Whats the focal length required to take such photos?

I'm sorry. I read your post three times and I still can't figure out what you are asking. You talk about your crop sensor Nikon, ask about a 24mm and a Nikon 85mm lens, post the top picture which was shot with a 135mm Canon, and your gear lists Nikon stuff. Nice photos, tho.

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Yes, the 24mm will allow you to include more of the environment, but would not be good at all for closer shots. At close range it will distort your subjects in a very unflattering way.

The 85mm would be much better for general portraiture and would work fine for the environmental portraits too, as long as you have room to back up. As noted, the top image was shot at 135mm on a full frame which is very close to an 85mm on Nikon DX (127mm).

MrKiz said:

I like to take portraits but not just close ups, I want to involve a little bit of the environment as well. I am attaching a few photos taken from google search to illustrate my point. Now I am not sure whats the right focal length to use?

I have a 50mm on my crop sensor and to involve the scenery I have to move far from the subject. I was thinking that I need a wide angle lens to do that but focal lengths like 24mm arent best for facial features. So I am confused whether to but an 85mm f/1.8G or a 28mm f/2.8D for my Nikon D7100? I really like the 85mm because of its sharpness but would I be able to take photos like the examples with my 85mm?

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These three photos were taken with greatly different focal lengths, which serves nicely to illustrate the point: it's not the focal length that matters, or rather its not the main thing. What matters most is the relative positions of you and your camera, your subject and the the background. Those influence the relative size and spatial relationships among those elements. You then choose the focal length to determine the framing -- how much of that scene do you want to include, and where do you want to place your elements within the frame?

The first picture was taken relatively far away from the subjects, with a background well behind them. This distant view tends to compress the the perspective, and makes them appear immersed in the environment. A 135 mm lens was used to frame the scene as desired from that distance, and a relatively large aperture of f/2 was used to help blur the background.

The third picture was taken relatively close to the subject, with a much wider focal length than he first one. This proximity tends to make the subject large in comparison with her surroundings, which gives an entirely different feel compared to the first picture. The wide angle lens allows more the the surroundings to be included, and help give a sense of spaciousness, compared to the first picture.

So the answer to your question about focal length really depends on what picture you want to take. If you have in mind portraits with a compressed perspective where the subjects appear more immersed in their environment, plan on shooting from a greater distance and using a longer focal length. On the other hand, if you want to emphasize your subject compared to the environment you will be shooting close to the subject with a relatively wide lens. And if you want to do both, as well as everything in between, then you'll need to plan out your shot for the impression you want to convey, and set up your subject relationships and choice of focal length accordingly; and you'll need a range of focal lengths at your disposal.

Dave

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@hotdog321 Thanks for your input. I just wanted to know what focal length would be right for environmental portraits?

@NikonNature Thanks. I am planning to buy an 85mm soon!

@dsjtecserv Thanks Dave for your time. You are right. I have just started and it takes a keen eye to notice all the things quickly. Now that you have mentioned, its so easy to identify that the third photo is taken with a wide angle lens and the first with a tele prime. I took the photos from the internet and didnt expect them to have exif data until I uploaded them here

MrKiz said:

I like to take portraits but not just close ups, I want to involve a little bit of the environment as well. I am attaching a few photos taken from google search to illustrate my point. Now I am not sure whats the right focal length to use?

Click to expand...

Be careful on the backgrounds. Many beginners include way too much, even when they want the environment in the picture. The portrait subject often becomes too small and the background distracting. It's a balance for good environmental portraits and a skill which will evolve with experience.

As far as focal length, it has little to do with it. You can move back and forth to achieve what you need, for most of it. You'll learn about compression. Consider this shot of one of my grandchildren a few years ago. Note the focal length. :-O









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MrKiz said:

I like to take portraits but not just close ups, I want to involve a little bit of the environment as well. I am attaching a few photos taken from google search to illustrate my point. Now I am not sure whats the right focal length to use?

I have a 50mm on my crop sensor and to involve the scenery I have to move far from the subject. I was thinking that I need a wide angle lens to do that but focal lengths like 24mm arent best for facial features. So I am confused whether to but an 85mm f/1.8G or a 28mm f/2.8D for my Nikon D7100? I really like the 85mm because of its sharpness but would I be able to take photos like the examples with my 85mm?

Click to expand...

Nice input and great shots. I didn't realize I can use a tele zoom to achieve the effect like the first shot (I always shoot head shots when using long zooms). Can someone explain the setup of lighting (including ambient light) and exposure control in the first and 3rd shots?

MrKiz said:

...I was thinking that I need a wide angle lens to do that but focal lengths like 24mm arent best for facial features. ...

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I think you are referring to perspective (sometimes called "Perspective Distortion"). This is a function of subject distance, not focal length.

If you are standing 8 feet from the subject, the face will look the same whether you are at 24mm or 100mm. The only significant difference is that the 24mm will have a wider field of view, and therefore the face will be smaller in the frame, allowing in more of the surrounds.

If you are otherwise happy with your portraits, but want to include more of the environment, then a wider angle lens may be a good solution.

My suggestion is that you decide how far you want to be from you subject in order to give you the desired perspective, and then choose the focal length that provides the desired cropping (field of view).

MrKiz said:

@hotdog321 Thanks for your input. I just wanted to know what focal length would be right for environmental portraits?

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Environmental portraits are generally shot with a wide angle lens

MrKiz said:

@NikonNature Thanks. I am planning to buy an 85mm soon!

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To achieve something like #1 that's an ideal choice

MrKiz said:

I took the photos from the internet and didnt expect them to have exif data until I uploaded them here

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That's fair comment.

I would not state it with certainty, but shot #3 could be a photomontage.

curiosifly said:

curiosifly said:

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Nice input and great shots. I didn't realize I can use a tele zoom to achieve the effect like the first shot (I always shoot head shots when using long zooms). Can someone explain the setup of lighting (including ambient light) and exposure control in the first and 3rd shots?

Click to expand...

It's hard to tell on the first. If flash was used, it looks to be a single light, off camera left. The subjects are too small to see catch lights so can't tell whether is was the sky, the sun or an off camera flash unit.

The last one is either a montage, as NearerNirvana said, or some somewhat poor fill flash, in my opinion. If flash, then the photographer would have, in this case, metered and underexposed the background, then used fill flash to expose the model at what looks to be a normal exposure. The fill looks to have come from off-camera high and camera right. A single light probably because you can see the harsher shadow under her arm. I see only one catch light and it comes from slightly high and camera right, but too small to tell if it is round or square.

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Cheers, Craig
Follow me on Twitter @craighardingsr : Equipment in Profile - f/22 Club Member
I reserve the right to make mistakes in reasoning and logic as well as to change my mind anytime I wish. I also ask forbearance with respect to my typos. Please take a look at my gallery here at DPR.

I think the lens has a bit less to do with the photo. If you have a fast, f1.2-2.8 lens than you can create depth of field. The more tele the lens and closer you are to the subject the more blurred the background will be. If you increase the f stop to f5.6-11 the whole picture will be in focus. Wider lens are fine for people photos just not up close portraits. With my FF Nikon I use 35, 50, 85, 135 for portriats. So on apsc 24, 35, 56, 90mm, on my only apsc camera a Fuji xpro 2, I use the 35 and 56 most for people. I'd suggest playing with the F stop a bit.





Fuji xpro 2 56mm




Fuji xpro 2 35mm

I believe the last photo is drastically edited.

This photo was taken on a Nikon (forget if it was a d800e or d4 a while ago but with the 135 attached and I was sitting on the rock wall entrance to the beach.