New portait lens

Andrew Davies Photography

Andrew Davies Photography

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Whilst doing oodles of research trying to find a new lens to fit in with the portrait side of my business which is fairly new and be useful to the wedding side which is well established I seemed to have missed a potential contender in the new Tamron 90mm VC Macro 2.8 , I already have a Canon 85mm 1.8 but the focus is poor and the PF herendous , I have ruled out the 85 1.2 due to cost and slow focussing and the 135 F2L which i would love is just too long for indoor work. The 90mm is around the right length and the macro would come in good with the wedding work.

Currently using : 24mm 2.8IS, 35mm F2IS , 24-105L, 70-200 F4L and about to get shot of 50mm 1.4 and 85mm 1.8 , the new lens i chose would be a second lens on a 5D2 body as i love the new 35mm on my 5D3 and wont be parted with that !!

So the question is does anyone have experience of the new Tamron 90mm using it for portraits.

thanks
www.andrew-davies.com
 
theres the sigma 105mm ? macro too, might be worth considering as people have gotten bigger so the extra focal length would help, if you could step back a smidge
 
The Sigma 105 is a very old lens if its the same one ? I owned one donkeys years ago and it extended almost to the point of squashing your subject if the noise had not already scared it away !

The Tamron 90 VC is a new re-design of an old classic apparently with upgraded optics, I also looked at the Sigma 85mm 1.4 but the jury seems to be out on QC issues with that one

As for people being bigger now well, being a wedding tog i cant comment - all brides are perfect ;)
 
I preferred the shots from the Sigma 85/1.4 to those from the Canon 85/1.2 but only when the Sigma got accurate focus. I got a lot more misses with it than I could live with. The canon f1.2 is slow but when it says it is in focus it really is.

I'd suggest looking at the 100L macro from Canon. This was my favourite portrait lens on a Canon, ahead of the 85/1.2.
 
Canon 85/1.8 focus is poor?

That's news to me, I have it and the 85/1.2. The 1.8's focus is not poor and i think it's 90% of the L at a fraction of the cost.

The Tamron 90mm 2.8 as a portrait lens? I've not tried it but that is not a road I personally would go down. I have the 100L too and it has never crossed my mind to use it for portrait.

I also have the new Sigma 50/1.4 Art, have Canon/1.4 and the 135/2.0.

I still think the 85/1.8 is a great lens.
 
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minnnt said:
I must admit, i was thinking this...

I had the previous Tamron 90mm lens for a few days and it was ace for portraiture. I returned it as i decided i couldn't live without VC. :LOL:
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Are you talking studio portrait where you control the light and a white background stopped down to f/8 etc? Or is this outside environmental portraits etc? Most times I've been in a studio a 70-200 f/2.8 or variant was being used at some point inside or outside the studio. Could be an idea to upgrade that instead of a macro lens which is more suited to close up work.
 
Hi and thanks for the reply.

As mentioned the 135 F2 is perfect for portraits but is not going to cut it in peoples homes where space is tight , my 70-200 F4 is not going to enable enough blur unless at 200 which is fine when outside but i am primarily looking for an indoor portrait lens.

My copy of the 85 is great in MF but AF is consistently out and no amount of MFA is helping , tested on tripod with targets , it was bought of fleabay though so i may have got a dud. I have just returned from the park so will have a better idea whats going on with it when i look at all those shots.

The 100L is something i considered but looks also to have slow AF ? from the videos I have seen on youtube , and the Sigma 85 1.4 would be perfect if i could get a copy with accurate AF as it seems that is still a problem with Sigma even with there new Art 50 !

A lot of 90 and 100 macros are used as portait lenses so not unusual.

Thanks all, I desperately want to conquer this 85 because when it does lock on well the bokeh is great :)
 
Laudrup said:
Are you talking studio portrait where you control the light and a white background stopped down to f/8 etc? Or is this outside environmental portraits etc? Most times I've been in a studio a 70-200 f/2.8 or variant was being used at some point inside or outside the studio. Could be an idea to upgrade that instead of a macro lens which is more suited to close up work.
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Yes portait work indoors with strobes umbrellas etc but also something that can be used during weddings . the 70-200 2.8 is just too much of a weight would rather stay with primes and to be honest £1800 is way off what i can spend on it at the moment till the portrait side brings in enough to justify it . My 70-200 F4 is fine outside in good light for now.

Thanks
Andrew
 
If it was me looking to give my photos that extra wow factor I'd buy the Sigma 85mm f/1.4.
 
Suggest send your 85/1.8 to Canon and tell them to fix it. You shouldn't be having those problems. Or can you get hold of another copy to try?

All macros are very sharp, including the Tamron 90/2.8 VC, and Sigma 105/2.8 OS - both very well priced. Folks need to be clear about which lens they're discussing as there have been loads over the years, all different but with the same headline specs.
 
Could buy the Sigma 85 1.4, send it back till you get a decent copy OR send it to Sigma for a FREE calibration under warranty. Not a major issue. My copy is (thankfully) perfect and gets accurate focus pretty much every time at F1.4 unless I do something stupid.

It might seem annoying to go through this, but IMO this lens is well worth some effort.
 
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Well after an hour in the park photographing the boy I have come to the conclusion ( for me anyway ) that this 85 1.8 is not the amazing lens its held out to be, to get a 'Sharp' shot that does not need a massive boost in PS i need to shoot at F2.8-4 i can get a reasonable one at F2 but reasonable and prime are not two words i associate with each other ! So now its back to the drawing board, sell the 50 and 85 and look at something else , must say i am tempted by the sigma.

Just out of interest, if i was to mention the following lenses under the stipulation they need to be used for indoor and outdoor portaits in small or large spaces from familys to pets and weddings and have very high quality and reliability to add to my 24 and 35 which one would you choose ( aiming for a budget of 1k or under )

Canon 70-200 2.8L non IS
Canon 135 F2L
Sigma 85 1.4
or wait to see what the rest of the year brings and carry on with my other current zooms and primes inc the 24mm 35mm 70-200 F4L and 24-105L

The lens would likely be mounted on a 5Dmk2
 
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