I am often asked what is the best focal length for portraits or what is the best lens for portraits. This is one of those questions that I usually expect to receive from those who have recently started photography.
There is nothing wrong with that, which is why I made this episode since the theme can still be interesting and inspiring for everyone.
Best Lense For Portrait
First of all, it is good to understand that portrait lenses are not such because someone decided it, but simply because they guarantee particular performances that are suitable, precisely, in portraits.
Specifically, the best lens for portraits is the one that could include at least two of these characteristics among its characteristics:
- guarantees less distortion
- allows you to get a good blur
- it allows you to take a portrait from a distance (some people are interested in this aspect).
Best Lense For Portrait | Comparison Table 2022
Image | Title | Buy | |
---|---|---|---|
Sony - E 50mm F1.8 OSS Portrait Lens (SEL50F18/B), Black | Sony | Check Price | |
Auto-Focus Prime Lens VILTROX 85mm F1.8 Mark II STM Full Frame Portrait Lens for Sony E-Mount Camera A7III A7RIII A7SII A7II A9 A7 A6500 A6400 A6300 | EBYPHAN | Check Price | |
Viltrox 56mm F1.4 Autofocus Lens for Fuji,Large Aperture APS-C Format Portrait Lens for Fujifilm X-Mount Cameras X-T200/T30/T4/T3/A7/Pro3 with USB Upgrade Port | VILTROX | Check Price | |
4K HD Telephoto Lens Portrait Phone Telephoto Lens No Distortion with Clip Compatible with iPhone Max Xs X Compatible with Phone | Andoer*a | Check Price | |
Meike 85mm f1.8 Large Aperture Full Frame Auto Focus Telephoto Lens for Canon EOS EF Mount Digital SLR Camera Compatible with APS C Bodies Such as 1D 5D3 5D4 6D 7D 70D 550D 80D | Meike | Check Price | |
Lightdow 85mm F1.8 Medium Telephoto Manual Focus Full Frame Portrait Lens for Canon EOS Rebel T8i T7i T7 T6 T3i T2i 4000D 2000D 1300D 850D 800D 600D 550D 90D 80D 77D 70D 50D 6D 5D etc | Lightdow | Check Price | |
VILTROX 85mm f1.8 Mark II for Fuji x Mount 85mm ii Lens AF Auto Lens Portrait Fixed Focus Lens for Fujifilm Fuji X Mount Camera X-T3 X-T2 X-T30 X-T20 X-T10 X-T100 X-PRO2 | VILTROX | Check Price | |
TAMRON - SP 85 mm F/1.8 Di VC USD for Nikon DSLR Cameras - Black - F016N | Tamron | Check Price | |
Nikon 2137 50mm f/1.8D Auto Focus Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras (Renewed) | Nikon | Check Price |
Prices and images pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Best Lense For Portrait | 2022 Products Overview
1. Sony – E 50mm F1.8 OSS
- Built-in Optical SteadyShot image stabilization and 7-blade circular aperture for beautiful defocus effects
- Minimum Focus Distance : 1.28 ft (0.39 m), Maximum Magnification ratio : 0.16x, Focal-Length : 50 mm and filter diameter (mm) is 49 mm
- Large F1.8 maximum aperture enables beautiful defocusing effects. Angle of View (APS-C) : 32°
- Compact, lightweight mid-range telephoto prime with elegant aluminum alloy exterior.Diaphragm Blades 7, Rounded
- In-the-box: Hood (ALC-SH116), Lens front cap, Lens rear cap
2. EBYPHAN Auto-Focus Prime Lens
- AF 85/1.8 II FE auto-focus standard prime lens is a large aperture lens designed for Sony E-Mount Cameras A7III A7RIII A7SII A7RII A7II A9 A7 A7R A6400 A6500 A6300 A6000 A5100 A5000 NEX-7
- 85mm focal length and F1.8 to F16 aperture range, perfect for portrait photography; get wonderful background defocusing effect and help the subject stand out easily
- Full fame, AF (auto focus) and electronic aperture; supports EXIF information transmission, electronic automatic iris adjustment; records image’s information and shooting data
- Equiped with noiseless STM focus motor, metal electronic contact, 10 elements in 7 groups, including 1 ED lens and 4 short wave length and high transparent lens
- High Quality: sturdy lens made of high quality materials, precise metal structure, HD Nano multilayer coating, micro USB port for firmware upgrade
3. Viltrox 56mm F1.4 Autofocus
- 【For Fujifilm X-mount Lens AF 56mm f1.4】APS-C format portait lens for Fuji X-Series cameras X-T200/T30/T20/T4/T3/T2,X-A20/A10/A7/A2/A1,X-Pro3/Pro2/Pro1,X-M1,X-H1,X-E3
- 【10 ELEMENTS IN 9 GROUPS】Features with Constructino of 10 elements in 9 groups,sonsist of 1 ED(Extra-low Dispersion)glass and 1 high refractive glass to suppress the distortion. ideal aperture with 9 blades.New optical technology for good image quality.
