Best Lens For Full-Body Portraits – Compared & Reviewed

Yes, the portraits can be full-body, too; when you shoot a full-body image, you’re flattering their 3-dimensional body into two dimensions.

To cut the chase and help you guys avoid picking the wrong one, I have listed up to 10 Lenses that I think are the best for full-body portraits.

Here you will find a bunch of lenses with a focal length of a minimum range and even up to 600mm.

A Quick Look At My Favorite Lenses For Full-Body Portraits

Image	Product	Features	Price
Best All-Rounder	Tamron 24-70mm	10	Check Price On Amazon
Best Runner-Up	Sigma 24-70mm	9	Check Price On Amazon
Best Value	Canon EF 50mm f/1.8	8.6	Check Price On Amazon
Best For Panoramas	Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 24-70mm	8.5	Check Price On Amazon
Best For Proffesionals	Sony - FE 24-105mm	8.6	Check Price On Amazon
Best for Low-Light	Canon EF 85mm	8.2	Check Price On Amazon
Best For Most People	Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm	8	Check Price On Amazon
Best For APS-C	Sony SEL85F18 85mm	7.7	Check Price On Amazon
Best for Bokeh	Tamron SP 70-200mm	7.4	Check Price On Amazon
Best Focal Range	Sigma 150-600mm	7.2	Check Price On Amazon

The Top 10 Lenses For Full-Body Portrait Photography

1. Tamron 24-70mm – Best All-Rounder

The Tamron SP 24-70mm F/2.8 Di VC USD G2 is designed to maximize the potential of the latest pixel density cameras while at the same time, delivering crisp clear image quality.

It comes with the well-known eBAND coating that resists ghosting and flares making it great for backlight photography.

Thanks to the cutting-edge autofocus technology the Tamron offers the highest vibration in its class, with a CIPA image stabilization performance level of 5.

It has a maximum focal length of 70mm with a minimum of 24mm, a minimum aperture of 22, and a maximum aperture range of F/2.8.

It sports a Flourine coating making it rugged to the point of being resistant to all moistures. It measures 4.3 x 3.5 x 3.5 inches and weighs 1.98 lbs.
The Tamaron is an ideal choice for outdoor portrait photography.

Sample Photos of the Tamron 24-70mm

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2. Sigma 24-70mm – Best Runner-Up

This lens is pretty much as the previous option but with some different tweaks under it slevees. It is well built , optically great and it comes in a reasonable price.

The Sigma 24-70mm F2.8 DG DN Art is optimized for mirrorless cameras, and it makes that clear in the autofocus performance, the focus is fast and accurate and even in low light it had no problem finding the right focus.

Build wise it is made of a combination of metal and high-end plastic, the lens itself feels solid and everything feels smooth, it sure looks like a high-end one and looks like the Sony and the Panasonic.

Its focal range of 24-70mm makes it a splendid choice for photographing people, meaning it is ideal for portraits, weddings, parties, events, family gatherings, street photography, and more.

It has a max aperture of 2.8 millimeters and a wide aperture is a big feature advantage on this lens.

This is the kind of lens you should take when you are not sure which focal length you need, Sigma will be found to be the right choice for sure.

Sample Photos of the Sigma 24-70mm

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3. Canon EF 50mm – Best Value

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens, Is Canon’s least expensive lens and at the same time, it doesn’t fail to bring great value to the table with very few compromises.

It comes with a great Auto-Focus that has proven to beat even a pricier lens in this aspect. It has a minimum focusing distance of 1.15 feet and a maximum magnification of 0.21x.

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens is a great entry-level lens for the EOS prime lenses. With an 80mm focal length on APS-C cameras and a fixed focal length of 50mm and a maximum aperture of f/1.8 that excels in the low light environment and at the same time captures gorgeous and crystal clear images. The background blur is beautiful too, thanks to its circular 7-blade design.

It measures 1.54 x 2.72 x 2.72 inches and weighs 5.60 ounces making it quite compact and lightweight and the lens mount is metal.

The Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens is a great camera for full-body portraits, especially in the nighttime.

A lens that brings large value at a cheap price, is definitely something all Canon users should have.

Sample Photos of the Canon EF 50mm

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4. Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 24-70mm – Best For Panoramas

The Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8E is considered to be a workhorse on its own. Many photographers desire it since it has a huge versatility in use from wide-angle landscapes and panoramas, to events and up to full-body portraits.

