What is your favourite lens for portrait shots?

[RichardTaylor]

Here's an example, shot at great expense and in a beautiful location (our bathroom), hand held with available light. Shows if you want to catch a lot of detail even a point & shoot camera may be fine. Canon G11 with the lens wide open.

A larger version is on my Flickr stream.


Camera Canon PowerShot G11
Exposure 0.04 sec (1/25)
Aperture f/3.5
Focal Length 12.1 mm
ISO Speed 400

[graciousness]

Someone forgot their shaving kit

I've been practicing heaps with my lenses! I'm still trying to figure out sweet spots and the best settings to get them at, etc, but it's kinda hard when my subject (i.e. kid) moves at a hundred miles per hour everytime I try to take shots. I need a new model, I think, otherwise I'll go insane.

Many thanks for the example and I promise I'll share you a photo once I figure out what I'm doing

And would you know it, I've just learnt what spot metering is now! I did my reading last night and it finally sunk in my head. So I've been practicing that, too, so I'm getting there......wherever that is.

Many thanks again, Richard! You rule.

Grace

[NicoleScraps]

I've done a tons of research on lenses for portraits because when I buy, I want to spend my money wisely. Right now I have the two kit lenses that came with my camera. The 55-250 is basically junk unless I use it outside in bright light. I am not a fan of that lens. Love the 50mm and use it more than any. But I have to say, I do not HATE my other kit lens, the 18-55. It does a great job. I use it to take all of my indoor studio photos because the 50 is just not wide enough. The ones that I want and am saving up for are a wider prime, either the 24 or the 28, a longer prime, probably the 85, and the 24-70 L.

[maturner525]

This is what I did to learn my lenses sweet spots:

• set up tripod/camera pointed to my fridge (there is a full 12 month calendar printed on an 8x11 piece of white paper)
• set camera for aperture priority
• set mirror lockup
• use remote shutter release
• for my 70-200mm I tested at 70mm, 100mm, 150mm, and 200mm
• I went through each f-stop

I used the calendar because it was nice small print. the camera was about 35 feet from the calendar sheet.

I shot in raw so no JPG conversion would mess with the sharpness of the images

This let me find the sweet spot for that lens.. now when I'm shooting I can also decide and know the results of the aperture that I choose

Hope this helps

Mark

[philaw123]

Maybe you might have some focusing issues (back or front focus) and just need to have your equipment calibrated. Try downloading a test chart or just get a newspaper if you don't have time. Your equipment list is quite impressive and I don't think you'll get much better from Nikon. Considering you classify yourself as a beginner, maybe you should consider just working on technique more than changing equipment. I'm not saying Canon is better than Nikon, or any other brand for that matter. Just that when someone isn't getting the result they expect from their equipment, it's always easier to blame the equipment than their technique.

You might also consider working on post processing skills. Most avid enthusiasts do some minor post, at the very least, on their keepers. Stuff such as sharpening or blurring, improving contrast and color, removing CA and unwanted distortion, stuff like that. Weekend enthusiasts look at their results and think that all they need to do is buy the stuff the pros use and they'll immediately get those results. NEWS FLASH!!! A lot of work goes into making good photos. Good equipment just makes it easier to realize your vision.

As for the poll, my favorites are the Canon 135/2L and the Tokina 50-135/2.8. I also like Canon's 85/1.8. When I want to get funky, I take portraits with my Tokina 11-16/2.8. True there is a lot of distortion, but its the fun type

[philaw123]

I didn't read page 2 and just jumped to page 3. Glad to see you're on your way to getting sharper shots FWIW have you tried contacting the guy who took the pic to ask how he got it? Who knows, he might help. Most Filipinos have a good command of the English language and are quite helpful. And even if that doesn't pan out, what's the worst that can happen? You already put yourself out here by asking for help, surely the guy whose shot you admire should be able to help the most, if willing.

[gdegerman]

I like a 50mm (100mm on my camera) Carl Zeiss f1.4.

[graciousness]

Oh cheers you guys for the replies!! I always get so excited when I read people's replies because it's all information that I just love getting. Not being able to pay for proper classes or workshops, I'm thankful for every help I can get.

