A guide to planning and composing corporate group photos

Corporate group photos are one of the hardest genres of photography to get right. Ever seen those Vanity Fair Hollywood issue group portraits? The logistics behind them are astounding.

To get an understanding of the logistics required, Annie Leibovitz typically takes about a week to plan, compose and light those portraits. They hire stand ins for the actors who are the same size and look as the actors to stand while Leibovitz perfects the lighting. Set makers often build the sets.

Then when everything is ready, the actors come in and the shoot is done relatively quickly. They are also created using Photoshop composites.

So if you expect a group photo of 20 people do be done in 5 minutes to a Vanity Fair magazine standard? Not gonna happen!

Group photos are a collaborative effort between you and your photographer, and they take planning and patience. Group photos are challenging to light due to the large number of people, they are also a challenge to compose and get everyone to look good.

It’s one of my biggest challenge with clients, to get them to understand the logistics and time required to get group photos. And to manage expectations. I try and educate clients that for a successful outcome it requires a team effort between client and photographer.

Why corporate group photos take time.

Corporate group photos are not just about getting everyone in the shot. It’s about making sure that each person looks their best, the lighting is perfect, and the composition is balanced. Lighting is a challenge, as getting even lighting across a large group is tricky.

One of my biggest challenges is getting clients to understand the logistics and time commitment involved in creating a polished, professional corporate group photo. Managing expectations is key. To ensure a successful outcome, the photographer and the client must work together closely.

Is a corporate group photo really necessary?

Before diving into logistics, I always ask clients to consider whether a group photo is really the best investment. With high staff turnover, you may find that your group photo has a very short shelf life. I once photographed the founders of a startup on a Saturday, and by Sunday, one of them had left the company! That group shot was unusable within one day.

Consider how often your team changes, and whether a team headshot session or corporate lifestyle shoots might offer better long-term value.

Planning the group photo.

You’ve decided yep let’s do this, we want a group photo.

1. Inform Your Photographer Early.

Let your photographer know you want a group photo well before the shoot day. As I’ve touched on already, there’s a lot of planning involved. Your photographer may need additional lighting, you might not have a suitable space and so on. I usually try and do a location scout before group photos to check there is enough space and the environment will work in the photo. You might get a lucky break and there’s a spot with good light for a large group but that’s rare. Planning is key.

2. Allow enough time for the session.

Next is to make sure everyone in the team blocks out enough time for the photos. Large group photos take longer than people expect. It’s not like whipping out your iPhone and taking a snap. I typically take at least 30 minutes to set up the lights for a large group. Then about 15 minutes to arrange everyone. Then about 30 minutes the take the photographs. Then about 30 minutes to pack-down. I often create a composite in Photoshop to make sure everyone looks good in the photo. I may also move and adjust the lighting so everyone is lit beautifully.

There’s nothing worse than being one minute into the group photo and someone says they only have two minutes and have to be at a meeting. Being rushed is not conducive to great results.

Tip 1: Schedule a team huddle after the group photo. That way there’s a buffer so no one has to rush off to another meeting before the shoot is done.

Before the photoshoot day ask everyone in the team to put a little extra thought into outfits and presentation. I’ll go through what to get them to wear and do below.

3. Time needed.

I touched on this previously but typically for a large group photo allow:

30 minutes for your photographer to setup.

15 ish minutes for the photographer to compose everyone.

15-30 minutes to photograph the group. The larger the group the longer the time. Your photographer will usually use a number of images and combine them in Photoshop so everyone looks good. Well I do!

30 mins packdown.

So you are looking at roughly 1.5 hours (including setup and packdown) for a large group photo. That’s on the generous side but it gives you an idea of the logistics.

4. Outfits/Wardrobe.

Your company brand and values should lead the way on outfit decisions. I photographed a tech startup and asked everyone to wear t-shirts. See above. I asked them to think complementary colours. Like navy, black, denim, white. That way they will look cohesive without being too matchy matchy.

There’s nothing worse than a group of people in neutral colours and one person in lime green ruins the shot. Sometimes there’s no way around this. If that’s the case, place them in the back. Worst case scenario – change the colour of the odd one’s outfit in Photoshop.

Try and guide the group on what to wear before your shoot. Tell them if they aren’t sure stick to neutrals. What’s some neutral colour ideas? Steal this colour swatch below!

Composition.

When composing corporate groups, my go-to rule is to create sub-groups within the larger group. This adds balance and visual interest. Take a look at the Vanity Fair group portraits—you’ll notice that they’re not just a straight line of people. Instead, they form dynamic sub-groups, often triangles, which make the overall photo more compelling.

I try and create a balance with shapes. There aren’t really any one size fits all composition rules for groups but I’ll often try and create little sub groups of threes within the larger group. I’m trying to create visual interest and balance. I try and avoid a long unbroken line of people all standing. Sometimes that can work but I prefer some visual interest.

In the example above I asked some people to stand and some to sit to break up the group. Also rather than having one standing and one sitting all in a row, I varied a little with 2 people in a row sitting and 2 standing together.

I also try and get the people in the group photo to do something slightly different. Vary the poses. Some might have arms folded across their chest. Some might have one hand in one pocket. Some might have both hands in both pockets. If people are sitting, ask them to shift their legs to one side. Generally things look better if they aren’t directly front on to the camera.

If you’re photographing a very large group like 50 you probably won’t have the time to arrange and compose every single person. You need to work really quickly with large groups and you need to be super confident and take charge. A few jokes helps lighten the mood.

I learnt a good trick for photographing very large groups from a photographer I assisted.

Tip 2: For quickly organising a large group of people: in a very loud voice tell them “If you can’t see the lens on the camera, the lens can’t see your face in the photo. Please move yourself so that you can clearly see the lens”.

Editing the corporate group photo.

The photographer will often need to make a composite from several photos to ensure there’s a good photo of everyone. If you’re a photographer make sure you brief your client that you will need to pick the individual photos. It would be a logistical nightmare for everyone to choose the best photo of themselves and then combine that into one.

If you’re the client, ask your photographer to see the photos on the laptop or the back of the camera as you go. That way you can asses whether you’re happy with the general look of things.

If there’s obvious distractions ask the photographer to make sure they remove them in Photoshop.

Conclusion.

A well-composed corporate group photo takes time, planning, and teamwork. From considering whether a group photo is the best investment for your business to coordinating outfits, scheduling enough time, and working with your photographer, every detail counts.

It’s worth investing in the planning and process to get it right. With a collaborative effort between you and your photographer, you can create a stunning, professional image that perfectly represents your team.

If you’re in Melbourne, come and see us at Photoform* for your corporate group photos. We’ll work closely with you to make sure you get a great outcome.

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