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Posted: 5/6/2016 1:04:06 AM EDT
[#1]
Im no pro (and I shoot Canon) but the depth of focus is razor thin on my Sigma 50mm @1.4, and I actually use it at 1.8 more often but I like the option to use it at 1.4 if the situation arises.
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Posted: 5/6/2016 1:43:07 AM EDT
[#2]
On a DX body get the 35mm DX lens. I never use my 50mm lens any more.
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Posted: 5/6/2016 1:55:51 AM EDT
[#3]
Quote HistoryI considered it, especially after seeing the thread with the red Jeep pictures. She currently uses the 55-200 lens and I believe prefers the 75mm setting. Her goal is to eventually take photos of people as a side gig and I was leaning towards the 50mm, but didn't know if the 35mm would be better to practice with. |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 2:18:25 AM EDT
[#4]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I considered it, especially after seeing the thread with the red Jeep pictures. She currently uses the 55-200 lens and I believe prefers the 75mm setting. Her goal is to eventually take photos of people as a side gig and I was leaning towards the 50mm, but didn't know if the 35mm would be better to practice with. Quote HistoryQuoted: I considered it, especially after seeing the thread with the red Jeep pictures. She currently uses the 55-200 lens and I believe prefers the 75mm setting. Her goal is to eventually take photos of people as a side gig and I was leaning towards the 50mm, but didn't know if the 35mm would be better to practice with. I have owned both, along with a 50 1.8 e-series and Sigma Art 50 1.4. I prefer them in this order Sigma Art>Nikon 50 1.4>Nikon 50 1.8G>Nikon 50 1.8E. The Sigma is beautiful, it blows any of the other lenses out of the water, but is considerably more expensive. I would go with the Nikon 50 1.4 unless the Sigma is within your budget. |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 8:22:36 AM EDT
[#5]
I haven't tried the current f/1.4G offering, but I've messed with dozens of 50mms and the f/1.8 is what I'd go for. The difference in speed is not all that amazing, and it doesn't come for free. 1.8 IMO is the sweet spot between light gathering, sharpness, and a half dozen other trade-offs.
The faster lenses used to be built better, but everything has transitioned over to plastics. This site does a good job of going through the pros and cons: |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 8:23:10 AM EDT
[#6]
Get both.
I have the 35mm DX, the 50mm f1.8 nifty fifty It's a rule that all owners of Nikon DX cameras are required to own the 35mm 1.8 lens. It's a great lens especially in low light situations or places where you can't use a flash. The nifty fifty is an FX lens. The crop factor makes it seem like a 75mm lens. Getting the 50mm f1.8 FX G lens might be a consideration if she shoots her zoom at 75mm anyway. FWIW when I'm forced to take pictures of people I use the 85mm f1.8 G lens. It's an awesome portrait lens and pretty good as an outdoor bumming-around-lens. D7100 owner here. |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 12:03:00 PM EDT
[#7]
On a DX the $200 or so 35MM is unbelievable. The 50 1.4 is really good glass but the 35 is much more versatile on DX.
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Posted: 5/6/2016 1:05:44 PM EDT
[#8]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
On a DX the $200 or so 35MM is unbelievable. The 50 1.4 is really good glass but the 35 is much more versatile on DX. completely agree |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 1:08:14 PM EDT
[#9]
50mm and 35mm 1.8 are both inexpensive yet great pieces of glass. As arfcom says, get both.
