I remember when I was first starting with photography, I didn't know how to take in focus group photos. I knew that when I was taking pictures of one person, I put the focus point on their eyes. But what about when there are multiple sets of eyes??
I remember the resources online were kinda confusing. Or maybe my research skills were just bad! Either way, I'll break it down :)
1. Have everyone stand in a straight line
When you focus a camera on a subject, everything equi-distant to your subject will also be in focus.
However, when people stand in a group, they tend to curve into a U shape. The people toward the ends of the group will naturally gravitate to be closer to the camera than people in the middle of the group. This can be fixed with a simple comment of "line up your toes!" This is especially easy if there's a line on the pavement to align to.
2. Give yourself margin for error
Your aperture determines how much of photo is in focus. While I shoot individuals at around f/1.8, I shoot group photos at an aperture of about ~2.8. This still gives me gorgeously blurry backgrounds, but also gives me a little margin for error.
3. Center focus point
The center focus point on your camera is the sharpest and easiest to focus. When I shoot group photos, I always choose the center focus point and put it on the face of the person in the middle of the group.
If you follow these guidelines, you should be able to nail focus every single time! Group photos can be intimating when you are first getting started, but capturing family/friend groups is genuinely so rewarding.
