Re: [Leica] I am probably crazy, but...

["Doug Lee" <drlee9@earthlink.net>]

I thought I should provide an update on this "project" since several of you
provided very good advice. To recap, I had been asked to take a class photo
of my daughter's 5th grade school class.

Well, the parent organization decided to go with the "professional" who owns
the local photo lab. Oh well. I must say that I was not overly impressed
with the photo taken with a medium format camera. However, given the time of
day (1:30pm) and vantage point (school roof) I am not sure what would have
improved it.

Regards,
Doug Lee


- ----- Original Message -----
From: "Brian Reid" <reid@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us>
To: <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us>
Sent: Sunday, March 17, 2002 5:17 PM
Subject: Re: [Leica] I am probably crazy, but...


> I've done many hundreds of school class pictures. I've always used a 35mm
lens, a good lens hood, a high tripod, and a stepladder. 35mm film is
adequate. I will confess to never having used a Leica for this; I use
motorized Canon EOS or T90. Here's my procedure:
>
> 1. Find out how many people you will have to shoot at once. Plan the
number of rows and the number of people in each row. Allow 24 inches of
width for each adult, 21 for each teenager, and 18 for children under 12.
Use as few rows as possible. For a class of 30 people I would use 2 rows;
for a class of 100 people I would use 4 or 5 rows. Go to the place where the
pictures will be taken and put colored flags at the 4 corners of the area
that the people will stand in. Set up your camera on its tripod as you will
be taking the picture and make sure you have plenty of leeway at the edges
of the picture. You don't want to have to move the camera back when the kids
show up. If you can get 4 kids
> to help you get set up, have one stand at each flag to help you frame your
shot. Rehearse this well in advance of the day of the shoot, and on shoot
day, set up your gear well in advance of the arrival of the children.
>
> 2. Shoot the finest-grain film you can find. High resolution is your
friend. No one will be moving very fast.  No one will judge this picture for
its composition (they will blame the children for bad composition) but
people will be impressed by sharpness and resolution and proper focus and
lack of camera vibration.
>
> 3. Enlist the help of teachers, preferably including a gym teacher, to
pose the children. School children know how to take orders from their
teachers, but are not good at taking orders from photographers. The most
difficult part of taking school group pictures is getting the students to
stand still. Make the teachers do this; they are good at it. Just stand
there and watch while the teachers line up the students, then have the lead
teacher tell you when they are ready. When it is time to push the shutter,
move as many teachers as possible to be near you. The students will look at
their teachers, not at the camea.
>
> 4. Remember to focus. Remember to set your exposure. Remember to bracket.
Shoot two rolls of film, not because you need to, but because this will give
you two chances to get it right. Everyone over the age of 8 understands the
concept of "changing to a new roll of film" and will be willing to sit still
while you do it.
>
> 5. I use a black cloth over my head and camera when I shoot school
pictures, and I use a flash. Both are stage props. The flash doesn't have
enough power to light anything; its purpose is to let the students know that
I have just taken a picture. The black cloth is to make the whole thing look
professional and mysterious. I run the flash on 1/16 power so I don't have
to wait for it to recycle.
>
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