# Best portrait lens



## Aapoll (Oct 16, 2013)

Hello everyone.  I was just wondering what is your favorite portrait lens and why?


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## Juga (Oct 16, 2013)

I know you are new and I promise this isn't meant to be mean in any way.

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/search.php?searchid=2861860

Use the search feature...there are a ton of these threads.


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## Designer (Oct 16, 2013)

Aapoll said:


> Hello everyone.  I was just wondering what you would consider to be the best portrait lens and why?



As usual, this is another of those "it depends".  

Depends on what brand of system you already have.
Depends on your budget.
Depends on what type of portraits you do.
Depends on each person's point of view.

In general though, you would probably want a short-to-medium-length telephoto, with excellent optics, and a good range of aperture.

Please do a search because the topic comes up often and there are many threads here.


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## KmH (Oct 16, 2013)

My best portrait lens was 6 lenses.
One lens can't do all the portrait types there are: groups, environmental, studio, on location, children, fashion, corporate, model/actor, and more.

24 mm f/1.4
50 mm f/1.4
85 mm f/1.4
105 mm f/2 w/de-focus control
135 mm f/2 w/de-focus control
and 200 mm f/2


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## Dao (Oct 17, 2013)

As mentioned, there is no best portrait lens.  It depends on what result you are looking for and the budget.


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## kathyt (Oct 17, 2013)

Yes, I agree with what has been said already and your shooting style. I prefer to shoot tight and my favorite lens is the 135, but I am sure it would never be listed on the top portrait lens list. The 50 is always a good, inexpensive way to start.


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## ghache (Oct 17, 2013)

I do pretty much all my portraits with 24, 50 and 85.


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## Aapoll (Oct 17, 2013)

Thank you to everyone who answered.  I understand it varies upon personal needs and preference.  I already have a 50mm, I am looking at a 28-75 as my next.  I know I can go ahead and search and in fact if you google the same thing you also get a million and one different answers.  That's kind of why I asked what you would consider.  Maybe I should re word my question.  I get that many of you are tiered of answering the same question, especially when there is no written in stone answer so I apologize for that.  

What is your favorite portrait lens and why?


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## Dao (Oct 17, 2013)

Beside the 50mm lens, what other lens do you have?


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## Aapoll (Oct 17, 2013)

I have the 18-55 kit lens and a 75-300 zoom lens


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## jaomul (Oct 17, 2013)

Are you happy with the 50mm? Which one do you have?


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## Aapoll (Oct 17, 2013)

I have the 50mm 1.8 the cheap one.  I bought it to see if I like it before investing in a more expensive one.  I do like it, but I don't love it.  I have decided I love having the 1.8 aperture although I rarely use it any wider than 2.5. It is very useful in poor lighting like indoors.  What I do not love is the fixed focal length.  While it's not difficult to walk around while holding the camera, it's a bit more of a problem when my camera is on a tripod.


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## jaomul (Oct 17, 2013)

You mentioned the 28-75mm as an option. This is a well received lens and i was close to buying one also, but with a crop camera like yours it is neither very wide or very long. Its the best of no worlds so to speak. If you are looking for a fast zoom lens I would recommend looking at either the very expensive canon 17-55 f2.8 or the very inexpensive tamron 17-50mm f2.8.This focal length is good as a walk around lens and on the long end for portraits. Either of these will be an improvement on your kit lens for portraits, but neither will have the fast aperture of your 50mm. You can't have both unfortunetely


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## Aapoll (Oct 17, 2013)

Thank you very much for your input I really appreciate it.  There are so many options.  I had never thought of a 17-55 since I have a 18-55 already but it is a consideration.  I never use my kit lens because the auto focus is really finicky on it and it doesn't have a very high maximum aperture.  A higher end one would undoubtably be better and i do most portrait work outside since I don't have a lighting setup so 2.8 is more then enough in most circumstances.  I think I need more then 1 new lens lol


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## kathyt (Oct 17, 2013)

The new version of the 28-70 2.8 is amazing, and the 70-200 2.8 is always a good bet. These would be great lenses if you like that aperture. The distortion is less noticeable with the second version on the 28-70 vs. the first version.


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## Dao (Oct 17, 2013)

Aapoll said:


> I have the 18-55 kit lens and a 75-300 zoom lens



Good, since your setup can cover focal length from 18mm to 300mm.   I'd say try your existing lens and see which focal length (or range) you like the best.

Do not worry about subject isolation nor photo sharpest at this point.  Just focus on what you want to shoot and what environment you think you will often shoot your portrait photos at.   Indoor or outdoor etc.  Pay attention to how the subject looks.  For me, before I pick up my 85mm prime, I found myself often use my 70-300mm zoom lens instead of the 50mm prime because I like the way the photos look in outdoor.  So I bought the 85mm lens.   Now, if I have enough room, I often use the 85mm or the 70-200mm lens for taking portrait photos of my family.

But of course, there are other people prefer using a shorter focal length lens such as the 50mm.  For me, some of the best family outdoor photos were shot at 200mm.


Once you find that you prefer a particular focal length or range, then look around and see what lenses are available that fit your budget.   From that point, find one that best fit you.


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## Designer (Oct 17, 2013)

Aapoll said:


> ..if you google the same thing you also get a million and one different answers.



We meant to search here, on this site.  Look in the upper right-hand corner and you will see a small search box (it says google, but it is just for this site).  That should keep you in reading material for at least a day or so.  

No, we do not shove you off into the search function because we're tired of answering, rather there are many more answers available if you do a search.


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## Steve5D (Oct 17, 2013)

If I had to pick one lens with which to shoot portraits, it would be the 85mm f/1.8. It's not "L" glass, but it really should be...


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