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Proper Portraiture Perspective by Russ Burden Have some quesitons about what lens to use when taking portrait shots?  Russ Burden has some answers for you. Article rating: 8.43

I often get asked what is the proper lens to make a portrait. Being a former teacher, I respond with one of many questions. Are you creating a head shot or a full length shot? Is it a group portrait or a shot of one person? Will the background in the area in which you’re shooting be distracting? As you can see there are variables that need to be addressed before I can give a “correct” answer. The bottom line is the best lens is the one that allows you to properly frame the subject at a specific distance that yields the perspective you desire.

To create portraits, I’ve used focal lengths from 28mm to 300mm. If I work in tight quarters photographing a group of people, the situation dictates a wide angle lens. The size of the quarters coupled with the number of people determines how wide I need to go. With single subjects, if all I need is a head shot, my first action is to evaluate facial features. For instance, if the nose is long, I tend to use a longer focal length lens to compress the distance from the face. The result is a smaller looking nose in the picture. I then evaluate the background. The more out of focus I need it to be, the longer the focal length I’ll use.

In an ideal head shot world where all the components of the image blend well, I opt for a focal length between 100-150mm. The reason is it gives natural perspective and the background can be controlled using a wide aperture provided there is enough distance between it and the subject. It also provides a comfortable working distance between my subject and me. This helps relax the people I’m photographing. For family shots, I like to use focal lengths of 40-60mm for the same reasons as above.

In the images that accompany this article, the family portrait was made using a 50mm lens. I switched to a focal length of 100mm to create the shot of the young man. If you look closely, you’ll see he’s also part of the family. The image of the young lady was made with a 135mm length as I knew it would yield the perspective I wanted. The bottom line is I want you to and experiment using different focal lengths to create your portraits as there really is no “correct” lens. It depends on the look you wish to create. Use what feels right, experiment using those settings, and repeat them based on your findings.

To learn more about this topic, join me on one of my Photographic Nature Tours. Visit www.russburdenphotography.com and click on the NATURE TOURS button for more information. Also, pick up a copy of my new book, Amphoto’s Complete Book of Photography. You can purchase a signed copy directly from me or visit your local book store or Amazon. Contact me at   rburden@ecentral.com   to order your signed copy.

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