Portrait photography is a vast genre. If you look deep enough, you’ll find multiple smaller niches, ranging from fashion to corporate headshots. Although many people think otherwise, portrait photography is challenging to master; you’ll need to think more about your equipment than you might in other niches.

Many portrait photographers use the 85mm as their lens of choice, and for several good reasons. This lens can give your model a more flattering look, and you can also get creative with multiple kinds of shots.

Are you considering adding an 85mm lens to your photography toolkit for portraits? If so, you’re making an excellent choice. This article outlines seven reasons why.

1. Bokeh

Bokeh is one of the most popular alternative photography types. In short, the term refers to having an out-of-focus background with the subject—who’ll be in the forefront—in focus. Mastering this skill will take you a long time, but some photographers—such as Brandon Woelfel—have done so with amazing results.

You can achieve bokeh in portrait photography with several lenses, including the 35mm and 50mm—both of which you should consider purchasing as your first prime camera lens. However, the 85mm is arguably your best choice.

You can use the 85mm to fill more of the frame with your model in portrait photography, along with widening your aperture. Bokeh photography with an 85mm lens is enjoyable at night or with neon lights, where you can experiment with all kinds of background colors and lighting.

2. Capture Your Subject’s Emotions Better

Photo of a portrait of someone's face

Many of the world’s best photographers have gained significant recognition because they’re good at telling stories. Capturing the emotion of your subjects is one of the best ways to improve your storytelling skills, and doing so is much easier if you’ve got an 85mm lens.

With an 85mm lens, you’ll naturally get closer to your model’s face. More importantly, you can capture the emotions in their eyes and give your image more life.

Your image will become more memorable to your audiences when you successfully capture your subjects’ emotions. As such, you’ll stand out more to clients if you want to create a photography business—along with improving your following on social media.

3. Sharp Photos

Many photographers value sharpness above most, if not all, of their pictures’ other qualities. You’d probably find all of our tips useless if you had to sacrifice clear images for them, but fear not; you can still take sharp photos with the 85mm lens.

Many photographers laud 85mm lenses for their sharpness, especially when using a smaller aperture. Some third-party alternatives to manufacturer-specific lenses, such as Viltrox, still have very good image quality.

When you know that your lens can take sharp pictures, you’ll feel much less pressure each time you click on the shoot button. Of course, you’re responsible for much of the image’s overall quality; if you can’t get the results you want, try slowing down your shutter speed or turning on your in-camera stabilization. Alternatively, you can put the camera on a tripod.

4. Give Your Subject More Space

Several people believe that you don’t need talent to stand in front of a camera and look good. You only need to win the genetics lottery, right? Wrong.

Many people suddenly lose their confidence when they step in front of a camera, and models must put in a lot of work to improve this skill. Regardless of whether you’re working with someone experienced or a complete beginner, you can give them a little more space by using a longer focal length.

The 85mm lens is excellent for portrait photography because it’s non-intrusive; your subject has a lot more freedom to act naturally and pose however they want. You’ll achieve better results, leading to happy clients and a better portfolio.

5. Remove Surrounding Distractions

Photo of a man walking with his headphones plugged in

Your job as a photographer requires you to think about what you want in your pictures. However, understanding what you don’t want to include is just as important. How many times have you imported your images into Lightroom or Capture One, only to discover that you’ve got a lot of cropping and paintbrushing to do?

You can make editing much more manageable by removing distractions when you take the picture. With an 85mm lens, you’ll naturally get less in your shot from the same distance than a lower focal length would.

When you remove unnecessary objects from your photos, you’ll make it easier for the viewer to focus on your main subject. As such, you’ll portray your desired message more clearly.

6. Flattering to Facial Features

Portrait photographers must consider which lenses will make their subjects look better, and many beginners learn quickly that not all focal lengths are equal. Some can compress your model’s face and make them look less picturesque than you want them to be.

The 85mm still has compression, but much less so than smaller focal lengths. Your lens will give the person in your shot a more flattering look, meaning that you won’t need to mess with resizing and the like in post-production.

7. 85mm Lenses Are Still Versatile

Photo of people putting camera gear into a bag

The 85mm lens will still fit in your camera bag snugly, even if it’s less portable than, say, the 50mm. And when you’re out capturing portraits, you can use the lens for various portrait types.

An 85mm lens is excellent for headshots as you can get closer to your subject without needing to crop afterward. However, you can also use the lens for full-body shots and still achieve excellent results.

The 85mm lens will also take fantastic portraits regardless of whether you hold your camera horizontally or vertically. So, you can have a bit of fun experimenting—along with publishing your favorite shots on social media and not sacrificing quality.

An 85mm Lens Is a Must for Portrait Photography

85mm lenses are excellent for all kinds of portrait photography. You’ll get flattering images that will make your subject look better, and you can use the lens both at night and during the day. These lenses are typically quite sharp, and you can remove background distractions without needing to spend hours editing.

While 85mm lenses are pretty expensive, getting one is a worthwhile investment if you plan on shooting portraits in the long run.