peoples chins. If people's eye sockets are dark and they have shadows under their chins you'll need supplemental lighting from relatively big sources (strobe or reflected) to fill the shadows if you want nice photographs.

 

[vintagesnaps]

You need to learn how to set your camera, which aperture to use, how to figure out what will work in various settings - before you get out there with a group of people trying to do a photo shoot. It might have been better to refer the friend to a professional or someone who knows how to do this. If you want to learn, get out somewhere that could be a potential location for future shoots and take pictures (of the trees/the scenery) and figure out what worked or what didn't.

This depends on how sunny it is that day. As Designer said, it depends on how you arrange them, you might need a shorter lens. You might do fine with f8, or you might need f11 - we can't tell you for sure without being there. That's why you need to do more learning, no one can tell you exactly how you'll need to set the camera without being there to meter the scene and figure out lining them all up and depth of field, etc. You probably will need to go to the location and do some test shots to figure out what to do.