Portrait lens for Nikon

[chriscorbin]

I am starting to take portraits for a couple of high school seniors and i have been getting away with my D50 kit lens, but its time to upgrade i think, my budget is around $400-$450(its a new lens or a ipod touch!) and it will be mostly for portraits, brand is not an issue for me, I care about quality not who makes it, let me know if it would be better to wait and buy a more expensive lens, but if i have to wait it will be a LONG time before i have money again, I would like a f/2.8 if thats possible.

I was looking at this

 

[alecmcmahon]

i hear the 50 mm 1.8 is pretty good, and extremly sharp.

the low aperture will be good for a nice blurry background.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/247091-USA/Nikon_2137_Normal_AF_Nikkor_50mm.html

 

[DaBooch]

i hear the 50 mm 1.8 is pretty good, and extremly sharp.

Absolutely. That's what I use, and it's an incredibly cheap lens. It's a prime, so you're probably going to get better image quality than a Sigma zoom. Seriously, just pick up a 50mm f/1.8 and spend some money on a good tripod or flash.

 

[ChrisA]

I have both the 50mm f/1.4 and the 85mm f/1.8 Both are excellent for your usage. The 85mm gives you more distance and is best for head and shoulders shots the 50mm would be best for full length shots. The 85 is well within your budget and there are good used examples of this lens available.

There is absolutely no reason to need a zoom lens in portrait work. You have a cooperative subject so you can reframe by moving the camera or subject

I also have an older manual focus 105mm f/2.5 lens. This is a real classic. The lens has a "look" that is not equaled and you can buy a very good late model for under $100.
It does not meter with my D50 but in a studio you can take a couple test shots and use the histogram to nail the exposure. This is the lens that has the built in lens hood. Get the newer "AIS" version. It has the better optical coatings. This lens is actually "free" because you can always sell it for what you paid.

What you look for in a lens fr portraits is not just "sharpness" (which you may not even want.) but how it renders color, it's contrast or "snap" and very important, how it renders the out of focus background. Most zooms instroduce bad artifacts to the out of focus parts of the image. Some primes do too. You want a lens that makes it look soft without any halos, double images or what not.

 

[Abstract]

Yep, I'd get the 85 mm f/1.8 or 50 mm f/1.8. Actually, I'd take the 50 mm f1.8 and save some money for that iPod Touch.

I have that Sigma 24-70 mm f2.8, and it's a nice lens, but I would't say it's a portrait lens. There's nothing wrong for using it as one, but get a 50 mm f1.8 instead.

 

[Westside guy]

The biggest selling point for the 50mm f/1.8 is the price. I think the 35mm f/2 (a bit north of $300) is a better & more flexible portrait lens on a DX camera though.

 

[Mark Scheuern]

And another vote for the 50 mm f/1.8. You can't go wrong for the money.

 

[DAC47]

A good article on the benefits of the 50mm lens over zoom here

http://vothphoto.com/spotlight/articles/forgotten_lens/forgotten-lens.htm
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[ChrisA]

And another vote for the 50 mm f/1.8. You can't go wrong for the money.

He didn't ask for the most bang per buck. He has a small part time business doing portraits and needs low cost equipment. What matters most here is
Camera to subject distance for the shots he needs. This distance defines the "perspective" and sense of depth. It's an artistic choice. Classic formal portraits use a medium telephoto. The more modern "in your face" advertising style uses a shorter lens and short camera to subject distance. He may very well want an 85mm lens even if it cost double the 50mm price. Good 85mm lenses are avalable still under the $400 budget. the other thing is the "look" of the out of focus parts of the image and color and contrast

If "bang per buck" is the goal. There is no way anything can beat that 105mm f/2.5 lens. They are easy to get for $100 but with a crop body camera this will put you some distance from your subject, good or bad, it depends.

I do agree the 50mm lens as the first lens most people should buy.

 

[miloblithe]

I have both the Sigma 24-70 f/2.8 and Canon 50mm f/1.8. The Sigma is not at all an ideal portrait lens, as it's a bit soft at f/2.8 at 70mm. Like others have said, if you're really just dealing with posed subjects, as prime or primes is the way to go. What lenses do you already have? Getting the 50 f/1.8 and 85 f/1.8 would be a great move. Those two lenses are virtually impossible to beat in terms of price and performance.

(I'd recommend the Sigma, by the way, but as an "event" lens, not a portrait lens.)

 

[MacIllini]

i have a Canon 50mm f/1.8 too. great portrait pics, lens only cost me $78

 

[chriscorbin]

I have decided to first get the 50mm f/1.8 Nikon lens
and i will buy the sigma the next time i get paid
while everyone is looking at the thread though can anyone recommend a good camera bag, something that can hold: at least 3 lenses not very tall, a SB-600 flash, a Wireless trigger, extra batteries, a charger, and of course a D50(hopefully a D300 soon!) I know thats a lot, but better to pack heavy then leave something behind and need it!

PS a pace to put a tripod would be nice

 

[jlcharles]

Domke. Best bag I've owned by far.

 

[JDN]

I am correct in thinking if i wanted to use that nikon 50mm f/1.8 with my D40x it would be manual focus only aren't i?

 

[arsiegal]

Go with Nikon Lenses

I am starting to take portraits for a couple of high school seniors and i have been getting away with my D50 kit lens, but its time to upgrade i think, my budget is around $400-$450(its a new lens or a ipod touch!) and it will be mostly for portraits, brand is not an issue for me, I care about quality not who makes it, let me know if it would be better to wait and buy a more expensive lens, but if i have to wait it will be a LONG time before i have money again, I would like a f/2.8 if thats possible.

