Mixing wide and tight lenses for portraits

[Drew_Geraci]

I've been trying to vary my lenses up more when shooting with my Alpha 1, and I have to say that I'm loving the 14mm 1.8 + 50mm 1.2GM combo! You get an excellent spread of wide and tight from just those two lenses and the sharpness is incredible! 

 

What are some of your favorite lens pairings when it comes to shooting portraits? 

[devofields]

I mainly use a 35mm 1.4 and 85mm 1.4 while shooting portraits and I just used this combo as my main weapons for a wedding on Sunday.  I'm looking to add the new 50mm 1.4 GM in the near future.

[alpha-stormy]

So my 24-70mm GM II rarely ever leaves my camera, but sometimes, when I'm looking for a more buttery background, I reach for my 85mm lens.

I like the 24-70 GM II because I have recently been gravitating to more wide-angle portraits that capture more of the environment. I think I will have to give the 14mm a try.

[LensBrew]

I'm mainly using the 35mm GM and 135mm GM for now. My 85mm GM is on sabbatical for the next couple of years.

I cannot see myself going where than 35mm for portraits. It's just a feeling that I have, 24 and 14 are cool lenses, but they don't give the satisfaction of the 35. The 135mm, now those are some amazing shots. This is all true if I'm working with one person. For groups, I relay on the 24-105mm G, it's great for the craziness of working with too many people.

[pm-r]

I use the 135GM all the time for portrait work but this next one might surprise you...  I love to pair it with the 20mm f/1.8G and the 24mm f/1.4GM as well.  I still love shooting wide open and these two wides allow me to do that but at the same time capture more of the environment behind my subject.  For more normal and traditional environmental portraits, the FE35GM is killer too,m but I've been tending wider lately just as it's so interesting.