Portrait Photography How To

Julia Trotti has been our go-to photographer for comparing prime lenses for portrait photography. In her latest head-to-head lens test, Trotti compares shooting portraits with an 85mm prime lens vs. using a 135mm lens to find out which one performs better.

In the below video, Trotti shoots with the Canon 85mm F/1.2 lens and the Canon 135mm F/2 on the full frame Canon 5D Mark IV DSLR while photographing her model, Karina, in a range of settings.

"There's no doubt that both the 85 and 135mm are great lenses for full body shots due to their compression and, thus, lack of distortion with this kind of composition," Trotti says. "So, I was really excited to try this test out first."

Trotti then tries out the two prime lenses while photographing classic close-up portraits, backlit with some trees in the background. These are then followed by some "hash-lit, backlit portraits." Check out the video below and see what she thinks of these two lenses in a variety of portrait scenarios.

You should also check out these two prime lens comparison lens videos from Trotti:

Here's How Portraits Look with a 24mm vs 50mm vs 85mm vs 135mm Lens on a Crop Frame Camera

Here's How Focal Length Affects Portraits: 24mm vs 35mm vs 50mm vs 85mm vs 135mm Lenses

And then go visit her YouTube channel for more great photography videos.