I was looking at this

I own a D200 and I use Nikon lenses only. I use a Nikon Nikor 50mm lens for shooting portraits to everything. Right now I'm Thailand for four months shooting digital and my 50mm 1.4 lens is working great. I recommend this lens and it's pretty reasonably cheap if your on a budget.

 

[compuwar]

I am starting to take portraits for a couple of high school seniors and i have been getting away with my D50 kit lens, but its time to upgrade i think, my budget is around $400-$450(its a new lens or a ipod touch!) and it will be mostly for portraits, brand is not an issue for me, I care about quality not who makes it, let me know if it would be better to wait and buy a more expensive lens, but if i have to wait it will be a LONG time before i have money again, I would like a f/2.8 if thats possible.

I was looking at this

1. What about your current lens isn't working?
2. If it's not a horrid IQ problem, are you better off spending your money on lighting? Flashes with stands and modifiers are likely to be a better portrait investment if you don't already have multiple light sources.

 

[chriscorbin]

1. AF on my D50 Kit lens of whatever reason decides not to focus in anything but the brightest settings, i work with strobes in a darker room, so this is a problem. i would like sharper images and my kit lens just does not deliver

2. Don't worry i made that investment as soon as I learned how to properly use studio lighting, I have practiced with it often, I already own 3 lights with stands and 3 umbrellas, and soon a softbox

 

[ChrisA]

1. AF on my D50 Kit lens of whatever reason decides not to focus in anything but the brightest settings, i work with strobes in a darker room, so this is a problem. i would like sharper images and my kit lens just does not deliver

If you depend of autofocus, this is a good reason to go for the f/1.4 lens. The AF system needs light to be accurate. The AF is always done with the lens wide open and the fast lens will provide more light to the AF sensor (The is lens stopped down to the requested f-stop only for the exposure.) Also with the smaller DOF at f/1.4 the AF is more sensitive andf the lens does not need to "hunt" through as long a range to find focus. So the AF will work in a darkened room better with an f/1.4 lens than with the f/3.5 (or whatever) kit lens.

The Nikon 18-55 lens is not "soft". I think it actually has better resolution than the 6MP sensor can record. Aany softness is from the "anti-alias" filter installed on the CCD sensor. You can prove this by putting the 18-55 on a D200 and seeing it you capture more detail.

I think what you describe is from trying to use AF in a situation where it does not work well.

The best work I've done is with a manual focus camera and my Norman lights. These lights have built-in quartz modeling lights that let me see exacly how the flash will look and provide enough light to focus. A good light system with the modeling feature are almost required for studio work. Buy used lights. They last literally forever and never go obsolete.

 

[compuwar]

1. AF on my D50 Kit lens of whatever reason decides not to focus in anything but the brightest settings, i work with strobes in a darker room, so this is a problem. i would like sharper images and my kit lens just does not deliver

The AF-assist illuminator is not available in Landscape or Sports mode or when Off is selected for Custom Setting 7 (AF Assist). For the AF-assist illuminator to function correctly, the lens must have a focal length of 24–200 mm and the subject must be in range of the illuminator (0.5– 3 m). To ensure a good result lens hoods can not be used in combination with the AF-assist illuminator.

I'd probably look at (a) An IR light to assist with focus, or (b) ensuring that I was at leaast at 24mm as a first step. If the AF assist is working correctly, then I'd look at a new lens...

 

[beloved84]

get the 18-50mm f/2.8 forget about the one that goes to 70mm.

 

[mangoman]

And another vote for the 50 mm f/1.8. You can't go wrong for the money.

Yup. Agreed. Have one on my D50 right now. It's my everyday lens, and it's made me a better photographer since I can't get lazy with a zoom. Forces me to compose, and the speed of that little lens is great, too. Oh, and for $125? Can't beat it.

 

[liveexpo]

If you depend of autofocus, this is a good reason to go for the f/1.4 lens. The AF system needs light to be accurate. The AF is always done with the lens wide open and the fast lens will provide more light to the AF sensor (The is lens stopped down to the requested f-stop only for the exposure.) Also with the smaller DOF at f/1.4 the AF is more sensitive andf the lens does not need to "hunt" through as long a range to find focus. So the AF will work in a darkened room better with an f/1.4 lens than with the f/3.5 (or whatever) kit lens.

The Nikon 18-55 lens is not "soft". I think it actually has better resolution than the 6MP sensor can record. Aany softness is from the "anti-alias" filter installed on the CCD sensor. You can prove this by putting the 18-55 on a D200 and seeing it you capture more detail.

I think what you describe is from trying to use AF in a situation where it does not work well.

The best work I've done is with a manual focus camera and my Norman lights. These lights have built-in quartz modeling lights that let me see exacly how the flash will look and provide enough light to focus. A good light system with the modeling feature are almost required for studio work. Buy used lights. They last literally forever and never go obsolete.

If your camera allows it, shoot RAW, then sharpen 20 points in PS. More often than not its the in-camera processing that softens an image, or takes detail away. My way of thinking is to not let the camera do any processing itself. I use my Mac and CS2 for that.

 

[gwuMACaddict]

Softness

Make sure that you have your camera set up correctly. The D50 defaults to automatic sharpening/ contrast/ saturation/ etc.

In my experience, this had a tendency to result in soft, boring pictures. The camera (and kit lens) rocks when set up correctly.

Make sure the camera settings are set the way you want them- Auto can be dangerous.

 

[chriscorbin]

Make sure that you have your camera set up correctly. The D50 defaults to automatic sharpening/ contrast/ saturation/ etc.

In my experience, this had a tendency to result in soft, boring pictures. The camera (and kit lens) rocks when set up correctly.

Make sure the camera settings are set the way you want them- Auto can be dangerous.

agreed auto is EVIL