- 【F1.4 LARGE APERTURE】There is a natural transition from the sharp inside focus to the soft out of focus,which contributes outstanding blur effect.it also features super color redition.
- 【EASY SWITCH BETWEEN AUTO TO MANUAL FOCUS】Equipped with dual aperture adjustment, rotate the aperture ring at the bottom of the lens to A and adjust the aperture automatically; rotae the aperture ring directly by hand to adjust the aperture manually.
- 【PORTABLE & COMPACT】With the weight of 0.64lb (290g),this lens is quit lightweight and compact to hold,pricise structure make the lens great hand feeling,perfect for photographers and filmmakers to control it well and easier to make better images.
4. Andoer*a 4K HD Telephoto Lens Portrait
- Great Compatibility: Universal clip-on design, applicable to mobile phones whose lens is less than 2.8cm away from the edge, suitable for most of dual lens /single lens smartphones, including iPhone X/Xs/8P, Samsung Galaxy, Huawei, Xiaomi, etc.
- 2X Telephoto Lens: Can magnify the image to 2 times, clear image, you can get disortionless picture, the effect of the photographs is close to our naked eye observation, usually used for portrait photography, daily pictures, etc.
- Multi-layer Optical Lens: Made up with 4 elements 4 groups multi-layer optical lenses,can increase the transmittance and reduce the reflection of stray light effectively, making your shooting and imaging better.
- Easy to Install: Put the lens clip on phone camera first, screw the hardwear to squeezed clip with your phone, then screw the lens into clip in clockwise and make sure that lens is centered over your camera, then ready for taking picture.
- Useful Accessories: Comes with a compatible clip for easy installation, with a silicon protective case, convenient for carry.
5. Meike 85mm f1.8 Large
- Filter size is 67mm, minimum focus distance with 0.85m
- Lens aperture range is F/1.8-F/22, lens construction with 6 groups of 9 pieces
- Full frame view: level: 16 degree / vertical: 24 degrees / diagonal: 28.5 degrees
- Lens carrying the usual electronic contacts, but also a USB connection that can be used to upgrade the lens firmware
- Suitable for a wide range of other subjects, including selective architecture, landscapes, portrait, short range sports and theatre photography
6. Lightdow 85mm F1.8 Medium
- - 8 pieces of circular aperture, smooth and large focus rings internal focusing(IF)
- - hybrid aspherical lenses (H-ASP), ultra multi coating(UMC)
- - Compatible with Canon EOS Rebel T7, T7i, T6, T6i, T5, T5i, SL2, 80D, 77D, 700D, 70D, 60D, 50D, 5D, 6D, 7D, 600D, 550D, 200D, 150D, 100D, 1300D, 1400D, 1500D etc.
