Best portrait lens on Reddit
295 reviews from r/fujifilm, r/canon, r/M43 and 16 more subreddits
295 reviews from
and
By Brand
/By Product
#1
Canon
4.6
(67)
"I use the old EF 85mm F1.8 for portraits and it's perfect for me."
"They’re both super cheap and really sharp."
"It is an improvement of any previous ef macros with better color and contrast."
"Sharp, small, lightweight, and good value for money."
"I have an RF 50mm F1.8, which goes for ~200 £$€ and I love it."
"Get an L prime, either the 50 or the 85 1.2."
"I love my plastic fantastic canon 50mm f/1.8"
"The 85 f1.2 I’d say would be the best."
"If I *know* I’m going to be shooting mostly portraits, I reach for the RF 85 mm F/1.2."
"Personally I love the 85mm and use this when ever I can."
#2
Sigma
4.6
(60)
"Sigma 85 1.4 art with adapter."
"Very crisp where it focuses and very smooth outside of that."
"Signs art 85 1.4 with converter."
"The Sigma is unbelievable for the price if you can find it used."
"Is top."
"In terms of image I love the sigma 105mm 1.4"
"Imho the 85mm 1.4 dg dn ART literally made me say out loud WOW!"
"Sigma 18-35 f/1.8 should be your way to go imo."
"18-35/1.8 is probably the best option. Not too expensive either."
"If you want a classic focal length for portraits: Sigma 56mm f/1.4."
#3
Fujifilm
4.7
(41)
"50 f1, 90 f2."
"Xf 56mm 1.2 (85mm equivalent) ….it’s pure magic"
"50 f/1 makes me want to switch to Fuji X. Wonderfull lens."
"Third in my list is 90mm f2."
"56mm f/1.2 R WR is very good."
"For me it is the 50mm F1.0 that gives me the warm and fuzzies!"
"90mm F2 is my favourite."
"Fujifilm XF 56mm F/1.2 R WR."
"Fujifilm XF 50mm F/1.0."
"People swear by the XF 90MM F2 and the 56mm f/1.2 R WR."
#4
Viltrox
4.4
(37)
"I would recommend the viltrox 56mm 1.4 it's a super fast and low cost lens."
"Objectively, to my knowledge, the Viltrox 75mm F/1.2 is the current champion."
"Viltrox 75 1.2"
"Viltrox 75mm & XF90mm"
"Fanatic lens and less than half of any Fuji stuff I love it."
"The Viltrox RF 85mm f1.8, one of the few AF 3rd party lenses, is a great lenses for the money. Arguably a better portrait lens than the Canon RF 85mm f2."
"I bought the Viltrox 75 f1.2 and I am in awe of the quality it delivers for that price."
"I'd seen enough reviews... I was freaking blown away by what an amazing lens it was."
"It's absolutely beautiful but i'd like a 56mm tbh for just a bit more flexibility in composition"
"The viltrox pro line is just dumb good."
#5
Nikon
4.5
(28)
"Definitely the 50mm."
"Nifty fifty should be every aspiring portrait photographers first lens."
"On that camera, the 50mm f/1.8g is a brilliant focal length for portraits."
"For a crop body a 1.8 50 mm or a 1.8 85 mm would work either."
"Is the best option of these 3."
"It's a fantastic lens, compact for travel."
"Is freakin’ excellent."
"The 85 1.8 is my favourite z lens."
"Z 85mm 1.8 S first. Upgrade your 50mm to the Z when finances allow."
"The 85mm is amazing in every way."
#6
Olympus
4.6
(26)
"It’s so fast at focusing. Nearly instant."
"Both superb."
"The Olympus has softer bokeh while the Panaleica is a bit sharper."
"Gets my vote as well."
"I LOVE my 45 1.2."
"The olympus and it's a classic, always surprises me."
"Olympus 45. Compact, sharp. Excellent lens."
"I got my Olympus 45mm f/1.8 for 169 brand new with cashback. It is worth every penny."
"The Olympus M.Zuiko 45mm f1.8 is on the cheaper side (used as low as $100-ish) and makes great portraits especially for the price."
"Olympus 45 1.8 is one of the pinnacle lenses in m4/3. Outstanding image quality, size and price."
#7
N/A
4.3
(11)
"Best option for under $400"
"ITS THE ABSOLUTE BEST FOR ME"
"I agree with the other recommendations here for getting her an 85mm lens."
"85 is the go to length for portraits."
"Gives a 50mm look. Fast and lightweight."
"The full frame effective field of view of 60mm is pretty flattering."
"Whichever the best 50mm prime you can afford is."
"Some of them make stupendous portrait lenses."
"The 80mm is just about right."
"24-70mm f/2.8."
#8
Panasonic
4.4
(8)
"I love that lens it takes gorgeous shots"
"I'd always recommend the Panasonic 42.5 1.7 if you're on a Panasonic body."
"The Lumix 42.5mm f/1.7 is an easy recommendation."
"Is sharper and has OIS."
"The Olympus 45/1.8 or Panasonic 42.5/1.7 will do the trick."
"The Lumix 42.5 1.7 and Olympus 45mm 1.8 are the typical standard portrait length."
"I love that lens it takes gorgeous shots."
"Is excellent for the price."
#9
Leica
4.4
(5)
"Both superb."
"I shot portrait photos of a local during my last vacation with a Summicron 50mm."
"The Elmarit 135mm f/2.8 with goggles is pretty handy and relatively inexpensive to try out."
"However for travel and convenience, I would also highly recommend the 50 dual range with removable goggles."
"Might not get the compression you’re looking for, but the 50mm summicron DR can close focus to 0.5m that might be a good option for portraiture."
#10
Samyang
4.7
(3)
"If you can find a used copy of the Samyang RF85 f/1.4... it’s an incredible lens for the price; I picked one up for $900 Canadian, less than a third of the price of the Canon RF85 f/1.2 and the image quality is FANTASTIC."
"Samyang XP 85mm f/1.2"
"I've personally been rocking the Samyang XP 85mm f/1.2 for my portrait work."
#11
Sigma 56mm f/1.4
4.0
(3)
"The special thing about the Sigma which makes it so sought after is that, even though its just f1.4, the FL is longer than the 42.5 and 45mm f1.2 lenses."
"Sigma will render more classically expected portraits with its longer focal length and faster aperture."
"Sigma always felt a bit long for my shooting style and it was clinically sharp in a way that I didn’t like."
#12
85mm F/1.4
5.0
(2)
"85 more than 50 but I could shoot a 50 almost all day."
"For portraits specifically? An 85mm 1.4."
#13
Voigtlander
5.0
(1)
"Will 100% give you the shallowest DoF, but it's manual focus."
#14
Soviet
5.0
(1)
"The Soviet OF-233 210/2.5 is the best portrait lens ever made."
#15
Zeiss
5.0
(1)
"100mm f3.5 CFi is the only lens I use for portrait work."
#16
Schneider
4.0
(1)
"I have a Schneider summer 210 5.6 that I really like for portraits."
Discover your audience
GummySearch is an audience research toolkit for 130,000 unique communities on Reddit.
If you are looking for startup problems to solve, want to validate your idea or find your customers online, GummySearch is for you.
Sign up for free, get community insights in minutes.
Tell me more
Get started