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Posted: 5/6/2016 5:18:08 PM EDT
[#10]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I considered it, especially after seeing the thread with the red Jeep pictures. She currently uses the 55-200 lens and I believe prefers the 75mm setting. Her goal is to eventually take photos of people as a side gig and I was leaning towards the 50mm, but didn't know if the 35mm would be better to practice with. Quote HistoryQuoted:
I considered it, especially after seeing the thread with the red Jeep pictures. She currently uses the 55-200 lens and I believe prefers the 75mm setting. Her goal is to eventually take photos of people as a side gig and I was leaning towards the 50mm, but didn't know if the 35mm would be better to practice with. On a DX body, the 35mm is a better length for general photography. On a DX body, the 50mm is kind of an odd-ball length. Yes, most reviews of the Nikon 50mm lenses will tell you that the f/1.8 is a slightly better lens, assuming you don't need the f/1.4 aperture. Some of the third party 50mm lenses are better than the Nikons and usually at a higher price. |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 5:48:11 PM EDT
[#11]
Quote HistoryQuoted: On a DX body, the 35mm is a better length for general photography. On a DX body, the 50mm is kind of an odd-ball length. Yes, most reviews of the Nikon 50mm lenses will tell you that the f/1.8 is a slightly better lens, assuming you don't need the f/1.4 aperture. Some of the third party 50mm lenses are better than the Nikons and usually at a higher price. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: I considered it, especially after seeing the thread with the red Jeep pictures. She currently uses the 55-200 lens and I believe prefers the 75mm setting. Her goal is to eventually take photos of people as a side gig and I was leaning towards the 50mm, but didn't know if the 35mm would be better to practice with. On a DX body, the 35mm is a better length for general photography. On a DX body, the 50mm is kind of an odd-ball length. Yes, most reviews of the Nikon 50mm lenses will tell you that the f/1.8 is a slightly better lens, assuming you don't need the f/1.4 aperture. Some of the third party 50mm lenses are better than the Nikons and usually at a higher price. What would be some of the uses for the f/1.4 aperture? |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 5:52:21 PM EDT
[#12]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
What would be some of the uses for the f/1.4 aperture? For someone that's just learning and never used something with a wide aperture, not much aside from frustration. It's a half stop wider than a f/1.8 lens so when shot wide open it does gather SOME more light, but you also get a corresponding reduction in an already miniscule depth of field. This makes focusing a challenge, the slightest movement will result in blurry pictures. The same is true for a f/1.8 shot wide open but not quite as bad. It's a great training tool aside from the creative and compositional aspects of the lens. If you can get good sharp focus on your subject with a wide open 1.8 or larger aperture lens, you're doing good. That said, a wide aperture like that and the shallow depth of field it provides does wonderful things for pictures. At this point as you have stated the recipient of your gift is just getting started. There's not much need to drop the extra coin on the 1.4 at this point. That's one of those things that's better left for when you know you need it. |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 6:53:56 PM EDT
[#13]
Quote HistoryQuoted: What would be some of the uses for the f/1.4 aperture? Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: I considered it, especially after seeing the thread with the red Jeep pictures. She currently uses the 55-200 lens and I believe prefers the 75mm setting. Her goal is to eventually take photos of people as a side gig and I was leaning towards the 50mm, but didn't know if the 35mm would be better to practice with. On a DX body, the 35mm is a better length for general photography. On a DX body, the 50mm is kind of an odd-ball length. Yes, most reviews of the Nikon 50mm lenses will tell you that the f/1.8 is a slightly better lens, assuming you don't need the f/1.4 aperture. Some of the third party 50mm lenses are better than the Nikons and usually at a higher price. What would be some of the uses for the f/1.4 aperture? From f/1.8 to f/1.4 is a half-stop. So can use that to move your shutter speed up a half stop (which would help minimize blur if you're at a slow shutter speed) or reduce ISO (which would reduce noise if your already at a pretty high setting). The wider the lens opens, the more room you have on the other 2 exposure controls (shutter speed and ISO). The wider the lens gets, the narrow the depth of focus (moreso up close). Most lenses get very soft (i.e. not very sharp) when wide open and don't get sharp until you're stop down one or two. So when you see a photo where everything is in focus, the lens is stopped down quite a bit. A fast lens (one that allows a higher shutter speed) opens quite wide. What your friend has now is by no means fast. |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 6:58:46 PM EDT
[#14]
Quote HistoryQuoted: For someone that's just learning and never used something with a wide aperture, not much aside from frustration. It's a half stop wider than a f/1.8 lens so when shot wide open it does gather SOME more light, but you also get a corresponding reduction in an already miniscule depth of field. This makes focusing a challenge, the slightest movement will result in blurry pictures. The same is true for a f/1.8 shot wide open but not quite as bad. It's a great training tool aside from the creative and compositional aspects of the lens. If you can get good sharp focus on your subject with a wide open 1.8 or larger aperture lens, you're doing good. That said, a wide aperture like that and the shallow depth of field it provides does wonderful things for pictures. At this point as you have stated the recipient of your gift is just getting started. There's not much need to drop the extra coin on the 1.4 at this point. That's one of those things that's better left for when you know you need it. