Portrait Lens / Help / 70-200f2,8 vs 85f1,8 and other 50f...

[Fiip]

Wow ! I did not expect so many answers in such a short time Thank you all !

But First point to clarify : I already have a 70-200mm F2.8 IS that I use quite often for Candid shots when travelling (now I do worse I will be using 300F4 )

In that case obvisouly, you want the person and a strong bokeh in Head or Shoulder shot only and dont care about the perspective nor the background as long as you can blur it properly.

So the question is not : What lens to choose ?

The question is more : Is it worth getting a 85mm F1.8 ON TOP of my 70-200f2.8 ?

What kind of portraits : All kinds :bsmilie: I love to focus on faces and expressions, indoor or outdoor (have a small studio home), but I also love poses with full body shots though I still have to learn a lot about it.

To give you an example of the shots I liked using a 85mm you can go http://forums.clubsnap.org/showthread.php?t=186387

I like the strong bokeh and quite thin DOF you can achieve and this might be one of the good reason to invest some 600$ more in the 85mm.

The point is that I haven't used my 70-200 in such conditions yet to know what is achievable.

Apparently there are strong supporters of the 85mm and I tend to go their way. ;p

I was still wondering wether it was worth the money considering the already very good quality and versatility of the zoom.

Thanks again for your very good advices !

BTW : Until now shooting with 20D and soon with 30D

 

[Fiip]

For portraits, I do not recommend the 70-200 unless you want to stand real close to your subject.

Sorry have read all the answer but still don't understand this comment ??? :dunno:

To me you are supposed to stand at the same distance with an 85mm prime or with a 70-200 set at 85 no ??? :think:

 

[JediForce4ever]

Wow ! I did not expect so many answers in such a short time Thank you all !

But First point to clarify : I already have a 70-200mm F2.8 IS that I use quite often for Candid shots when travelling (now I do worse I will be using 300F4 )

In that case obvisouly, you want the person and a strong bokeh in Head or Shoulder shot only and dont care about the perspective nor the background as long as you can blur it properly.

So the question is not : What lens to choose ?

The question is more : Is it worth getting a 85mm F1.8 ON TOP of my 70-200f2.8 ?

What kind of portraits : All kinds :bsmilie: I love to focus on faces and expressions, indoor or outdoor (have a small studio home), but I also love poses with full body shots though I still have to learn a lot about it.

To give you an example of the shots I liked using a 85mm you can go http://forums.clubsnap.org/showthread.php?t=186387

I like the strong bokeh and quite thin DOF you can achieve and this might be one of the good reason to invest some 600$ more in the 85mm.

The point is that I haven't used my 70-200 in such conditions yet to know what is achievable.

Apparently there are strong supporters of the 85mm and I tend to go their way. ;p

I was still wondering wether it was worth the money considering the already very good quality and versatility of the zoom.

Thanks again for your very good advices !

BTW : Until now shooting with 20D and soon with 30D

IMO, if you are a fan of BOKEH, then the 85mmf1.8 is not redundant

 

[JediForce4ever]

Sorry have read all the answer but still don't understand this comment ??? :dunno:

To me you are supposed to stand at the same distance with an 85mm prime or with a 70-200 set at 85 no ??? :think:

nope..what I meant, is that try to stand as close to the subject as possible to blur the background more, bacause of the f2.8.However, if you are shooting at f1.8, you wont have to stand so close to get that kind of bokeh..but then again..the perspective will be different..

 

[zaxh81]

50mm is gd for close-ups on the face. I always do that when i'm taking portraiture. Other than that, i use my zoom lens if standing further.

newbie here.why 50mm is good for close up on the face?
i cannot use my zoom lens to take closeup of the face?:dunno: example move forward/backward.

 

[Fiip]

nope..what I meant, is that try to stand as close to the subject as possible to blur the background more, bacause of the f2.8.However, if you are shooting at f1.8, you wont have to stand so close to get that kind of bokeh..but then again..the perspective will be different..

Hmmm not sure you are right.

For a fixed aperture (talking about 2.8) i'm not sure getting closer to the subject will play on the DOF ?

 

[drumma]

50mm is gd for close-ups on the face. I always do that when i'm taking portraiture. Other than that, i use my zoom lens if standing further.

yah lor.. i also dun get it.. why 50mm is good for close ups? macro lens is even better right? :devil:

 

[Discreet]

Having used both the 85/1.8 and 70-200 IS for more than 1 year (before i upgraded to the 85/1.2L), what i can tell you is that there is a lot of overlap. To be clear, I prefer to the bokeh at 200mm on the L vs the bokeh on the 85/1.8. This means you have to stand further and to be frank unless you are really nitpicking, the 70-200 @ 85 is not that MUCH bad compared to the 85/1.8 (but to the 85L, that is a different story).

