85mm is the standard. If you've got a crop sensor, maybe a 50mm gets used. That's your typical portrait stuff.

Some of the better creative photographers will use anything, I've even seen some gorgeous shots with a 14mm, but that sort of fish eye is not your typical portrait look. Usually for something like incorporating more of the landscape/room into the portrait, and less of the person.

Then you've got those really tight shots, maybe ones that dont even show the whole face, those can be done on anything 200mm and up.

Personally I like 85mm-105mm for more studio standard shots, and then activity based for the rest.

Note: I'm not a pro, I'm a guy-with-a-camera. Who has spent way too much money historically on lenses, and now enjoys adapters for old lenses on new camera bodies, for very fun shots.

Any.

Generally you can always move close or further away to offset too much.

For standard corporate stuff I shoot at 70mm. For creative stuff I've shot from 24mm to 200mm.

it might be more useful to a newer photographer trying to learn about that, but it would just add confusion to the layperson. this is meant explain this neat concept clearly to non photographers.

it's true though, these kinda of graphics can lead to people misunderstanding this effect as a natural part of the focal length of the lens and less about how far you are from the subject. i had that misunderstood once 😅.

i think the ideal middle ground is probably keeping graphic the same, but adding a comment that explains that detail about it for those who care. a bit like how this all played out actually.

In photography classes we were told 105 is the most commonly used for portraits, but that was 20+ years ago, dunno if "common wisdom" changed since...