It has a constant maximum aperture of f/2.8, a really fast autofocus that is not only designed to focus quickly and accurately in low-light environments but at the same time, it yields exceptional sharpness, clear colors, and great micro-contrast in images.
What’s more, Nikon added VR on this lens (Vibration Reduction), meaning it has an image stabilization technology that allows up to four stops of compensation when shooting from hand.

It is a bit on the large and heavy side, but nothing worrisome. It measures 5.75 x 5.75 x 9.25 inches and weighs 2.36 lbs. It combines a high-quality build that is fully weather-resistant but sadly all of that above comes with it at a hefty price.

Sample Photos of the Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 24-70mm

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5. Sony – FE 24-105mm – Best For Professionals

The Sony FE 24-105mm F4 G OSS is a compact and great zoom lens that proves useful to both photographers and videographers, thanks to its wide range of subjects.

The autofocus system is heavily released on Sony’s SSM which is quite fast and silent, the focus accuracy is simply Sony level (one of the best AF’s on the market currently). It features an image stabilizer OSS with around a 3-F stop mark. And a minimum focusing distance of just 1.25 feet.

Besides having a maximum focal length of 105 millimeters it has a 9-Blade circular aperture that contributes to providing great de-focused or, say blurry backgrounds.

The lens is built for professionals, but the build quality is not quite there. It measures 4.5 x 3.38 x 4.72 inches and weighs 1.46 pounds. It is weather-resistant thanks to the fluorine coating and it is made out of high-quality plastic.

Sample Photos of the Sony – FE 24-105mm

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6. Canon EF 85mm – Best for Low-Light

If you are looking for great value yet small, light, and a great performing fast lens, then the EF 85mm f/1.8 USM Lens is your friend.

The Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM Lens is quite inexpensive yet that doesn’t mean it has bad picture quality. Opening the 85’s F/1.8 aperture wide you will see the background blurring away, rewarding with great aesthetics and that is thanks to its 8-blade design. While its USM (Ultrasonic Motor) Focuses fast and quietly.

The EF shines best indoor and low light photography thanks to its fixed 85mm focal length, for example, the church wedding days, schools, offices, etc.

And it sure is a great lens for full body portraits at the same time excelling at head/shoulders portraits too.

It measures 2.83 x 2.95 x 2.95 inches and weighs only 0.94 lbs, while it is built in good materials. No doubt, that this is a great lens for the price.

Sample Photos of the Canon EF 85mm

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7. Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm – Best For Most People

For a lot of photographers, the 35mm lens is considered to be the sweet spot, it is not too wide nor too long either, making it a joy for photographing everything from landscapes to people.

The AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G promises us to deliver the consistently stunning images you’d expect from a prime lens. Its fast aperture of F/1.8 is a great tool for low-light shooting and at the same time creating splendid blurry backgrounds. And thanks to its rounded 7-blade diaphragm it makes the out-of-focus elements appear more neutral in an aesthetic way.

Close focusing to 1 foot and the exclusive SWM (Nikon’s Silent Wave Motor) enables fast, accurate, and quiet autofocus that will work like a charm even at night.

It measures 2.09 x 2.76 x 2.76 inches and weighs 7.1 ounces.

It proves to be great for traveling, environmental portraits, and street photography.

Sample Photos of the Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm

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8. Sony SEL85F18 85mm – Best For APS-C

The Sony SEL85F18 85mm F/1.8-22 is here to give us beautiful portraits at an affordable price, this compact and lightweight lens was made in mind for the Alpha Series of Sony but it works wonders on all full-frame APS C cameras.

It features Direct Manual Focus, meaning It has an Auto-Focus that is accurate, swift, and silent. All that excels thanks to its double linear motor system.

Although we can achieve an 85mm focal length with a lot of zoom lenses, this one is a bit special, a defocused background is employed to isolate the main subject yet it is still close enough to maintain proper communication with the subject without losing the details.

No doubt that the 85mm lens handles everything beautifully in all aspects.

It is indeed chunky but it is quite light and compact, measuring 4.49 x 3.82 x 4.49 inches and weighing 10.4 ounces.

Sample Photos of the Sony SEL85F18 85mm

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9. Tamron SP 70-200mm – Best for Bokeh

Tamron SP 70-200mm F/2.8 Di VC G2 is a must-have for every professional out there, it provides immense high image quality with a greatly enhanced bokeh.

It has two optical design features that eliminate chromatic aberrations across the entire zoom, the Extra-Low Dispersion known as XLD and LD Low dispersion.