Personally, once i got the 70-200, i never really used the 85 that much for portraiture. the only thing in its favour is that it is light and not so "in your face". Some people who are shy MIGHT respond better to the 85/1.8 but here in the US, got a lot of thick skin people... so big white lens is always better.... The 70-200 IS on the other hand has lot of advantages for portraits. In a studio with tripod, it is a more flexible and consistent setup (able to zoom in and out, the prime demands you move the tripod... so you cannot get back the same exact position). The tripod ring is amazing too when mounted on a tripod for portrait shooting. And did i say it is a zoom!!!

My personal feeling is that you do need a new lens. Use the 70-200 IS first and see if it works for you. What you can achieve on the 85 can be achieved in the 70-200 IS with a bit more effort (heavier lens, stand further at 200mm) but not the other way. In order words, the 70-200 IS is more flexible and offers up to 95% of what the 85mm does for portraits.

if you need a low light lens for indoor sports or just need more shutter speed.. then consider the 85 or 135/2L

if you want extreme thin DOF... it is either the 85L or the 90TSE mounted on a tripod reverse tilt.

 

[Snoweagle]

newbie here.why 50mm is good for close up on the face?
i cannot use my zoom lens to take closeup of the face?:dunno: example move forward/backward.

Ok, i'll tell you from my point of view. If distance permits, i'll always use my 50mm for closer shots such as the face and it's also sharper than my zoom lens. Likewise i'll use my zoom if the distance doesn't permit me at all.

 

[Snoweagle]

yah lor.. i also dun get it.. why 50mm is good for close ups? macro lens is even better right? :devil:

LOL....as i've explained this part earlier, go search for my post.

 

[zaxh81]

Ok, i'll tell you from my point of view. If distance permits, i'll always use my 50mm for closer shots such as the face and it's also sharper than my zoom lens. Likewise i'll use my zoom if the distance doesn't permit me at all.

oh i get it now,50mm is prime so will be sharper.
But for the distance doesn't permit you to?
Because you say you will use zoom lens when standing further,i kinda confused.
Is it like there is a drain etc... in between so you will use zoom to shoot?
Thanks.

50mm is gd for close-ups on the face. I always do that when i'm taking portraiture. Other than that, i use my zoom lens if standing further.

 

[Snoweagle]

oh i get it now,50mm is prime so will be sharper.
But for the distance doesn't permit you to?
Because you say you will use zoom lens when standing further,i kinda confused.
Is it like there is a drain etc... in between so you will use zoom to shoot?
Thanks.

Whoah dun misunderstand me bro

I'll explain again. I use my 50mm cos now my current 2 lens are my 50mm and 28-300 (as seen in my signature). I'll give u a scenario on what i did during the Big Boyz Toyz last year while taking the models.

When the models are standing without any barriers or obstacles which will prevent me from going close, i'll use my 50mm to do close shots. The 50mm one obviously being prime, have a sharper quality than my zoom. Likewise if the models are standing a distance away with barriers, etc, then my zoom one comes into play, though quality not so fantastic but can still make do.

 

[unseen]

Whoah dun misunderstand me bro

I'll explain again. I use my 50mm cos now my current 2 lens are my 50mm and 28-300 (as seen in my signature). I'll give u a scenario on what i did during the Big Boyz Toyz last year while taking the models.

When the models are standing without any barriers or obstacles which will prevent me from going close, i'll use my 50mm to do close shots. The 50mm one obviously being prime, have a sharper quality than my zoom. Likewise if the models are standing a distance away with barriers, etc, then my zoom one comes into play, though quality not so fantastic but can still make do.

I don't understand.. what stops you from shooting portraiture with the prime all the way?
and.. ermz... I must say, i find it hard to make the connection between taking shots of models at an event where they're far away not posing for you and portraiture? :dunno:
I doubt the thread starter is referring to this sort of "portraiture".

 

[Snoweagle]

I don't understand.. what stops you from shooting portraiture with the prime all the way?
and.. ermz... I must say, i find it hard to make the connection between taking shots of models at an event where they're far away not posing for you and portraiture? :dunno:
I doubt the thread starter is referring to this sort of "portraiture".

What stops me is the minimum allowable distance for me to shoot the models.

They always pose for me. but preferably i like face shots and half bodies.

Correct. the thread starter wants to find out which lens are good for portraits.

 

[Stoned]

I use both the 70-200/2.8 Non IS and the 85/1.8 and the 50/1.4 and also the 50/2.5 macro for portraits. Honestly, the 85mm isn't sharper than the 70-200. The 70-200 in fact has an advantage in terms of colour. However, I NEVER use the 70-200 for portraits. Why? The 85mm and both 50mms are smaller in size and weight and for me, this allows me to be more flexible in terms of angles as I can really put myself in an awkward position to take a more unique shot without that massive phallic white lens impeding my movement. I prefer to feet zoom than lose this flexibility.

I love primes solely for the reason that they're small, light and compact. In general, their image quality is also better.