85mm Primes are a Luxury Purchase (for me)
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- Опубликовано: 20 окт 2024
- I've bought a number of 85mm primes over the years, and then sold them 😅 Here's a short video about why!
And yes I forgot to mention crop sensors and their effects, so if you have a recommendation for a great Fujifilm/M43 lens that can do close-focusing, lemme know down below.
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There is a brilliant EF 180mm macro at f3.5 macro. A long focal length but brilliant lens. Also can shoot macro from a greater distance.
Ooh wow, I've never seen that one. I also didn't realise Canon made a 135mm f/4 tilt-shift macro, which sounds seriously weird and interesting.
A very interesting video and comments discussion, thanks! I find the same frustration with focusing distance on my EF 85 1.8 and have been a little tempted by the RF "macro", but am still overall a bit frustrated by the RF ecosystem! Enjoyed the style as well as the content of your video, nice and relaxed. I've subscribed.
Thanks very much! Yeah the RF mount has been a bit frustrating so far because Canon have been quite slow to release their own lenses, even if they are largely very good once they do. It's nice to see Sigma and Tamron finally putting out some APS-C lenses for it, though it would be nice to see some full-frame options too.
I guess we are getting almost to the point where these lenses come into handy. 1. Maybe it’s good to buy the more expensive 85 mm 2. You can use a near filter or magnifier, to do the 80 mm to 20 mm stuff and you hook it up with a magnetic ring. 3. There are helicoid adapter for these lenses. And the only thing we need is someone that produces one for all the excellent older slr lenses to fit on mirrorless. Then this problem is solved. I solved it for Leica and other M lenses to fit the L mount bodies. 4. Macro lenses where my go to and the 85 mm went into the bag. But I must say some 85 1.2 are very nice lenses that I would like to own. But you are absolutely right. These lenses are a pain. With a normal 85 you can’t make a face portrait only, which is sad. Cheers
Sony has their 90mm f2.8 macro which is a very similar focal length and a min focussing distance of 28cm. I prefer the 135mm focal length over the 85mm for portrait work.
I use a Canon RF 85 f1.2 with a minimum focusing distance of 0.85m (ie, not the quasi-macro one), for dog portraits very regularly indeed (though not often wide open). It does an outstanding job.
Ooh lovely lens! How big are the dogs? 😆 I can _just_ about get a reasonable shot of my cat but it's a right pain because she likes to sit within the minimum focus distance. Much easier with the 40mm!
@@robert_may All sized dogs, I'm not sizist :), though the average size most people bring me is about 15 or 16lb, but still get some whoppers and some midgets. I don't let them inside the minimum focusing distance though. I find 40mm or even 50mm exaggerates their noses too much if I let anything so close that I need their close focusing ability. Not as much of a problem for cats though. This is all well and good if folk want that big head look, which is popular (but then you need something more in the 25 or wider range to do it well), but folk who want their pet to look just so are off put by the distortion.
The old 85mm f/1.8 AFS Nikkor is a nice cheap alternative - not as well corrected for aberrations, but still a great lens for about £180-200!
I've found my Nikon Z 105 2.8 Macro doubles nicely as a portrait lens but also I have tried it walking around the woods, picking out compositions to a decent effect.
Yeah the 85mm is surprisingly frustrating in woodland! I dunno why I keep trying it because I never quite get the results I'm after 🙈 A macro lens makes far more sense.
I think as long as the 85 wasn't a huge impact on your finances, it's worth having on those occasions when it works for you(portraits). I hear it's an amazing lens.
@@KPAki1Ler Yeah it's a really good lens. My only real complaints are the fairly naff lens hood and slightly slow AF motors, but optically it's brilliant and a great alternative to spending 3k on the f/1.2 version 😅
@@robert_may I thought it had 2 motors?
@@KPAki1Ler I’m not actually sure 🤔 I’ll do a proper read up on it before doing a review, and do some proper measurements. It’s not really an issue as it’s still perfectly fast enough for people portraits etc, just feels a little slow compared to other primes I have at the moment.
Short tele prime Lenses are so great to use, the focal Length between 55mm and 135mm can do just about any kind of photography, the "sweet spot" of 85 (90)mm Lenses for full frame (24x36mm sensor) Cameras have for many years been the go to Lens for portrait, Landscape and many more types of photography. Now I use 55mm, 65mm Macro, 85mm, 110mm Macro and 135mm prime Lenses, so always one that fit the job. A 85mm is NOT useless for cats and dogs ! If you have a problem with close focus, get a macro Lens ! The "10x" near focus in most prime Lenses with large aperture is because the Lens designers cannot do wonders, not even computers that design Lenses ! Sorry but I stoppe the video at 2:40, I do not agree with you ! From a photographer with 45 years of experience.
