Tips for Taking Large Group and Family Photos

How to Take Large Group and Family Photos

If I’ve learned one thing from being a wedding photographer (and I’ve learned a whole lot!), it’s the fact that taking pictures of large families and groups is always a challenge. Throughout the years, I’ve photographed large extended family pictures during portrait sessions and at weddings, which for a lot of people is extremely important. After all, how often do you have your entire family in one location at once? A picture of everyone is an absolute must!

Actually taking the picture, however, is a different story. How do you arrange large groups of people for a picture? How to you make sure the kids are looking at the camera? How do you organize a lot of people in one photo? The questions are endless…but thankfully, the answers are here! If you need help taking great family pictures, here are my best tips.

1) Find enough space for your picture in good light.
This seems like a no-brainer, but it really isn’t! Make sure you have a good location BEFORE you start lining everyone up. I always ask approximately how many will be in the picture before I choose a place for it. Making enough space for 50 people is very different from a group of ten! Figure out how many people will be in the picture and where there is good space with great light nearby where you can arrange everyone.

2) Provide minimal direction up front.
Generally, I will tell everyone to either get into place and I will move them later, or I give loose instructions. For large groups of 50+ people, I have to give a few more instructions on the front end, since they will have to be in rows. If that’s the case, I either place shorter people in front or have a row seated on chairs or the ground (note: seating people on the ground really only works up through high school or college age!). If the group is around 25 or fewer, have everyone pick out where they stand before you start arranging. This ensures that spouses and family members will stand together so you don’t accidentally split up a group in the final picture - this can be really awkward, and not everyone speaks up beforehand!

3) Focus on balance and eyes.
First, if there is a center (eg. a bride and groom), make sure both sides are approximately equal in the number of people so it doesn’t look off balance. Second, make sure you can see everyone’s eyes at the very least. I’ve found that if I say this out loud (“I want to make sure I can see everyone’s eyes!”), then shorter individuals will generally move up front without explicit direction. Don’t be afraid to move people around, but do make sure that spouses and families stay together when they are moved.

4) When kids are involved
…it’s a lot more difficult. But it’s still do-able! Generally, ages 4/5 and up will smile and look at the camera, although sometimes I ‘bribe’ them by promising to let them see the picture afterwards (and I always make good on my promise!). For very young kids, the strategy is different. I tell the adults to ignore their kids - not in a mean way, of course! - and let me do the work. The biggest issue with having kids in pictures is that oftentimes the adults stop looking at the camera so their kids will. For that reason, I tell the parents to keep looking at the camera, and right before I push down the shutter I make a few loud, ridiculous noises. This almost always makes kids look, and as a bonus most of the adults will give a more genuine smile as well.

5) Take a lot of pictures…then take one more.
I’ve lost count of the pictures that looked good at first, then when I bring them home I realize someone’s eyes are closed or someone else isn’t looking. Fixing this issue in Photoshop is a last resort for me, so I take a ton of pictures at once. I generally snap several in a row, take a quick break, then take a few more. I do always double-check the back of my camera to make sure the group is in focus and there are no obvious issues, but even if it looks perfect I want a lot of backups just in case!

Clearly, taking large group pictures is not for the faint of heart - but it is definitely possible! In the end, practice makes perfect, and the more group pictures you take, the better you’ll become. Happy snapping!


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