How to Take Group Photos
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One of the side benefits of a photographer knowing a lot of people in various industries and having a wide range of clients is that you are often thought of first when these people you’ve done work for in anything also need group photos.
It’s not just companies that need good group photos. Some types of events seem to automatically lend themselves to being a group portrait situation. Weddings, reunions, awards, BBQs, local clubs, fairs, and so on, all could use your knowledge of how to take good group photos, even if you’re there as part of the group.
So, regardless of if portraits, headshots, and other people images aren’t your primary business, knowing how to take group photos is a valuable skill to have. If it makes you a little nervous to think of directing multiple people, try out some of these group portrait photography tips and group photography settings.
Talk First, Then Shoot
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Any time we’re imaging people, the gift of gab is a skill we can use to our advantage. You may not naturally be all that talkative, maybe your primary subject matter is landscapes, product photography, or commercial real estate.
Still, we all have some basic people skills already if we’re marketing ourselves or our images successfully. Channel those skills into a natural, unhurried, but confident mode of speaking. If you or whoever is requesting the group photos has some ideas for posing or how formal or informal, this is the time to say it all upfront.
We don’t need or want to take a long time doing this, but it helps with all the other steps of how to take group photos to end up with great pics. A rule of thumb, the larger the group, the less time should be taken, but no one wants to wait around too long before the picture taking starts.
Avoid the Line Up
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Lining people up and having the more important people of a company in the center and up front if there are multiple rows is a standard way to take formal group photos for some businesses or institutions. When that’s what ‘s requested, that’s what we deliver.
There are other ways to take more informal group photos, though, and lining people up isn’t always the most pleasing photograph of the day. Whether the group is small or large, we can use some other posing and composition ideas that make for interesting group portraits.
So while lining up is one method of how to take group photos, let’s have some fun trying out different arrangements.
Stagger Heights and Positions
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Unless you’re photographing the starting line up of a professional sports team, there will likely be a lot of variation of height and body size in our group portrait. A great method of how to take group photos is to use that difference in our posing and positioning.
If it seems like you would normally have the taller people in the center of a small group or in the back row of a larger group, adjusting the group so that taller and shorter people, thinner and thicker people, and all the different complexions, are all intermixed will probably give you a group dynamic that actually looks and feels more natural.
You can also have some in the group sit on something, such as a stone wall or a chair, some sitting or reclined on the ground, some standing, some standing on something… the sky's the limit for how many variations you can use in a group portrait.
Vary Arrangements
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Going along with that tip of how to take group photos by staggering heights is to change the arrangement of the group, which may result in the dynamics of the photo being changed.
A couple of examples: After taking the pose of the wedding party with the bride and groom in the middle or up front, move them over to one side of the group, or in back of the rest of the participants.
Same with employee and employer groups. You will have many shots with the principles of the company front and center. After that pose is done, change it up just like the wedding party example with the boss de-emphasized or mixed in.
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Use Composition Tools
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These tips of how to take group photos will start to make sense as we see the group dynamic change up, loosen up. People are having some fun, being relaxed. For a lot of portraits, a relaxed subject results in awesome pictures. Same with our groups.
An interesting thing happens with groups of people that are relaxed with the process of taking photos and comfortable with each other, they start to arrange naturally into certain somewhat predictable patterns.
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This is a very good thing, as Martha Stewart always says. (Yes, I watch shows and read magazines about hosting, decorating, crafting… It gives me ideas I can adapt to creative photography!)
Among the good things about relaxed groups is that they tend to form pleasing compositions almost naturally, we just have to tweak it a little by our directing. One pattern I see a lot in photos of small to medium size groups is a variation of the Golden Spiral. Also S Curve, Rule of Thirds, and Leading Lines.
Leave Room On the Edges
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Another thing that many group photos have in common is that people want copies and physical prints or enlargements for themselves.
Since the most common enlargement and frame sizes are a different aspect ratio than our camera sensor, some cropping will be needed to get the right size physical print. To avoid cutting out anyone or crowding the edges, just leave yourself some room in composing and capturing the image in the first place.
Be Careful with How Wide
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Leaving room at the edges as a tip of how to group portraits also helps with another common problem of group portraits, edge distortion.
Thinking about how to group photos with everyone in focus and everyone in the frame, our mind gravitates toward wider lenses. This is fine, but as we compose with wider lenses, the apparent perspective and the edge distortion of ultra-wide-angle lenses can play havoc with our final images.
