# Best lens for shooting portrait and wedding shots



## Tommie (Sep 29, 2012)

As above just need information on this,best lens for portrait shots and wedding shots,price roughly
and best place to purchase,iv a canon 550d with standard lens and also zoom both of which are no good
to me for portrait 

Thanks in advance 
Tommie


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## Erica. (Sep 29, 2012)

Where to buy and prices I cannot help with but I do know a little about lenses. I believe a 50mm prime lens is great for portraits, it's one of my favorites. In one of my classes we were told the 100-400mm is another great one that doesn't distort and that big hunk of glass was awesome to use. I did some portraits not too long ago with a 70-300mm and I think they turned out quite well. It may not be a lot of information but I hope it helps a little with your research.


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## 480sparky (Sep 29, 2012)

There is no such thing as a 'best' lens.  If there were, it would be the only one one the market.


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## Solarflare (Sep 29, 2012)

Bokeh - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sorry, the best portrait lenses are made by Sony and Nikon.

However, any lens can have good Bokeh.

Canon specifically is well known for their f/1.2 prime lenses(*), and the 85mm version is very popular for portraits for combining high sharpness and very creamy Bokeh.


(*) Nikon also sells f/1.2 prime lenses, but they arent autofocus.
Leica has a f/0.95 lens, the famous Nocton 50mm f/0.95, but all Leica lenses are manual focus only.
So Canon is the only company with f/1.2 autofocus primes.




P.s.: Okay, I was just pulling your leg. Anything better than the kit lens and a bit telephoto for your current camera will probably be an improvement. Sadly I have no idea about Canon lenses, though.


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## MLeeK (Sep 29, 2012)

When I shoot weddings I use a 70-200 f/2.8 OS/IS and a 24-70 f/2.8 with a Canon 5d Mark II, a 1D mark III and a 7D. Your 550D isn't going to cut it for low light  handling and wedding work very well. 
For portraits I like the 50mm, 85mm, 1.8 is good, but the 1.4 is better. For groups I like the 24-70 or 17-50 f/2.8. I use anywhere from one speedlite to 4 strobes. 
 Your camera should handle very well for portraits.


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## Sw1tchFX (Sep 30, 2012)

50mm f/1.4


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## texkam (Sep 30, 2012)

85mm
70-200mm
The faster, the better, but more expensive. Google for retail pricing. Best place to purchase would be on this forum when available.


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## Sw1tchFX (Sep 30, 2012)

50mm f/1.4..Cheap as chips and brings in 4x the light as a 24-70. 16x the light a kit lens brings in!


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## tirediron (Sep 30, 2012)

I'm guessing what you really mean is "the best lens _*I can afford*_" since most people can afford to drop a bunch of 1.2 L glass in their bag...   As mentioned, there is no 'best lens' or 'one size fits all', but if you tell us how much you want to spend, then we can certainly help narrow down the search.  My preference for this sort of work is a combination of my 24-70 f2.8, 70-200 f2.8, 105 f2.8, 85 f1.8, and 50 f1.4, depending on the situation.


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## table1349 (Sep 30, 2012)

Best Canon portrait lens = 85mm f1.2

Best Wedding lenses = 16-35 f2.8, 24-70 f2.8 and 70-200 f2.8 with two bodies.


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## Derrel (Sep 30, 2012)

On a 550D, which is a 1.6x APS-C camera, I think *the best lens* would be something like a 17-50 or 17-55mm, f/2.8, constant-aperture zoom lens. Canon, Tamron, and Sigma ALL make a lens like this, and the 17-50mm or 17-55mm range makes it usable for a lot of different types of photos at a wedding or other even, and is not too awfully large or heavy. A single focal length lens,like a 35mm or a 50mm 1.8 is just not versatile enough for doing an entire wedding or event; what if you NEED a wide angle of view indoors? That is where that 17-28mm zoom range's shorter focal lengths and corresponding angles of view come in handy, so to me, I say get a zoom lens.


