The almighty 50mm Nikkor.... What?

[RyanLilly]

Well I will agree that the 1.8 isn't real great wide open, but when a picture is going to be soft wide open, or just black using a f/3.5 kit lens or slower, a soft but mostly usable photo is a pretty good result for a <$100 lens. Now I will also vouch for the fact that the 50mm 1.4, is very sharp at f/2, and well worth the price difference. I have used the 1.8 and I own the 1.4(canon, but the Nikon's are similar, actually the Nikon 1.8 is better than the canon, and closer the the canon 1.4) I really want to use the Sigma 1.4, whitch according to lab tests kicks the ass of any 1.8 or 1.4 50mm and stands up to the canon 1.2!.

You can check out the reviews including lab and real world testing of the canon and nikon 1.8 and 1.4, and the sigma 1.4 as well at www.dpreview.com

Well for a given definition of good anyway. Lets just say you can shoot at f/1.8. The sharpness is a no go for anything that requires good detail or high contrast up until around f/2.8 though

The 50mm f/1.8 is crap wide open. There's no other way to describe it, and in reality you can't expect much else given it's price. It's also the reason the 50mm f/1.4 is so popular. At f/2 it's already a tac sharp lens.

 

[JerryPH]

What's the use of a lense with a fixed zoom. I've always needed to tweak the frame of a pic a bit wit a slight zoom in or out...

You're pretty new to this whole photography thing, aren't you?

I'll give you 2 words:

- CHEAP (and)
- QUALITY (as in results).

 

[JerryPH]

The 50mm f/1.8 is crap wide open.

I hear where you're coming from, but you also have to take into consideration the needs and knowledge of the person. This person doesn't even know the difference between a prime and a zoom, much less the differences between a $115 lens and a $400 lens.

Unless you are doing mission critical shooting, the "thrifty-fifty" is more than up to showing up whatever 99% of new photographers have in their bag (ie: 70-300s or any other kit and low quality lenses).

...and it's not that terrible wide-open:

 

[hankejp]

Glad I found this thread. How do you think this lens would be to shoot something like gymnastics? I'm not too sure how close I will be able to get. There are a lot of good reviews on this lens for the price. I may have to put off the AF-S DX 55-200mm 4.0-5.6G ED I was looking at and get this now.

 

[Bifurcator]

There's a 50mm f/0.95 for vintage Canon rangefinders.

The Norita 6x6 SLR comes with an awesome Noritar 80mm f/2 (fast for medium format).

And if you can find a C-Mount or SC-Mount adaptor for your SLR there are many many f/1, f/1.1 and f/1.2 lenses for between $100 and $800. Zoom lenses with those specs and prices too! :thumbup:

 

[djacobox372]

Wow. Sounds awsome.

Can anyone recomend the best, cheap, zoom lense?

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[bhop]

I have a wide open example.. this is expired slide film, why the color's all funky..

personally, I don't think the 1.8 is all that bad..

 

[joecoulsonphotography]

^

Love my 50, it's on par with the 180 f2.8 Nikkor I have and it's known to be one of the finest Nikkors ever made.

 

[peterbj7]

I'm just buying the Canon equivalent - $80 brand new. Not the best of lenses, but still capable of very good results. In my Canon FD days my favourite lenses were a 24mm prime, 35mm ditto, 50mm ditto, and 135mm ditto. I loved my Sigma 500mm reflex lens and got some superb hand-held wildlife shots with it, even though it was years before image stabilisation was thought of. I also used and loved a Tamron SP 70-210 zoom. I bought the camera (an A1) with Canon's 35-70 zoom, but never liked it and rarely used it.

I started my photography career as an early teenager with an old Zeiss Contina viewfinder camera. Totally manual everything, including focus. Had a great zoom feature though, which was - guess what - my feet. I got many superb pictures with that camera. Sadly it was butchered by a "service shop" when I took it in for a small adjustment. My next was a Voigtlander Vito CLR, a superb camera with an even better lens. I still have that, but the Minox 35mm I bought and adored was later stolen from me.

See a pattern? All these cameras had "prime" lenses. It wasn't until I got my Canon A1 that I first experienced a zoom lens. Although they make great toys I have to say I find a zoom distracting, and when I'm using a camera with no zoom it forces me to look more carefully and be more creative. I suspect that once my 50mm arrives it'll stay on my camera most of the time, even though I have two zoom lenses regarded as some of the best of their type.

 

[Joves]

Glad I found this thread. How do you think this lens would be to shoot something like gymnastics? I'm not too sure how close I will be able to get. There are a lot of good reviews on this lens for the price. I may have to put off the AF-S DX 55-200mm 4.0-5.6G ED I was looking at and get this now.

Unless you can go anywhere in the venue, the 50 would not serve you well. If you are looking for really wide shots then it will work. But for close up action you have to be close up.

 

[hankejp]

Unless you can go anywhere in the venue, the 50 would not serve you well. If you are looking for really wide shots then it will work. But for close up action you have to be close up.

Thanks Joves. That's what I was thinking. I don't think I'd be able to get close to the any of the aperatus's. I might get the lens anyways, since it seems to be a great lens for the price. Am I correct in saying that the AF won't work on this? I have been looking all over and found some compatability charts, but it seems the primes aren't on there. It's not too big of a deal if it doesn't AF, just want to know.

Thanks

 

[Joves]

No it wont AF but, I have heard that people manually focus it till they see the in focus dot appear in the view finder. Not having a D40 I cant tell you for sure.

 

[JerryPH]

Just how good is the 50mm in Low Light? I mean how good is it for night shots, anyone got examples?

A friend's basement bar in low light.

 

[tirediron]

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Freakin' priceless!

 

[monkeykoder]

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I think we need a smiley that represents this (little smiley pulls out big zoom lens other smiley pulls out tiny lens with big 50mm on the side and starts walking while the other smiley falls flat on it's face.)