Nikon 50mm manual focus lenses

Shawn Rahman · Jan 24, 2009

Another very enthusiastic vote for the 50 f/2 AI. It is sharper than my 1.8 and 1.4 AIS versions. Good luck.

katphood · Jan 24, 2009

One thing to look it: the 50 1.8 can focus at .45m and many others are around .6m. If you do much closeup work, this may matter to you.

davela · Jan 25, 2009

Stephanie, I'm sure it will be a fantastic lens. I'm still looking for a Nikon lens I don't like - they've earned their fabled reputation (I've not tried Series E however).

Stephanie Brim said:
I can't edit my post...

But anyway, I mean 50mm f/1.8, not 35mm f/1.8. I was tired.

I'm happy with the purchase and will at least have a lens to use with the Nikon when it comes.

katphood · Jan 25, 2009

firecracker said:
Yes, first class. But compared to the F2 or F1.4 lenses, F1.8 pancake lenses tend to flare more because of their designs in my own experience. I don't know about the non-pancake version of F1.8 lens, but because it looks more like the F2 version where the front element is not as big and not as closely showing, it's probably better and flare-resistant in a way.

I had the Series E and it flared much more than my long throw AIS. I believe the Series E and the later pancakes were the same design, though different materials perhaps and single vs. multicoating.

I killed my original 50mm 1.8 in the Sierras. I fell on granite and must have used my camera and elbow the break my fall. Smashed both my polarizer and my lens, not to mention my elbow and arse.

John_Nikon_F · Jan 25, 2009

PhotoJim said:
Be careful about the 50/1.8 AI-S. There are three versions:

1) Original. Has the shoe that couples to the metering pin on meter-equipped non-AI cameras. Widely considered to be the best, other than...
2) Japanese pancake lens. Hard to find, and expensive for a 50/1.8. I've never used one, but I read a lot of positive reviews about it.
3) Last version. No meter coupling shoe. It's the same as the Series E lens, but with improved multicoating. It's a good lens, but not as good as the other two.

Most 50/1.8 AI-S lenses on the market are version 3.

I don't think there was a 50/1.8 AI. The slow 50 in the AI world was the 50/2, which is a fantastic lens.

Jim,

I've had at least three copies of the 50f1.8 AI. Nice lens, but I usually settled on the Nikkor-H 50f2, which is what is currently mounted to my F4. Seems to be as contrasty as the AI version and fairly flare-resistant, like the AI version, even though it's a single coated lens.

With respect to 50f1.4's, the Nikkor-S version and the AI version have performed well in my experience. Probably not as well as the 1.8 and the 2.0, but well enough for me to shoot with it for quite some time. Never really shot with the 1.2, since I didn't need the extra light, and weight.

-J

kivis · Jan 30, 2009

I bought a non ai 50mm/f1.4 for $25 then converted it (thank you John White). It is now my day to day workhorse on my FM3a.

nicefor88 · May 3, 2009

the 50 f2 S-Auto series is as good as newer versions. Same optical construction, same glass quality, same everything. Bonus, an all metal lens!!
The H series is very good too. You only loose 1 stop from the 1.4, that's not a big deal for outdoor shooting.

PhotoJim · May 3, 2009

Do you mean the Nikkor-S? If so it has seven elements, compared to the six of the Nikkor-H.

Nikon 50mm manual focus lenses

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