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## TCampbell (Sep 30, 2012)

The "bread-n-butter" lenses used by most wedding photographers are:  (1) the 70-200mm f/2.8 and (2) the 24-70mm f/2.8

But the 24-70 works really well on a full-frame camera because it offers a standard zoom range from a moderate wide angle to a very moderate zoom level.  On an APS-C camera such as your 550D, the 24-70 wont seem wide angle at all (well... very slight at the 24mm end).  

The option Derrel mentioned above... such as Canon's EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 is probably a better option as a "standard" zoom.  

Usually you may NOT use a flash during the official part of a wedding ceremony, but you may use one before or after.  This is where I stand in the sides and use the 70-200mm f/2.8... and you need that low focal ratio as most churches are not particularly well lit.

Before and after the ceremony you can use your flash (and you should) so you don't necessarily "need" the low focal ratio, but it's nice to have it to blur the backgrounds and makes for more beautiful and dreamy looking imagery.


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## TheBiles (Sep 30, 2012)

+10 for the 70-200 f/2.8.  Hands down my favorite lens in the bag. So versatile.


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## DiskoJoe (Oct 2, 2012)

Derrel said:


> On a 550D, which is a 1.6x APS-C camera, I think *the best lens* would be something like a 17-50 or 17-55mm, f/2.8, constant-aperture zoom lens. Canon, Tamron, and Sigma ALL make a lens like this, and the 17-50mm or 17-55mm range makes it usable for a lot of different types of photos at a wedding or other even, and is not too awfully large or heavy. A single focal length lens,like a 35mm or a 50mm 1.8 is just not versatile enough for doing an entire wedding or event; what if you NEED a wide angle of view indoors? That is where that 17-28mm zoom range's shorter focal lengths and corresponding angles of view come in handy, so to me, I say get a zoom lens.



The sigma 17-50 f2.8 is super sharp.

A 135mm f2 is a good option for the zoom too. The extra step on the aperture will come in very handy in low light.


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## furcibaker64 (Oct 3, 2012)

Hi Tommie,
IMHO there is no such thing as "the best lens...". There are some specific focal lengths used by most portrait shooters: lenses in the 85mm-200mm range (on a fullframe camera), with an aperture of 1.2 or 1.8. There are a couple of reasons why it is so. Telephoto lenses are preferred to wide angle lenses because they do not distort perspective, they deliver more pleasant and flattering images, they compress perspective (the background seems nearer to the subject), allowing you to take less of the "environment" to focus just on your subject. Another advantage of telephoto lenses is the wide aperture. Using wide apertures helps you get nice out of focus backgrounds and take photos in near-dark surroundings.


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## JohnTrav (Oct 3, 2012)

There isn't a best lens for it. There are just people's opinions. My opinion is different for weddings and portraits. 

For portraits I would use my 50mm 1.4. It's cheaper than L glass but still takes amazing pictures. Has some great bouquet and let's in light fast. Still great for weddings. 

For weddings though I would go with a 35mm 1.4 L. I use a crop body also that's why I would choose this lens. It would give me a wider view and if I wanted to tighten it I would always just take a step forward. That's just my opinion.


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## Mully (Oct 6, 2012)

I like the 55-300 so I can also control the background softness.


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## MLeeK (Oct 9, 2012)

Mully said:


> I like the 55-300 so I can also control the background softness.



Not half as well as an f/2.8 or better lens and not with the quality required in professional situations.


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## 3bayjunkie (Oct 9, 2012)

The best lens is the 50-500mm lens because you can do everything with it!


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## TheBiles (Oct 10, 2012)

3bayjunkie said:


> The best lens is the 50-500mm lens because you can do everything with it!



Except wide-angle or shooting faster than f/4-6.3.


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## ghache (Oct 10, 2012)

I use my a 50 and a 85 all the time for portraits and sometime a 24 for wider shots (i dont shoot weddings). I am currently shopping for a 180mm f.28 af-d but this is for nikon of course


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## 3bayjunkie (Oct 10, 2012)

TheBiles said:
			
		

> Except wide-angle or shooting faster than f/4-6.3.



Well its not a lens i would use and definitely not practical for low light. But if someone wants an all around lens with mediocre image quality it could work.

Seriously would suggest the 50, 85, or 135 but depends on your environment.


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