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Using different lenses for portraits

Techniques

24 October 2007 14:53

Which lens is best for portrait photography? A short telephoto lens around 70-105mm (or 50-75mm on most digital SLRs) is the classic choice for portraits, and most standard zooms have this at the longer end of the zoom. For digital SLRs with an APS-sized sensor the traditional 50mm lens is a great choice for portraits as they’re reasonably affordable, offer the perfect focal length and have very wide maximum apertures for limited depth-of-field or shooting in low light.

For both digital and 35mm cameras, a macro lens with a focal length around 100mm doubles up as a superb portrait lens. Using a short telephoto lens means you can fill the frame with a head and shoulders shot without being too close to the subject. But you don’t have to stick to traditional short telephoto lenses like these,

A wide-angle lens isn’t the first choice for most portraits as you have to get very close to the subject to fill the frame, resulting in distorted features and unflattering results. But this doesn’t mean you should ignore it completely, as rules are there to be broken.

Wide-angle lenses are great for including plenty of the background while keeping the subject large in the frame, or full length images where space is limited. With a very wide lens use the distortion to your advantage for unconventional

At the other end of the scale, long telephoto lenses of 150mm and above are more commonly used for action or sports photography, but can still be used for portraits. Using a long telephoto lens for portraits means you’ll be shooting a long way from your subject. Shooting from a greater distance than you would with a shorter focal length means your subject will appear closer to the background, so you can be more selective about what you include.