Nikon AF FX NIKKOR 50mm F/1.4D DSLR Lens with Auto Focus for Nikon DSLR Cameras

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I purchased this lens after trying out a 50mm f1.8G and being disappointed with it. I know... Different type of lens and different price point. But the reason I came to this lens rather than the 50mm 1.4G is a conclusion that I came to somewhere in-between those two purchases: Great lenses dont stop being great because the next thing comes out. It just means that the newer thing may possibly be better. Now Im sure plenty can be argued about whether this is a "great lens" or not, but the simple point is that this lens, like the 35mm f2D, 85mm f1.4D, and plenty of other older lenses, has served countless photographers and produced countless amazing photos since its inception. The appearance of more capable lenses today doesnt mean that the 50mm 1.4D is suddenly incapable of creating great photos. And lets be honest... how many of us are actually taking photos that can even hold a candle to so many of those photos taken in decades past on all of that "inferior" equipment? I have a Nikon D810 (recently upgraded to full frame from my old D300), so as I build my FX lens collection, Ive been facing some odd decisions. Given the fact that I can use these older lenses, I am not forced to default to the newer "G-Series" lenses where some others might unfortunately already have that decision made for them by virtue of the fact that their camera bodies cannot autofocus with older lenses. And while the newer lenses are largely superior in IQ as well as aperture in some cases, the ultimate question I have to ask myself is whether or not those advances are truly meaningful to me at my level. I can definitely tell you that Im not a pixel-peeper (although even at 1:1, the 50mm 1.4D seems to perform just fine) and I believe that, in fact, technical aspects like that are probably the last thing to worry about behind lighting, composition, etc. And if Im not really getting meaningful value (as a function of the limits of my own ability as a photographer) out of the newer lens, why spend the extra money to get it? By the time I get to a point where it might actually matter somehow, its entirely possible that something even newer and better will be out as the endless march of technology continues. If youre still with me after my ramblings, let me simply say that Ive found this to be an absolutely wonderful lens that has more than served my needs. While its true that my camera may push the limits of this lens on a sheer technical level, my abilities as a photographer have not even begun to outgrow it. It may be different for some of you, but Im more concerned about nailing a good composition and capturing the feel of scenes than I am about staring at photo comparisons to see which lens renders bokeh slightly better than another or which lens is sharper at the pixel level—things that I can assure you that nobody on the other side of the camera will ever care about or even notice. If youre one of the elite photographers for whom this lens will honestly be a limitation, you already know you dont want this. If youre an owner of a body for which this lens will not autofocus because of technical limitations, you should look elsewhere. But if you fall into the same category as me where you have a camera body that can use this lens, but youre still on the journey of learning the art of photography, I encourage you to save a little bit of cash and explore the possibilities of this lens. It will ultimately reward the trust you put in it when you do start taking some of those great photos, and youll be reminded by the fact that youre doing it on equipment that many people will turn their nose up at as being somehow "obsolete" that the essence of your photography doesnt lie within the gear in your camera bag. It is within yourself, gained through experience, study, and hard work.

