Gear


Best Portrait Lenses, Lighting & Print Upsells

September 17, 2021

By Theano Nikitas

From left to right: FlashBender v.3, Nikon's AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D, Adorama's Glow 5-in-1 Collapsible Circular Reflector, and FJ Westcott's Scrim Jim Cine Kit.

With the holidays (and the need for holiday cards) just on the horizon—and extended families finally reuniting after many months apart—the time for setting up and scheduling your family portrait sessions is now. Enter the best lenses, lighting and other tools to get the job done well and come away with results that will have your clients wanting to purchase more printed product offerings.

Family portrait product roundup.
Taken with the new Nikkor Z 40mm f/2 lens. © Nikon

When planning what gear to use, there are a number of factors to consider. Where will you be shooting? Outdoors, in studio, at a client’s home. Does the family want formal portraits? More casual/spontaneous images? A mix of both? How many people will be in the portrait? How many (if any) children will be part of the shoot? And, will you be shooting solo or will you have an assistant on hand?

Beyond all that, there is always the question of gear. While you may already have your standard portrait kit—cameras, lenses, lighting and accessories that you always use—we’ve put together some suggestions of new and old products that you might want to consider.

FAMILY PORTRAIT GEAR: LENSES

Regardless of focal length, fast lenses (f/2.8 or faster) are always preferable—better for creating bokeh and working in low light situations.

[Read: 7 Key Tools in a Portrait Photographer’s Kit]

If you’re shooting in studio or an enclosed space, be mindful of your camera-to-subject distance so you can fill easily fill the frame without pressing your body into the back wall. But no matter the location—in studio or outdoors—you want to be close enough to your subject to communicate with them without shouting.

family portrait product roundup includes this Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM lens.

The Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM lens.

The flexibility of a standard 24-70mm zoom on a full-frame camera will serve you well in most situations and group sizes. Although at its widest, there’s a risk of distortion, the focal range gives you the option of cropping tight or incorporating the surrounding scene. If there are kids in the group, a wider angle provides enough headroom to capture a child jumping or throwing a pile of leaves up in the air. Just about all lens manufacturers offer an f/2.8 24-70mm model. Check out the Canon 24-7E0mm f/2.8L II USM ($1,899) or the AF-S Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR ($2,100). Canon EOS R-series shooters may want to take a look at the Canon RF 28-70mm f/2 L USM ($3,099). Although at 28mm, it’s a hair shorter, it falls neatly into the standard zoom category and should cut down on some distortion at its widest.

While zooms offer flexibility, there’s nothing sweeter than a nifty-fifty (or thereabouts) prime lens, which are available from all manufacturers including Sigma and Tamron. They’re wide enough to get a tight shot of the family, fast enough to create some pretty nice bokeh and generally produce sharp-as-a-tack images.

lighting, lenses.

Nikon’s AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D, a personal favorite of mine.

Many of these short lenses are small, light and—with a few exceptions—can be had at bargain prices. One of my personal favorites is Nikon’s AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D ($131.95). You can also step up to other Nikon fast 50mm lenses for under $500. Nikon Z users might want to check out the brand new Nikkor Z 40mm f/2 ($299.95). 

[Read: 6 Must-Have Tools for Portrait and Fashion Photographers]

Canon has inexpensive RF and EF 50mm f/1.8 STM lenses ($200 and $126, respectively), they also offer high-end 50mm f/1.2L USM RF and EF lenses ($2,300/$1,400). Both larger and heavier than most of the nifty-fiftys, but they are solid options for Canon shooters.

Sigma 50mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art lens.

Sigma’s 50mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art lens.

Also larger and heavier than the tiny 50mm’s, Sigma’s 50mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art lens ($949) holds a lot of appeal. Sigma’s Art series lenses are extremely popular for their excellent quality. And this lens is available for Canon, Nikon Sigma, Sony E-Mount and L-Mount.

Fujifilm XF 50mm f/1.0 lens.

Fujifilm’s XF 50mm f/1.0 lens.

