Help! Need setup idea for group of about 40?

[flmonline]

Today I am arranging a group of about 40 professional people indoors. The lighting is florescent. I have only one long step that goes across the room to the stage area that I can use to stagger people. I do not like the look of chairs but am open to some suggestions with them. I cannot put people on the floor or stooped as the women are in skirts and dresses and the men in dress suits. I plan on using a small ladder to elevate myself a little over the group.
My main problem is what setup to use. Any ideas? I know to put short people in front etc., but I don't want it to resemble a lineup. Thanks for any help.

[AgBeard]

Yup - steps should work.

Take med. height set 6-7 steps & try some at different heights.
Get a someone to steady the steps.
Try arranging the group into a curve in 3-4 rows.
Offset the people - like seating in a cinema.
Ensure good DOF if using curved line up.
If you have the luxury of time try several set ups.

[rpcrowe]

Do a Google search on how to arrange your subjects for group shots so you can use a slightly longer focal length lens and avoid the natural distortion of shooting a group with an UWA lens. I know that the distortion is a factor of lens to subject distance not of focal length but, lens to subject distance is usually determined by focal length.

Here are a series of thoughts. I have not shot a group for years and I am trying to recall everything I did.

Your first problem is how to get the people assembled in a group for the photo.

Obviously a single row of subjects will stretch from here to eternity.

Multiple rows can be a problem because the front row is closer to the lens than the rear row and will loom larger.

Additionally multiple rows can be difficult because you need the back rows elevated to prevent the front rows from blocking them.

Some solutions are:

1. It is great to have an elevated platform, such as a stage, on which to pose the rear one or two rows.

2. It is even nicer to have a staggered elevated platform, such as a wide staircase, on which you can pose several rows with each successive row bring higher than the row in front.

3. Another solution is to have the back row standing, the middle row seated on a bench or series of chairs and the front row kneeling. Whether you want to use the kneeling row depends upon whom you are shooting and if they would regard kneeling for a photo as demeaning. It is easier for men - especially younger men - to be in the kneeling row. Obviously a group such as a portrait of the Supreme Court Justices would not be appropriate in a kneeling set-up.

One way to reduce the amount of space required by a standing row of persons is not to have then stand so their shoulders are at right angles to the lens. Rather, have the center person stand with shoulders at right angles and the persons in the row on either side of the center person standing at an angle (45 degrees or so). This considerably reduces the length of any row.

Another problem is the distortion caused by some of the group being considerably closer to the lens than others. This is a double problem that is compounded when using UWA lenses:

1. Front row being closer to camera than rear row

2. Subjects in center of rows being closer to the camera than those on the edges of the rows.

The natural distortion is exaggerated when you use wide angle lenses to shoot the group. If possible, use a longer focal length. Ideally, an equivalent 50mm or more would be ideal but, this requires a considerable distance from camera to subjects. Anyway, I would not want to shoot at a much wider focal length than 35mm on a full frame camera.

There are two other ways to reduce the distortion caused by uneven camera to subject distance.

1. Shoot from a high angle. This tends to equalize the camera-subject distance for the front to rear rows. I don't like extreme high angles when all you can really see of the subjects is their faces but, sometimes with extremely large groups; that is the only option.

2. Arrange your rows in a slightly concave configuration. This somewhat equalizes the camera-subject distance between the center-most and end-most persons in the group.

A ladder is a great help in shooting groups. If you have a tall enough ladder, it is often handy to attach a tripod head to the top step of the ladder. Tripod heads can usually be attached using 3/8" or 1/4" bolts.

Using tripod head mounted camera/lens, you can frame your group. Once the group is framed, you no longer need to view the group through the viewfinder. You can watch the group and ensure that there are no problems such as persons looking away, eyes closed or even some joker making finger horns behind another persons head. Using a cable release makes this even easier.

Lighting:

With the great high ISO capability of the present generation EOS camera, there is no reason why you cannot shoot at ISO 400 and still get fine results. This will get you an extra stop in exposure.

As with the distortion caused by some subjects being closer to the camera than others, there may be exposure problems for the same reason.

Lighting from a high angle will tend to equalize the camera-subject distance between the various rows .

You don't need creative lighting. What you need is a broad area of even lighting. You may be better off if you do away with modifiers and shoot direct flash. This should also give you a couple of stops extra. Bouncing off the ceiling may not be efficient since the ceiling might be too high or too dark colored and would not reflect enough light and that light reflected might be colored.

Additionally, it always looks better in a formal portrait if the persons in each individual row has his/her hands the same way. As an example - the seated row may have their hands clasped in their laps. I used to like the persons to the camera right having their left hands clasped over their right hands with the persons camera left having right hands over left. The same goes for the standing row or rows.

It is almost essential to have ONE assistant helping you pose the persons and to ensure that there are no problems with the poses. This person should be aware of how you plan to pose the group The assistant should also help in making sure that there are not any problems such as eyes closed and finger horns.

By the way, you do need to plan in advance. Additionally looking over the shooting area and possibly using a flash meter to balance out exposure might also be a big help.

Finally:

Be prepared to shoot fairly quickly - folks get edgy when held in a pose. Communicate with the subjects but, don't be bossy. Communication skills are extremely important when working with groups. A bit of humor is appropriate but don't be a clown. Above all look like you know what you are doing,; even when you don't have the foggiest idea of what you are actually doing!

Be sure that your flash batteries are new or freshly charged or that you have a/c lights already plugged in and ready to go. Of course shoot as many exposures as you can. If you have your camera tripod mounted, you can often post process with photoshop and replace faces, etc. Shoot in burst mode, several shots at a time.

Shoot in RAW and shoot a white card at the beginning of your exposures. That way, you can balance out the color temperature.

Sometimes the ambient flourescent light is very bright and you might want to consider placing a light green filter in front of your flash tube/tubes. That way you have basic flourecent colored lighting instead of mixing daylight colored flash with flourescent lights.