which lens for Portrait work

[mikelc]

...just got back from Greece where the m8 with a 35mm sum and a cv15mm performed flawlessly...i'm now actually thinking of selling my 1dsII and canon lenses and investing full time in leica and it's lenses...anyway i do lots of portrait and fashion work so i'm wondering what would be the better choice (in terms of mm given the 1.33), a 50 mm2.0 sum or the 75mm sum?...currently i use an 85 1.8 on my 1ds..thanks for any advice here

mike

www.mikecetta.com

[carstenw]

IMO, there are five strong choices, depending on what focal length you like for portraits and how sharp and unforgiving you like your portraits: 50mm Noctilux (special look, super-narrow depth of field), 50mm Summilux (previous version, great for portraits), 50 Lux Asph (a wonderful all-round lens which is also great for portraits, although perhaps too sharp), 75 Lux (legendary rendering wide open, very sharp stopped down), 75 Cron (razor sharp).

Personally, I have the 50 Lux Asph and am buying a 75 Lux. If I find that I like the look of the latter, but find it too long, I will pick up a previous-gen 50 Lux. The Noctilux is always a contender though. Special lens, although super expensive.

[mikelc]

..thanks carsten for your quick reply...both the 50 lux and 75 cron are under 3k so at this point anyway i can deal with that so i'll keep you advice in mind..the ff is a bit hard to decide though because the 50 on the m8 is really a 67 and the 75 is really a 100 which i was leaning toward but am concerned with it being too long...do you know where i could see example of each on the M8?

[iomatic]

Hey mike,

Would love to know what FL you shot with more or less?

Thanks.

[mikelc]

for portrait work i've used the 50 and more recently the 85 on my canon...

[xjr]

75mm f2.0

[guy_mancuso]

I would lean to the 75 lux

[iomatic]

I meant on your trip. Did you hanker for something longer, or wider?

Originally Posted by mikelc

for portrait work i've used the 50 and more recently the 85 on my canon...

[mikelc]

...thanks for the responces...i thought the 75 also but it is more like a 100 on this camera...anyway on my trip i used both ...though i wish i had had longer as well...generally when not shooting portraits i prefer wide (do lots of city/landscapes) so the 15 and 35 are perfect combo for me

[woodyspedden]

I personally have not used the 75 Lux but trust Guy's inputs explicitly. This guy (Guy?) knows what he is doing.

I have been using both the 90 cron apo/asph and the 75 cron apo/asph. All in all I love both these lenses and fine they do a fine job on portraits. You may want to do a little post work with blur to soften the images somewhat as they are just razor sharp glasses. I find that it is always possible to soften a too sharp image but if the sharpness isn't there you are kind of up the creek if you need it, thus the apo/asph lenses.

I really want to try the 75 Lux and hopefully can find someone who has one and is willing to give it up for a day or two to get a comparative feel.

I use the 180 apo/asph cron on the DMR and am thinking of trying the 135 3.4 on the M8 to compare. I love the 180 cron and find it's particular look to be fascinating. Anyone tried this comparison?

Woody

[guy_mancuso]

Thanks Woody i am going after the 135 3.4 also just to round this M system off. I normally shoot portraits with the 180 F2 on the DMR because of the falloff outside the Focused area and reason i like the 75 lux is because they act the same , the 75 lux at 2.8 or f4 is a beautiful rendering of sharp face with fall off after the back of the head The 90 cron and 75 cron are also beautiful lenses but are slightly more clinical looking. This is what is nice about leica glass and that is the character that certain lenses have. Really fun to experiment with different ones to see what character they have but Lux lenses are typical the character lenses in general both on the R and M side

[mikelc]

...thanks woody...i like your comment on sharp...i use softning filters on all my work including portraits but you're right that you want to start with sharp and work from there...my only concern with the 75 was weather it would be too long (on the m8 that is) for portraits but it sounds like it won't be a problem...anyway perhaps i should do another post but can anyone suggest some pro sites where i can list my canon equipement for sale?

[mikelc]

hi guy...just visited your site...beautiful work and see what you mean about the sharp and fall off

[grober]

On the M8, for well-isolated shots, a 50 is almost perfect for a couple; the 75 is best for a single subject. The faster the lens, the greater your capability to throw the background into a pleasing confusion behind the subject(s).

Hey, don't forget that wide angle portraits if there's a desire to capture the person (or couple) in their working environment.

-g

[Roderik]

for me 75 /1.4 and 50/1.4 on M6 but now on M8 i even us the 35 for portraits altough mostley the 50

[squiff]

noctilux

[lars_bergquist]

I really don't think some focal lengths are better for portraits than others are. Do you want those passport-style 'big heads', 1930's style? Or is your ideal Holbein's full-length portrait of king Harry, aggressive glare and all? The full length likeness was once the most prestigious style; only princes could afford it. You can in fact go even further, for there is a genre that may be termed 'environmental portraits', the person in telling surroundings -- as long as the person is the real subject.

So it all depends. You can go all the way from say 28 mm to 135, or even farther! The thing to remember is never to approach an adult person closer than about 2 meters or 7 feet. Not because he or she will bite, but because a close approach (NOT the same as a short focal length!) will lead to perspectival distortion. Infants and young children have flatter faces and can be photographed at slightly closer distances without exhibiting the dreaded Zeppelin Nose Syndrome.

The old man from the Age of the Studio Portrait

[Ben Marks]

I tend to like a 50 (4th gen 'cron, DR 'cron or 50/1.4 asph) or 75/1.4 for portraits, although my current favorite portrait of my father was made with the 35/2 Asph. I would start by asking what kind of portraits you want to take. If you want to fill the frame with the subject's head, be kind and go for the longer lens (maybe even a 90). The 75/1.4 has very thin DOF (like the Noct), but in my experience the OOF areas are not as distracting as with an F1 lens.

[ronaldh]

I have just bought a 50's Summitar for portraits with the M8. Best of both worlds perhaps.

[luigi bertolotti]

Originally Posted by ronaldh

I have just bought a 50's Summitar for portraits with the M8. Best of both worlds perhaps.

Agree: if you love portraiting, you need (maybe ALSO) a smooth-definition lens: when I will have my M8, surely will try prtraiting with my Hektor73 of the '30... on BW Film, wide open at 1,9 is a surprisingly great portrait lens