The Best Canon & Nikon Lenses for Portraits

Your camera is nothing without a quality lens. This is, even more, the case in portrait photography, which often demands creamy backgrounds and high performance in low light. 

So what are the best lenses for portraits? Naturally, it all depends on the type of camera you have. So we’ve broken this post into two parts: our favorite Nikon portrait lenses and our favourite Canon lenses for portraits.

The best Nikon lenses for portraits

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8E FL ED VR

Something we love about all Nikon lenses is their advanced Vibration Reduction system, which helps reduce visible camera shake even when you’re shooting at slow shutter speeds. 

The Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8E lens is a beautiful example of one of Nikon’s best lenses, boasting incredible clarity, contrast, and sharpness. 

With a lens of this length, you’ll get a stunning background blur that creates a beautiful separation of the model and its surroundings. Such a long lens is best suited to outdoor portrait photography rather than studio shots. 

The 70-200mm f/2.8E is a weighty lens but the maximum aperture creates stunning portraits, especially in low light. Meanwhile, shooting at 200mm allows you to really narrow in on your subject’s facial features and creates a compressed, flattering result.