Fred wrote:
> Well, here's my two f-stops worth:
>
> Personally, ~I~ like a portrait to be as ~sharp~ as possible. ~I~ want to see
> ~every~ detail in a portrait, and I want my portrait lenses to faithfully pass
> as much detail to the film as possible. If the subject wants some softening
> (and I am not disputing that many subjects do want that - I do understand),
> then I will put a softening filter on the lens.
My own two f-stops' worth is that the PDML's Bruce Dayton provided the
best-ever demonstration of this on the Pentax Lens Gallery. If you look at
his pictures of his daughter taken with the FA 85/1.4, carefully examine the
pictures taken at the different apertures and see which one you like best.
If you like the f/5.6 one, you agree with Fred. Personally, however, I much
prefer the f/2 shot. It's not "soft" like those awful soft filters, which I
really thoroughly dislike, but it's not hard-sharp like the f/5.6 rendition.
It's all a matter of taste, so this is not an argument. But give me the f/2
picture and portraits like it every time.
BTW Bruce D., I've used your pictures as illustrations of "sharpness control
by aperture choice" many times, and thank you very much for the excellent
demonstration.
--Mike
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