Best focal length for party portraits?
the wide angle distortion perspective is minimized or exaggerated by how far you are from the subject.... so the 35 is fine for couples shots, by the time you're back far enough to get them both in, the perspective is fine.... 50mm is gonna be too tight I suspect.
I even shoot a lot of indoor stuff with the 16-45 which is my main workhorse for that type of work.
just remember back away as far as you can, then zoom in with the lens, if using a zoom, or choose the focal length that works if using primes...
the 35 2.4 is the one prime, I feel everybody should have in their bag....
Just a thought
Regards
I have a fast f2.8 Sigma zoom that covers both the 35mm & 50mm focal lengths and the SMC FA 50mm f1.4
The 50mm f1.4 beats the Sigma at every aperture, indoors with the K-5 ISO bumped up a little the nifty fifty is an absolute gem. It's around the £300 mark and well worth it IMHO.
You say you want flattering, at f1.4 it is admittedly a little on the soft side, however, from f1.8 onwards its super sharp and wide enough to allow light in for the AF to work without issue.
I love mine and it goes everywhere with me.
Metz 50 AF-1
Pentax SMC 50mm 1.4
Sigma 70mm 2.8 MACRO
Sigma 17mm-70mm F2.8 - 4
Pentax 18mm-55mm f3.5-56 DA WR
Pentax 50mm-200mm f3.5-5.6 DA WR
Both lenses you mention are fine lenses in my view... However i think it's also worth considering the sigma 30mm f1.4. It's a great lens and many folk on here use it for portraits to great effect. Good for low light with its wide aperture. Although that is less of an issue if you were going to use a flash. I would have thought you should be able to pick one up for your budget.
Just a thought
Regards
+ 1 for the Sigma 30/1.4 - it's a very sharp lense so not a problem cropping anything and that 1.4 gives sweet portraits (just softens up a tad). Absolutely perfect for low light, singles, couples, triples !
#1 would be a 43 Ltd or 31 Ltd but they are just a little beyond the budget
I assume you are only interested in AF ?
Nikon. D800. D600. Sigma 500/4.5, Nikon 300/2.8 VRII, Sigma 120-300/2.8, Zeiss Distagon ZF2 21/2.8, Zeiss Distagon ZF2 35/2.0, Sigma 50/1.4, Nikkor 85/1.8, Nikon TC20EIII, Nikon TC14EII, Kenko x1.4, Sigma 2.0
Thanks again for all your advice!
Steve
These are quick family snaps which I think this lens excels at. It's so small and quick to focus.
My Kiron 24/2 or Komine 28/2 CFWA are great for small groups but not for individual headshots. 35mm doesn't do much for me -- but maybe I'll change my mind after modding my Nikkor 35/2 for PK. My cheap pancake Chinon 45/2.8 is nice in the right space. My FA50/1.4 (my only AF prime) is indispensable. And a modded Nikkor 85/2 grabs faces from across the room.
In brighter spaces with larger party scenes, I like my cheap F35-70 -- screw-in a +1 dioptre closeup lens to shoot thin-DOF headshots at about 1m distance. If I could find a +1/2dpt lens, 'twould be even better, with working distance of 1.5-2m.
: Too many film & digital cameras & lenses, oh my!
:
Regards,
Peter Langone
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72 posts
13 years
I'm looking for a reasonably fast budget prime for head & shoulder portraits at a party (indoors in a normal sized house). I don't want to be in peoples faces (or suffer from the weird pespective this can create) but I also don't want to be backing up half way across the room and getting in other peoples way.
I've tried playing with my kit 18-55 and figure somewhere around 40-50mm would be sufficient. For this reason I've been considering the 50mm SMC f/1.4 and the 40mm SMC DA f/2.8 'pancake'. The 40mm seems better suited as it should be capable of framing couples without me backing up too much.
However, some guides online suggest anything less than 50mm is not recommended due to the exaggerated perspective issue. Some recommend 70+mm, but many articles neglect to state if this relates to 35mm or APS-C sensor size.
So, those with experience - is 40mm too short? I'm looking to spend £300 on an autofocus prime that will produce natural looking (flattering) portraits. Low light ability is a bonus.
Thanks,
Steve