Your Favourite focal length for Portraits? Name yours.

[Nikon_Josh]

85mm is a great focal length for me. I shoot probably 70% of portraits with that lens.

Ever shot at 135mm just out of interest, Tyler?

No, but I am eyeing the 135/2L as we speak. I would really like to have that lens. The versatility of the 85 is where it pays off. Not too short, not too long for portraiture (on a full frame), even indoors.

It really is one hell of a lens from the reviews I have seen, a must for any Canon user. That is where my concern lays, I know the 85mm would not be as flexible as the 50mm for me on a crop sensor.

 

[sovietdoc]

Depends on the situation, but 85mm 70% of a time, 135mm 25% and 200mm 5%

 

[Buckster]

Like others, it depends on the portrait look and style I'm trying to achieve, but I normally reach first for the 85mm on a full frame when I'm setting up for a portrait session.

 

[Sw1tchFX]

80mm and f/2 on the Contax kicks major ass.


Otherwise If i'm shooting on small format like FF or 35mm, than something like 50mm. Very natural, not wide, not telephoto, and it's cake to separate subjects from the background.

50mm is not a vanilla head-and-shoulders length, but i'm not a vanilla head-and-shoulders photographer.





24-70's and 70-200's are boring.

 

[sovietdoc]

24-70's and 70-200's are boring.

You are boring.

Considering how you get all focal lengths in between, you can always carry a backpack full of primes to substitute for the loss. With the modern zooms, their optical quality is on par with the best and sharpest primes. Obviously you won't be able to get the same aperture, but current zooms at 2.8 are decent enough for 90% of work.

I'd argue zooms actually give you more creative options than fixes. That, of course, is unless you carry 50 fixes with you. :thumbup:

 

[2WheelPhoto]

tight and within' my 70-200 VRII

 

[TheFantasticG]

50mm or 90mm.

 

[c.cloudwalker]

1200mm.

I hate people so I'll use the longest affordable lens to shoot them and pray they don't come anywhere near me.

 

[nehas8]

I had a 50mm 1.8D, which I used for all portrait shots. However, on my Nikon D7000 - I found it limiting. So I recently purchased a 35mm. It gives me more space - especially when shooting in enclosed spaces or spaces which does not allow me to move a lot.

 

[Mach0]

1200mm.

I hate people so I'll use the longest affordable lens to shoot them and pray they don't come anywhere near me.

Lmfao !!!!!!

 

[Josh66]

50mm, 80-85mm, or 135mm depending on a number of factors. I'm probably at or close to 85mm most of the time though.

 

[Kerbouchard]

Lately, I've found I like to be around 300mm at around f/2.8 to f/4 depending on the DOF I need. Something about 300mm at 2.8 is just magical.

 

[rexbobcat]

It really is one hell of a lens from the reviews I have seen, a must for any Canon user. That is where my concern lays, I know the 85mm would not be as flexible as the 50mm for me on a crop sensor.

The 85 is awkward as hell on a crop sensor. On my 1.3x 1D it's fairly easy to get good framing but I find it hard to switch gears compositionally from 1.3 to 1.6.

I rarely use it on my 60D except for video maybe

 

[Nikon_Josh]

It really is one hell of a lens from the reviews I have seen, a must for any Canon user. That is where my concern lays, I know the 85mm would not be as flexible as the 50mm for me on a crop sensor.

The 85 is awkward as hell on a crop sensor. On my 1.3x 1D it's fairly easy to get good framing but I find it hard to switch gears compositionally from 1.3 to 1.6.

I rarely use it on my 60D except for video maybe

Good point, I think it will be mean too much backing up most of the time to be used as a mainstay portrait lens. It will be more a headshot lens or a lens used in a big field!

 

[greybeard38 10]

APS-C I like 55mm as it offers a comfortable working distance and pleasing perspective. I saw some senior portraits yesterday that one of my students had had done by a so-called professional. He/she had used a 300mm for some of the head shots. The perspective was so compressed that his face looked flat and his ears looked out of proportion with the rest of his face. So, I don't think I would be comfortable using anything longer than 150-200mm. Working distance is real important to me, I want to be close enough to communicate with my subject. I'd rather use a shorter focal length (nothing shorter than 35mm) and crop in PP than have to shout out directions from 30 ft away. (jmho)