In regards to preference for another lens, I have done a lot more reading and so far, the 85mm prime seems to be the best option. However, no way I am going to spend any money on any new lens until I feel that I have earned it by way of improving my skills. I've learned so much from this forum and online from the last 2 months and I'm so excited. But at this time, I still feel that my gears are better than me. So in saying that, I need to deserve another new lens if I'm to acquire another one As it is, I've already been so bloody lucky having inherited all my gears from my dad. So lucky....

In my process of learning, I do have a tendency to question everything. Hence, I questioned if Nikon is sharper or Canon is softer because it's just part of my thought process to ask. Whilst I have excellent gears to work with already, I will still ask if there is a better lens in the market to achieve the ultimate sharpness that I want (for a project). Asking about anything and everything is just part of my learning process.

I will be doing that sweet spot test soon! Thanks for that tip!

To Phil, yes, I do post processing as part of the process. I don't buy into that straight off the camera policy as I think that's just being ignorant, naive, and restricting of the use of this technology. The pp skill I'm working on now is lens distortion because god, that's hard to fix (my last thread was about all that). I'm not about to go out there and buy a tilt camera so photoshop is going to be my best friend

Sorry, another long reply. I can't help it. I have a huge head.

Thanks again!

P.S. Phil, I know all about the Filipinos. You are looking at one Thanks for that tip and I'll try getting the courage to get in touch with photographers in Flickr......I'm still feeling a little intimidated on that site.

[kelleyrie]

With the equipment I have now, my absolute favorite lens is my 60mm 2.8 macro. It's super crisp and I love it for kids and baby portraits. For grownups I tend to use my 28-135 just cuz it's really not cute to have all that pore action showing up on your subjects face
I do plan on getting another prime, probably an 85 or 135 to get a bit more bokeh in my closeups though.

and a lot the crispness you're looking at in some of these photos is pp work not straight out of the camera.

[CaptainNH]

Hi folks, long time no see - it's the first time I've been in DPS for 6 months or more!

If you want to know what the best lens for a portrait is, you probably need to know what kind of portraits you like to take. Most of mine are generally what could be described as environmental portraits, which obviously I shoot fairly wide. My go-to lens for these types of shots is my 35/1.4L - an old lens, but still insanely sharp - and even my 17-40.


5D2 | 35L | 1/200 @ f/1.6 | ISO250

For more "traditional" portraits, head & shoulders & 3/4 length, then, if I am looking for shallow DoF or am working in low light, I'll head for the 50 & 85 - neither of mine are Ls - the 50 is a Sigma 1.4 and the 85 is the Canon 1.8


5D2 | Sigma 50/1.4 | 1/200 @ f/1.8 | ISO400


5D2 | 35L | 1/160 @ f/2.8 | ISO100

If the light is good, or I'm working with studio lights and am looking for plenty of DoF, I'm perfectly happy with my zooms (fortunately I got one of the sharp 24-70s!).


5D2 | 24-70L @ 57mm | 1/125 @ f/9.0 | ISO250

For "conventional" portraiture, the norm is to work with longer focal lengths (85, 100, 135 for FF cameras, 50, 85 100 for crops), largely because the compression that you get at these FLs is quite flattering - reducing prominent noses etc.

Conversely, people tend to avoid wider focal lengths due to the distortions that you can introduce - marking large noses even larger, heads look like "bobble heads" and they do very unflattering things that women just hate when you put people on the edge of the frame!

I absolutely love my 70-200/2.8 for both the sharpness and the gorgeous bokeh you get from it, particularly at the longer end. However, because I like to shoot portraits a little wide, I need plenty of space when I'm using the 70-200 and rarely use it indoors.

I also love my 100L macro for portraits, it's sharper than my 135. In fact, it's really TOO sharp for portraits - it really does show every pore - but you can always soften an image in PP - it's much harder to go the other way!

If sharpness in your portraits is your aim, you'll generally find that primes > zooms and L-glass is > non-L (though many of the new EF-S lenses are very close to L quality).

Without starting a Nikon v Canon fight, IMO most of the Canon L-glass is "better" than the Nikon (though the new Nikon glass is very very nice), but don't discount the third-party glass. My Sigma 50/1.4 is way sharper and faster focussing than my old Canon 50/1.4, nearing 50L quality, but for a much more palatable price!

Don't get too caught up in the gear side of things - there is so much you can do regarding technique and proper exposure which will provide nice sharp images.

So, there you go. My favourite portrait lenses range from 17mm to 200mm - whoever said photography was simple!

It's just a matter of choosing the right tool for the image you are creating!