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Nikon Normal AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.4D Autofocus Lens
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One of the best lens for portrait & low light situation
19 of 21 people found this review helpful.
I don't even know where to start. This lens produces sharp pictures and great color and contrast. This lens is perfect for low light and/or action/sport photography (as this lens is famous for being one of the fastest lens together with its brother 50mm f/1.8). This lens is also perfect for portrait and other general purposes (macro etc). This is definitely a very versatile lens.
However, I think you should really consider buying the f/1.8 first before thinking to buy this f/1.4 lens (mainly because it is more than twice the price of the f1/8 and most of the time the f/1.8 version is fast enough in my opinion). Some examples where the faster f/1.4 lens might make a difference: low light wedding/concert or indoor sports photography (where the light is often low from the camera perspective) such as hockey, track and field, skating, gymnastic, basketball etc.
Let me mention some of the limitation that you would see:
First, being a prime lens, you will need to move your feet a lot to compose your picture. If you are used to zoom lens, don't underestimate this limitation. It takes me a while to get used to it.
Secondly, the focal range of 50mm, which is considered the normal lens and great for portrait lens. but on a DSLR (which I assume most of you use nowadays), this lens become a 75mm equivalent which is in the border of a short tele lens.
Third, in some situation the autofocus might not able to focus (which is common for many other lens too). It is hard for the autofocus to lock when aiming at a wall that is one color (usually black or white), or on a clear sky (day or night). I think this is normal/makes sense.
Sharpness increases as you stop down to f/1.8 or f/2.2. On low light, I'd rather use f/1.4 aperture settings than stopped down (e.g to f/2.8) and compensate with higher ISO setting which often gives me grainy picture.
If you are wondering whether you should get a fast lens or a lens with VR, here's my take: VR does help a lot (and produce better/sharper picture than equivalent faster lens without VR) if the object is static. If the object is moving (sports/action) then VR feature doesn't really help and fast lens will be a far better solution. Using tripod (and a remote) will substitute for the need of VR feature.
Here are the summary of pros and cons:
Pros:
1. Very fast (f/1.4)
2. Very sharp pictures
3. Great for sport/action photography
4. Great for indoor and low light situation
5. Great for portrait
6. Bokeh is almost as good as many expensive Nikon tele-lens
7. Fast autofocus
8. Perfect for wedding photography (or no-flash event).
9. 75mm equivalent which can be considered a short tele lens
10. Sharper than its 50mm f/1.8 sibling (at equivalent aperture)
Cons:
1. Being prime lens, you need to move your feet a lot to adjust/compose
2. Some distortion at widest aperture
3. Plasticy build
4. Autofocus is not the most silent but very reasonable
5. 75mm equivalent with 1.5x multiplier on DSLR
Bottom line: This lens is so versatile that I think everyone should own (either the 50mm f/1.4 or the 50mm f/1.8) in addition to all the lenses that they already have. Being a very fast lens, it enables me to take pictures in low light (sport/action photography) that I otherwise wouldn't be able to do.
Again, I would recommend everyone to get this lens (or the 50mm f/1.8). In some ways I can say that this lens will make you a better photographer.
However, I think you should really consider buying the f/1.8 first before thinking to buy this f/1.4 lens (mainly because it is more than twice the price of the f1/8 and most of the time the f/1.8 version is fast enough in my opinion). Some examples where the faster f/1.4 lens might make a difference: low light wedding/concert or indoor sports photography (where the light is often low from the camera perspective) such as hockey, track and field, skating, gymnastic, basketball etc.
Let me mention some of the limitation that you would see:
First, being a prime lens, you will need to move your feet a lot to compose your picture. If you are used to zoom lens, don't underestimate this limitation. It takes me a while to get used to it.
Secondly, the focal range of 50mm, which is considered the normal lens and great for portrait lens. but on a DSLR (which I assume most of you use nowadays), this lens become a 75mm equivalent which is in the border of a short tele lens.
Third, in some situation the autofocus might not able to focus (which is common for many other lens too). It is hard for the autofocus to lock when aiming at a wall that is one color (usually black or white), or on a clear sky (day or night). I think this is normal/makes sense.
Sharpness increases as you stop down to f/1.8 or f/2.2. On low light, I'd rather use f/1.4 aperture settings than stopped down (e.g to f/2.8) and compensate with higher ISO setting which often gives me grainy picture.