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: What would be some of the uses for the f/1.4 aperture? For someone that's just learning and never used something with a wide aperture, not much aside from frustration. It's a half stop wider than a f/1.8 lens so when shot wide open it does gather SOME more light, but you also get a corresponding reduction in an already miniscule depth of field. This makes focusing a challenge, the slightest movement will result in blurry pictures. The same is true for a f/1.8 shot wide open but not quite as bad. It's a great training tool aside from the creative and compositional aspects of the lens. If you can get good sharp focus on your subject with a wide open 1.8 or larger aperture lens, you're doing good. That said, a wide aperture like that and the shallow depth of field it provides does wonderful things for pictures. At this point as you have stated the recipient of your gift is just getting started. There's not much need to drop the extra coin on the 1.4 at this point. That's one of those things that's better left for when you know you need it. I appreciate all the helpful responses. |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 7:06:52 PM EDT
[#15]
Quote HistoryQuoted: From f/1.8 to f/1.4 is a half-stop. So can use that to move your shutter speed up a half stop (which would help minimize blur if you're at a slow shutter speed) or reduce ISO (which would reduce noise if your already at a pretty high setting). The wider the lens opens, the more room you have on the other 2 exposure controls (shutter speed and ISO). The wider the lens gets, the narrow the depth of focus (moreso up close). Most lenses get very soft (i.e. not very sharp) when wide open and don't get sharp until you're stop down one or two. So when you see a photo where everything is in focus, the lens is stopped down quite a bit. A fast lens (one that allows a higher shutter speed) opens quite wide. What your friend has now is by no means fast. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: I considered it, especially after seeing the thread with the red Jeep pictures. She currently uses the 55-200 lens and I believe prefers the 75mm setting. Her goal is to eventually take photos of people as a side gig and I was leaning towards the 50mm, but didn't know if the 35mm would be better to practice with. On a DX body, the 35mm is a better length for general photography. On a DX body, the 50mm is kind of an odd-ball length. Yes, most reviews of the Nikon 50mm lenses will tell you that the f/1.8 is a slightly better lens, assuming you don't need the f/1.4 aperture. Some of the third party 50mm lenses are better than the Nikons and usually at a higher price. What would be some of the uses for the f/1.4 aperture? From f/1.8 to f/1.4 is a half-stop. So can use that to move your shutter speed up a half stop (which would help minimize blur if you're at a slow shutter speed) or reduce ISO (which would reduce noise if your already at a pretty high setting). The wider the lens opens, the more room you have on the other 2 exposure controls (shutter speed and ISO). The wider the lens gets, the narrow the depth of focus (moreso up close). Most lenses get very soft (i.e. not very sharp) when wide open and don't get sharp until you're stop down one or two. So when you see a photo where everything is in focus, the lens is stopped down quite a bit. A fast lens (one that allows a higher shutter speed) opens quite wide. What your friend has now is by no means fast. |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 7:11:54 PM EDT
[#16]
Rumor has it that Nikon is going to release a new 50mm 1.4 in the near future from what I have read. I would get the 35mm 1.8 for now and see what comes out.
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Posted: 5/6/2016 7:23:24 PM EDT
[#17]
Quote HistoryQuoted: She takes some very good pictures as it is but i didn't realize what a difference the prime lens would make until doing some research of my own. I'm sure she'll be pretty pumped about the new lens. Yeah, unless she's got an $800 zoom lens, the image quality and operating space just isn't anywhere close to a cheap prime (fixed) lens. The cheap ones aren't all that bad these days, and you can certainly get great images, but the flexibility they offer comes with some baggage. There is no free ride in photography. You want something? You're going to have to sacrifice something. |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 7:32:01 PM EDT
[#18]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Rumor has it that Nikon is going to release a new 50mm 1.4 in the near future from what I have read. I would get the 35mm 1.8 for now and see what comes out. I don't follow the news... What are they supposedly doing with it? The current one isn't that old. |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 7:46:54 PM EDT
[#19]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Thanks bud. That's exactly what i needed to know. I plan on going with the 50mm 1.8 for now since it would be equal to the 75mm she prefers and get the 35mm later on. I appreciate all the helpful responses. Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
What would be some of the uses for the f/1.4 aperture? For someone that's just learning and never used something with a wide aperture, not much aside from frustration. It's a half stop wider than a f/1.8 lens so when shot wide open it does gather SOME more light, but you also get a corresponding reduction in an already miniscule depth of field. This makes focusing a challenge, the slightest movement will result in blurry pictures. The same is true for a f/1.8 shot wide open but not quite as bad. It's a great training tool aside from the creative and compositional aspects of the lens. If you can get good sharp focus on your subject with a wide open 1.8 or larger aperture lens, you're doing good. That said, a wide aperture like that and the shallow depth of field it provides does wonderful things for pictures. At this point as you have stated the recipient of your gift is just getting started. There's not much need to drop the extra coin on the 1.4 at this point. That's one of those things that's better left for when you know you need it. I appreciate all the helpful responses. That's not really how the crop factor works. The 50mm is equivalent to the field of view of a 75mm lens on a full frame camera. If she's setting her zoom to 75mm on her crop sensor, then a full frame equivalent field of view would be something like 112 (+/- a few mm, quick math  ). So the 55-200 or whatever it is that she's using, a 50mm will be slightly wider than the 55 she currently has available.
