There are several types of portrait or people photography which may range from close up head shots to full body shots and groups of people, this will require a range of lenses from longish telephoto lenses, ranging through to wide angle lenses. So what is the best nikon lens for portrait photography?

We will discuss this under the main headings below. Bear in mind that there is a difference between DX cameras and FX cameras in respect to the focal length of lens required, due to the lens crop factor. I will quote focal length ranges and generally DX cameras would require the lower end of the range and FX cameras the higher end of the range.

Groups of People

A lens suitable for groups of people would generally be in the range from 24-50mm. Generally groups of people will require an aperture in the range f/5.6 to f/8, to ensure that there is sufficient depth of field to get everyone in focus. With groups of people it is essential that everyone is in focus.

Full Body Shots

For full single body images, a lens of around 35-50mm may work well. A suitable aperture would be  f/4 to  f/5.6 to ensure that all of the subject is in focus.

Upper Body and Head Shots

Generally for upper body and head images a lens of between 50 to 105mm would be useful and apertures of f/2.8 to f/4 would ensure that all is in focus.

Close Up Head Shots

Partial Head Shots

With a longer lens of between 150 to 200mm partial head shots can be obtained, but again remember that depth of field will be very limited at low apertures of f/1.4.

Summary

Star Studded - Body Art Carnivale

The first three images here have been photographed with a Nikon D700 camera and a Nikon 105mm, f/2.8, Micro lens. This lens is an excellent general purpose lens for people and portrait photography. The secret of getting good portraits in an environment such as where these body art images were captured, is to crop in closely and to try to blur out the background, to ensure it does not intrude and distract from the image.

Red Head, Body Art Carnivale

These images have been taken at a Body Art Carnivale. It can be quite a challenge to capture images at a carnrivale such as this as the subjects are continually moving and fast action is required by the photographer.

Peacock Woman - Body Art Carnivale

The last three images below have been captured with a 24-120mm zoom lens. The zoom lens gives more flexibility in framing the images in a limited space and eliminating any background distraction. In all the images below there was some action involved and the zoom was very handy to frame the images.

The Alien - Body Art Carnivale

To assist you in choosing lenses for an event such as this we have a good summary of all the Nikon lenses together with many Nikon Lens Reviews.

The choice of lens can depend on many factors including aperture requirements, focal length and/or zoom versus fixed focal length.

Painted, Body Art Carnivale

Generally events such as this provide opportunities for very colourful and  high impact images.

The Archer, Body Art Carnivale

Ride 'Em Cowboy, Gold Coast Rodeo

A country Rodeo is always a good place to go to get some stunning action images. This is fast moving action and quick reflexes are required to capture the moment.

Use a high shutter speed to freeze the action. To acheive the fast shutter speed you may well need to up the ISO and use a lower aperture. The above image has been captured at 1/1,600 second, f/6.3, at ISO 1,600.

The examples here have been taken with a Nikon D700 camera and 300mm lens, I was some distance from the arena. If you are in a position close to the arena fence you would be better off with a shorter lens such as a 50-85mm.

The End Is Near, Gold Coast Rodeo

The above image has captured the peak of the action, with the rider about to bite the dust. The setting for this image were 1/4,000 second, f/4.0 at ISO 1,600.

The Painted Man

The images here have been captured at the Body Art Carnivale at Eumundi, Queensland, Australia.

A carnival such as this is a great opportunity to capture images of body art and face painting. The images here were captured through from the painting preparation process to the final display.

For these images a Nikon D700 camera was used together with a 105mm f/2.8  Micro lens and a 200mm f/4.0 Micro lens. Lenses in the range 85-200mm are very suitable for this type of photography.

A low aperture lens of at least f/2.8 is of great advantage for this photography, as it will enable you to acheive a nice depth of field to blur out the background as required, also a low aperture lens will allow creative selective focus. A blurred out background will bring the viewers attention to the main subject.

A fill in flash with a diffuser can also be useful for suplementary lighting to give more even lighting.

The image above was captured after dark, using camera settings as follows:

• ISO of 200
• Built in camera flash
• Shuttur speed 1/60 second
• Aperture f/3.5

Also to capture moving subjects after dark it is advantageous to have a lens with an aperture capable of going down to f/1.4 when shooting in low light.

The image of the Crouching Man below was also photographed with flash and the remaining images with natural daylight.

The Mad Hatter

The Cat

Painted Man Crouching

Smiling Art

A photo essay is in effect a short series of photographs which tell a story or document a series of actions. A photo essay is illustrated by a series of images which you may see in a magazine to tell a story. In general it will show a series if actions to illustrate the story.

The photo essay below illustrates some fishermen from the initial preparation right through to the sorting of the fish, together with the action in between. It attempts to catch all the action.

Pulling in the Nets

The Catch

The Catch

Sorting the Catch

Boy up pole

There are several factors which may impact on photographs of people and these may be summarised as follows:

Lens

A medium telephoto lens is generally regarded as the most valuable lens for capturing portraits and a large maximum aperture of f/2.8 or larger will enable you to work in lower light.

Lighting

Diffuse light is most desirable for pleasing portraits. Fill in flash can be used to eliminate any harsh shadows. Reflectors can also be used to reduce the incidence of shadows. Higher ISO film or camera settins ISO400 to assist in poorer lighting.For most portraits lighting coming from slightly above the camera and to the side of the camera is preferable. A small amount of back lighting can enhance the portrait.

Filters

Filtrers can enhance portraits by using softening filters. A skylight filter may give a warmer feeling to the image.A diffuser filter can soften the image thus eliminating wrinkles and other blemishes.

Tripod

A tripod can be very usefull to help reduce camer shake and give sharper images.

There are many photo opportunities available to people photographers and many are summarised as follows:

• Environmental portraits
• Outdoor and indoor candids
• Weddings
• Celebrations and special events
• Street parades
• Sporting Events
• Concerts
• Shows

Portraits are best taken at the eye level of the subject, and catch the expression at the right moment. Be carefull that there are no intruding backgrounds and that the subject is relaxed and comfortable.

The above image of the boy up the pole catches that special and unusual moment.

Warrior

Warrior caught at street parade

Queen of the parade

Aboriginal musician with didgeridoo

Clown

Clowning around at street parade