Ideal Portrait Lens ?

[EssTee-]

Hi there ladies and gents, I'm quite new to photography, my name's Samit, I've posted up a few pics here and there, I was a uni student, but things for me didn't work out in the end, photography is my passion and am looking to gain experience and end up as a professional, at the moment I only have two lenses, the standard kit lens and a Sigma 70-300 Zoom on a Canon 400D - I'm interested in portrait photography and would like to explore more into this.

However I'm not very good with lenses or what lenses are capable of, so as a newbie would like to know what would be a good lens to purchase for portrait work?

Thanks in advance to all the members who read this and make any suggestions.

Thanks, Sam.

[breathless]

Your question is quite expected and common. Many photography enthusiast's groups, such as the one you're on, have answered such questions by sharing their experiences with equipment. Scroll down and find "Similar posts" on this page.

The answer your question can vary from one end of the spectrum to the other, from wide-angle to telephoto, and zooms to fixed focal lengths and perspective control able lenses, because any lens(and any camera for that matter) can be ideal for portraits. It all depends on your vision of portraiture.

The quick answer to such questions is: A 50mm f/1.8(or f/1.4, or f/1.2), for its focal length allowing comfortable working distances and perspective, overall quality, price/value for a 1,6x crop body(which I'm guessing your model is.) A full frame body "portrait" lens equivalent is the 85mm.

A more sensible answer to your question is: Ask yourself what it is you wish to achieve, which you cannot with equipment you currently have. Whether it be perspective, build quality, optical quality, lens speed/aperture size, or ooh-aah/drool factor, when you feel limitations in the current equipment, seek additional pieces to help you achieve your photographic goals.

Much luck!

[EssTee-]

Your question is quite expected and common. Many photography enthusiast's groups, such as the one you're on, have answered such questions by sharing their experiences with equipment. Scroll down and find "Similar posts" on this page.

The answer your question can vary from one end of the spectrum to the other, from wide-angle to telephoto, and zooms to fixed focal lengths and perspective control able lenses, because any lens(and any camera for that matter) can be ideal for portraits. It all depends on your vision of portraiture.

The quick answer to such questions is: A 50mm f/1.8(or f/1.4, or f/1.2), for its focal length allowing comfortable working distances and perspective, overall quality, price/value for a 1,6x crop body(which I'm guessing your model is.) A full frame body "portrait" lens equivalent is the 85mm.

A more sensible answer to your question is: Ask yourself what it is you wish to achieve, which you cannot with equipment you currently have. Whether it be perspective, build quality, optical quality, lens speed/aperture size, or ooh-aah/drool factor, when you feel limitations in the current equipment, seek additional pieces to help you achieve your photographic goals.

Much luck!
Thank you for your reply, it makes perfect sense - I will continue to explore using my current lenses and see what my outcome is before moving on, I'm not experienced with portraits or models or anything, I'm sure this will be a fun learning session for me.

Thanks, Sam.

[Michael_Lambert]

For any portrait work i use one of three lens.

70-200 for much of my full body or 3/4 portraits
50mm 1.8 for alot of kid stuff or going for shallow DOF stuff
100mm macro for head shots

[carbonXevo8]

Id also recommend the 50 f/1.4 I always got crystal clear shots from mine.

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f45/nemesys6/_MG_8972a.jpg

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f45/nemesys6/_MG_9002a.jpg


also the 85 f/1.8 is a nice one to

[DStanic]

I love my 70-200 f/4L. yeah, it doesn't have extremely shallow DOF like a 50 or 85mm, but it's incredibly sharp and you can go all the way to 200mm. Autofocus is extremely fast and accurate, you can zoom from a half-body shot to a closeup headshot. Very versatile. I'm sure the 70-200 f/2.8L would work even better.

anyways check out this video on the benefits of using a long lens
http://www.5min.com/Video/Portrait-Photography-Tips-72416664

[OliverL]

24-70

[nashvillejen]

24 - 105 L. amazing, amazing lens. i'm always impressed with what it can do. i find that right around 85 is almost always perfect. good luck!!

