This is the number of people to appear in the photo, who are to be used to "draw" the shape you have selected.
If you are unsure of the exact number of people who will be present then it is better to over estimate than underestimate. It is easier to spread people out to fill the required space if you have fewer people than expected than it is to squash people together if extra people arrive.
This is where you set the shape that you want to draw with your group. You have three options
- Rectangle
- Numbers
- Custom Shape
Rectangle
The group is to be arrange so that it appears as a rectangle the same shape as the camera frame, with a gap (specified in Border) between the edge of the group and the edge of the photo. Note that the calculator assumes a standard full frame aspect ratio of 2:3.
Numbers
The group is to be arrange into two numbers. When you set the Shape to "Numbers" two drop-down fields will appear which allow you to select the two numbers you want to use.
To simplify the measurement and layout of the number shapes on site, the numbers are based a digital clock style numbers made up of vertical lines and horizontal bars. If you want to use other number styles then set the Shape to "Custom" and draw the numbers you want with the Custom Shape editor (see next section).
Custom Shape
The Keystone Calculator lets you draw any shape you want using the Custom Shape editor. When you set the Shape to "Custom" the blue Draw button will appear.
Click on the Draw button to enter the Custom Shape editor. See How to Drawn a Custom Shape for more information.
Drawing Shapes in Multiple Colours (Pro Version only)
GroupCalc Pro allows you to draw custom shapes using up to four (4) colours. For example, you might want to have the entire canvas area filled with people wearing blue, with others in red forming square in the middle. In additional to calculating the size and shape of the group, the calculator will tell you how many people need to be dressed in each colour to form your shape.
This is number of people who can fit in a square metre (or similar area in feet or yards depending on your Settings).
It is recommended that you determine the best value for your population by measuring how many people you can fit in a given area. Mark out a 3 metre square (or similar area in feet or yards) and fill the area with people of the same age as the people to be photographed. Don't pack them in too tightly as leaving some extra space will allow for variations in size, and allow room to move people closer together if you start to run out of space.
Count how many people fit in the area then divide by the area. For example if 30 children fit in a 3m by 3m area then the people/m2 is 3.33 (30 ÷ (3x3)).
If you prefer to enter this value in people/foot2 or people/yard2 you can change the measurement units in Settings.
As a starting point use the following values
|
People/metre2 |
People/foot2 | People/yard2 | |
| Children under 11 (standing) | 5 | 0.46 | 4.18 |
| Children under 11 (sitting) | 4.5 | 0.42 | 3.76 |
| Older children and adults | 4 | 0.37 | 3.34 |
The default value is 5.0 people/metre2. You can change the default value in Settings (Pro version only).
Size of the border around the edge of the group.
Typically you don't want the group to go right to the edge of the frame, you'll want a border to allow for mounting, or to allow for the finished photo to be a different aspect ratio to the camera. Leaving a border around the edge also gives you a margin of error if your measurements aren't quite right, or you can't get the camera to exactly the right height.
Recommended values for the border in 20% or 25%. The default value is 25%.
You can change the default border in Settings (Pro Version only).
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