- Warm Tips: This is a MANUAL FOCUS LENS, NO Electronic Contacts, your camera will not detect the lens when mounted, thats why it shows NO LENS ATTACHED, please switch to MF MODE in order to use this lens correctly. Tips to use our Manual Lens: 1) Set the mode dial to Manual (M). 2) Set the Release w/o Lens option in the camera menu to Enable. 3) Set the Shutter lock option in the camera menu to Off: no lens.
- - Large Aperture with a pleasing bokeh quality to further enhance shallow depth of field images
7. VILTROX 85mm f1.8 Mark II Best lens size for portraits
- Well Crafted:The lens is very well crafted. Its all-metal feels better in the hand than the native Fuji primes. It actually feels better built than most lenses. only weight 492 grams, with a standard lens hood, perfect for outdoor portrait shooting.
- STM: Faster and quieter stepping motor, provide more precise autofocus than old models. The autofocus is fast, on par with many native lenses.
- 85mm F1.8 Aperture: The image quality on this lens is surprisingly good and it’s an all-around solid performer, this lens offers excellent center and edge to edge sharpness and superb resolving power. F1.8 Aperture and 85mm focal length, give you soft and natural background blur which is ideal for portraits, delivers all the superb image resolution and contrast for you.
- Precise Focusing: Right out of the camera, the neutral quality of this lens gives skin a subtle sheen, making it an excellent choice for portraiture as well as black and white photography.The textured metal focus ring provides an exceptionally smooth experience and the 145.9° throw allows for precise focusing, even at closer distances where subtle nuances would be more noticeable.
- Up to date:By continuous upgrade lens firmware to improve lens performance through USB port, and adapted to newest Fuji X-mount cameras (check the compatibility of your Fuji X-mount camera in the product description)
8. TAMRON – SP 85 mm Best lens size for portraits
- Ultrasonic Silent Drive (USD) high-torque motor ensures fast and accurate AF response
- Three-coil electromagnetic VC image stabilization system provides a 3.5-stop advantage for significantly sharper images
- Firmware and settings customizable via optional TAMRON TAP-in Console (available separately)
- Moisture-proof and dust-resistant construction prevents intrusion of dust or water droplets
- Lens, Lens Hood, Rear cap, Instructions, Silkypix Developer Studio 4.0 software.Minimum Object Distance:0.8m (31.5 Inches)
9. Nikon 2137 50mm
- Includes all original accessories plus a 90-day warranty
- Great for travel and for shooting full-length portraits in available light, Distortion-free images with superb resolution and color rendition
- Provides high-contrast images even at maximum aperture
- Autofocus is not supported by DSLRs lacking an autofocus motor, such as the D40, D40x, D60, D3000, D3100, D3200, D3300, D5000, D5100, D5200, D5300, and D5500 cameras, and the lens may be used with manual focus only.
Unrivaled Guide to pick The Best Lense For Portrait in 2022
Best focal length for portraits full frame
So in a nutshell what focal length should we go looking for on our lenses? My advice is to absolutely not go below 50mm, indeed to be precise, a telephoto lens between 50mm and 200mm is perfect for close-ups and busts.
When it comes to photographic equipment, good lenses are one of the best things you can spend your money on. An entry-level camera with a high-quality lens can take stunning photos, but the reverse isn’t necessarily true. In other words, you get a lot more when you invest in a good lens than in a good body.
Very small focal lengths
I took very interesting portraits with a fisheye, taking care to keep the camera perfectly parallel to the ground and positioning the subject in the center, where the distortion introduced by the lens is minimal, but certainly, these are portraits, let’s say, rather particular and not at all. canons.
Which aperture to choose?
Logically it is always better to have a bright lens. But what does it mean? The maximum aperture , so that it is also able to blur the background when needed to give greater depth to the photo. This effect when amplified is called the Bokeh effect .
But let’s start looking at which are the best portrait lenses.
