Tips on nifty fifty.

ab2012

ab2012

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I should be getting delivery from Kerso this coming week. Would welcome tips on how to get the best out of it. Any sample images would be welcome. I'm hoping for much sharper images than with my standard 18-55.
Thanks.
 
My tip would have been get a 30 or 35mm instead sorry that sounds a bit mean, but i wish people stopped bantering around the niftyfifty thing, which was 35mm film days which is FF in todays money.
 
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rjbell said:
My tip would have been get a 30 or 35mm instead sorry that sounds a bit mean, but i wish people stopped bantering around the niftyfifty thing.
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Whilst I agree for Nikon, Canon don't do a 35mm f1.8 just a 35mm f2 which is significantly more expensive than the Canon 50mm and Nikon 35mm.
 
I have been advised by many on here to get the NF and it suits my budget.
 
It'll take some getting used to(zoom to fixed), but once your used to it, it's a fantastic fixed lens to start with.

Makes no difference what focal length you go for. You get what YOU want.
 
Cheers,Dave and Jeff. I'll give it a go anyway.
 
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My tip would be to stop it down a little. It's natural to want to see what 1.8 can do, but the DOF is very shallow at this aperture and the lens isn't the sharpest at this aperture. You can still get some nice bokeh at 2.8.
 
This lens is great value! Superb optics, but the build is plastic and fragile.
My tip is when handling (mounting/unmounting), it's easy to knock or strain the very delicate usm motor mechanism. So always keep the AF/MF switch on the lens, in MF mode, until you have it mounted and ready to use. This way if you accidentaly twist it, it doesn't matter .
Use it with a 20mm tube and you have a great Macro lens. :thumbs:

Look at Just Daves 2 photos (above) !
 
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KeithH said:
This lens is great value! Superb optics, but the build is plastic and fragile.
My tip is when handling (mounting/unmounting), it's easy to knock or strain the very delicate usm motor mechanism. So always keep the AF/MF switch on the lens, in MF mode, until you have it mounted and ready to use. This way if you accidentally twist it, it doesn't matter .
!
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Great tip, I always switch to MF before changing any lens, I also swith my camera off too before changing any lens
 
rjbell said:
My tip would have been get a 30 or 35mm instead sorry that sounds a bit mean, but i wish people stopped bantering around the niftyfifty thing, which was 35mm film days which is FF in todays money.
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If you can show me where you can buy either of those for £70 I'll have ten of each. ;)
Regardless of it's limitations on a crop body, you won't beat the nifty for sheer value for money.
Yes it weighs next-to-nothing, has a tendency to fall apart if you breathe on it and sounds like a £5 remote control car when it's focusing but it's still a great little lens.
 
dont be a lens snob! ... the nifty is a great lens to have in your bag, some of my best shots have been taken with this
 
Prime lenses do take a bit of getting used to. I'm still at the stage where I'm not sure which lens I want because I worry about possible missing out on a shot! I guess the upside is that sometimes you'll take shots that you normally wouldn't because you don't have time to move or simply can't. Sometimes it can turn out even better than you imagined :) hehe

40mm STM is a possible alternative for the 50mm. Yeah it's 2.8 instead of 1.8 but as people have said, the 1.8 isn't that sharp at it's widest whereas the 40mm is sharp straight from the get go.

It's also a lot more portable and slightly wider :)
 
Rolex said:
dont be a lens snob! ... the nifty is a great lens to have in your bag, some of my best shots have been taken with this
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This. Enjoy your lens. :cool:
 
Scenario : aim to take a sharp portrait indoors, dimly-lit room, nice bokeh. Any tips? Apologies for asking perhaps silly questions. No accessories.Just my 50D and nifty.
 
ab2012 said:
Scenario : aim to take a sharp portrait indoors, dimly-lit room, nice bokeh. Any tips? Apologies for asking perhaps silly questions. No accessories.Just my 50D and nifty.
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Just Dave has one - a few posts up!! It's of his Grandson. It's took on a 50D - and with the Plastic Fantastic !! :thumbs:
 
I mentioned earlier that with a 20mm tube, you would have a great Macro lens.
This was taken last year with the NF and such a tube.
It has been cropped and distance from lens to subject is about 100mm ( 4" in old money )!

