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Pretty excited for this lens. I'm trying to get into portraiture some more so I can make some money on the side, and I figured this would be a great lens to start with for such a thing. I have the 50mm f/1.4, but the AF motor died.
Who here has experience with this lens? Care to share some shots? Tips or tricks? Anything at all will be appreciated.
I haven't used that lens, but I've shot a decent number of portraits with a 50 f/1.4. What I found frustrating was that as much as I wanted to shoot at 1.4, I could only do that with one person because the DoF was so shallow. You can focus on one eye and still have the other eye out of focus if their head is tilted. But a well focused shot at 1.4 can be absolutely stunning. So I would imagine 85mm and 1.4 (or 1.8) would be the similar, but an even thinner DoF.
So what I found myself doing was shooting some shots at 1.4 or 2 as well as some at 2.8 or 4 for "insurance" in case wide open shots didn't turn out.
One of the first non-kit lenses I bought was the 85 1.8. I got it used at B&H during a NYC trip. I sold that one and immediately knew I'd made a mistake. So I bought a new one. Great lens. I use it for event shoots at my university. It's perfect for full body shots of people teaching or presenting at a symposium. I don't generally shoot portraits, but recently I've had assignments where I needed to get head shots of teachers. For that I've been using either the 85 1.8 or my 135 f2. Both are excellent for that use because they render such awesome bokeh. No real need to worry too much about the background when it's all blurred out.
It's a decent lens, but has fairly strong CA on edges in bright sunlight. You'll find shots on both crop and full-frame on my Flickr. I've got a tag on the lens, but you'll have to browse through to find the right body type.
Linky.
I have this lens, and it is my favourite lens. It has a fast and accurate auto-focus (compared to my other lenses), even in dark conditions. I also find post-processing images from this lens much easier, since the results are much closer to what I want. The CA is an issue, but I find that it is easy control in light-room or DPP.
Lars
Since you shoot full frame I think you will use it a bunch. It was one of my first lenses I purchased after getting my kit. I like it for head shots, but it is a little long for full body portraits. I shoot APS-C so that is the difference. It frames like 50 on your ff, so I think you will enjoy it a whole bunch. Just don't shoot in direct sunlight with it at under 2.8. It has some serious CA.
David,
Did you already buy the 85? I bought one just a few months ago and it's a really good lens, but i've decided to re-setup my kit configuration and am adding a 24-105L and 90mm macro lens while selling the 85, EF-S 60mm macro, and 60D to make up some of the cash.
If you're potentially interested in my 85 let me know. I'm looking for $310 firm paypal'd and shipped and it's in practically new condition. I haven't taken pics of it yet, but will the next couple of days.
Some pics using it: https://www.flickr.com/search/?tags=...68255851%40N05
Dave
Dave, I ordered it Saturday night, wish I had seen this sooner.
David,
No problem! I think you'll really like the lens. The only negative I've seen is that you can get some longitudinal CA when close to wide open. It's pretty easy to fix in LR.
Dave
That seems to be the biggest complaint I have seen about it as well. Good luck selling off your copy!