Usually, people preach long lenses for portraiture. They can give you strong bokeh and they don't distort faces. But what makes an appealing portrait? Perfection? Admittedly, you can't rule out anything. Perfection in portraiture is desirable, but mostly as a base requirement. Perfection can only take you so far. What is certain is that when looking at portraiture we are looking for something to hang on to. We are looking for something that we can relate to and engage with.
Even though the filmmaker-duo Coen brothers are working with moving images, their approach to relatable characters can be translated into photography as well.
Proximity
The over the shoulder shot, which is usually used to show dialogue between two characters, utilizes mostly long lenses to connect two individuals. It is a classic stylistic device in cinema but it can not provide intimacy between the viewer and the protagonist. The Coen brothers use wider lenses and place them in the space between their interacting characters. This way, the viewer is placed right in the middle of the action. The interaction that seemed distant before is placed around the viewer, taking them in and making them part of the dialogue, turning characters from strangers into characters that feel relatable. Using the same strategy for photography, switching from a long to a wider lens emphasizes this feeling of intimacy. For the effect to kick in you don't even necessarily need to go super wide, just go close.
Environment
The second option for transporting character, which surprisingly is often being overlooked, is to show the context through the environment. It seems self-evident, but in the popular perception, the environment has been detached from the classic portrait to such an extent that we had to create a specific genre for images that do emphasize it: environmental portraiture.
The emphasis here also lies on using a wider lens. In their films, the Coen brothers create depth around even minor characters by showing their environment. Cropping close and throwing the background out of focus might create a pleasing image, but it most likely won't captivate anyone for too long.
I've loved the 35mm focal length for portraits for a long time now. The results at that length give the viewer a more intimate connection with the subject because it will create that environment as mentioned above. Long focal lengths are great at separating the subject from their surroundings but it's usually a by-the-book result. There's less in the frame to worry about in that case.
Are you serious? Only somebody that wants to look like a clown wants a camera stuck in their face for a portrait. Leave the WA lenses to the photo journalists.
It's situational. You have to ask yourself, 'Am I shooting the person or the scene?'
Edit: check out Joe McNally's work. He shoots portraits with a 14-24 a lot of times.
Because there's only one way to do something?
Just out of curiosity, did you check out Joe's work? I can't believe you would vote down my comment had you done so.
This was shot with a 24mm lens:
http://blog.joemcnally.com/2017/07/18/small-lights-big-garage/#
Very nice!
I think showing an environment gives a better story to a shot.
Also... Your kid looks like Maisie Williams in this shot.
This was great. I've enjoyed looking at movies for photography inspiration. Movies must have good storytelling, and they use visual tools differently than you typically find in still photography. I feel like if I was a (good) filmmaker my work would look more like Wes Anderson than Michael Bay.
I'm looking to add a wide-angle to my arsenal myself for portraits. 85mm will always be my favorite, but I find myself more and more looking to having my subject complement the environment, vice verca.
It really depends on what type of portrait you want to shoot. Most people who lean towards longer focal length's are shooting in a context where they want the portrait to be flattering. Sometimes that doesn't matter so much.
I know McNally's stuff.
And you think his wide angle shots make people look like clowns??
wide is good. This is like 35ish. Though the subject must hold the frame
This is an incredible picture, thank you for the illustration. Where is it from?
I made it two days ago in a feature I am currently working in.
And this is 28mm, though you can start to see the distortion of the face.