First portrait shoot, which lens? and a few questions.

I'm part of a local photography group and they are doing off camera flash portraits on the beach this Sunday evening on into sunset. I was doing some googling and reading, seems on a FF 105mm & 200mm are the better focal lengths. I have a crop sensor 7d2 & T5i. A little worried about sand because I'm not sure how the wind will be. The T5i is my old body, don't want to ruin the 7d2 though it is weather sealed, also it handles higher iso better and I love the selectable focus points. The lenses I have available are 24-105 f4, 100 f2.8 L macro, 70-300 f4-5.6 L. My depth of field calculator is telling me at 105mm, f4 and 6' away I'll have about 1-1/2", sound right and is that appropriate for portraits?

iroctd wrote in post #17574619
I'm part of a local photography group and they are doing off camera flash portraits on the beach this Sunday evening on into sunset. I was doing some googling and reading, seems on a FF 105mm & 200mm are the better focal lengths. I have a crop sensor 7d2 & T5i. A little worried about sand because I'm not sure how the wind will be. The T5i is my old body, don't want to ruin the 7d2 though it is weather sealed, also it handles higher iso better and I love the selectable focus points. The lenses I have available are 24-105 f4, 100 f2.8 L macro, 70-300 f4-5.6 L. My depth of field calculator is telling me at 105mm, f4 and 6' away I'll have about 1-1/2", sound right and is that appropriate for portraits?

Some thoughts:

- You won't need high ISO for flash portraits. The capabilities of the T5i will be more than adequate.

- I usually prefer a longer focal length for portraits, especially when working outside where you have room to work. A shorter focal length means you have to stand closer, which means you may have to deal with unwanted perspective distortion. Some people are good at making portraits with a short focal length, managing the perspective distortion for a pleasing composition and portrait... I'm not one of those people

- Generally, most portraiture doesn't need a thin DOF that you get with a very wide aperture. A thin DOF means you have much less margin for focus misses. Even though the 100mm will open up to f/2.8, don't try to shoot every portrait at f/2.8. Do some to experiment, sure, but make sure you get some with enough DOF that at least the tip of the nose back to the backs of the ears are in focus.

- Shooting with a wide aperture during the day will necessitate a fast shutter speed. Flash photography requires a relatively slow shutter speed to sync the camera and the flash (high-speed sync notwithstanding). So, you might HAVE to close the aperture down a bit just to be able to work with off-camera flash.

I'd use the 100mm f/2.8L. Excellent lens for portraiture.

I think it will be somewhat crowded with at least a handful of shooters per model. So it seems getting farther back would be easier than getting closer. I see people using a 70-200 lens, would I look silly trying the 70-300?

I've heard that too about the 100mm and I'm eager to try it out. I think I might end up taking all 3 lenses, try them out and learn from the results.

iroctd wrote in post #17574716
I think it will be somewhat crowded with at least a handful of shooters per model. So it seems getting farther back would be easier than getting closer.

If it's organized and the photographers work well together, yes.

If it's a disorganized mess, with all the photographers clambering over the top of each other to try to get the same shot at the same time - and I've been to a couple meetups like this - then no. The person with the shortest focal length will stand in the front and block everyone else's shot... and he'll come away with lousy photos with plenty of unflattering perspective distortion.

Thanks both of you!

It will be interesting to see how it goes. I'm wondering if my red af assist beam from flash trigger will end up in other people's shots. Then there is the possibility of overlapping flashes going off, most likely a non issue with shutter speeds. I did just buy a set of B+W uv filters for my lenses just to keep that lens face clean so no surprises the next time I clean them.

Depends on what you want it to look like. If you want to see that you're actually on a beach then shoot wider, unless you have a lot of space to back up. If you just want shallow dof, or a tight crop...then use a telephoto option. Based on what you have, I'd opt for the 24-105mm as it gives you a little of both worlds just in case you want to change it up a bit.

The 24-105 ia great studio portrait lrns. On a beach shot shallow DOF may not be critical so I would start there. Pay attention that you dont get too wide though and get perspective distortion from being close and wide.

tdlavigne wrote in post #17575704
Depends on what you want it to look like. If you want to see that you're actually on a beach then shoot wider, unless you have a lot of space to back up. If you just want shallow dof, or a tight crop...then use a telephoto option.

Good point & thanks, I wasn't thinking of this, caught up thinking about getting the model right but yes the background matters just as much.

gonzogolf wrote in post #17575714
The 24-105 is a grest studio portrait lrns. On a beach shot shallow DOF may not be critical so I would start there. Pay attention that you dont get too wide though and get perspective distortion from being close and wide.

The 24-105 will be coming along. Thanks, I've had perspective distortion before, still learning the do's and don'ts and I'll make sure I avoid it

I also vote for the 24-105 so you can have two different looks. If you know you want beautiful bokeh, then the 100L at f2.8 is your better bet. I use my 70-200L f2.8 (at about f3.2) all the time for portraits, along with the 24-105.

As far as the AF assist beam, it shouldn't trigger other flashes. But personally I use triggers, and not the on camera flash on board to fire triggers - so others will have to speak to that.

Anyone with an optical fire only type of flash/strobe will ruin everyoneelses shots - been there, done that. Frustrating to say the least.

Look into YN 622 or RF 603 vII triggers for a cheap way to get into OCF.

As far as the sand.. I would still take the 7D2, but I wouldn't switch lenses - ever.

ksbal wrote in post #17579536
I also vote for the 24-105 so you can have two different looks. If you know you want beautiful bokeh, then the 100L at f2.8 is your better bet. I use my 70-200L f2.8 (at about f3.2) all the time for portraits, along with the 24-105.

As far as the AF assist beam, it shouldn't trigger other flashes. But personally I use triggers, and not the on camera flash on board to fire triggers - so others will have to speak to that.

Anyone with an optical fire only type of flash/strobe will ruin everyoneelses shots - been there, done that. Frustrating to say the least.

Look into YN 622 or RF 603 vII triggers for a cheap way to get into OCF.

As far as the sand.. I would still take the 7D2, but I wouldn't switch lenses - ever.

I ended up taking the 7D2 with the 100mm mounted, the 24-105 was in the bag but I was new to portraits and on brain overload so I stuck with that lens. Everything went well, not as I had envisioned it but still real good. I was working about 12" off the water (Chesapeake Bay) for two of the young child models. Didn't get a drop on it, still I was glad it was weather sealed as the T5i isn't. I can see now why the 70-200 is nice for portraits. Next time I will be using a zoom. Hard not to chop off elbows and it eats time backing up and recomposing the shot. I'm re-reading over what everyone has said again and it makes more sense now since I went through the paces. I'll be ready for next time. Thanks again everyone!

Congrats! the first step is the hardest, nothing teaches better than actual experience... It is easy to get to 'stuck' in a rut, but that is when you grab the very opposite lens and only use that one for a while to really figure out the better angles with that lens.. lot of shutter clicks cant be substituted for anything.