Best lens for portrait photography Wide angles
With a modest wide-angle, let’s say a 24mm, we can take very dynamic and not at all trivial portraits – for example very suitable for some secondary shots in a wedding album.
If we choose to use a wide-angle, between 12mm and 35mm, remember that these lenses, the more their focal length is reduced and the more they introduce perspective distortions, which increase if we tilt the camera, shooting from above or below.
Let us also remember that, with a wide-angle, we are forced to shoot rather close to our subject, but if we get too close, we run the risk of making the subject’s face more like a caricature and his body very close to a puppet, if Taken from above, the subject’s head could be enormous compared to the body, while shooting from below, we would obtain the tragic “matchstick effect”, long and elusive legs and an insignificant head.
But if used judiciously, for example by composing carefully, wide angles can give us very dynamic and not at all obvious portraits.
Let us also remember that with a wide-angle the concept of “shallow depth of field” practically does not exist, so we compose our shot considering that all the elements will be in focus.
“Normal” objectives
Normals usually mean focal lengths around 50mm.
A 50mm still offers a fair chance to include a bit of environment and contemporary free from perspective distortions, typical of shorter focal lengths.
Personally, this focal length does not intrigue me, although it allows you to take a portrait with a certain simplicity. Let me explain: the 50mm, for my taste, does not offer a sufficiently shallow depth of field, but neither does it offer a shooting angle that includes enough environment. So, usually, I opt for a more radical choice, either I go down, and I use a wide-angle, or I go up, and fish between a moderate canvas or a real canvas,
However, this does not mean that 50mm are not suitable for our purposes, on the contrary, they are often the most valid solution, because perhaps the scene does not offer many possibilities of moving away from the subject, a necessary condition when using a tele.
The 85mm, the prince of portrait lenses
The 85mm deserves a paragraph all to itself. He is truly the prince, if not the king, of portrait lenses.
It offers results absolutely free of distortion or perspective crushing – purists say that by shooting at about 2m from the subject you get a portrait with a rendering very similar to that of looking at reflections in the mirror (seeing is believing).
If we then choose a quality model, the bokeh (the blur) could also reach a quality capable of taking your breath away.
If you intend to launch into portrait photography, you cannot own one.
Little practical tricks
For a canonical portrait, we try to use large apertures, which offer us a shallow depth of field and therefore produce portraits where the subject is well isolated from the background, for the focal length… let’s re-read above – ha haha.
If we are dealing with more than one subject, we avoid using focal lengths greater than 50mm and try not to use apertures that are wider than f./8, so we will avoid having someone in focus and someone not.
If we are not shooting on a neutral background, we pay A LOT of attention to how much the framed environment hangs over the subject.
If we are not shooting for ourselves, but for the subject, we avoid small focal lengths and if we have an 85mm, let’s mount it without hesitation and set an aperture between f./2.8 and f./5.6.
Pay attention to what we focus, the longer the focal length and the aperture open, the less things will be in focus. Often, with a 200mm at f./2.8, it is enough that the subject is placed by three quarters for the distant eye to be out of focus.
What is the Best lens size for portraits for value for money?
We all agree that having a set of lenses for every situation is very expensive, so the first one I am going to recommend is a lens that does not cost much, which is very bright and is one of my favorites. We find both the Nikon portrait lens and the Canon portrait lens.
It is true that a fixed lens is very bright, but it is also not very versatile, especially for the less experienced. For this reason, I also recommend an excellent middle ground with the 70-200mm that once again you can find from Canon and Nikon.
This line of lenses is also excellent for sports photography and all other photographic genres where you need a blurry background to be able to give more prominence to the subject in the foreground. In fact, if we look at the lenses for sports photos, we find many 70-200s.
Logically the depth of field is very limited, so to be able to use it in a prolific way a small photography course to review all the photographic techniques would not be bad at all.
Now let’s see which close-up lens is right for you for the different manufacturers.
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