Advice needed - shooting close-ups of faces

I'm mainly photographing my children with X-700 bodies and a Minolta

MD 85mm 1.7.

 

Seems that I can't get in for extreme close-ups of their faces with

this lens and am concerned that wider angles will distort their

features.

 

What lens should I be using?

If you are seeking extreme close-ups and can't achieve them with this lens because of the minimum focus distance, why not buy one of the 100mm macro lenses that enable you to focus as close as you require. Alternatively, and a lot cheaper, get a "0" strength minolta close-up lens. This one is a mild effect and simply enables closer focus than would otherwise be achievable. Results are excellent and very sharp, as the minolta close focus lenses use a multiple element construction.

 

Expect to pay about $20 on ebay. You want strength "0".

 

Best regards,

 

Antony

It�s getting the camera too close to the subject rather than just the use of a wide angle that causes distortion.

 

If your main interest is shooting children and you want to get closer than the 85mm, then I would suggest you think about a zoom lens. You might consider something in the 70 to 200 or so zoom range. These are not �pin sharp� so sell for reasonable prices on Ebay and should be fine for portraiture.

For getting portrait-type shots of my kids (they're very young and won't sit still long enough to set up real portraits!), I use a Minolta AF 70-210mm f/4 on my Maxxum 5. I understand that Minolta also sold a MF (MD mount) version of this lens (and that Leica sold an MF version for its R-series SLR's). I often find myself in the 125mm to 150mm range. The results are not always super-sharp (I'm often shooting wide open--f/4--at 1/125 or 1/180 s, hand-held), but on the whole it works pretty well.

I agree getting the 100mm macro lens, but this lens' slowness may be a problem in low light conditions or with slower speed film. Otherwise you can get a 100mm f2 lens or a 135mm f2 lens for speed and sit farther away from the subject and still get close. Also, some companies made 80-200mm f2.8 lenses which are good. Personally I've used a 58mm f1.2 lens to get close enough and fast enough to freeze their faces. It's problem is the very shallow depth of field wide open.

 

Good luck.

 

--Scott--