By : Nikon School Blog | 28 Dec, 2017 |
Today, portrait photography is not just limited to shooting people posing for the camera. With the evolution of photography, portraiture has also evolved as a genre and has given rise to many variations. Today's portrait photographers need lenses that are up to their requirements under a variety of challenging conditions. Thanks to the designers and technicians at Nikon, the current NIKKOR line up boasts lenses that are specialised for a variety of portraiture. Let's introduce and briefly describe how these NIKKORs can become your best friends for shooting portraits.
Prime lenses for portraiture
AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G
The first lens which comes to our mind as a portrait lens is the classic 'normal' - the 50mm. The f/1.8 version is the most popular and fits most budgets. It's great for shooting portraits in a variety of situations, including low light. It's also great for shooting still life subjects like statues, food, etc. in available light. You need to be fairly close to the subject, so this lens suits posed portraits. The bokehs turn out round and beautiful.
If you are shooting with a DX format Nikon DSLR, then the equivalent to this lens is the AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G.
AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.4G
If you are constantly shooting in low light situations and want perfectly round bokehs, the 50mm f/1.4 is for you. Opening wider than the f/1.8, this one will give you jaw dropping results with low light portraits.
AF-S NIKKOR 58mm f/1.4G
This ultra-high quality N series (Nano crystal coated) aspherical lens delivers a winning combination of outstanding bokeh and unprecedented edge to edge clarity. It's the ultimate lens for professional-quality portraits, landscapes, night scenery and star-filled skies with minimised light falloff, coma flares and lens aberration.
AF-S NIKKOR 85mm f/1.8G
If you want a lens exclusively for portraits, this what you need. The wide f/1.8 aperture delivers impressive shallow depth of field effects. This lens gives crisp portraits even under challenging light conditions. Internal focusing makes the lens lightweight too.
AF-S NIKKOR 85mm f/1.4G
This professional lens offers an incredible combination of smooth bokeh and edge to edge resolution. The ultra-fast f/1.4 maximum aperture and rounded nine-blade diaphragm deliver excellent professional quality low light portraits.
AF-S NIKKOR 105mm f/1.4E ED.
This new professional lens takes portraiture to another level. It's wide open at f/1.4 and offers amazingly high resolution across the frame including peripheral areas. With nine blade rounded diaphragm, the bokeh is the best you will ever see.
AF-S NIKKOR 35MM F/1.8G ED
For shooting wider environmental portraits and street portraits, this prime is a great choice. It provides a wide aperture suited to low light, and produces soft, pleasing burs.
Zoom lenses for portraiture
AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8E FL ED VR
The professional's choice for candid and posed portraiture around the world, this telephoto zoom scores big in terms of quality, perspective, bokeh and AF performance. The current version boasts enhanced tracking performance for moving subjects, and VR operation providing about 4 stops of stability.
AF-P NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6E ED VR, & AF-S VR Zoom- NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED
Perfect for shooting portraits from a distance, both these lenses are ideal additions to standard kit lenses. They can be used to capture candid portraits from a distance. You can even focus at close range throughout the entire zoom range to produce detailed close-ups.
AF-P DX NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-6.3G ED VR & AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR
For the DX format DSLRs, both these lenses are suited to portraiture, particularly candids. They allow you to shoot from a distance without disturbing your subject and can also be used for shooting birds and wildlife from medium distance.
AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR
Often said to be the most useful professional grade lens, it is perfect for a variety of portraiture thanks to its focal length range and wide open aperture. This lens is a favourite among photojournalists, travel photographers and wedding photographers.
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