Which D2Xs lenses to buy for fashion/portrait photography

[ken_young7]

Hi all,

 

i'm new to Nikon and currently researching buying a Nikon D2Xs camera - yet

i'm unsure which would be the best lenses for fashion/portrait photography?

 

I've been researching the:

AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 24-120mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED

AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G IF-ED

and not sure about the new AF-S DX VR 18-200mm, 3,5-5.6G IF-ED.

 

probably won't need all 3 lenses - maybe just the 70-200mm or the 18-200mm or

both?

 

if you can recommend any other lenses to consider or other pieces you consider

critical to consider for the kit, would greatly appreciate it.

 

Thanks.

[tech-pan]

105/2.8, 180/2.8, 200mm f/2G VR

[tech-pan]

Didn't totally clarify. I would only use primes if I was doing fashion. No zooms as I would want as little distortion and faster f stops that I would only get with primes.

[harvey_edelstein1]

Nikon 85mm f1.4 or 105mm f2.0, for good oof shallow dof and smaller size vs. large zoom lenses. Also, factor in the cropping you might add a 50mm f1.2 which would act as a 75mm effective FL on the D2xs. I am assuming that you will have at least some fashion runway shots where extra speed is good. If not get a leaf shutter MF and a digital back.

[lex_jenkins]

I have the 18-70 "kit zoom," 24-120 VR and 35-70/2.8D AF Nikkors. Of the three zooms I'd consider the 35-70/2.8 the best by far for portraiture and fashion. It's sharper than the other two and an appropriate focal range even for the 1.5x sensor (I use it with a D2H and my 35mm Nikons). However I like the 24-120 VR for daylight action photography.

 

I can't think of many situations in which you'd need a wider than 35mm or longer than 70mm focal length for fashion/portraiture when you have control of the distance and lighting. If you were shooting runway fashion shows you'd want something like the 70-200/2.8 VR for the most versatility.

 

If shallower depth of field is important to you good alternatives would be the 50/1.8, 50/1.4, 85/1.8 and 85/1.4 primes. But I've found that f/2.8 almost always provides shallow enough DOF for this kind of subject matter.

[Spearhead]

The people I know shooting fashion professionally use zooms for shooting it. Check the creds on anyone who tells you what you should or should not use for fashion. There's quite a few shooters doing it, they're not on here as far as I can tell, and you should try and contact a few of them.

[juan_su]

What's wrong with zooms for fashion and portraiture? Good zooms offer alot of advantages. If I had the budget, which I don't yet, I would consider the 28-70 AFS ED f2.8 in an instant. I do however vote for the 70-200 F2.8 AFS that you suggested. That lens can render some beautiful images and from my limited experience with it (since I have the 80-200 F2.8 AF ED) portraits at that range look fantastic!

[ramon_v__california_]

i'd go with david winnert's suggestion. when you do fashion it's almost a must to use primes and "walk" the zoom. plus if you can afford the D2Xs, you can afford the primes -- 50mm, 85mm(or 90mm) and 105mm.

[chris_vincent2]

I would go for the 24-120 as this has everything you need for your purpose and is relatively inexpensive.

 

I sold mine to buy the 18-200 and the new lens gives me no advantages for portrait work. 200 is too long to use in a studio and the depth of field too shallow at that length.

 

The 18-200 has benefits outdoors, e.g. for candids at wedding etc. but there is no quality difference compared to the 24-120.

 

Whichever one you choose I would also get the 12-24 which allows some really wild effects in the studio.

[Peter_in_PA]

Pro fashion photography? Runway? If not, if it's going to be in-studio, why not medium

format and good lighting and a great film scanner?

 

Just thought I'd throw a wrench in there...

[ShunCheung]

Neither the 105mm/f2.8 nor the 180mm/f2.8 is any faster than the 70-200mm/f2.8 G. Those primes may be a bit sharper, which may or may not be a plus for fashion, but you lose AF-S with them. If you are talking about shooting in a fashion show with models walking on a runway, I would use a zoom for its flexability.

 

For portraits where you have more controls, try a 50mm or 85mm. IMO 105 is too long on a D2Xs and unfortunately there is no true portrait lens for Nikon DSLRs yet.

[tech-pan]

I used to work for a clothing company in the early 90's. Went to a few shoots for Rusty, OP and Stussy. The photographers, while using 35mm film were using long primes higher then 200mm. There were reflectors, lights cables etc that forced the photographer to walk the lens and stay away from the model. I brought my F3 just to take a few candid shots and my 105/2.8 didn't cut it.

 

Now a runway shoot would benefit a fast Zoom, but a planned fashion shoot allows the photographer to walk the lens and use the fast f/stop to their advantage, and no matter how good zooms are these days they have far more distortion then a prime.

 

My wife loves to watch Americas Next Top Model. A few weeks ago they did a shoot on a beach and the photographer was using what looked like a 300mm prime on a D2X body.

[ken_young7]

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions - it's very much appreciated!