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This is a lens for those who appreciate a classic standard focal length prime that uses the timeless seven element in six groups planar optical formulation. Every major manufacturer from Zeiss, to Olympus, to Yashica (RIP), to Pentax, to Minolta to Canon, to Sigma has made nearly an identical lens using the same classic configuration. Theyre basically the same lens (sorry Nikon but you know its true...) Its a simple lens compared to modern lenses -- no fancy coatings, few elements and groups, no vibration reduction, no exotic glass, no aspherical elements. None of that stuff. As a result, this lens will vignette a little and be a bit softer at wider apertures, especially in the corners. You will always get some barrel distortion that will look terrible on "internet lens testing sites" but will hardly be noticeable in the field. It will be more susceptible to flare at wider apertures. Newsflash -- f1.4 is not a "working aperture", really. Working apertures for this lens are f 2 to f 8. Lets go through -- f 1.4 is "in case of emergency". If you need every photon available for available darkness shooting -- its there. Also, use it to squeeze every bit of bokeh possible out of the lens for creative effect , playing and experimentation. F 2 -- 2.8, used to provide subject isolation. Great for environmental portraiture, ambient light shooting, or natural light still lifes. Youll get very good to excellent center sharpness, corners will be acceptable, and youll get nice bokeh while losing a good bit of the chromatic aberrations and vignetting associated with shooting wide open. F 4 -- now were starting to get some serious sharpness in the center, corners improving dramatically, vignetting gone. F 5.6. BAM! If youre after max sharpness especially in the center with good depth of focus and some subject isolation (depending on focus distance) this is your aperture. You will be hard-pressed to find a sharper optic at any price. Center sharpness is off the charts, almost literally. Good daylight, flash, outdoors, thats your aperture. Whenever youre looking for optimal sharpness. Or? F 8. This will give you excellent corner sharpness at the expense of some center sharpness (which is still excellent) but no "bokeh" everything pert much in focus. F 11 -- image quality now visibly degrading due to diffraction. Still quite usable. Kinda the reverse of f1.4 except now youre going for max depth of focus. F 16 -- not a working aperture imo. Too much image degradation from diffraction but its there if you need it for some reason. So. Why this lens? Why is it still relevant after 20 years of production? Why is it still made? A number of reasons. Modern FX cameras are pretty heavy. My "little" D600 weighs 2 lbs (I think). Now, slap a lens on it that easily adds another pound (or more) and it becomes a drag lugging this kit around and theres a good chance you leave it home and not use it at all, Your big, pricey FX camera is not doing any good setting on the shelf. This is the smallest and lightest f1.4 lens Nikon makes. Its great for "lug management". Not only that? It is very bright and is capable of completely professional results. Some of the greatest photographers shot solely with a 50 taking brilliant images with them. Since my camera has a built-in focus motor, I prefer to use that. (Its also purportedly faster on this lens...). I think the tiny motors built-in to the newer lenses will eventually wear out. I think this guy is simply more durable. Finally, I use two sites when choosing a lens: DXOMark and Flickr. DXO rates lenses objectively using an indexing scale and you can match lens performance to you camera body. There was one modern 50 by a 3rd party manufacturer that topped this one by a bit -- but its a big, heavy, expensive behemoth. I can make just as good "ART" without lugging that thing around. No thanks. This lens was tied for 2nd among standard non-specialty "everyday" focal lengths. (Scrolling way down the list you start getting to your pricey pro zooms...) It was also a good bit cheaper (especially used and theyre plentiful), smaller, and lighter. Then I went on Flickr -- some talented folks taking some amazing images with this lens. That comes as no surprise. This is a better lens than I am a photographer. Henry Cartier Bresson, Ralph Gibson, and others mostly shot a 50mm 1.4 their entire careers. Sold!

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If youre interested in a fast prime, this needs to be your first purchase. I love these D type Nikon lenses. Theyre usually smaller and built well with excellent image quality . The barrel feels like plastic but the lens is made with a considerable amount of metal and should last as long as my metal Canon FD lenses have. The best part of the Nikon system is being able to use this lens on an older manual camera too. It manually focuses very smoothly. This is an older design screw-drive lens so there is a little noise when it focuses but it focuses very quickly. This lens used with a used D300 can be had for less than the $500. If you want to go cheaper you can get the F1.8D which sacrifices build quality but retains similar optical quality.

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I did a lot of research before buying this lens. I already had the Nikon 35mm f1.8G and wanted a larger focal length to use for portraits on my Nikon D7000. I looked at the Nikon 50mm f1.4D, the Nikon f1.4G, and the Nikon 50mm f1.8D. All three lenses had great reviews, so narrowing it down to one lens proved a difficult task. I ended up opting for this lens for a few reasons: 1. Speed. The D7000 is a champ at low light performance, but I take lots of pictures in low light (weddings, indoors, etc) and usually prefer non-flash pictures. I wanted all the speed I could get. 2. Price. Although this lens is $200 more than the 50mm f1.8D (see reason 1) that extra light capturing ability is worth it for me. Plus, this lens is over $100 cheaper than the 1.4G. 3. Sharpness. Lots of reviews I found online said the 1.4D was a bit sharper than the 1.4G. Is it true? Honestly, Ive tried both now and I cant tell a difference. You may want to note that the 1.4G has SW (Silent Wave) auto-focus. From my experience that lens focuses faster and more quietly than the 1.4D, but this wasnt an issue for me as I use manual focus 90% of the time. My overall impressions on this lens? Im glad I bought it and dont regret it for a second. I know I made a great choice. Its incredibly sharp, focuses quickly, and has beautifully smooth bokeh. Its solidly built and the manual aperture ring is a great addition if you use non-AF extension tubes for macro photography (which I sometimes do). Its a perfect prime portrait lens for crop sensors. If I had one lens to take to a wedding, this would be it. In closing, this lens has made me a better photographer. The 35mm 1.8g is sufficiently wide that you can easily crop pictures later in your workflow. The 50mm is just tight enough on a crop sensor that it makes you think before you press the shutter release button. I noticed that I had began relying too heavily on using zoom lens that I had almost forgotten how to move around a room and compose a picture correctly.

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Mounted on a D7100. Bought as an upgrade over my present 50mm F1.8 G. From a third party on amazon for about the same as a new F1.8 G version. I like using the thinner DoF to isolate a subject. My unscientific impression of the sharpness agrees with DxO - the G version is really good and this is even better. An additional plus is that it is smaller than the G and uses the same size cap and filter size as the 18-55 kit lense Caution: this will autofocus only on bodies that have an AF motor in them such as D7x00, D6x0, D7x0 D8x0 and Single digit models. It WILL NOT auto focus on D40, D60, D3x00 or D5x00 bodies. Double check before you buy.

