The best Nikon 50mm

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Peter

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As a D200 owner and an avid reader of these forums I would appreciate your opinions as to the best i.e. sharpest and well constructed Nikon 50mm prime still available secondhand.

I can do without autofocus and although 1.4 would be great I'd accept 1.8.

Thinking ahead I would plan to keep it for a full frame Nikon ("in your dreams" says my wife).

opinions appreciated.:)

Cheers

Peter
 
i have the 1.4 its a realy lovely lens and i need it for the low light situations i find myself in

ive a s/h 1.8 coming as well as a spare/ackup/ though ime keen to compare images

i realy dont think you would be disappointed with either
the 1.8 is a real bargain even new
 
I have the 50mm 1.4 and think its great (when I learnt how to use it properly). I try to avoid shooting below 2.8 as its not as shard. When im not trying to achieve a DOF I stop it down to f5 and its amazing. 90% of shots on my website are taken with this lens if you want to see what it can do. I dont have any experience with the 1.8.
 
For manual focus the build quality was probably best for the AI lenses, the AIS being just a bit behind. Don't bother with the pre AI lenses and avoid the E series ones as they are mainly plastic construction.
 
For that focal length also consider the Voightlander 58mm f/1.4 SL II.

Way better than any of the Nikkors... if you don't mind MF.
 
If you're willing to wait a while and spend more, the new 50mm f/1.4 AF-S has better MTF graphs from Nikon than their other 50mm lenses.

It might be worth it, but then again it might be well above your budget.
 
puddleduck said:
For that focal length also consider the Voightlander 58mm f/1.4 SL II.

Way better than any of the Nikkors... if you don't mind MF.
Click to expand...



Yup, I have to agree 100% ... this is just one fantastic lens, I can't stop loving it .. so much so that it's now on my D300 more than my 24-70! But, Katzeyes may be needed to help focusing, especially in low light situations.
 
Thanks for all the replies.

I suppose I was really wondering whether the 50mm Nikkor lenses off film bodies are better or worse than the current new lenses made especially for DSLR's and would these new lenses be just as usable with full frame bodies as well as DX.

Ta

Peter
:)
 
They all work fine.

The Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 is a bit cack though, get Sigma's version or the Nikon AF-G coming soon.

The 50mm f/1.8 if you like the focal length. On DX I'm not found of a 50mm prime, much prefer the 35/2 to a 50 on either DX or FF.
 
Apart from the sound of it, I love my 50mm f/1.4, it's sharper than jif lemon in the eye! :p
 
Undoubtedly the Carl Zeiss ZF50 f1.4 ~ Or the fabulous Voigtlander 58mm f1.4...
I use and enjoy the 58mm on my D300 (along with the Carl Zeiss 25mm f2.8).
Robert White (Poole, Dorset) sell the 58mm for about £220.

Happy shooting,
Dudley

www.dudleys-photos.co.uk
 
The 58mm is VERY nice!

Must admit once I heard about the new Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 I did sell my Voigtlander, as my manual focus skills were not good enough to do the lens justice.

But its a stunning lens!
 
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