Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM

[RLPhoto]

I love this lens.  It's small, fast, focuses much faster than the 1.2 and it is a great value.  What's not to love?

I prefer the 100mm F/2.

I am thinking about both.... why the 100/2 over the 85/1.8 ?

Does anyone have comparison shots?

More Compression, smaller noses.

[brianleighty]

I love this lens.  It's small, fast, focuses much faster than the 1.2 and it is a great value.  What's not to love?

I prefer the 100mm F/2.

I am thinking about both.... why the 100/2 over the 85/1.8 ?

Does anyone have comparison shots?

More Compression, smaller noses.

Might also be the fact that the 100 has visibly better image quality than the 85. Look at TDP's ISOs and you'll see what I'm talking about.

[The_Arsonist]

I love this lens.  It's small, fast, focuses much faster than the 1.2 and it is a great value.  What's not to love?

I prefer the 100mm F/2.

I am thinking about both.... why the 100/2 over the 85/1.8 ?

Does anyone have comparison shots?

CA was the big reason I chose the 100 f/2 over the 85 f/1.8. I never owned the 85, but borrowed it quite often. I also found the focus on the 100 to be better, but I suspect that was because I used the 85 before I had a body with AFMA. I doubt any of my shots would help you. Only reason I sold the 100 is because I acquired a 70-200 2.8, and the 100 now lives a block away with a friend, so it's still available to me.   

[dr croubie]

I am thinking about both.... why the 100/2 over the 85/1.8 ?
Does anyone have comparison shots?

More Compression, smaller noses.

Might also be the fact that the 100 has visibly better image quality than the 85. Look at TDP's ISOs and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Ive got both the 85 and 100, and they're both great IMHO. choose based on focal length, because that's practically the only difference. The 100mm might have a smidgen better IQ on test charts, but in real life I can't tell the difference. Both great. (just buy both, it's easier)

[K-amps]

I am thinking about both.... why the 100/2 over the 85/1.8 ?
Does anyone have comparison shots?

William Castleman compared the 85/1.8, 100/2, and 135/2:
http://www.wlcastleman.com/equip/reviews/85_100_135/index.htm

At f/2, he states the 100 is noticeably softer than the other two.

EDIT:
He also compared the 85/1.2, 85/1.2 II, and 85/1.8, if you are interested:
http://www.wlcastleman.com/equip/reviews/85mm/index.htm

Very helpful,  Thanks!

[K-amps]

I love this lens.  It's small, fast, focuses much faster than the 1.2 and it is a great value.  What's not to love?

I prefer the 100mm F/2.

I am thinking about both.... why the 100/2 over the 85/1.8 ?

Does anyone have comparison shots?

More Compression, smaller noses.

Also helpful... since I felt larger noses in the 85Lii...

Now that we are in the 100mm territory and F2... How much do I gain when I have a 70-200 mk.ii f2.8 , I wonder...

[RLPhoto]

I love this lens.  It's small, fast, focuses much faster than the 1.2 and it is a great value.  What's not to love?

I prefer the 100mm F/2.

I am thinking about both.... why the 100/2 over the 85/1.8 ?

Does anyone have comparison shots?

More Compression, smaller noses.

Also helpful... since I felt larger noses in the 85Lii...

Now that we are in the 100mm territory and F2... How much do I gain when I have a 70-200 mk.ii f2.8 , I wonder...

Less weight, Less bulk and Less stares.

[leftnose]

I love this lens.  It's small, fast, focuses much faster than the 1.2 and it is a great value.  What's not to love?

I prefer the 100mm F/2.

I am thinking about both.... why the 100/2 over the 85/1.8 ?

Does anyone have comparison shots?

More Compression, smaller noses.

Also helpful... since I felt larger noses in the 85Lii...

Now that we are in the 100mm territory and F2... How much do I gain when I have a 70-200 mk.ii f2.8 , I wonder...

Less weight, Less bulk and Less stares.

1-stop faster for "more" motion freeze.

[Jesse]

Just got this after realizing I couldn't afford the 85L. Other than the CA wide-open, I'm loving it.


U of T Out Of Focus by Jesse Herzog, on Flickr

[ablearcher]

  85mm f/1.8 gets more love now on 5DMKIII 

[Sporgon]

  85mm f/1.8 gets more love now on 5DMKIII 

I'm going to commit sacrilege on CR:

I think I prefer this lens to the 135L 

[ablearcher]

I'm going to commit sacrilege on CR:

I think I prefer this lens to the 135L 

  LOL. Sacrilege indeed  I actually had 135L in my bag when I was shooting that day. I think 85mm is a more workable lens for kids. 135L might be better in other respects but it requires more time for setup. Sometimes keeping distance is great, especially for candids. But if you are working with posed shots for kids then I prefer to be a bit closer - more communication with the subject and more control. Faster angles too. I always liked the 85mm 1.8 but now on FF I just love it.

[TexasBadger]

I've had the 85 f/1.8 for almost ten years and I do not hesitate to use it when I need the 85mm focal length.  I had a friend use it at a scouting court of honor and it focused so fast on my 5Dc that he thought the af wasn't working.  He was used to the 24-70 f/2.8 L on his 7d. He was so used to focus hunting he was blown away. Best value lens in my kit.

[RomainF]

This lens is a perfect one for press work.
Here is the french right-wing opposition party president. I really like that 85mm for that kind of shots, when you have to isolate a subject, standing next to less or unimportant people. That extremely shollow DOF stands to be the perfect thing you need in that kind of situation.


Moreover, due to the price of the 1.8 one, wich is far cheaper than the 1.2L, you can bring it wherever you want, even for some quite "hot" context. That shot is pretty poor, for sure,  but i would have NEVER get a 2.000$ lens with me in that circumstances. Furthermore, that night a rioter had "shot" me with an empty bottle of beer (made with glass) wich has hit my 85mm. None to report. My lens works perfectly since that day.
You can see that thug teargasing the police. It has been the first time of my life i've seen such a violent and defiant behavior. Moreover, these riots where taking place in the "richest" places of Paris : the "Rue de L'université" is one of the most expensive of France and is de facto supposed to be one of the safest. The picture has been shot at extra-high ISO and is actually cropped a lot, that's why... But i'd have never been able to shoot anything with a standard 24-70 f/2.8. Thereby, I really recommend that lens to anybody. 

[drmikeinpdx]

Since I got my 5D III, with it's incredible autofocus system, I can now use my prime lenses to good effect.  One that has become a favorite is the 85mm 1.8 USM lens.  I shoot mostly people these days who are moving and posing, so a light, compact lens is very helpful.  This shot was at 1/200, ISO 200 and F/4.  The light was very flat due to the bright overcast sky, so I increased the contrast in Lightroom.  I can do so much in Lightroom now that I really question the need to have heavy, expensive prime lenses that give a bit better contrast or color rendering than the mid-range primes like the 85/1.8.  I have a 135L that is fun to use, but I can't pick out the 135L images from the 85/1.8 images without cheating.

This is not one of the better images from this shoot, but the model was quite the exhibitionist and there weren't many images suitable for this forum.