Yep I've noticed this also. Here's some points to consider;
1) lenses by and large all become kinda 'niche' or specialised. As a wedding and event shooter I don't own something like a 100-400 or 500mm prime. It's just not high up on the requirement list. Same for a lens like the XF16-80/4. Whilst versatile it's too slow for my line of work and the lack of any kind of parfocalness pushes it further lower on the list. But I understand all these lenses have a place for the wildlife and landscaper, it is what it is.
2) I started really paying attention to MFD after acquiring the excellent Kipon 40mm f0.85. At 75cm this is quite disappointing for an optic like this, so many times I just want to be in a little closer (a diopter filter can help), but ultimately this is one of the lenses major flaws.
I believe Voigtlander have released a 35/0.9 which offers a much better MFD (35cm) as well as providing EXIF. A lens that loses 5mm, a smidge of light but gains twice the MFD is a no brainer for me, however we're still in MF lens territory (and the price.. oh my)...
3) Which is why I decided to pick up the XF56/1.2RWR, a lens that provides a similar FoV to a 85mm prime whilst offering a MFD of 50cm (vs their 50/1 @ 70cm). It's still the same kind of ordeal however isn't it, we're not gaining more magnification than what the focal length can muster, but perhaps APS-C can give us a cheat code of some description. Be interesting to see a 85mm on FF (with a MFD of 80ishcm) compared for MFD against a APS-C 56mm with that 50cmish MFD.
4) We do have to bare in mind also that the closer one gets the more weirder it can be, 40/2 is doing a different thing to the scene than a imaginary 85 that could get in closer. I do know of portrait shooters who really love the 50mm for that reason, versatile for full length, half body, head shots and even tighter head shots (just riding the limit of unfavourable distortion levels). For bush walking I far preferred a 50mm for that MFD reasons.
5) A spacer or Diopter. I do own the MCEX11 and 16 to bung on a lens for that tighter ring shot (though not during a ceremony). A good quality +1 Diopter can really help too, if you're not a fussy pixel peeper.
I nearly went with Canon for that 85mm macro, until I saw the reviews on focus throw and AF performance, realising it would drive me nuts. I agree that this does feel like an area of the focal length that could be improved. It might not need to be macro but something to get us to 40cm would absolutely open up the versatility of this lens. But in doing so it can't nerf the general operation of the lens like it does with that Canon 58mm macro.
@SummersSnaps - I own the Canon RF 85mm f/2 IS Macro and I really like it. The focus isn't the fastest ever but it is more than fast enough for portraits and macro. The image quality is very good for the price and it is relatively light for a modern prime, albeit not as light as my OM 85/2 which I also own.
I've always fancied one of those Voigtlander primes but haven't quite found the excuse to get one yet. Maybe someday 😅
That Fujifilm 56mm f/1.2 is a lens I really wanted but didn't quite find the excuse at the time. I think it makes more sense than the FF 85mm lenses because of that closer focusing distance, and it seems to be a really nice lens. When I next pick up a Fujifilm camera that'll probably be one of the lenses I get for it!
@@gabedamien Yeh, my realm is more event work where I feel it would let me down, I imagine static editorial portrait sessions it would be fine.
My fuji 80mm (120mm) macro is nice. In my nikon days i did a portrait shoot with 85 f1.4 on a d850. Awesome results.
Ooh I've never had a chance to try out that Fujifilm lens. It's a really interesting focal length!
I have never owned an 85mm. A few times a year I photograph people for their professional use, and a manual 50mm 1.4 on an aps-c camera does the job. The only portrait length lens that tickles my fancy is the Lumix 100mm 2.8 macro, a lens I could definitely find a use for but which I have thus far resisted purchasing.
Yeah I'm sorely tempted by the 100mm f/2.8 macro - I've played with one and it's really fun. When I inevitably sell the Nikon 85mm f/1.8 S, that'll probably be the replacement 😅
Almost every system has a short-medium telephoto macro lens. For macro, MFT makes the most sense and there are a couple of lenses around that range. The Leica 45mm macro and the Olympus 60mm macro. Fuji has an 80mm macro I beleive. Panasonic's recent 100mm macro on the L mount is really interesting due to its size.
