Nikon's AF-S Primes... worth the money?

[PatrickCheung]

my birthday's coming up in two months so i've been searching for potential lenses to buy :lmao: i've gotten into portrait photography lately, so i've been looking for some portrait lenses. of course, the nikon AF 85mm f1.8, 50mm f1.8, 105mm f2, and 60mm f2.8 get a lot of love, but i don't hear a lot about their AF-S equivalents! the reason i'm asking is because i own a D60... and as many of you know, it can't autofocus with those AF lenses. has anyone used them? if so, can i get a few recommendations?

i guess if it helps, i currently own:
Nikon D60
18-55 Kit lens
Tamron 28-75mm f2.8 (i'm wondering if this is good enough for a portraiture newbie...)

thanks in advance!

 

[Sachphotography]

Thats because there really are not any.

 

[IgsEMT]

To prime or not is the question...
Personally, I don't like primes and after using them for MANY years, thank CREATORS for Zoom glass. They are sharp and though cheaper then zooms often better quality but for me being limited in focal length is a handicap, but that's my style of shooting

 

[DScience]

Primes all day!

 

[goodoneian]

I have the 50 1.4G which is AF-S and i like it a lot. Its focus is way faster than my old 1.8, and far sharper as well. I can get totally usable images at 1.4 without any problem as long as I'm careful with the focus. It's of course 5 times (i think?) the price as the 1.8, but I love using it when i do.

 

[mbcreate]

I got a Sigma 28mm f1.8 and I love it. But I can't use in all occasions like birthdays parties or family events. For that I use a zoom Tamron 17-50mm f2.8...

 

[Derrel]

Nikon is expected to release five new lenses this year, including two primes, a 35mm and an 85mm. Currently there are 50mm 1.4 AF-S and a 60mm f/2.8 AF-S macro lens, and also a 105mm f/2.8 AF-S macro lens. Much portraiture is done by focusing carefully on where the subject is located, so maybe you could focus by hand if your body is not able to drive the lenses you want. My suggestion would be to buy whatever lenses you really want to have,and then get a body that will meet all your needs. I would not make long-term lens selections based on a D60.

Expect lens announcements from Nikon as soon as the first week of February.

What Nikon's AF-S primes happen to be is their new era lens set, with very rich color saturation, and ultra-sharp rendering, designed for the high-resolution digital bodies like the D3x, and for the future.

 

[Sachphotography]

Nikon is expected to release five new lenses this year, including two primes, a 35mm and an 85mm. Currently there are 50mm 1.4 AF-S and a 60mm f/2.8 AF-S macro lens, and also a 105mm f/2.8 AF-S macro lens. Much portraiture is done by focusing carefully on where the subject is located, so maybe you could focus by hand if your body is not able to drive the lenses you want. My suggestion would be to buy whatever lenses you really want to have,and then get a body that will meet all your needs. I would not make long-term lens selections based on a D60.

Expect lens announcements from Nikon as soon as the first week of February.

What Nikon's AF-S primes happen to be is their new era lens set, with very rich color saturation, and ultra-sharp rendering, designed for the high-resolution digital bodies like the D3x, and for the future.

Exactly!

 

[PatrickCheung]

thanks for the input guys!

i was thinking of doing that derrel, gettingall the lenses i want then buying a body that can AF them later (d90 anyone?), but i guess i'm just worried about missing shots or making the model wait if i have to focus manually. my eyes are terrible at times!

so... nikon's current AF-S primes are built to be sharp and rich in colour? how's the distortion and CAs on them? D:

 

[inTempus]

They are sharp and though cheaper then zooms often better quality but for me being limited in focal length is a handicap, but that's my style of shooting

My primes cost as much, if not more than, my zooms. My 85mm for example is $1900 which is more than both my 24-70 and my 70-200. My 50mm is about the same price as the two zooms mentioned.

 

[Gnat5680]

I love my 50mm f1.8 on my D60, It does get to be a pain to have to manual focus at first. But it is like drive a stick shift car, At first you miss your auto, but you start to realize that you have way more control over it with the manual. So now, you no longer have to hope your AF if focusing on the right spot or mess with settings to tell it which spot to focus, You just have to point and twist.

In a nutshell, I love my 50mm AF, I would not trade it for something that cost 5 times more just for auto focus. I just think of it as, If I can't focus it by hand, Maybe I should get a different job, After enough of that thinking, I got used to it, and now love it. Plus, The DOF is great.

Here are some of my first shots with it.

 

[goodoneian]

They are sharp and though cheaper then zooms often better quality but for me being limited in focal length is a handicap, but that's my style of shooting

My primes cost as much, if not more than, my zooms. My 85mm for example is $1900 which is more than both my 24-70 and my 70-200. My 50mm is about the same price as the two zooms mentioned.

Not everyone goes out and buys everything with an L on it

 

[DScience]

They are sharp and though cheaper then zooms often better quality but for me being limited in focal length is a handicap, but that's my style of shooting

My primes cost as much, if not more than, my zooms. My 85mm for example is $1900 which is more than both my 24-70 and my 70-200. My 50mm is about the same price as the two zooms mentioned.

Not everyone goes out and buys everything with an L on it

Yea, but they wish they could.

 

[Derrel]

The idea that prime lenses are sharper than zoom lenses is no longer a universal truth, like it was 20 years ago when prime lenses were almost always optically better than zoom lenses. Today's modern zoom lenses may be better than prime lens designs that are either significantly older, significantly smaller and lighter, or significantly less expensive.

A good case in point is Nikon's new 14-24 AF-S Nikkor zoom: this lens is a better optical performer than ALMOST ALL prime lenses within its focal length range. Yes, better than Canon primes, better than Nikon primes, better than Zeiss primes, better than Canon zooms, better than Zeiss zooms---it is now possible to build zoom lenses like the 14-24 Nikkor that are SIGNIFICANTLY better performers in multiple areas, than earlier prime lenses and better than earlier zoom lens designs.
The Nikon 14-24 on a Canon 1DsIII - A landscapers report. and to se how it stacks up against multiple top-rated optics see Nikon 14-24mm f2.8 G First Test: Introduction

This is not just a Nikon thing either: Tamron's modest 28-75 f/2.8 zoom lens for example is SUCH an amazing optical design that it has been sought out and re-badged by both Minolta and Pentax, who were both desirous of the lens to the point that they wanted to have their own corporate identity associated with it. Sony continued the licensing arrangement with Tamron.

Many prime lens designs are getting older now, not having been re-designed for quite some time,since there is lower demand for primes than zooms.
I have a lot of prime lenses, and appreciate what they can do, but the newer,better zoom lenses are pretty amazing things!

 

[inTempus]

My primes cost as much, if not more than, my zooms. My 85mm for example is $1900 which is more than both my 24-70 and my 70-200. My 50mm is about the same price as the two zooms mentioned.

Not everyone goes out and buys everything with an L on it

Yea, but they wish they could.

You don't even like Canon. You don't want no stink'n L's!