If you want to go to extremes, Fujifilm’s XF 50mm f/1.0 lens ($1,499) is tempting because of its super fast aperture and bokeh as well as weather resistance (when paired with a weather resistant Fuji body) but I’d be a little concerned about getting everyone in focus if shot at the shallowest depth of field. Still, it’s an intriguing lens.

Some photographers may prefer longer lenses (telephoto compression flatters a subject) or maybe a wider prime like a fast and lightweight 35mm. But we think if you stay in the standard zoom range and bring along a 35mm or 50mm prime, you’ll have all bases covered whether you’re shooting outdoors or in a studio.

LIGHTING

Lighting needs and preferences vary depending on location and the look and feel you want to convey in an image.

[Read: Two Photo Pros on Lighting Tools, Techniques and Innovations]

Natural Light

Natural light generally requires the least amount of gear but nature (and schedules) don’t always provide the perfect amount, tone and direction of illumination. And, as always, you want to be in control of the light so diffusers and reflectors should be part of your lighting kit.

FJ Westcott Scrim Jim CIne Kit.

FJ Westcott’s Scrim Jim Cine Kit.

The Scrim Jim is perhaps the most widely used and recognized diffusion panel and while it can be used to soften artificial lighting, this type of fabric setup is key when using natural light—particularly when shooting in bright sunlight. In addition to diffusion, there are options to mount a large reflector panel on the same frame. Check out FJ Westcott’s Scrim Jim Cine Kit, starting at $300 for a 4 x 4-foot unit that includes a ¾ stop diffusion panel, a 2-in-1 silver/white bounce fabric, frame tubes, corner connectors and a carry case. The kit is also available in 4 x 6-, 6 x 6- and 8 x 8-foot sizes ($400/$500/$700).

lighting, lenses—Adorama's Glow 5-in-1 Collapsible Circular Reflector.

Adorama’s Glow 5-in-1 Collapsible Circular Reflector.

If you just need a small set of collapsible reflectors for portability, you might want to consider Adorama’s Glow 5-in-1 Collapsible Circular Reflector with Handles. These reflectors come in 21-, 32-, 42- and 52-inch sizes ($15-$40) with black/white and silver/gold screens as well as a translucent round reflector. A carry bag is also included. You can also purchase individual reflectors separately with the following options: gold/white, silver/gold, silver/white, soft gold/white and translucent. We really like the idea of reflectors with handles since that makes them much easier to hand onto on a windy day.

Accessory Flash

One of the most convenient methods of adding artificial light to a scene is with an accessory flash mounted directly on the camera. Options range from camera manufacturer models to those offered by third parties.

Nikon's SB-5000 Speedlight.

Nikon’s SB-5000 Speedlight.

Nikon’s SB-5000 Speedlight ($599.95), for example, is part of Nikon’s Creative Lighting System and offers a cooling system to give you more than 100 consecutive full-power flashes without shutting down. And it plays well with Nikon’s other flash units and accessories. And there are similar units from other camera manufacturers as well.

Sony a7-series shooters should take a look at the Sony HVL-F28RM ($250). It’s tiny and lightweight but has some sophisticated functionality including the ability to work in conjunction with the camera’s face detection. The little flash also features wireless operation and can control up to 15 flash and/or receiver units at distances up to 114 feet.

The Profoto A10 is among the family portrait product roundup.

The Profoto A10.

But I have to say that my favorite accessory flash has been the Profoto A1, which has gone through a couple of upgrades to give us the more sophisticated Profoto A10 AirTTL ($1,095). Now available for Fujifilm and Sony, as well as Canon and Nikon, the Profoto A10 works with Bluetooth to control the flash via a Profoto app. Fast recycling, gorgeous light output and an intuitive interface are a large part of what makes this a great flash. Of course, it can be used in conjunction with the Profoto Connect Wireless Transmitter for off-camera shooting. Yes, it’s a lot more expensive than most other accessory flashes but it’s versatile and so easy to use.

FlashBender v.3.

The FlashBender v.3 can provide bounce flash or even be formed into a snoot to focus light.

