wedding group shot with a telephoto zoom or shorter zoom ?

wrote:
what is your prefered method of taking group shots of a wedding party
indoors and outside ?
i seen them done with a shorter zoom and also have seen but not to
often a 70-200 with the photographer far enough away and his
assistant closer to the group holding the flash triggered by him.


Forget whether or not it is a "zoom" lens, and just worry about the
focal length you are using. It is not a good idea to shoot people with
too short a focal length. For individuals, short focal lengths make
noses big and ears small. For group shots, it makes people on ends
shorter than people in middle.

Many folks feel a lens of about 75-85 mm (35mm equivalent) is just right
for portraits. Any lens that has this in its range is okay. Longer
focal lengths are okay, stay away from going much shorter, though for
groups even 50 mm is not too bad. Stay away from going much shorter.

So pick a focal length and move back and forward to get the group in the
field. As I say, if there is something blocking the area in front of
you, you can use longer focal lengths.