5 Tips to Photographing a Group of 10+ People
So you have a photoshoot of a large family coming up… there’s no doubt it can be extremely intimidating. Don’t stress!
Here are some tips to hopefully make your shoot go as smoothly as possible!
Scout your location for 2-3 spots to shoot
My first piece of advice is to scout out the area if you’ve never shot at that location before. Give yourself 10-15 minutes before your session to just walk around & look for large shaded areas with little-to-no-clutter in the background. You want the focal point to be your clients, so the less clutter in the background, the better. I try to find 2-3 pretty locations to add variation to the shoot so my clients have a larger selection in their gallery. With large groups, I especially like to have some sort of “semi-seated” pose where some of the group is seated & the rest are standing behind/around them. It makes it easier to squeeze large groups into a tight shot, rather than one long continuous line.
However, if you are unable to find the perfect spot for the group shot, there’s no need to panic! Keep reading for my solution.
2. Get photos of immediate families/couples
In the case that not everyone is there on time, utilize that “waiting time” as an opportunity to get immediate family/couples shots. I like to start with the grandparents so once I’m done with them, I offer them a chance to have a seat for a little bit while I take pictures of everyone else. Standing for long periods of time isn’t an enjoyable pastime for most grandparents!
3. Give clear, easy prompts for posing
Some easy poses are “arms behind each others backs” or “turn your body towards *parents/grandparents/whoever is in the middle of the group*). I will then position their hands/arms based on who they’re standing beside. I try to keep everyones toes in line with each other to keep everyone in the same focal plane. One of my absolute favorite prompts to give to groups/families is “look at each other & laugh!” It makes everyone feel awkward for a second which makes it even funnier, so I always get really cute & genuine laughs.
4. Raise your aperture, keep everyone in the same focal place & hold down the shutter button!
Keeping everyone in the same focal plane… why is that important? It keeps everyone in focus! If anyone is standing too close to the camera (even if it’s just a few inches in front of the person next to them) that can cause the camera to focus on them & blur everyone else. This is also when I raise my aperture to anywhere from 4-5 depending on the lighting. It’s also important to rapid fire shots because it is almost guaranteed someone is ALWAYS going to be blinking.
5. There is magic in post-production
So you found the perfect shaded bench for the large group shot with bomb lighting, but the background is less than ideal & you’re not able to get a wide enough shot because let’s sayyyy there’s a pond behind you (yes that was me haha). Your options look like this:
shoot in that spot & deliver “good enough” images that your clients probably won’t want to put on their walls because of the busyness of the background
shoot in that spot, learn Photoshop & deliver beyond amazing images that your client will DEFINITELY want to put on their walls.
That might be what differentiates you as a photographer if you’re having a hard time standing out. Don’t be afraid to broaden your skillset. Generative AI is an amazing tool & can be learned with some YouTube videos & a little bit of practice. It has given me so much more confidence in my ability to shoot in new locations that aren’t always ideal. As long as I can nail the lighting, I’m not worried about much else.
I hope some of this helps you for your next group photoshoot! Just keep a positive attitude & make it as fun for you & your clients as possible! The pictures last forever & so will their memory of the experience you gave them!