2xtwins_200kb_0018.jpg
 
I found that below 2.8 is pin sharp in the centre......the very centre, then up to f4 for a little bit more, after that take your pick how much background you want to see up to f11, after that things go down hill to f22. A great lens for the price.
 
KeithH said:
I mentioned earlier that with a 20mm tube, you would have a great Macro lens.
This was taken last year with the NF and such a tube.
It has been cropped and distance from lens to subject is about 100mm ( 4" in old money )!

2xtwins_200kb_0018.jpg
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Nice moths!
I have to admit I wish my NF was a 35, and I don't use it as much as I could but the idea of 1.8 at £60 was too much temptation at the time. I like its compact nature, weight and when it does get used at indoor family gatherings I'm always slightly surprised by the resulting images. I think I need to lock away my other lenses and give it a dedicated week to see what I can do.
Now where are those macro tubes.....
 
Barso said:
I found that below 2.8 is pin sharp in the centre......the very centre, then up to f4 for a little bit more, after that take your pick how much background you want to see up to f11, after that things go down hill to f22. A great lens for the price.
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Mines sharp at any ap, I will do a test tomorrow, at various apertures and ISO, and post the pics
 
Great thread im looking into getting one too because ive heard a lot of good about them. My question would be what model to go for :)

Mark
 
My moths were taken at f18 ISO100. I think at the time, I was using a ring flash ( I use a LED array now ).
The camera was fixed ( obviously ! ).

I think some people take hand held shots, then judge the results on the outcome. If you don't have a steady hand, it's no good blaming the lens!! It really is, horses for courses. The Fifty doesn't have IS , so you must allow for this.
Fix the camera, or use flash.
Being sober in low light helps............:naughty:
 
My only tip is don't called it a nifty fifty.

(realise that is something that bugs me more than it should and it is my problem :) )
 
Why not? Petty much everyone refers to it as the NF.
It's a 50mm lens and it's pretty nifty. ;)
 
You'd be surprised at how many people don't actually own a 50mm, despite many people advising others to get one. That was my experience when I posted a thread last year anyway.

I use mine on full frame, and it took some getting used to, not so much the fact that it was a prime, more the focal length. Very nice lens, but I still find my 35mm one that I keep going back to more often as that focal length seems to suit my photography a little better.

My 85mm on the other hand is one that I struggle with and one that I rarely use, I suppose that's the equivalent (approx) field of view as a 50mm on a dx sensor.

In terms of tips, get your head round what the actual depth of field is at the smaller F numbers, it's pretty thin, and you may find yourself with lots of pictures with unfocussed areas on them that you weren't intending.
 
Thanks, Andy. Will bear in mind what you've said.
 
I had one, and sold it for a 28mm f/1.8 as I found the focussing slow and noisy and it was an awkward focal length on a crop body.

Now I have a full frame body, tempted to get one again but think I'll go for the f/1.4 instead for the USM.

Not as good as everyone makes out, but a good second lens to cut your teeth with.
 
Phal said:
Prime lenses do take a bit of getting used to. I'm still at the stage where I'm not sure which lens I want because I worry about possible missing out on a shot! I guess the upside is that sometimes you'll take shots that you normally wouldn't because you don't have time to move or simply can't. Sometimes it can turn out even better than you imagined :) hehe

40mm STM is a possible alternative for the 50mm. Yeah it's 2.8 instead of 1.8 but as people have said, the 1.8 isn't that sharp at it's widest whereas the 40mm is sharp straight from the get go.

It's also a lot more portable and slightly wider :)
Click to expand...

Well comparing like for like at f2.8 the NF is also very sharp.

And it can make an excellent macro lens when coupled with automatic extension tubes:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/20926615@N05/sets/72157625975281497/

.
 
Just don't expect fast, accurate focus every time.
 
The advice to get one is based on it's low price more than because it is a good focal length so you need to take it for what it is.
I had one as my only lens for a few months and realised what a mistake it was as soon as I went to a wider and more versatile lens.
 
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