Which lens do I need?

willkia

willkia

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Messages
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Name
Will
Edit My Images
Yes
Current camera equipment

Canon 70D
Sigma 18-35mm 1.8



Hi guys,

So the type of photography I do the most is full body shots, street photography for bloggers, portrait etc.

I want to achieve shots like the below
LINK



Which lens would you recommend? 70-200mm?

Budget - No more than £1000.

Thanks

Mod edit Please don't post images that are not yours.
Links are fine
 
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The 85mm f1.8 gets very good reviews (where space allows) as a portrait lens.
 
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willkia said:
Current camera equipment

Canon 70D
Sigma 18-35mm 1.8



Hi guys,

So the type of photography I do the most is full body shots, street photography for bloggers, portrait etc.

I want to achieve shots like the below
LINK



Which lens would you recommend? 70-200mm?

Budget - No more than £1000.

Thanks

Mod edit Please don't post images that are not yours.
Links are fine
Click to expand...



What lens did you use for the posted shot? That's what you'll need to take the same sort of thing.
 
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I used a Canon 70-200 f/4 IS for this photo, it really is a cracking lens.


I found it a great lens for street photography without people notice I was taking a photo of them
 
willkia said:
that wasnt my picture mate
Click to expand...

Ah! You really should only make such external pictures links and not embed those that are not owned by you.......just saying :)
 
Street photography with a 70-200 on a aps-c camera.

Good luck with that, 23mm is popular for street on a aps-c.

Its what all the Fuji x100 street shooters use and they do great with it, some of them are pro level street shooters
 
Box Brownie said:
Ah! You really should only make such external pictures links and not embed those that are not owned by you.......just saying :)
Click to expand...
And done ;)
 
GTG said:
Street photography with a 70-200 on a aps-c camera.

Good luck with that, 23mm is popular for street on a aps-c.

Its what all the Fuji x100 street shooters use and they do great with it, some of them are pro level street shooters
Click to expand...


Horses for course, you can do 'street' with any focal length really, many people like using a telephoto to give some distance.

And that said, it looks like the example photo posted/linked to was normal - telephoto, I would guess with a prime on a on a full frame body as that kind of subject separation isn't easy to achieve.

The thing to notice is the PLANE of focus, which has been well positioned so that she is mostly in focus (see her back foot isn't) whilst still getting shallow depth of field for the background separation.
 
Surely it depends on how close you want to get to the subject. If you are looking at images like the posted shot, then something like a 35 or 50mm (ff equivalent) will do the job as you wont to be stood too far away from the model as people will aimlessly wander in between the 2 of you as they wont spot you otherwise. If you are wanting to stay further away for more candid shots (bear in mind that in the image you posted the model has been posed), then 85mm or 135mm. The benefits of primes is that they tend not to be as big and obvious as zooms and are also have better bokeh (out of focus areas) due to the larger apertures. If you are wanting a zoom then the 70-200 f4 L IS is a great lightweight zoom which can picked up for well within budget if you look for a decent used specimen, although you may find struggle to get the same level of bokeh.

Why not post one of your images with the 18-35 and tell us what you want to improve
 
I’m in the same situation as posted the other day,
I also have the sigma 18-35mm,
I’m going to get the Sigma 50-100mm F1.8,
This should bridge the gap nicely from my 18-35 and 150-600,
The f1.8 aperture on the 50-100mm should achieve that bokeh effect in your linked image,
Although saying that, the 18-35 f1.8 should achieve that bokeh very nicely,
But depends on how much reach you want from a lens.
 
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This seems to be very similar to your previous post, most of the replies apply also to this thread unless I have missed the point.
 
IIRC the photo you linked in a previous thread was not a 'street' picture, but rather a model shot in a street setting. The requirements for that kind of shot aren't readily compatible with what many would think of as street (generally either up-close & personal or from a distance with small aperture and significant depth of field). To take street pictures like they are fashion photos will require a longer focal ength lens used wide open, and very considerable care to get the point of focus in exactly the right place.

A 70-210 f2.8 could produce the kind of image you linked.
 
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As your other post about backgrounds, in which you provided the same example shot you would like to emulate, and I offered suggestion of how it was likely achieved with craft not kit; in that instance using forward focus to pull the DoF zone closer to the camera, where AF would struggle to find something to actually focus on, with more floor bricks infront of the girl in focus than behind as back-ground oofed.

In days of yore, it was suggested that a very mild telephoto, around 80-120mm on 35mm film, perhaps 150 or 180 on Medium format, was a 'Portrait' lens, as they begged backing up a certain amount to frame a subject, and so offered a more 'flattering' perspective that didn't so easily make noses look huge as reletive distance between the tip of the nose and the eyes was a much less significant proportion of the camera to subject distance.

B-U-T as your query about the back-ground and subject and what red-dot scheme to use; that 'nugget-of-know-how' is just that; its why a lens of that angle-of-view 'may' be better for portrait shots that 'may' be more appropriate for those sort of situations, that gear does not 'make' those situations or necessarily grantee the best result; its the knowing how they work and why they may be more appropriate that makes the difference, and with that know-how, and more, using it to pose your subject, not directly facing the camera so that there is such a difference in distance between eyes and nose, and they aren't looking straight at the camera like a prison mug-shot.

Its not the kit on your mitt, its the craft in your cranium...

There is no 'best' or 'worst' lens for portraits or street candids or anything else; only better or worse ways of using one... and THAT is what I think you 'need', not another lens; a shift in outlook to NOT expect the hardware to do it all for you, but a greater appreciation of how to make the hardware you have help you do more of what you want.
 
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