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This lens can mean all the difference for many situations. The extremely wide aperture (f/1.4) and reduced layers of glass allow so much light in, its amazing. Now indoor shots can be taken using just the ambient light. Outdoor settings can be shot well into dusk with just natural light. It all looks so much better than camera mounted flashes. Not to mention the bokeh, and in this respect, the lens cannot disappoint! As others have said, the sharpness of the lens really shows itself around f/2.0, but it is still quite sharp down to f/1.4. The lens size is a bit unimpressive when people see it, but the photos speak for themselves. The focal length is a bit long for a DX format camera, and I find myself many steps further from my subject than feels natural. But the longer focal length can add nice detail and depth to the photos. And on a FX format, I think it would be just about perfect. The only problem I have with the lens is that my D90 has a case of back-focus, and when shooting at really large apertures with such a narrow depth of field, the back-focus is very prevalent (somewhere around f/3 or smaller its more usable without compensation). But this is not a problem with the lens, it is a problem with the camera, so its not worth docking the score, just keep in mind your camera determines what "focus" is, not the lens. I feel primary lenses should be at the forefront of any camera arsenal, every photographer should have at least one, and two or three seem like a better count. And this lens is the perfect zone between price and functionality, you will not be disappointed with it.

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December 17, 2015 I think its my best lens yet. It worked like a charm with the D7000. I believe theres some softness when its fully open, but very sharp pictures at f/1.8 and above. So its been very good for poor light conditions. December 5, 2017 Edit: Still love this lens. Now it pairs with the D750 for low light pictures. Works great. The focus is a bit slow now that Ive tested other lens and sometimes it feels like closest focus distance is too far (but thats because Ive been trying to take pictures of babies crawling towards me :-)

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I bought this lens from Amazon back in 2007 but barely used it because I also own the equally phenomenal f/1.8 version which has been my go-to since it doesnt need to be babied (because its so cheap.) Well today I took the 50mm f/1.4 out on my old D300 to get the needed ebay shots (with the lovely Tiger Tubby as a model) and I cant do it - I cant get rid of it. On a crop sensor, its an extraordinary little portrait machine! Compact, fast focusing, sharp, terrific bokeh. You might not need the extra speed of this versus the f/1.8 lens, but the images at f/1.4 can be superb. My two examples were both shot wide open and the image of Tiger Tubby with the eye...gunk...is straight from the camera.

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As an amateur, I have always struggled to produce images with striking depth of field. A professional photographer friend of mine suggested this lens for it, and so I went for it. Thus far, I have been pleased. The shallow depth of field effect that I was looking for is very easy to achieve with this lens, and the speed and lighting are also solid so that you can get great images as a result, even as an amateur. Keep in mind some drawbacks that seem inevitable with this kind of equipment: One is that there is no zoom. So, you have to make use of the old-fashioned technology of stepping up or back if you want to zero in on your subject. Second is that auto focus does not work (at least I have not been able to make it work). This means you have to spin the lens to get your target in focus. Minimal drawbacks for the quality of photos and that exquisite depth of field! Go for the 200 mm Nikon 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR [Vibration Reduction] Nikkor Zoom Lens for long-distance nature shots, or the Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G ED II Zoom Lens with Auto Focus for Nikon DSLR Cameras mid-range or portrait shots, or the Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 EX DC HSM ELD SLD Aspherical Super Wide Angle Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras for your breathtaking panoramas.

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After purchasing a Nikon D90 with two kit lenses (18-55mm and 55-200mm) this 50mm 1.4D lens was the first piece of glass I purchased after I realized that photography was something I cared deeply about and wanted to have the tools that matched that passion. The 50mm 1.4 lens does exactly that. However, the difference in price between the 1.4 and 1.8 is almost $300 so its worth a little thought to decide which lens would be better. Heres some perspective gained after 6 months of shooting with the 1.4. Please keep in mind I havent shot with the 1.8, but this is what I know about the 1.4 * The construction quality and general feel of the 1.4 lens is remarkable. Compared to the kit lenses and other 50mm 1.8s, its in another class. * The picture quality of the 1.4 is exceptional. As with all fast lenses, images dont get tack sharp until the 2.8 or 3.5 range, but the bokeh at the open apertures is stunning. * The lens essentially sees in the dark. Open wide to 1.4 and matched with the decent noise reduction of the D90, Ive captured ambient light images that would otherwise be impossible. Theres another non-tangible element involved in purchasing the 1.4, and thats the feeling you get from owning a professional-grade piece of glass. The extra money is well, well spent if you can A) afford it and B) keep from gloating around your friends who are shooting 1.8s

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