I’ve always been a fan of the wide aperture look and shoot most everything between F2.8 and F4. My go to lens is usually the Canon 70mm to 200mm. Well, I recently added the 85mm F1.2 lens to my collection, and let’s say this lens is fast becoming a favorite. It is much lighter than the 70mm–200mm lens, is tack sharp, and is much easier to shoot wide open and get everything you want in focus with consistent results.
This image was shot with the Canon 5D Mark II 85mm f1.2 lens. The lighting with a single 580 EX II flash in a small soft box all done in ETTL mode. The camera was set to aperture priority mode, ISO 100, with the 85 mm lens set to F1.4. I am really digging this new lens… let me know what you think.
Mike:
Love the shot… the detail in the model’s hair is incredible… love the bokeh… is it you or is it the lens!? Must be both, but that lens looks pretty incredible.
I had the chance to play with the Canon 200mm f2 recently and really love the Bokeh on that one as well. Although at a price of over 5k it’s a tough pill to swallow.
Hi Do you have to set the off camera flash to fast sync to get a shot like this wide open. I’m sure the shutter speed was fast. I had the oppertunity to use my outdoor flash recently on a senior shoot but panicked at the last minute cause I knew i was shooting wide open.Your thoughts on this would be greatly appreciated.
Yes, this was shot and high-speed sync in aperture priority mode. It takes a little getting used to, but once you learn the ins and outs of the system it is well worth the learning curve.
I have recently switched to the new Canon 600EX-RT flashes and loving them.