How best to photograph groups?

[Quoth the Raven]

I've been asked to photograph a number of groups of mixed ages. Some will be formal shots, others less formal.

I have a D90, Tamron 90mm Di, Nikkor 35mm f1.8, Sigma 17-50 f2.8.

Some shots will be indoors, others outside.

My question is about where to focus? If two rows of people, where should I focus, what lens should I use and at what distance?

They will be full body shots for the most part.

Thanks for any advice / pointers.

[GeoffWessex]

I'd go for the Sigma, at the 50mm end, and keep the aperture around the f/5.6 mark, then focus on the eyes of the nearest people. That should give enough depth of field to keep all of them in focus. I'd also suggest ISO200 as a minimum, but 400 if you normally get good results at that speed - then you can have a decent shutter speed - possibly 1/500th. For the inside shots, bounce as much light around as you can - and don't use 'on-camera' flash.

[Quoth the Raven]

Thanks for that; I have a SB600 which I can use on / off camera if necessary.

f5.6 should help with DOF; that was my primary concern.

Many thanks,

[Stormsong]

and it will do you no harm to use a tripod as well. By the way, why is it necessary to do full body shots?

[Quoth the Raven]

Originally Posted by Stormsong

and it will do you no harm to use a tripod as well.

That's true, I have one so will use it

By the way, why is it necessary to do full body shots?

Because of what they wear - don't want to be cut off at the waist.

Thanks for the reply.

[Stormsong]

Fair enough @ Kev; group shots are not as easy as they seem. Perhaps a suggestion is to have fewer people per group and to have some sitting (you would still see what they are wearing) and some standing within the group. This also adds interest to the photo. From experience, photographing larger groups of people means either using a wide-angle lens (preferred), or losing the detail as you have to be quite a distance away to get full body shots.
What always amazes me is that when you take a group photo of males, they mostly cross their arms in front of their . . er . . bits. Using a sitting/standing combination seems to alleviate this to an extent.
Regards,
Denise

[Quoth the Raven]

Thanks Denise; job done at f5.6 using the 17-50 and the 10-20 @f8. Seems sharp throughout and everyone happy with the results.

Thanks for the advice.