For light modifiers that fit standard speed lights, check out Expoimaging’s Rogue Flash accessories like the FlashBender v.3. ($40-$60). These bendable, Gumby-like modifiers can provide bounce flash or even be formed into a snoot to focus light. They’re affordable, highly portable and give you a bit of extra control.

Portable Off-Camera Flash

There are plenty of studio lights to choose from but with more and more portable lighting setups available, it may be time to unplug those lights so you can go on location when you need to or stay put when you have an in-studio session.

lighting, lenses include Elinchrom ONE.

The Elinchrom ONE off-camera flash.

One of the latest entries into this category is the Elinchrom ONE off-camera flash ($949 single light; $1,899 dual kit). This battery powered moonlight weighs about 3.3 pounds is about the same size as an f/2.8 70-200mm lens. It’s light enough for an assistant to hold it on a light stick without tiring, so you can illuminate whatever part of the scene you’d like. With enough juice for about 725 full-powered flashes, a single battery charge should last through any family portrait session whether in the studio or outdoors. Better yet, this 131Ws light features active charging via USB-C so you can keep shooting while the battery is being refreshed from a USB-C external charger.

Also new from Profoto are the B10X ($1,995 single; $3,950 dual kit) and B10X Plus ($2,295 single; $4,545 dual kit). Because of its powerful modeling light, Profoto’s intent is that these lights can be used for both still and video. But it’s likely you’ll be taking advantage of the B10X and B10X Plus’ flash capabilities for family portrait sessions and these lights offer 250/500W/s of power, respectively. Figure on about 400 full-power flashes on the B10X and about 200 for the more powerful B10X Plus. These lights also offer active charging so you don’t have to interrupt a photo shoot.

While this round-up is not an exhaustive list covering every single element that goes into a family portrait shoot, we hope that the products we mentioned provide some ideas for moving forward with upcoming sessions. It’s always good to explore new gear options that might make your life a little easier so you can spend less time on the technical aspects of a shoot and more time on developing creative concepts and choosing interesting printed products to upsell your clients.

The Perfect Add-Ons

Bay Photo die cut products.

Bay Photo die cut products come in a variety of shapes and sizes.

Computer hard drives, mobile devices and social media accounts are filled with images that in no way convey the same richness and beauty of a printed photograph. Here are a handful of ideas that may spark some interest among your family portrait clients to get some printed products into their hands and their homes.

[Read: How to Boost In Person Sales with Photo Product Upsells]

Holiday cards are a no brainer this season but rather than the standard photo print or rectangular card and envelope combo, why not take a look at some die cut products in a variety of shapes and styles. Bay Photo offers more than 94 designs that will stand out when your client’s family and friends receive cards with one of the family portrait shots you captured. In addition to flat and folded, Bay Photo offers PopOut and Ornament styles too. You can check them out here.

CG Pro Prints.

CG Pro Prints offer easel-back prints in four different sizes.

Clients can go big or small when gifting a family portrait. One affordable option is an easel-back print, which comes in four sizes (5 x 7, 6 x 6, 8 x 10 and 11 x 14 inches) for those work-at-home spaces that we’ve all grown to love. CP Pro Prints offers them in canvas wrap or more modern metal prints, although we think the former is a better option. For a more impactful design, maybe your client will go for some wall décor; perhaps a large canvas or a print with a wood frame like those offered by Nations Photo Lab. Also check out the fine-art offerings from White Wall, printed on beautiful Hahnemühle Fine Art Paper in sizes up to 117.3 x 40.5 inches.

wall art from Nation's Photo Lab.

Some of the wall decor offerings from Nation’s Photo Lab.

Albums are, of course, a long-time standard for storing and sharing prints and while a family portrait session won’t fill a large album, small photo books are wonderful keepsakes for family—perhaps especially those who weren’t part of the photo shoot. And older family members will appreciate having a book that they can page through and it can be passed down to the children when they get older. H&H Color Lab offers mini books (minimum 10 pages) in several sizes (2 ½ x 3 ¼”, 3 x 3 ¼” or 3 x 3″). For more information, click here.

With so many different types of printed products available and a variety of price points, your family portrait clients are sure to fine something they like.