Even with a very well-corrected ultra-wide zoom lens like many of us own, a person right at the edge of the frame is going to appear slightly stretched. It’s an attribute of these types of lenses that may not be noticeable at all with other subject matter, but the person at the frame edge in the image will notice.
So, leaving some space in the image area at the edges and corners is a good idea for this reason as well as for the cropping issue.
Broad Lighting
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We can use broad lighting in two ways for this tip of how to take group photos. One, a broad lighting configuration has the side of the subject closest to the camera receiving more direct lighting. In group portraits, this is often the simplest set up. We’re not going to get Rembrandt lighting in a group of 5 to 125 people.
Secondly, it can refer to having a broad set up of lights for more evenness of illumination. Indoors, this may mean setting up 2 to 5 soft boxes, spread out to cover everyone as evenly as possible.
Outdoors, we may want to plan our shooting position to take advantage of sky light as our light source. Not only is sky light a softer light than direct sunlight, it may also result in more even illumination. Be sure to compensate either in-camera settings or post-processing for the cooler color temperature of sky light.
Exposure Settings
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That last bit segues into the next tip of how to take group photos, what camera settings are most appropriate or useful. Shooting for RAW files, we can adjust the color temps in post, but for JPEGs we may need to manually adjust the camera white balance or trust the camera’s auto color balance tool.
Shutter speeds should be fast enough to avoid blur due to either subject motion or photographer movement. But we also want an aperture that gives us the depth of field effect we want, either deeper such as for larger groups, or shallower for selective focus.
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Since enlargements are often requested even from spur of the moment group shots with friends, choosing a lower ISO is a good practice, as long as the ISO fits in your other criteria such as shutter speed and lens aperture.
Generally speaking, it’s probably a good idea to manually focus to maintain the depth of field you desire, though smaller group candid photos may benefit from continuous AF. Either way, just be sure to monitor focus closely.
Also, this is a good step to use to make sure everyone’s face can be clearly seen, unless the purpose of the intended image requires something else. Being partially hidden behind Aunt Mary or Bob from accounting won’t make Clyde or Samantha very happy when they see the final pics.
Use a Tripod and Wireless Remote
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Taking camera movement out of the equation sometimes frees up everyone, photographer and subjects, to allow them to concentrate on the posing, composition, and group dynamics. This is where the tips of how to take group photos that we put under settings about focus and depth of field can really start to create results.
For larger groups and more formal group portraits, it helps the photographer keep track of and correct any posing or position adjustments. For smaller groups or less formal settings, it allows for a more natural response from everyone toward the camera since you’re not behind the camera.
Taking the pics while talking away from the camera can also shift their gaze from directly at the lens over to you which results in their posing being different and oftentimes more relaxed.
Camera Height
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While we would normally list at or near eye level as the camera height for how to take group photos, for naturalness of perspective and for good lighting and posing, changing camera position up or down can also be used.
Having people look up at the camera results in a different feel of the image and the group, as does having them look down at the camera. With environmental group portraiture, it may allow more of the environment itself to help define the group.
Direct Calmly
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As we’re taking these images, setting up the camera, changing settings, considering posing and position options, we will get constantly better results if we don't use our “work voice” when directing the subjects.
We may need to speak louder to compensate for environmental noise or group size and their distance from us, but a calm, relaxed manner on our part is infectious. Conversely, a rigid, strict, demanding manner is also infectious, making most people uncomfortable.
With very large groups, it is a very good idea to have an assistant or two to help make any one-on-one comments to individuals in the group. This avoids both embarrassment or any possible confusion of who’s being spoken to and directed.
Let Them Pose, Too
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Sometimes, the group is so comfortable with you as a photographer that they really let their personalities come out. When this happens, it can be a great opportunity for more images that really show off the group dynamics.
Interestingly, I’ve seen on numerous occasions that when a group of people is completely at ease with each other and with you, they naturally self-arrange into certain compositions. The Golden Spiral is one of the most fascinating to see and I think it happens more often than other group self compositions.
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Some of my friend’s, client’s, and mine and my family’s favorite group portraits occur during this type of situation.
Your skill and confidence will be rewarded as you learn more about how to group photos, and you and the group will be very happy with the results.
