AF-S VR Micro 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED for Portrait.

[edward chen]

For all you who have hands-on experience with this lens, how well is this lens used for portrait?

 

I am using D300.

 

85/1.8 is too short as I am shooting children. To fill entire frame, i have to get really close.

 

I find 105 mm is perfect focal lens.

 

Another lenses I might consider is 105 DC or 135 DC. But I am leaning toward this 105 micro because I can use it

for close-up photography.

 

But only if it performs well for portraiture.

 

Any ideas anyone? Thanks for advice.

[juanjo_viagran]

the 105 & 135mm 2D DC are as good as they get for portriat, I liked the 135mm more.. gorgeous bokeh and great reach on DX DSLR (almost like a 200mm f:2 :o )

 

but the 105mm VR micro (which I currently have) is an amazing all around lens... with its FAST AF speed macro/micro capability you can do pretty much anything with that lens..

 

have a very nice and shallow bokeh wide open, and is TACK sharp, maybe to sharp for portraits (depending of how old is your model.. ;) but you can correct that in PS.

 

for macro/micro is just amazing.

[frankeleveld]

I frequently use mine as a portrait lens. Whilst AF isn't particularly fast on my D200 (not 24-70 AF-S-fast anyway),

the 105mm VR 2.8 is a pretty versatile lens and quite well suited for portrait photography. It renders OOF areas very

nicely, not quite as good as the 85/1.4, but that's hardly surprising I guess.

[graham_thompson1]

I have one on a D300.

Totally agree with Juanjo.

And it is so well built.

[ronald_moravec1]

The lens itself is fine. I find 105 too long for my D200. 85 or 60 is more appropiate. 70 would be perfect as it is the same as 105 in a D700 or film Nikon.

 

The other downside is it is large. I just got a 105 AI for $100 with perfect glass and an excellent barrel..

Suits me fine. If I need auto focus, I would use my 55/200 VR whick I use for some portrait work.

[ted_springer]

I can tell you right off, that the 105mm Micro lens is extremely sharp. That said, I've found that portraits taken with this lens

appear flat. I am not sure if this has to do with the plane of focus or what. Just something to consider. Of the three you

mentioned I would go for the 135mm DC. I've seen some remarkable shots taken with this lens.

[zafar1]

Appear flat? What do you mean by that?

[edward chen]

Thank you all. Ted, could you elaborate what you mean 'flat'? I am wondering too. If you could post a photo? But i heard (just heard) that macro test are not designed for tele (portrait) therefore it performs rather poorly.

 

But this is not what I heard from everyone's post here...