50mm vs 85mm 1.8 on a crop sensor

[batmura]

Which of these two lenses is a better choice for portraits on a crop sensor in your opinion? Also, i'd like to hear how often you use either lens and for what purpose?

thanks!

 

[Derrel]

The new AF-S G 85mm f/1.8 Nikkor is an EXCEPTIONALLY sharp lens...it is one of the sharpest lenses I have ever owned. It is a VERY,very,verrrrry good lens. It focuses fast. The bokeh character is very good, but not exceptional. It is a fast focusing lens.

The Nikon 50mm f/1.8 AF Nikkor, the pre-D model...I own two of those. Both are identical in performance. Average bokeh character...not really that "pretty" in terms of background defocusing.The new 1.8 G-series 50mm has smoother bokeh, and is a lightweight lens. Focuses fast.

The 50mm is useful for indoor work at 2 to 12 meters distance. The 85mm is better indoors from 5 to 15 meters.

For low-light shooting from 10 to 30 meters distant, the 85mm lens is difficult to beat; fast aperture, great optics, and not so long that the magnification blurs slow-speed shots.

 

[jaomul]

I had a 50mm and an 85 on canon and liked then both for different types of shots. Both had their uses. I would say that the 50mm is more useful but that does depend on your shooting style etc. I would go with the 50 first. I have bought a crop nikon (awaitng arrival) and already bought a 50 before the camera even arrived

 

[PaulWog]

Which of these two lenses is a better choice for portraits on a crop sensor in your opinion? Also, i'd like to hear how often you use either lens and for what purpose?

thanks!

If you're on a budget and you're not a pro, I like to think about prime purchases in two different ways. First, think about what you want the prime lens for, and where you'll be shooting it. As Derrel has mentioned, if there's specific locations (indoors) in tight quarters you'll be shooting and you want to do portraits, then the 50mm might be more appropriate. Second, think about what lenses you already have, and what you might want in the future. For example, the 35mm 1.8G and 50mm 1.8G are quite close in focal lengths; for someone on a very tight budget, they are close enough to probably not warrant having both (unless if your style/type of photography really demands both).

I'll give you an example: I have a 35mm 1.8G and an 85mm 1.8G. Do I want a 50mm 1.8G? Yes, I do. However, if I had a $500 spending budget, there would be a ton of other better things I could buy on the budget. The 35mm overlaps with the 50mm's purpose. The 85mm also overlaps with the 50mm's purpose. Would the 50mm still be useful to my collection of primes? Yes, it would. The 35mm and the 85mm don't automatically make a 50mm useless. It's different enough to still be useful.

I use my 85mm quite often right now, primarily because I just got the lens. It's amazing for head shots, portraits, creative shots, pictures of inanimate objects... etc. I use my 35mm for all types of photography, and it's just really good at everything; the 50mm would be similar, a little more constrictive, but better than the 35mm at portraiture and better than the 35mm with bokeh but not quite as good as the 85mm.

If you're looking for advice about which lens you should purchase, list what lenses you already have, what camera you have, and what types of photography you do. If you're looking for advice about which is better for portraiture, then the 85mm is hands down the better choice. If you are extremely tight on cash, the 50mm is still extremely good.