Portrait - 85mm f/1.2

These are some portraits I did recently; they were unplanned but I think the overall results were ok. I could have been a bit more accurate with the focusing, and a wider DoF would have helped. The DoF @ f/1.2 is extremely narrow and focusing has to be perfect. The 85mm lens is absolutely superb and unmatched by anything I have ever used.







Regards,
Barry.

Very nice portraits Barry .

The first one I like the most personally; it would have been even better if the eyes could be a bit more sharp / in focus, like the numbers 2 and 3.

Thanks for sharing.

Cheers,

They're all nice Barry, but I think (I keep changing my mind!) I prefer No 3, it's a little further away and the gentle blur around her neckline with the softly falling hair is appealing.

I like the mood of the first one, you've captured a mischievious intensity in her expression, well done...

Which do you prefer?

Hi Barry,

Good job. This is a lot of rewarding work and I can see it is a challenge that pays off. To me, the 3rd photograph is the most sensitive.

This Canon L lens f 1.2, is so special. The narrow depth of focus at 1.2 should not deter one from just going ahead as you have done. I like this work! We have become too obsessed, perhaps, with sharp images.

This lens allows us to explore the ability for a person to be coming out of nowhere. It allows the ethereal. So we must first look at the overal feelings that the photograph evokes. The focus of the eyes, for example might be not so important in a particular composition.

Asher

BTW: For some reason, it seems, focus of the nose seems to be more important than I would have imagined.

Number 3 is number 1 I would like to see them a skosh brighter and with a bit more contrast.

for me, it's all about controlling sharpness.

Barry -- #3 is my favorite. #1 is my second fave. I love the tones... would like to see them a bit brighter.

I gotta be honest -- since you asked -- if I shot #2, it would have never seen the light of day. (Oh, I have SOOOO many just exactly like this, but I keep them locked up in the pixel dungeon)

In my humble opinion, a portrait's eyes absolutely positively must be in focus. The sharper the eyes, the more engaging the portrait. You got that part right. Then, a roughly triangular area around the eyes, eyebrows and nose needs to be at 80-90% sharp (except for skin detail). Softness can radiate outwards from there.

Where #2 fails for me is her nose -- its well below my (admittedly arbitrary, probably snobbish) 80% threshold.

I shoot with a nikon 85mm 1.4 -- with that lens, you have to take a few steps back if you are going to shoot at 1.4. I assume the same holds true -- probably even more so -- for canon's 1.2. I always forget that little rule, so I have a bunch of shots with tack-sharp eyes and blurry noses!

I generally like to a have little softness to the skin pores and crow's feet on a shot like this..... not enough to be dishonest, but just enough to make them not pull attention from your model's beautiful eyes.

Look at #1 vs #2 -- #1 pulls YOUR eyes right to hers. But her skin texture on her cheeks in #2 fights her eyes for attention because they are about the same sharpness level.

#3 has the nicest balance of sharpness. Maybe that's why I like it so much. But I like #1 too. And I'm SO close to liking #2.

Thanks for sharing.

Ron

#1 is my favourite.....

Hi Guys....

Ron, you made some very valid points here, and I agree with you whole heartedly. I was actually hesitant about putting #2 on display here because I really didn't like the nose being so OoF, and as you pointed out the skin texture in the cheeks fights for attention with her eyes. I will next time take your advice and shoot from slightly further back and hopefully try to acheive a slightly softer skin texture.

Jan, #1 is my favourite, because of the slight mischievious look in her eyes and face as you pointed out. I prefer portraits as well without their teeth on display.

Cem, yes you are right about the focusing in her eyes. When I took the shots, I did focus on her eyes, but either I or she may have moved slightly when I recomposed the shot. I suppose a slightly wider DoF would be more appropriate in this instance, or possibly manual focus ??

Asher, I always try to acheive sharp eyes in every portrait that I do (not that I do many at all). I have only recently purchased this lens, and in fact these are my first portraits with it. I severely underestimated the narrowness of the DoF, (it is my first 1.2 lens) and need take this into consideration the next time I use it. I took the photos fairly loosely and cropped them tight in the final production......

Thanks all for your constructive criticisms.

Regards,
Barry.

Barry,

One eye can be totally out of focus. The nose seems to need much more focus than the eyes unless the person is not a main character or is drunk.

Asher

EF85mm f/1.2

The 85 1.2 has to be my favourite lens....

I used it on Friday night with flash on camera. There is no other word other than sharp, sharp, sharp.....









It was my nieces 21st (3rd photo). She is in her 3rd year at Brisbane University studying to be a Vet., along with her friends (1st & last photo). The second photo is my sister Lucia; she is a plant pathologist also working in Brisbane.

Regards,
Barry