Why are 85mm lenses considered best for portrait when the 50mm lens' perspective is closer to the human eyes'?

Answer 1

It's a common misconception that lenses impart a certain perspective to photos.

Truthfully, perspective depends totally on the location of the photographer with relation to the subject.

From a certain position(perspective) a photographer chooses lenses which reflect the field of view he or she desires in the final image.

Perspective is often associated with focal length, however this is essentially a secondary result of the photographer choosing a location with relation to the subject in which a tighter or wider crop would be beneficial.

On this same note, were the photographer to stand a good distance from the subject and photograph it first with a telephoto lens followed by a wide angle lens, and crop the wide angle frame such that it had the same field of view as the telephoto shot, the photographer would find that the two images would essentially be identical.

Since photographers often want to maximize resolution of the medium, though, they will choose a focal length from a given perspective which gives a close approximation of the final image size with minimal or no cropping.

As it so happens, if the photographer chooses a perspective where the camera is in close proximity to the subject, those features which are nearest the camera will tend to be accentuated in size. In the case of portraits, if the photographer is one or two feet away from the person's face, the person's nose is significantly closer to the camera than their eyes, which are significantly closer to the camera than their ears. Because of this, the person's nose will appear quite large in relation to their eyes, which is generally an unflattering and undesirable effect.

By contrast, if the photographer is 8-10 feet away, or perhaps even further, from the subject's face, there really is not a significant difference in the distance from the camera of the nose and all of the other parts of the face. Thus, the face appears flatter, and the effect is overall more flattering.

As it so happens, in the 35mm format, lenses with a focal length of 85mm or so allow the photographer to place himself(or herself) several feet away from the subject's face and still fill the frame. I happen to prefer even longer lenses, often reaching for a 135mm lens for portraits. It's still quite possible to use a 50mm lens, though, keeping the same distance as one would with a longer lens and cropping later.

Also, it's often stated that longer lenses have less depth of field. This is not totally correct. If one keeps the subject the same size in the viewfinder, for a given aperture, depth of field is the same regardless of whether one is using a 20mm lens or a 600mm lens. I won't go into why this is the case in this post, but trust me on it.

Answer 2

Actually 105mm or 135mm are the best portrait lenses. They have no distortion giving a better 3D look. With a 50mm or 85mm the portraits tend to look Flat. Even though the depth of field is greater with the smaller lens in relevance to aperture setting, the smaller f-stop(aperture) needed gives a much more precise focus.
I have always used a 135mm at f-16 or greater.

Answer 3

85mm is considered a mild telephoto, with 50mm being considered a normal perspective in the 35mm/8perf world (it changes for different formats). Telephoto lenses do a few things differently - they tend to "flatten" the subject, as well as have a shallower depth of field, which isolates the subject with focus. With most subjects, a telephoto can definitely be more flattering, though not always.

Which lens is best for portraits is entirely subjective. Some people even use wide angles! Lenses have their own personalities - it's best to learn what they do, and then decide what you like. For example, with a standard headshot or portrait, I'll use a mid to long telephoto, but for large format, formal portraiture, I like a normal perspective lens. Experiment, and have fun!

Answer 4

I suggest that you take a portrait with a 50mm and then take one with anything from about 75mm-150mm and look at the difference in perspective.

The 50mm will give your subject a moon like head and face whereas the longer lens will put things in their right perspective.

There are many technical things that I have left out, and that was done on purpose to avoid confusion on the part of other readers.

Answer 5

Ben's answer deserves a star and a "Best Answer" selection from you.

I would add one more thing, though. The best portraits are taken when the subject is relaxed, often talking to the photographer. If you have an 85 or 105 lens (in 35 mm terms), you can be more like 8-to-10 feet away instead of up in their face. It is easier for them to ignore the fact that they are having their picture taken if you are not in their "space."

It would be easier to control the lighting also, since more room means more flexibility.

Answer 6

easiest way to explain it. The 50mm is a wide angle and it make the face look flat. Were the 85mm even up to 105mm give you the look on print to have shape and depth. Also not only use the 85 mm lens you need to set your camera at f8 to f 16 to give you depth of field. and proper skin tones. So hope that help you.

Answer 7

Because it was closer to one-third of a human body and it's wasn't like 50mm lens has to go nearer to take portrait.

Answer 8

With 85 one does not have distortion of the face when doing pictures. A 50mm will make the face look unnatural when one gets close to the face. 85mm is the way to go.