The lens focus as close as 0.95 meters and its autofocus is really fast and silent at the same time.

The VC performance is 5 stops (VC mode 3 ) and it offers us three optimized modes for all occasions of shooting.

The lens comes in black with a sturdy metal barrel, it has protection against moisture and dust making it ideal for outside shooting, the full-body portraits are all just phenomenal with this lens thanks to the splendid background blur.

It measures 7.5 x 3.46 x 3.46 inches and weighs 3.28 pounds.

Sample Photos of the Tamron SP 70-200mm

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10. Sigma 150-600mm – Best Focal Range

Being able to reach 600mm without spending a fortune, has been every photographer’s wildest dream. And with the Sigma 150-600mm 5-6.3 Contemporary DG OS HSM that dream comes true.

The highlight of this lens is its focal length range, indeed that this is a lens that will prove more useful to wildlife and sports but it has great use for paparazzi, law enforcement all those groups will find this focal length range useful. Portraits especially will benefit thanks to the tightly framed variety.

it is driven by Sigmas Hypersonic Motor, it delivers great speed and accuracy in the focus aspect and won’t miss anything even in the dark.

It indeed cant be confused with a macro lens, but it sure can fill the frame with small subjects at a close distance.

It measures 10.2 x 4.1 x 4.1 inches and weighs 4.25 pounds.

Sample Photos of the Sigma 150-600mm

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Things you should consider before buying a Portrait Lens

Let me show you what you should take into consideration regarding the full-body portraits.

Zoom and Prime Lens

There are two main lenses, Zooming, and Priming.

Zoom lenses come in different focal ranges, such as 24-70 mm, 70-200mm, etc. Making this kind really versatile for each lens. Zoom lenses make things easier without you having to turn off your equipment every time.

While the Prime ones have fixed focal lengths for example 24mm,35 mm, 50mm, etc). They sure do provide superior clarity and quality to the zooms one, but it comes with the price of exchanging the flexibility of the zoom lenses.

Bokeh Effect

I bet you all are familiar with the bokeh effect when the subject is focused and the background has a great aesthetic blur.

In order to get better bokhen, you need to look for a lens that has a wider aperture like f/2.8,f/1.8, etc.

Focal Length

Focal length is also crucial, and the best one can’t be decided since it varies on many things like the Space where you planing to shoot, the number of people, the background surroundings, and photographers’ style and preferences. But for portrait photography lengths from 35mm to 200mm are relevant.

Number of Lenses

If you feel like holding around one lens, you might want to go for Zoom since it offers more versatility for example a 24-105 mm lens will allow you to capture different farming styles without having to swap it every time. But if you want to go for prime, you will have to perform multiple lenses and use different focal lengths each time.

How to shoot Full Body Portraits

When shooting a body portrait it involves a lot more work than you think, so that’s why it is left best of at Professionals.

The number of people in a Photo

If you aiming to shoot groups of people, a large lens that is capable of capturing group frames is your friend, e:g a 35 mm one.

But take into Note that the wider the lens is the more distortion will cause, especially if you go further than the 35 mm.

Besides that, I wouldn’t advise the super-wide lenses, since the individuals on the outside edge of the picture will look more stretched and bigger, instead, you can just move back to include a larger group of individuals in the frame.

Posing

In a full-body portrait, the position of hands is key. I bet that most people who don’t have modeling experience feel awkward with their hands, like oh how should I keep them, should I put them in my pocket, simply they don’t know what to do with them.

The legs and feet are also important, for example, the legs shouldn’t be together, a slightly bent leg looks far better.

If you plan on shooting self-portraits, then i recommend you take a look at our list of the best cameras for self-portraits.

Camera Angle

When shooting full body portraits the camera angle is as important as the lens. Don’t shoot with a wide-angle lens from a close range, yet again don’t shoot down with a wide-angle lens from a close angle, the model will end up with shorter legs and extended upper body.

Shooting from waist level is the best angle but at the same time, it is also clichéd and boring. But yeah, feel free to experiment till you find the best angle.

Final Words

As I said earlier full-body portraits involve a lot more work than photographing just the head and the shoulders because you have to focus on posing your models a lot, at the same time choosing the right lens and the right angle. If you plan to do winter photography, i recommend you also read our photography gloves roundup.

If you plan on shooting portraits outside, i recommend you take a look at our list of the best lenses for outdoor portraits instead.

Hopefully, I have touched all the topics you guys need for entry-level, full-body portrait shoots.