[kungfupanda]

I would like to provide some info from China for a ideal portrait lens.

In China, Canon 85/1.2 or Nikon 85/1.4 is called 'the King of portrait lens',
because they have enough aperture size and extremely shallow DOF for a portrait shot.

And an alternative ideal lens for a portrait is 70-200/2.8, it is more convenient use for a outdoor shot.

FYI :)

[Deus Ex Machina]

As you see, breathless was accurate. All lenses may do! :)

Traditionally, 85 (or even as wide as 50) to 135 (or even as long as 200) is supposed to be the standard portraiture range (About 50 - 100 for a crop sensor).
Some will say: the wide end for full body shots, and the long end for head or closeups. Some others will say: the longer on the scale, the more the subject is faltered; the wider on the scale, the closest you are with the subject, the better you interact with it and that can make the session more fruitful.

Maximum aperture now: Standard /traditional and most whatsoever of portraits are shot between f5.6 and f11. Its the most sharp range, and depth of field allows you not to lose a nanometer from withing the well focused area. The wider it is however, the more you can shoot hand held in low light, and the most narrow depth of field you get, and more artistic factors can be taken into account.

As a rule of the thumb, prime lenses provide better image quality and zoom lenses provide the ability not to lose a shot, or to get more shots since range can be adjusted rapidly.
Another non-really-disputed rule is that the more you pay the better the lens is... If you learn how to use a specific lens however, awesome results can be produced even with the most economic glass.

I say, statistics you collect from forums' comments / recommendations should get no more than 25% of the overall "weight" of your next photography moves planning / decisions. The rest 75% should come from your own findings, preferences and desires.
So don't get frustrated, experiment and explore!

Cheers

[Ngoface]

I use the nifty fifty 1.8, works wonders.

[rjenson]

85mm 1.8!

[RDKirk]

The quick answer to such questions is: A 50mm f/1.8(or f/1.4, or f/1.2), for its focal length allowing comfortable working distances and perspective, overall quality, price/value for a 1,6x crop body(which I'm guessing your model is.) A full frame body "portrait" lens equivalent is the 85mm.

A more sensible answer to your question is: Ask yourself what it is you wish to achieve, which you cannot with equipment you currently have. Whether it be perspective, build quality, optical quality, lens speed/aperture size, or ooh-aah/drool factor, when you feel limitations in the current equipment, seek additional pieces to help you achieve your photographic goals.

I heartily endorse this advice. "Portrait" is a very wide field, and only you can determine what kinds of portraits you enjoy most. At that point, you can determine what equipment you need. Wait until the equipment you have starts frustrating you in what you want to do...then the question will answer itself.

[Curtis N]

Both of these images are portraits:

http://performancephoto.smugmug.com/photos/527705363_8EhDt-L-2.jpg

http://performancephoto.smugmug.com/photos/527701418_fx7La-L-2.jpg

There's no such thing as a "portrait lens."

[korrektor]

it does not exist. please move on :)

[Mick_I]

85mm

[andrepaul]

Some say it's the 200m f/2L (200m f/1.8L). . .I don't know. I use 70-200 and 24-70 mostly.

[draw4u]

I love my 70-200 f/4L. yeah, it doesn't have extremely shallow DOF like a 50 or 85mm, but it's incredibly sharp and you can go all the way to 200mm. Autofocus is extremely fast and accurate, you can zoom from a half-body shot to a closeup headshot. Very versatile. I'm sure the 70-200 f/2.8L would work even better.

anyways check out this video on the benefits of using a long lens
http://www.5min.com/Video/Portrait-Photography-Tips-72416664

Do most of you use AF when doing portraits or do you find yourself using MF more often? I have been told that I should place focus on the eyes of the upcoming Sr Picture shoot that I am doing next week, but I was guessing that I should use MF instead. Thoughts?

And, if it matters, I will likely be using my 70-200mm IS f2.8L lens.