gualbertoa

I was asked to take some soccer teams pictures in 2 weeks from now, these are teams of at least 25 people on it, what kind of lens should I need for this and if you can help with some settings I will aprreciate, it is for indoor and I'm guessing plenty of light will be available.

Bootnose

I use my flash and I have a Tokina 12- 24 wide angle that really works well. I have done a couple of high school class reunions and they always come out great. I do use Photoshop to make any corrections and I shoot in Raw and Jpeg so I have control over lighting and any other problem that arises. My camera is a Canon 7 D.

orrie smith Loc: Kansas

For a group setting, I would use a 24 or 35mm lens, assuming you are using a full frame camera. For a cropped sensor, I would use an 18 or 24mm lens. Be sure to use a tripod and a good flash, not the one on the camera. Good luck with assuming there will be plenty of light available. As for settings, use somewhere between 8 and 16 for your aperture. Take several photos and change your aperture in each one so that you will have the best focus possible.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

It would be useful to know: 1) that camera you're using and 2) what lenses you already have.

JohnSwanda Loc: San Francisco

With a group large enough to have several rows of people, if you use too wide a lens you could be too close so the people in the front row appear proportionally larger than those in the back rows. I would use something like a 50 or the crop sensor equivalent if there is room to get back further.

JohnSwanda Loc: San Francisco

With a group large enough to have several rows of people, if you use too wide a lens you could be too close so the people in the front row appear proportionally larger than those in the back rows. I would use something like a 50 or the crop sensor equivalent if there is room to get back further.

gualbertoa

D7000, 10-20mm,50mm,18-200mm.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

Your 10-20 would be my first choice. But, as noted already by others, there's a risk of distortion for people on the edge of the frame. You'll want to assure you're holding the camera / lens parallel to the people, not at an angle up or down. Your 18-200 would be the 2nd choice, but might prove more versatile allowing you to step back from the group a bit while still being able to focus tightly and fill the frame with the entire group. The longer focal length also helps to cut down on the perspective distortion. With either lens, you'll want a smaller aperture around f/11 to f/13 to assure the entire group is in focus.

gualbertoa

Thanks, I'm open for more suggestions.

canon Lee

This is right up my alley... I have a company that shoots youth sports clubs for more than a decade. Usually teams are around 15 players? first; pose in 3 rows. 1st row, shitting cross legs, with the middle 2 kids holding the ball, 2nd row, kneeling. those kids will want to sit back on their heels as it is painful to kneel on a hard floor, let them sit on their heels till you are ready to shoot, then tell them to sit up. 3RD row. standing. If you are not using a backdrop then height of the kids or coaches is not a factor. If you plan on using a backdrop of 10' then place the coaches between row 1 and 2, kneeling on one knee, with the bent knee up so that the other knee is facing inward. This is how I pose them, ( forming a triangle) I set the 1st row first, then the second, making sure you stagger their heads between the heads in row in front of them. Avoid "stacking", that is where 1,2,3 rows are vertically in line. Row 1 will have either an even number or odd, IE: if the 1st row is an even count, then the second row should be an odd count.
Now as to lighting; It is almost never enough ambient ( existing light in the room) light to shoot a team. You will need "off camera" lighting. On camera speed light won't do! You will need 2 mono lights with umbrellas to light the team adequately!!!! There simply is not enough ambient/fill light to get the correctly exposure with a speed light!
Camera settings: Mono lights don't commonly have TTL they are strictly manual, so ambient light is not a factor. Set camera to Manual mode. ISO starting at 125%, aperture starting at F8 and adjusted to your histogram, shutter 1/100th ( ambient light doesn't figure into the exposure) all settings are for subjects only. I use Canon EF-24mm~104mm, Focus on the middle row.. Movement is not a big consideration as the strobe freeze frames. Place the lights high, tilted downward, as to drop the shadows, and far apart enough to evenly light the entire width.
If you do not have off camera lights, or have never taken groups or indoor shoots, I would suggest you consider not taking pictures, or move the shots outdoors, or position the team near a large door or window that will let more light in.. Low light photography is tricky. IM here to help you so feel free to ask any question no matter how trivial... this is a great group photo which is not mine but a good sample.

gualbertoa

This is my best advise so far, but I want to thank all of the rest for such great advises too.

Thank you so much, I will need to get some umbrellas because there is no way to go outside at this time of the year where temperatures are around 20's.

canon Lee

Delivery in 2 days with B&H photo.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

The wider the lens, the more careful you have to be about keeping it level. Otherwise, you will get that "rounding" type of distortion. Tokina has a nice 11-16mm f/2.8 lens, so it's fairly fast.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

I'd suggest any lens that features rectilinear optical design. This eliminates wide angle distortion. They aren't inexpensive though.
--Bob

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

I use my 24-105mm L for such photos.
Works extremely well.