Popular Prime Lens


Kopred

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Jul 25, 2010
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Hi All,
I'm currently using D90, looking for a prime lens.
Which are the popular recomendation?
Especially, good for taking potraits, range from $400-$1000.

For me, preferably "very sharp image" as a top priority.
Thanks in advance for the info

Regards
 

Its up to you, how you want your portrait to be (full/half body?) and how close you want to be to your model and size of the studio that you are going to shoot in (if you are using a studio)

Some examples are 50mm 1.8, 50mm 1.4, 35mm 1.8, 85mm 1.8. The 85mm 1.4 would probably be out of your price range.
 

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For ptraits, 35mm and 85mm would be a good choice. 35mm is good for full length and 85mm will be good for headshots. The mentioned lens tend to have a heavier price tag. 85mm f1.4 might not fall between your budget.
 

As what spree86 mentions, the 35mm f/1.8 (for full-body portraits on an APS-C body), the 50mm f/1.8 or f/1.4 for that half-body shot, and the 85mm f/1.8 for that head/face look.

Start small, start cheap. Explore your capabilities before investing in 1 more lens. (Or you can just head over to B&S section and select the best deals for your focal length needs.)
 

Hi All,
I'm currently using D90, looking for a prime lens.
Which are the popular recomendation?
Especially, good for taking potraits, range from $400-$1000.

For me, preferably "very sharp image" as a top priority.
Thanks in advance for the info

Regards

Hard to recommend, it really depends on your shooting style. I'd suggest following some of the seniors' advices here - use the kit lens and see if you're used to a certain FOV (35mm, 50mm, 85mm)... Chances are, you might end up with more than one prime....

But for your budget (max), I think you can get at least two primes.
 

Hi all,
After reading all the post, i realise i got the undertanding wrong.
>> the 35mm for "Full-body portraits", the 50mm for "Half-body portraits"
All along, I thought it's the reverse...:eek:

So for a 85mm, it will be very close to the model "Head-Face portraits", likewise for 100mm even much closer (See pimple clearly?).
Correct me if I'm wrong.

Guess 85mm is out of my range...
As for 35mm & 50mm, what are the best recommeded lens of each?
Nikkor, Tokina, Sigma?

Nikkor 35mm f1.8 DX seems like a good lens, cos it give very sharp image quality? (Which is my priority)
Nikon selling at $399 RRP.
 

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Hi all,
After reading all the post, i realise i got the undertanding wrong.
>> the 35mm for "Full-body portraits", the 50mm for "Half-body portraits"
All along, I thought it's the reverse...:eek:

So for a 85mm, it will be very close to the model, likewise for 100mm even much closer.
Correct me if I'm wrong.

Guess 85mm is out of my range...
As for 35mm & 50mm, what are the best recommeded lens of each?
Nikkor, Tokina, Sigma?

Nikkor 35mm f1.8 DX seems like a good lens, cos it give very sharp image quality? (Which is my priority)
Nikon selling at $399 RRP.

All the lenses mentioned are sharp, 35mm 1.8, 50mm 1.8 nikkor lens would be the best, for 50mm 1.4 it would be sigma.

the price of the 35mm is around $380, check the nikon price list for the prices offered by the shops
 

dun mind if i hijack...

since the topic is abt prime lens..
im looking to get a 50mm f1.8 for simple protraits...would that be enuff for a full-body?
doing a bit of street, walkabout photography
 

dun mind if i hijack...

since the topic is abt prime lens..
im looking to get a 50mm f1.8 for simple protraits...would that be enuff for a full-body?
doing a bit of street, walkabout photography

Whether its enough for a full body depends on how far you are from the subject. It should be enough for a street walkabout.
 

i'm using D90 too, with a 50mm f1.8 most of the time as i love taking portraits.

for 85mm to take head shot you need to be at least 2-3m away, and if you do not want the shadow the subject needs to be another 1-2m from the wall, so you need a large room especially if you are taking half-body with 85mm. 105mm would be worse. 85mm on D90 is actually 127.5mm.

35mm is better for half to full-body as you can be nearer to the subject.

thats why i use something in between, a 50mm, which is 75mm on D90. all i need to do is to move nearer or further from the subject.
 

You might want to decide on the reach(35/50/85) before you drill down to the specifics(1.4/1.8). To determine that, you can set your 18-105 to the 3 focal lengths and see what you are comfortable with and also to have a rough idea of what the 3 different reach can capture.:)
 

Yes, all three 35/50/85mm can take full body shots... FOV for 35 is very wide, you don't have to stand too far for a full body...50mm is the medium FOV between the 35 and 85mm. FOV of 85mm is the narrowest of the 3 that you have to step back further for a full body shot, or else you'll end up cropping the body...
 

You might want to decide on the reach(35/50/85) before you drill down to the specifics(1.4/1.8). To determine that, you can set your 18-105 to the 3 focal lengths and see what you are comfortable with and also to have a rough idea of what the 3 different reach can capture.:)

Thumbs up for this idea. Never thought of it. ;p;
 

For users of Nikkor 35mm f1.8 & Nikkor 50mm f1.8.
Which is sharper in image?
 

For portraits: My pick would be 50mm first. Later if still got budget, and you prefer wider go 24, 30 or 35mm. If you prefer tighter, 85mm.

Why? for portraits the 50mm is the most versatile. 24/30mm is my personal preference.

Individual lens recommendation in your budget range (left is more recommended):

50mm - Voigtlander 58/1.4 (MF), Nikon 50/1.4D or Nikon 50/1.8 (if on budget)
24mm - Sigma 24/1.8
35/30mm - Sigma 30/1.4 or Nikon 35/1.8G or Nikon 35/2 (if you planning to go FX soon)
85mm - Nikon 85/1.8
 

For users of Nikkor 35mm f1.8 & Nikkor 50mm f1.8.
Which is sharper in image?

I have owned both at one time. 35/1.8 seems quite a bit sharper. But with the 50/1.8, you can get more background blur than the 35/1.8
 

I am using D90 with 18 -200mm kit and just added 35mm f/1.8 to my collection. For the 35mm f/1.8, picture is very sharp, I Love it. Got it for $350.
 

remember that at longer focal lengths it is easier to create OOF areas, and its nicer for portraits that have that particular style...

so 50 will be better than 35...

85 will be better than 50.... and so on...

just take note that the longer you go, the more restricted in movement space u become...

so as always, there are no perfect solutions, something has to give in order for something to gain... :thumbsup::thumbsup: