Lighting Question

[jchooper12]

I am going to be taking photos tonight of a group of kids and there parents together. I should have a max of 5 to 6 people in a shot and most of them will be 3 people.

I have a 9' wide white backdrop, a SB800 flash, SB-80 and plan on using my D2H. Question is, how should I use the flashes? I do not have a sync cord so the SB-800 is mounted on the D2H on it's hot shoe. I hate having the flash stright on like that but have no choice. What should I do with the sb-80. Also, how far away from the backdrop should I have the people stand? Is there anything else that would help me out with this. It is a volunteer thing so they are not expecting perfection but I like to get as close to that as I can.

Any help is great.

[srwatters]

I would use the sb-80 directly on the d2h. Set it for manual exposure. Set the sb-800 on a stand or have someone hold it a bit off axis. Set it for SU-4 mode and manual power. Meter the sb-800 for the middle subjects at your desired aperture. I like to use f8, but with that many folks you may want to go to f/11 so everyone is in focus. Meter the sb-80 for about 1 stop less than the sb-800. You might also use a reflector on the opposite side than the sb-800 for a bit more fill if needed. When the sb-80 fires it will trigger the sb-800 and you're golden!

Good luck!