If you are wondering whether you should get a fast lens or a lens with VR, here's my take: VR does help a lot (and produce better/sharper picture than equivalent faster lens without VR) if the object is static. If the object is moving (sports/action) then VR feature doesn't really help and fast lens will be a far better solution. Using tripod (and a remote) will substitute for the need of VR feature.
Here are the summary of pros and cons:
Pros:
1. Very fast (f/1.4)
2. Very sharp pictures
3. Great for sport/action photography
4. Great for indoor and low light situation
5. Great for portrait
6. Bokeh is almost as good as many expensive Nikon tele-lens
7. Fast autofocus
8. Perfect for wedding photography (or no-flash event).
9. 75mm equivalent which can be considered a short tele lens
10. Sharper than its 50mm f/1.8 sibling (at equivalent aperture)
Cons:
1. Being prime lens, you need to move your feet a lot to adjust/compose
2. Some distortion at widest aperture
3. Plasticy build
4. Autofocus is not the most silent but very reasonable
5. 75mm equivalent with 1.5x multiplier on DSLR
Bottom line: This lens is so versatile that I think everyone should own (either the 50mm f/1.4 or the 50mm f/1.8) in addition to all the lenses that they already have. Being a very fast lens, it enables me to take pictures in low light (sport/action photography) that I otherwise wouldn't be able to do.
Again, I would recommend everyone to get this lens (or the 50mm f/1.8). In some ways I can say that this lens will make you a better photographer.
Review ID: 10000000002395917
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A mandatory lens for any photographerReview created: 07/10/08
by:
nikonian25 ( 1 )
Whether you're a studio photographer, nature, stock, or recreational photographer, this lens needs to be in your bag. First to note is its amazing speed. The 50mm f/1.4 is the fastest you'll need for almost any situation, including that candlelit chapel you may be photographing for the bride and groom. Even at f/1.4 the lens is sharp and on many Nikon bodies you can change the image's sharpness after the photograph is taken. It autofocuses incredibly quickly and accurately, though it does not internally focus. It's a short lens and that's how it is able to achieve the f/1.4 maximum aperture. The shorter a lens is the more light it lets in.
My first paying job as a photographer required this lens due to low lighting. I shot a conference and, though the stage lighting was nice, I often had to shoot off-stage where the light wasn't so good. However I don't recommend using the 50mm by itself in all situations. When you can't use a flash, like in that dimly lit church, it's the perfect lens. When I shot people on my D300 the lens was far too close due to the 1.5x conversion. If you shoot people with this on a non-full frame body make sure you stand far enough away because this lens becomes a 75mm f/1.4. If you want a true 50mm for a digital body go for the 35mm f/2.0 which is only one stop slower, but lets in almost as much light.
If you need a greater depth of field the lens is sharp, but you may be able to see a pinhole effect at f/22, as is the case with most lenses. If you want a more in-depth review search Ken Rockwell on Google and type in this lens. He is the best reviewer of Nikon lenses on the Internet.
My first paying job as a photographer required this lens due to low lighting. I shot a conference and, though the stage lighting was nice, I often had to shoot off-stage where the light wasn't so good. However I don't recommend using the 50mm by itself in all situations. When you can't use a flash, like in that dimly lit church, it's the perfect lens. When I shot people on my D300 the lens was far too close due to the 1.5x conversion. If you shoot people with this on a non-full frame body make sure you stand far enough away because this lens becomes a 75mm f/1.4. If you want a true 50mm for a digital body go for the 35mm f/2.0 which is only one stop slower, but lets in almost as much light.
If you need a greater depth of field the lens is sharp, but you may be able to see a pinhole effect at f/22, as is the case with most lenses. If you want a more in-depth review search Ken Rockwell on Google and type in this lens. He is the best reviewer of Nikon lenses on the Internet.
Review ID: 10000000007924844
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Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm lensI decided to buy this F1.4 lens for my D50 because I was disappointed by the ability of the standard zoom lens (18-70) to capture low light pictures without a flash. This lens is remarkably sharp, even wide open, and its ability to capture pictures under ambient lighting under darken conditions is remarkable. The downside of trying to shoot under low light is that the D50 does a lot of hunting during its focusing attempts and often misses. Manual focusing helped to resolve that problem.
Review ID: 10000000007099749
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Excellent GlassReview created: 05/08/08
by:
I finally upgraded from the 1.8 - the 1.4 is worth every penny. The glass is just better all around, plus the lens has better bokeh, better color rendition... you name it. Don't waste your money on the 1.8.
Review ID: 10000000007068636
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