Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 50mm f/1.4G Lens with Auto Focus for Nikon DSLR Cameras

Im a hobbyist and a dad. I mainly take photos of my 3 year old. I found that my kid kept turning away because of the flash even if I bounce it. I needed a lens that can perform in low-light w/o flash. Ive tried these lenses for this purpose: Nikon/Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D, 35mm f/1.8G, Sigma 17-50mm f2.8. Like many other users here, Im upgrading from the 50mm 1.8D. I bought the cheaper 1.8D first because I didnt think Id be using the 50mm so much. I soon found that the most useful (and most commonly used) focal length for my job was around 50mm. Once I realized that, I upgraded to the 50mm 1.4G. Ive considered the 85mm f/1.4. If you have a telephoto, then try zooming to 85mm. In a small room, you might not be able to include everything you want on your frame. 85mm is very tight especially on a DX camera because of the 1.5x crop factor. I think 85mm is more for the full-frame camera owners. If you have a DX, this 50mm lens (x1.5 = full frame equivalent is 75mm) is just right for many indoor portraits. Ive also tried the Sigma 17-50mm because of its wide constant "pro" aperture (f2.8). I was hoping that I can use that instead of carrying multiple primes like I do sometimes (50mm and 35mm). That was a big $700 mistake. There is no way an F2.8 can ever compare to the primes in terms of being able to shoot in low-light without flash and also getting beautiful bokeh with background separation. This does have an odd filter thread size. I tried putting a 58-70mm step-up ring like Ken Rockwell suggested so I can use my 70mm filters. That setup looks ridiculous, and your hood wont fit anymore. Just get the 58mm HOYA UV filter. The photos taken with this lens actually look brighter than what I can see with my own eyes in the room. No clumsy flash needed. Amazing lens.

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Scored nicely buying it used, saving a few bucks. The autofocus is great and it does not weigh much at all, making carrying it around a breeze. If youre serious about portraits, get this. I used this for a landscape shot but the results are pretty good, I shot this by hand!

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The Nikon AF-S 50mm f/1.4G slowly became my "walking around" lens I purchased it in 2009. Before I made the purchase, I compared the Nikon MTF charts with those for 50mm f.1.4 from Zeiss and was surprised that Nikons lens is, at least theoretically, a better performer. As expected, the corners are soft wide open, with significant improvement with stopping down; by f/2.8 the edges are very acceptable. The entire field is tack sharp by f/4.0. Im now using this lens on a Nikon 800, which is very demanding on optical quality. Pros - Fast, bright and sharp - AF is quiet, usable for shooting video - Excellent balance of contrast and resolution - Smooth bokeh - Weather sealed Cons - The lens has considerable geometric distortion that turns rectangles into trapezoids. It does not improve with stopping down. Youll need software like DxO Optics Pro Version 7 Elite Edition Photo Enhancing Software for Macintosh & Windows to easily correct the problem. - Some color fringing is noticeable at large apertures. - Im not crazy about the plastic build, but it seems solid enough. - AF speed seems sluggish on a Nikon D800 36.3 MP CMOS FX-Format Digital SLR Camera (Body Only)

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The FX Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 is a really nice street lens, portable and sharp. The Bokeh is nice, is it like the 85mm f/1.4 no but its a 5th of the price and you wont psychiatric help if you drop it on the street like you would with the 85mm. There is some fringing in bright light but in most cases its fixable via Lightroom or a similar application.

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I purchased the Sigma 50 1.4 first for the Nikon mount. I really wanted to like that lens. It looked great, big and heavy, a real piece of glass. But the thing would not focus properly on my D300. Every image was out of focus, no matter what compensations I dialed in. Sharpness was pretty bad on those rare shots that I got it focus wide open. Closed down, it was a good performer, but still missed the focusing mark. I sent it back and got this lens. The lens strikes a nice balance between size and performance. It is much slower to focus than my 24-70 and even my old 85mm 1.4. I would say it is on par with the previous version of the lens, AF-D, which I sold to buy this. The Sigma did a lot of hunting, but this locks on and stays there. The Sigma danced around the focus spot and never quite hit it. Optics are superior. Much sharper wide open with the Nikon. Construction, although plastic, is adequate. I dont use my lenses for hammers. It should outlive me. I wish it had nanocoating for this price. No a lot of improvement over the AF-D, and you can save about $200 by going that route. But definitely a big improvement over the Sigma. I look forward to using this for low-light candids at weddings with my D700 and portraits with my D300.

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Super fun to use! Great definition. Its the best for low light situations. I just used it at my high school reunion at a restaurant / bar and I was able to get pictures that were nice and bright looking.

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