what lens are good for Portrait and wedding shots?


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MrJelly

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Oct 28, 2008
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For budget < 700$, what lens are good to use for taking Portraits or wedding shots?
I heard 85mm 1.8 is very good for portrait. How about 50mm 1.8? Then what lens to be used for wedding shots?
 

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I would have to say 50 mm 1.8 on the bodies with the cropped 1.5 format. It makes it the 75 mm. I love this small guy.

For 85 mm, then i would say, have to be on full frame body. If you use the 85 mm on a DX format, it makes it 127mm. To me, its a distance where you cant give instructions to yr models/ wedding couples unless you come with a deep voice.

For wedding, zoom would give you more flexibility. Something in the range of 18-135 or if you can go for the higher end with F2.8. It would work out superb.
 

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Wedding shots and under $700, the Tamron 17-50 f2.8 maybe your best bet.
 

17-50 is too short to get any candid shots.
 

with that budget

17-50 tammy + 50mm f/1.8
 

Wait a minute. Does the TS mean potraiture, as in the wedding couple will pose for you, be it in a studio or an outdoor venue, or an event coverage, such as the entire wedding procession?
 

Wait a minute. Does the TS mean potraiture, as in the wedding couple will pose for you, be it in a studio or an outdoor venue, or an event coverage, such as the entire wedding procession?

Yes, for that purpose too. I really want to go into wedding portraits/events as well as non-wed portraits (means shooting model) too.

I want to start with gears as low cost as possible, yet which can give me best photo shots in terms of quality & versatility with this tight budget.

To cover up for lens costs, I thinking to start with D80 for body which is now quite affordable at 2nd hand price.

Plz advise me which lens are a must to have to start off. :)
 

If it is lowest cost with best IQ... start with the Tamron 17-50 f/2.8. It costs about $450 2nd hand.
 

I'd say the standard Nikon kit lens will get you started. The 18-55mm may be a little limiting in terms of reach, but a 18-70mm, 18-105VR or 18-135mm are good contenders. The Tamron will work as well, with the large f/2.8 aperture in its advantage. Still, you may find the range a little limiting. I have covered events exclusively on the Tamron 17-50mm as well as on the Nikon 18-200mm VR. I'd say each have its strengths and weaknesses, and that you'd have to think of solutions to overcome their limitations. To each his own.

Most lenses are fine for posed potraiture, since you can easily walk up front or back off to overcome any limitation in reach. The trade-off lies in the lack of a really shallow depth of field that the 50mm and 85mm primes provide.
 

Personally... I prefer more tele, of say 28-75...

If you have the dough, go for the 24-70 Nikkor. And a 85 would compliment nicely.
 

I'd say the standard Nikon kit lens will get you started. The 18-55mm may be a little limiting in terms of reach, but a 18-70mm, 18-105VR or 18-135mm are good contenders. The Tamron will work as well, with the large f/2.8 aperture in its advantage. Still, you may find the range a little limiting. I have covered events exclusively on the Tamron 17-50mm as well as on the Nikon 18-200mm VR. I'd say each have its strengths and weaknesses, and that you'd have to think of solutions to overcome their limitations. To each his own.

Most lenses are fine for posed potraiture, since you can easily walk up front or back off to overcome any limitation in reach. The trade-off lies in the lack of a really shallow depth of field that the 50mm and 85mm primes provide.
Hi, actually, I hav already tried 18-105mm VR (D90 kit lens) a few weeks ago and have sold it out just a few days ago. It didnt meet my expectation. To get a bokeh, I had to zoom in like over 70mm. Even so bokeh is still not that great. But i understand it is due to aperture of this lens...at 70mm, can't even get F3.5 already. Furthermore, zooming compromises view of sight which means the more u zoom in to get good bokeh, the narrower the view. That made me impossible to shoot whole body portrait with nice bokeh, wide background.
 

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I see. Hmmm... Well, since you'd like to have the bokeh, then I'd suggest the 85mm. Either the f/1.8 or f1.4. Still, you need some versatility to cover events, and primes just don't seem that useful in this aspect.

Since the Nikon 24-70mm and the 28-70mm are above your budget, maybe you can consider the Tamron 28-75mm...

And with that, I just realized that my recommendation concurs with zac08.
 

D80 with budget?

18-55 vr2 + 85 f1.8
u also need a flash and a spare body if ur really venture into weddings
 

D80 with budget?

18-55 vr2 + 85 f1.8
u also need a flash and a spare body if ur really venture into weddings

Have done a few weddings with a single flash and body, so... dun think it's really a MUST, more of a good to have.
 

Have done a few weddings with a single flash and body, so... dun think it's really a MUST, more of a good to have.

are u the main photographer?
then i think ur a guru :bsmilie:
 

are u the main photographer?
then i think ur a guru :bsmilie:

Yes for 2... the rest shoot as an extra

Considering extra body, but money is an issue
 

After reading through all suggestions, can I conclude that either of these two combination will meet my needs with D80 body?

17-50mm f2.8
50mm f1.8

Or

Tamron 28-75mm
85mm f1.8
 

After reading through all suggestions, can I conclude that either of these two combination will meet my needs with D80 body?

17-50mm f2.8
50mm f1.8

Or

Tamron 28-75mm
85mm f1.8
you'll be better off with 17-50 range as it will be used most of the time and no time to change lens during wedding shoot.
 

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