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Jasontengco
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Best lens for portraits? created by Dr.Garibaldi on Jan 27, 2007:
Dr.Garibaldi said at 4:46 p.m. on Jan 27, 2007:
Suggestions and hints about choosing the most suitable lens for shooting portraits.
Pkeener said at 5:23 p.m. on Jan 27, 2007:
A "prime" meaning only one focal length 100-105 mm lens. In digital that would be about 85mm. As FAST as you can afford...f1.4 or 2.8 so you can have the narrow depth of field to make backround blurry and use natural light. That is just my opinion and you should exoeriment with focal lengths to your liking.
Dr.Garibaldi said at 2:50 p.m. on Jan 28, 2007:
Thanks for your reply, Pkeener. I opened this thread for debates from users who use different lenses to share info from their personal experience.
For example, I always take into my bag the awesome Canon EF 50mm f1.8, which provides some extraordinary quality, even though it is a cheap peace of equipment.
For portraits I have been using lately the powerful Canon EF 100-400 mm L IS, even though its primary target are wildlife and sports photography, but what quality it packs.
Mariamontano81 said at 3:52 p.m. on Jan 28, 2007:
For my work I use a Canon 17-85mm IS lens. I find it works great for the type of work I do. Gives me a good shallow depth of field, and is extremly fast.
Pkeener said at 5:13 p.m. on Jan 28, 2007:
I use my Canon 17-85mm IS for almost everything, too, but it is not fast enough for the natural light, shallow depth of field that I like for people portraits...Mine is 4.5 and wasn't aware of a faster one?
Jasontengco said at 1:59 a.m. on Jan 29, 2007:
i agree...the 50mm f1.8 is cheap but it is great for portraits! it took me a while to get used to it but it did give me pretty good pics! :)
Dr.Garibaldi said at 12:03 p.m. on Jan 29, 2007:
Jasontengco, I too had to go through a "training period" till I got used to the Canon's EF 50mm f 1.8 bad habit to front or back focus. Over all it delivers exceptional quality for the money spent.
Pkeener and Mariamontano81 have you noticed some loss of sharpness when using the IS mode with your 17-85 mm lens? I never had the chance to test one...
StacyCK said at 7:10 p.m. on Apr 19, 2007:
I use my 50MM 1.8 exclusively for my portraits. For the price it is a great lens. I am thinking about getting the Sigma 35mm 1.4 since sometimes the 50MM doesn't work well for tight spots. Not sure yet, though.
Umair said at 11:24 p.m. on May 6, 2007:
50mm 1.8 is a marvellous lens to work with, especially with DSLRs where one has the option to change ISO settings for better shutter speeds to avoid camera shake. best lens i worked with is Canon 50mm 1.4, nothing like that but still i love 50mm 1.8. it has added so much to my photography.
Japh said at 9:16 p.m. on Dec 18, 2007:
I agree with Pkeener, I really like the 85mm f/1.8 on my 20D. Fast enough for good indoor natural light; just long enough to provide slight compression. Second favorite is the 70-200 f/2.8 IS, especially outdoors when I have room to work. I tried the 100-400mm, but found it a bit unwieldy for my tastes, except for the really long reach.

The 'best' lens is the one that gets the shot! ;-)