Often favoured by portrait and still-life photographers, a fast
85mm prime lens will typically deliver super-sharp image
quality but with a very tight depth of field. This enables you
to literally focus all of the interest on the most important element in
a scene, while blurring everything else to make it really stand out. But
just how fast does the lens need to be?
Canon makes 85mm primes for its DSLRs and new full-frame
mirrorless EOS R-series cameras with an ultra-fast f/1.2 aperture
rating. In portraiture, the depth of field can be arguably too tight.
Focus on the eye of a person in a head-and-shoulders shot, and you
can find that the nose is defocussed and the ears are a blur. The other
problem with f/1.2 lenses is they tend to be big, heavy and expensive.At the other end of the scale, Canon and Nikon both manufacture
85mm f/1.8 lenses for their DSLRs that are cheaper but a bit basic.
The f/1.4 options are often the best compromise, and the latest
Canon model comes complete with image stabilisation, which can
be a big bonus in handheld portraiture under low ambient light.
Sigma weighs in with a relatively big and chunky contender from its
prestigious Art lineup, while Tamron opts for a more modest f/1.8
aperture rating but adds sophistication and stabilisation.
Ultimately, you’ll want good levels of sharpness and contrast
even when shooting wide open, along with soft and smooth bokeh
(the quality of defocussed areas within a scene). Let’s see how our
contenders measure up for performance and value.GROUP TEST
Often favoured by portrait and still-life photographers, a fast
85mm prime lens will typically deliver super-sharp image
quality but with a very tight depth of field. This enables you
to literally focus all of the interest on the most important element in
a scene, while blurring everything else to make it really stand out. But
just how fast does the lens need to be?
Canon makes 85mm primes for its DSLRs and new full-frame
mirrorless EOS R-series cameras with an ultra-fast f/1.2 aperture
rating. In portraiture, the depth of field can be arguably too tight.
Focus on the eye of a person in a head-and-shoulders shot, and you
can find that the nose is defocussed and the ears are a blur. The other
problem with f/1.2 lenses is they tend to be big, heavy and expensive.
At the other end of the scale, Canon and Nikonbothmanufacture
85mm f/1.8 lenses for their DSLRs that are cheaperbutabitbasic.
The f/1.4 options are often the best compromise,andthelatest
Canon model comes complete with image stabilisation,whichcan
be a big bonus in handheld portraiture under lowambientlight.
Sigma weighs in with a relatively big and chunky contenderfromits
prestigious Art lineup, while Tamron opts for a moremodestf/1.8
aperture rating but adds sophistication and stabilisation.
Ultimately, you’ll want good levels of sharpnessandcontrast
even when shooting wide open, along with soft andsmoothbokeh
(the quality of defocussed areas within a scene). Let’sseehowour
contenders measure up for performance and value.GROUP TEST