"Safe" Aperture for Couples Shoot

[jak5887]

Hi,
I'm just starting out and have done mostly single portraits i.e. one person at a time. I had a friend request that I take her engagement pictures . . . so, here's the question, I just got a new 50 mm 1.8 lens and am super excited to use it as I love shallow depth of field but how shallow can you go when two people are next to each other in the picture?

[i speak in math]

If you want them both sharp, I'd say f/5.6 to f/8 is safe enough. You can always use a shallower depth of field to purposely throw someone out of focus.

[jak5887]

Thanks - I was planning on using the shallow depth in some of them but didn't want to get carried away and accidentally lose focus when they were both close up - - thanks again!