Which portrait lens to buy..hmm..

Tmetroff

Hey hows it goin guys? I am new to the forum so I hope this is in the right place!

Alright so basically what I am looking for is a good, well rounded lens for portraits. I own a Nikon D90 so if I remember right it does not matter if it is AF or AF-S. I am wanting something that will take an image with a really nice bokeh.

A few that I have been looking at are:
The old school Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D AF Telephoto Lens, 17-55 2.8 Nikkor, and AF-S 50 mm f/1.4.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Tyler

Icebear

Easy to answer. Go with the 85 f/1.4. You will be ecstatic with what you get from your 1.5x crop body with this lens. It is the perfect portrait focal length on your camera, and at f/2.8 is so sharp it's scary. I bought one for my daughter who also has a D90, and I occasionally borrow it from her.

Tmetroff

Thank you for the fast response! Im glad you think so, because I was leaning towards the 85 f/1.4. Just wanted some reassurance :]

DsrtVW

Any of those are good choices, depends on your shooting style. I have the 17-55mm f2.8 also 85mm f 1.8 and 50mm f1.8. I spent my most of my budget on the 17-55 because it covers a lot conditions and it is a superb lens. I have used it on my D300 and D7000. I have no experience with the f1.4 versions but they have a good reputation. For the money and the time they spend on my camera the f1.8s are fantastic options. I have been looking at the 35mm nikkor primes too. The 85mm is good for head shots 50mm 3/4s portraits in my studio. I use the 17-55mm the most because I do more location shooting outdoors where the zoom lens gives you faster composition options zooming with lens instead of feet. Then I use my Tokina 50-135mm f2.8 in that situation too for the same reasons.

ziggy53

Yes, I believe that the Nikon D90 has a screw-drive focus motor in the body and so it can AF with any Nikon compatible AF lens. (AF-D, AF-I and AF-S)

Portraits are really multiple different applications and I like to describe them in groups:

• Head shots and head-and-shoulders.
• 3/4 length and full length.
• Environmental, group and natural settings.

For the first group, which is pretty tight to the head, on a crop/DX camera I prefer to use a longer focal length, generally 85mm or more.

For the second group I would generally use 50mm or so. A 35mm lens on a crop camera can do in a smaller room.

For groups and when you want to record a larger scene, I recommend a standard zoom of 17-55mm(ish). The Nikkor 17-55mm, f2.8G ED-IF AF-S DX is about as good as it gets for this use.

Large aperture primes allow more control over DOF, which is important for flexibility and controlling background elements.

catspaw

I find the 85mm 1.8 a really good value portrait lens - you can shoot wide open and get some really nice results.

Tmetroff

Thank you for the responses it seems I have quite the decision to make, seeing as I need to pick merely one for the job. As a college student I am forced to a strict budget!