SMC M LENS

Does any one still use the old lense for portraits ?. Also can some one recommend one of these lens for portraits there seems to be varying thoughts of the best focal lenght for this use so any feed back is more than welcome. I have a 50mm 1.7 which I love but not sure if there may be better options.

Regards Ian

I think you would have trouble beating that 50 1.7
The 135 3.5 will get you further back, and my copy is one of the sharpest lenses I own wide open, which always helps for eyes etc. (you can easily soften an image from a good lens, but you'll never get a poor one sharp)

+1 for the M135/3.5. My copy is also very sharp wide open and you can pick up one on eBay from £10+. A little gem.

The only problem is that on APS size sensor it can be a touch too long for portraits.

At f5.6 or thereabouts (I had to search hard for a portraity shot taken with it) :



Buttercup Sue by kh1234567890, on Flickr

I certainly do, and have had great success with the 50mm f/1.7 taking pictures of a toddler running around - the older manual lenses are useful for more than just static subjects.

As can be seen in my signature I have a few manual lenses ... I have tried several focal lengths to determine which suit me best and for portraits the 50mm f/1.7 and 100mm f/2.8 are my favourites. Both lenses make obtaining good pictures with quality out of focus blur a breeze.

Due to enjoying the above two lenses so much, I haven't used the 85mm f/2 enough. I have found though that, at least in the way I use it, metering with the 85mm is more difficult, with the camera / lens / operator combination tending to overexpose. More testing required I think.

Finally and certainly not least, the 150mm f/3.5 and 200mm f/4 are also a delight to use, making it easy to take pleasing photographs. I haven't used these two as much as the others simply due to my tendency to favour shorter focal lengths.

We all have opinions on which focal lengths are "best" for portraits and the correct answer is whatever focal length suits your style and needs. There are plenty of manual lenses on the used market, both here and on a popular auction site, so it is easy to try a few to ascertain which you prefer.

There is a lot of experience on this site to provide feedback and guidance, so ask if you need more specific information on any particular lens.

I'll give a plug to 135mm as well. I have an old 70's Tamron Adaptall 135 f2.8 which does the job. The perspective at this length is beautiful, and it can be advantageous to be further back - perhaps not in the studio, but out and about it works and makes moving around easier.

here's a couple of my examples -

Thanks guys the photos look very crisp and clean I have both the 135 and the 50 so look forward to giving both a go.

Ian

I use old lenses for many things, but a fast 50 is hard to beat for portraits. I've used many and my favourite is the SMC Takumar 55mm f/1.8, but you may not want to go M42, and to be honest, there's very little in it. The M 50mm f/1.7 is a fine choice, and you won't find any other lens of such quality for the price.

The M50 F1.4 is fabulous for portrait work, as is the A50 F1.7, I use them both quite regularly.

Regards
David

A smc m 100/2.8 or smc m85/2 would get my vote