Portrait Lens

[mactonio]

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On saturday I bought a Voigtlander 75 f1.8 lens just for portraits purposes.

Now I have the doubt that Zeiss 85 f4 may be better due to the longer focal, but I'm not sure is worth losing the apertire difference on the lens in place of that 10 mm.

Assumed I can not afford a 90 Leica lens, which one would you advice for portraits between the 75 f1.8 and the 85 f4?

 

thanks

[pico]

The difference in magnification is too small to worry about. The only issue is the aperture. If you actually use f1.8, then there is your answer. You are good to go unless you do not like the rendering.

 

FWIW, I used one of the Canon screw-mount 85mm lenses (there were a few different versions) and found it soft and good for portraits. An example.

[wda]

Almost any lens can be used for portraits; but one between 50mm and 90mm would be better than wider. I use a 75mm Summarit frequently for portraits with a 90mm slightly less often. A very wide aperture is tricky to use on close portraits because of shallow depth of field.

[cpclee]

I prefer 2.8 or wider for a portrait lens in that focal length range.

[spydrxx]

I honestly think either would work fine....personally I wouldn't fret about it. Just get on with the photography.

[algrove]

IMHO, if you only bought it a few days ago, use it and then see how it renders for your tastes.

[NZDavid]

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The main thing is to focus on the eyes. It doesn't seem to matter if not all of the subjects's face is in focus but the eyes are what you look at first.

 

A 50mm lens has a 45º angle of view, a 75mm has 31º, and a 90mm has 27º -- so really a very fine difference between 75mm and 90mm.

 

The faster lens will let you short at a higher shutter speed for a sharper portrait in low light.