Best Portrait lens for Canon EOS 7D

<p>I recently purchased the Canon 7D and was interested in either purchasing the Canon EF 85 mm F 1.2 or Canon 50 mm F 1.2 lens. I will be using the lens strictly for location portraits and my subject will be only one person at a time. I'm leaning towards purchasing the 85 mm lens, any suggestions?</p>

<p>I find the fairly standard 17-85mm IS Canon zoom OK for portraits. The lens should probably have an effective focal length of around 90mm and you never want to be too close to the subject. You need to multiply the focal length of the lens by 1.6 in the case of the 7D and this gives you a 27mm-136mm lens when using the 17-85mm zoom. The lens quality is very adequate and I feel no need to use any other lens. The lenses you mention will cost an arm and a leg and there is no need to go that route. Give the cheap 17-85mm a try! I think you will be very impressed.</p>

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<p>How about the 35/2.0 or 35/1.4? If money is an issue (which you did not mention), the Nifty Fifty is excellent for this, as well.</p>

<p>Thanks for the early responses. I might need to clarify my question to help with my needs. I will be shooting mostly high school senior portraits outdoors. Most, but not all, of the photos will consist from the waist up. I really want the ability to blurr the background as much as possible. I hope this helps.</p>

<p>Nothing wrong AT ALL with the 85mm 1.8 . I'll be using that lens with my 7D (in 4-5 days).</p>

<p>What lens do you have now? I too like my 85 1.8. On my full frame, I use the 70-200 2.8 IS and or 135 2.0. Since you mentioned the 85 1.2 or 50 1.2, for that price you can get the 85 1.8 AND a 70-200 2.8 (non IS). v/r Buffdr</p>

<p>Actually, I only own the body right now. I like the idea of the 85 mm 1.8. I think it will accomplish my needs, not break the bank, and let me keep distance from the subjects. Thanks for everyones help!</p>

<p>I have the 85 1.8 and 70-200 2.8 non IS and they both work very well for portraits on a full frame body. 85 may be a little long on a 7D so I guess it depends on what kind of portraits your taking. </p>

<p>85mm 1.8 </p>

<p>I currently use the 24-70 F2.8 I like the lens a lot and I find using it at the 70 for portraits most of the times. So if you are looking for a prime I'd say the 80 1.8 should be the one to get. I do have the 50 1.4 and as much as I think the lens is fabulous it might not be the best suited for portraits specially if you are outdoors where space should not be an issue.<br>

I'd love to have the 80 1.2 but I can't see the lens being 4 times better than the 1.8 as it is 4 to 5 times the cost.</p>

<p>If you can afford it grab the 50 f/1.2, on a crop body that's equivalent to an 80mm lens which for me is a great focal length to shoot portraits with. For tight head shots the 85 will work nicely.<br>

There are other choices if you wish to consider zoom lenses.</p>

<p>You should choose the focal lenght also taking into account how far away you will need to be from your subject, to achieve the from waist up portrait framing. With the 85mm lens, you will need to be further away, than with the 50mm lens.<br>

The option between the normal prime lenses range and the L prime lenses range is all entirely for you to decide. In terms of background blur, I don't think that the difference between 1.2 and 1.8 plays a big role. Why? Most likely, you will not be shooting at either one of those apertures, since you want your subject to be sharp from the nose to the eyes, so you will be using something like 5.6 or 8 as f stops. The distance from your subject to the background will be more important.</p>

<p>Portraits 101 says that 85mm is the perfect length for children and female subjects. That said, the 50mm f1.4 is 80mm on a 1.6 cropped lens, your 7D. That will give you all the blurred background you need, and it can be picked up easily for $350.</p>

<p>For male subjects 135mm is the perfect length. The 85mm 1.8 is 136mm on your 7D body, those can be picked up for $370.00. </p>

<p>I think this solution will give you the pefect lenses for all subjects, and the cost of those 2 lenses are about 1/2 the cost of the ef 50mm f1.2 L.</p>

<p>I own a 24-70mm 2.8 and an 85mm 1.8 on a 50D and both both are great. I cannot say for the 70-200 2.8. But it is on my wish list.</p>

<p>If working distance isn't an issue I'd go with the 85mm 1.8. The bokeh is very pleasing. The distance between your subject and background doesn't have to be as far to create a nice soft background bokeh effect. The more telephoto you go the closer your background can be and still have a pleasing out of focus effect. I'd suggest renting a 50mm 1.4, 85mm 1.8 and 100mm 2.8 macro. You'll like the macro because it'll allow you to do some nice tight head shots due to it's closer focusing ability. It also blurs the background very easily.</p>

On a crop sensor camera like your 7D, you must factor in the focal length multiplier. Your 85mm lens will essentially be a 136mm lens. Depending on how much space you have to work with, this could potentially be too long for a head-and-shoulders portrait. A 50mm effectively gives you an 80mm lens which is perhaps more manageable/versatile. I would propose a 50 f/1.4

<p>I want to thank everyone that contributed to my question. The information was invaluable. Based off the feedback I've received I feel very confident with the direction I'll take in purchasing the "right" lens. Thanks again and happy shooting.</p>

<p>Mark Anthony, you hit the nail on the head. I am surprised how many times I see post about lenses and it seems the poster is not considering the crop factor, especially when it comes to portrait lenses.</p>

<p>You may find that the 'right' lens is the 17-85mm Canon zoom with IS! It is a very sharp lens and quite cheap to buy and it gives you all the focal lengths you may require for portraiture. I cannot see why you would want anything else. Bounce flash wil take care of the light. I suppose if you wish to take pix in dim conditions with no flash then an f1.4 lens might help.</p>

<p>there is nothing wrong with an 85mm on a 1.6 crop body, it is almost like another on of canon's great portrait lenses the 135mm f2.0 on a full frame? you can use whatever your comfortable with. you can use a 300mm 2.8 if you want.</p>

<p>I own both 50mm 1.2L and the 85mm 1.2L II. Both are great lens. The 85mm 1.2L II will give you a tighter frame which is ideal for portraits. However, 85mm 1.8 is a great bargain. The 85mm 1.8 will focus faster and will be easier to handle since it's lighter. <br>

Since you were inquiring about the "Best," I would say the 85mm 1.2L is the best. And yes, I am taking into consideration of the crop factor. Some professionals use 135mm 2.0L on a full frame body for headshot portraits but it's going to be too long on a cropped sensor. <br>

If I were you, I would get the 85mm. It frames tighter than a 50mm and should yield more of a natural look. The DOF on the 1.2 is razor thin. Get the 1.2 if you know that you're going to shoot with the aperture wide open. Either way, I don't think you'll be disappointed.</p>

<p>If you don't have the 70- 200 f2.8L IS or non IS you should get that first. The 85 is great but I like the 100 macro better. Wow! this could get in your pocket befor this is over. The 70-200 f4 is ok if you are shooting in good light. I find that my subjects do better if I'm not in there face. I sometimes use the 300 f4 out side and I get some great results. I hope this helps, Bill</p>

<p>Canon EF 135 mm 1:2 L is excellent portrait lens if you like to take a picture from 2 or 3 meters distance from a subject. Some people also like it for it's black rather than white finish..Wide open it produces nicely blured background. Images are very sharp almost regardless chosen aperture. I use it with 40D and I like that feeling of it's weight comparing with 50 and 85 mm lenses that are also very good for taking portraits. If you take most of your photos with hand-held camera you should have in mind that on a crop sensor camera it is cca 200 mm lens, and the exposure should be about that number, since it is not equiped with IS engine.</p>