There are two things I look for in choosing the
ideal portrait lens. First of all it needs to be a prime lens and not a zoom lens.
Prime lenses provide me with
a big aperture and control of background blur and Bokeh. Most prime lenses are able to pass between four and eight times more light than a zoom lens. This means prime lenses can be used in low light situations and still maintain a fast shutter speed, resulting in increased sharpness.
Because of a prime's superior light gathering properties the photographer can also choose a lower ISO which reduces the risk of visual noise. This results in superior print quality.
The second major factor is
the actual focal length of the lens. A photographer needs to be sufficiently close to their subject to communicate without
shouting but not so close that hey encroach on the subject’s personal space. Of equal importance is subject-lens distance. if you get too close to your subject you will steepen
perspective and distort facial features. Few subjects, other than circus clowns would appreciate this!An 85mm f1.4 prime lens addresses those two requirements, providing sharp images, flattened perspective and superb bokeh.
To learn more about lenses, cameras and portrait techniques join me on my next UWA Portraits - Memories Forever workshop.
