the 70-200 lives on my d610. Occasionally the 24-85 goes on there. It totally depends on what you shoot.

I have FastFire straps that connect to the top lug. It has no problem holding a d610 with a battery pack and 70-200 f2.8 lens. I don't drop it and let the strap catch it, but I wouldn't do that if it was in the tripod mount either. I like this system because I can have my camera on the tripod, hook my strap on in 1 second and get off the tripod and over to the next part of my shoot without monkeying around with the tripod plate or screwing my strap on. I have been using this system for 4 years and have never had an issue or even a worry (except sometimes, with a lighter setup I forget it's on and smash the camera into something).

Welcome to the forum! I had the same situation, and about 4 years ago got on here. Ask questions when you have them and you will get tons of advice - much of it good. This place helped me into my first dslr, learning how to get good pictures, and then last year into an upgraded body. Read, post your work, improve. It's my reading with morning coffee nearly every day.

It has to do with the image projection to the sensor. A DX lens is designed to make an image for a DX sensor. That means one of my DX lenses will not cover the whole sensor on my FX sensor. I would get cut off edges and corners. The FX lens projects an image larger than the DX sensor, but that isn't really a bad thing. Using FX lenses on my DX camera is actually good. My sensor is further away from the soft corners.

After choosing a path of what you're going to do with your camera, I suggest insurance for whatever you end up with. I have 2 bodies and 3 lenses insured for about $40 a year (through liberty mutual). To me it's worth it. I never worry about taking my best camera and lens ($3000) mountain biking because I'm covered no matter what. I slipped on a rock at the beach and smashed a 70-200 f2.8, a replacement was in my hands a week later. Nothing out of my pocket.

I would go!

What did you do with lighting there? I'm trying to decide if it's one light and reflections or a couple smaller lights.

You will make it work with whatever you bring. I just did a big trip with my d5200 and a 24-85mm. I needed to be lightweight, so it was the lightest body and the best middle zoom I had. Sometimes I was frustrated, but I made it work. It all depends on the frustration you want. I took not wanting to deal with an extra piece of luggage on the plane and carrying around thousands of dollars of equipement 10+ miles a day over getting the exact picture I wanted. Would some of my pictures have been better if I brought my normal kit? Heck yes. Would it have been worth the weight and the headache? No.
You need to make the decision based on convenience vs. the shot you want. I have travelled Europe with a tiny body and a 50mm 1.8 and got great pictures. Limilting it may even broaden your creativity. Instead of worrying about the right setup to use, your brain focuses on how to use your current setup to get the best shot.

I play a few instruments, but exactly as well as my photography - I don't do any of them enough to be really good. Maybe when I retire...

First off - it all depends on the look you are going for in your portraits. Most photographers prefer 85mm because of the depth compression longer focal lengths give. Many people find the flattening effect of the longer focal longth is flattering. If you care about this, 50mm won't do. It gives the same field of view, but not compression.

We could probably make our points without demeaning The OP. Why not make a point that causes us to think about whether we agree, rather than putting him down (clueless has never been a complimentary or even neutral adjective)? Now there's a much smaller chance you'll be heard.

I think the mesh adds to the photo. It accentuates contours that one normally wouldn't pay attention to. Though this shot would be great without the mesh because of the lighting and facial expression, I like the addition of the "clothing".

I can see cropping out the foreground a bit, and maybe the right tower, but I prefer the colors/detail in the original.

Tainkc, see caranx's comment. It doesn't give false praise, but is done in a way to help. Both of your comments are condescending. Please attempt being helpful. If your second comment is helpful in your book, then just don't comment. Starting out with "this photo is piss poor" is not helpful. Your comments about the background and being flat are. You mention there are more things to say. But you don't have to. One or two helpful comments is all he needs to decide if he agrees and if it makes him a better photographer. Your "joke" just told him you didn't like his pic and you don't respect him enough to say why, but you do have the time to have everyone think you have (or later you amended to "had") a hot wife.

Tainkc, when you show up and make fun of a picture instead of offering useful criticism, you make others not want to post. That is opposite of what we should be going for. Please say something useful, or don't comment.