It’s interesting how most of the macro ones are 90mm equivalents or up 🤔 I wonder if there’s a reason behind that being the macro choice and 85mm being the portrait option.
@@robert_may I think longer macro lenses are to avoid scaring away insects?
@@CarzorStelatis That'd make sense! I think they also tend to have less distortion than wider ones, which is useful for scanning.
@@robert_may there is a Sigma 70mm macro, which was originally made for DSLRs. And there are a couple of 30mm macro lenses in MFT, from both Olympus and Panasonic.
A short telephoto prime, be it 85, 90 or a 105 mm is my bread and butter lens. I am perfectly fine to go on day trips with only this one focal lens. 50 mm on the other hand don't do absolutely nothing for me. I do agree that the closest focal distance could be smaller but honestly I usually do not miss it too often. It comes down to photographic style and topics, I guess. I do city scapes, maybe a bit of street photography but also indoor shots once in a while. The latter isn't exactly an 85's forte but you actually can get away with it. So ll in all I agree with you on the strengths and weaknesses of the 85 but I am in a lucky situation that the mentioned weaknesses don't bother me.
Great to hear I'm not the only one who prefers a longer prime to the standard 35/50 choice! I do like an 85mm for street photography, although I don't have an ideal setup for that at the moment as manual 85mm lenses are pretty awkward to nail focus on and the Z9+85 1.8 S is so conspicuously huge that I don't use it for street 😆 I think if I had one with slightly closer focusing I could easily see myself using just that one lens all day. Right now I do tend to gravitate towards the 40/50 just because I can use it for more situations, even though I don't love the focal length quite as much 😀
I have no idea if there's an optical reason for 85mm lenses mostly not close focusing. 🤷♂. However, Laowa do make an 85mm manual true macro for Nikon Z mount but it's a f5.6 lens and there's a Nikon 85 one but DX only and of course the 85mm PC-E tilt shift that goes to 1:2 but a difficult lens to use I hear. I love 85mm for portraits too, I picked up a used 85 f1.8 S and it's a stunning lens but not at all close focusing as you say. Can be frustrating. I also do portraits with the Z 105 f2.8 S MC, can render some great "in tight" portraits but the skin tones are better with the 85 and the 105 is sharper in mids and corners making the 85 a better "isolator" for portraits. Again they both were designed for different use cases. The F-mount 105 f1.4 is an amazing portrait beast for those very reasons. I also use my general lens, 24-120 f4 S in at 110-120mm for some pleasant portraits that have a pleasant bokeh with well blurred-out backgrounds, if shot close in at 120mm. My 24-120 is a high quality, very versatile lens. It is my most used now for general shooting.
f/4 lenses are strangely underutilised for portraiture - outdoors in particular I've always found them suitable, and I used to really like my Canon EF 70-200 f/4L for that use-case. I do tend to use primes to take photos of the cat though, just because they're lightweight and easy to hold in awkward positions one-handed 😆
@@robert_may Yes I agree, cats should always be photographed using the finest prime lenses..crazy not to.😂
Olympus made a 90mm f2 macro lens around the same era as the 85mm Olympus lens you have there. It is usually a lot more expensive when you find it though.
Ooh yes that’s a nice looking lens! Even the 85mm f/2 is pretty rare here in the UK (I had to import mine) - don’t think I’ve ever seen the 90 macro over here 🤔
@@robert_may Of course, the 90/2 is significantly larger and heavier and with a very very long focus throw compared the the lovely 85/2. The 90/2 and the 100/2 both compete for the "king of the Zuikos" moniker when it comes to image quality, but I do love my 85/2.
I dunno why but I _really_ struggle to get the 85/2 in focus on my OM-2N. Starting to wonder if the focus screen is off somehow, because I always seem to back-focus with that camera in general, unlike with my Nikon F3 🤔 It's a lovely little lens though so I'd really like to get to the bottom of it!
Nikon has an AF-S 85mm f3.5G ED VR Micro But it's DX. I may not now, but back in the day I bought the 70-200 and therefore cant justify buying an 85 prime
I used to use a 70-200 for this purpose too - not as good for street photography because it's very conspicuous, but definitely a more flexible option and also makes for a much better landscape lens.
I had this, 2nd hand
Needed the money
So (undersold) it
This 45mm f/2.8 P lens is a tiny manual focus lens which works on all Nikons made since 1977. It is more ...
Pros and cons: Close-up performance is great ⋅ Very sharp in the center at all settings ⋅ View full list