A prime that would be in the zone she seems to prefer is the 85mm f/1.8 that someone else mentioned before. The 50mm 1.8 is a damn fine lens though. |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 8:33:23 PM EDT
[#20]
I had an 85 for a while on a DX camera, and eventually sold it. The 50 is a lot more versatile on the DX--you can always use your feet if you need to get closer, but you can usually get far enough back indoors to get a decent field of view.
I have an old 105 that I use a LOT, but I need to be outdoors or in a big room (and then it's still a very tight shoulders-up portrait lens). It always has me stepping backwards. for Zack, I used to have a DCS420 which is a Nikon N90 w/ a Kodak digital back. 2nd gen DSLR. 1.5 MP with a huge 2.6 crop factor. So ENORMOUS camera body with a tiny lens was the order of the day. Picked it up for $80 on craigslist (retail in 1994 was $15k). It did some cool stuff though, and I kind of miss it. On a well behaved day...  |
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Posted: 5/6/2016 8:40:52 PM EDT
[#21]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I had an 85 for a while on a DX camera, and eventually sold it. The 50 is a lot more versatile on the DX--you can always use your feet if you need to get closer, but you can usually get far enough back indoors to get a decent field of view. I have an old 105 that I use a LOT, but I need to be outdoors or in a big room (and then it's still a very tight shoulders-up portrait lens). It always has me stepping backwards. for Zack, I used to have a DCS420 which is a Nikon N90 w/ a Kodak digital back. 2nd gen DSLR. 1.5 MP with a huge 2.6 crop factor. So ENORMOUS camera body with a tiny lens was the order of the day. Picked it up for $80 on craigslist (retail in 1994 was $15k). It did some cool stuff though, and I kind of miss it. On a well behaved day... https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2669/3946088214_995be04bc1_b.jpg I've been wondering what my 80-400 could do if I stuck it on one of those new mirrorless cameras that have a 2x+ crop factor
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Posted: 5/6/2016 8:45:23 PM EDT
[#22]
Quote HistoryQuoted: That's not really how the crop factor works. The 50mm is equivalent to the field of view of a 75mm lens on a full frame camera. If she's setting her zoom to 75mm on her crop sensor, then a full frame equivalent field of view would be something like 112 (+/- a few mm, quick math ). So the 55-200 or whatever it is that she's using, a 50mm will be slightly wider than the 55 she currently has available. A prime that would be in the zone she seems to prefer is the 85mm f/1.8 that someone else mentioned before. The 50mm 1.8 is a damn fine lens though. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: What would be some of the uses for the f/1.4 aperture? For someone that's just learning and never used something with a wide aperture, not much aside from frustration. It's a half stop wider than a f/1.8 lens so when shot wide open it does gather SOME more light, but you also get a corresponding reduction in an already miniscule depth of field. This makes focusing a challenge, the slightest movement will result in blurry pictures. The same is true for a f/1.8 shot wide open but not quite as bad. It's a great training tool aside from the creative and compositional aspects of the lens. If you can get good sharp focus on your subject with a wide open 1.8 or larger aperture lens, you're doing good. That said, a wide aperture like that and the shallow depth of field it provides does wonderful things for pictures. At this point as you have stated the recipient of your gift is just getting started. There's not much need to drop the extra coin on the 1.4 at this point. That's one of those things that's better left for when you know you need it. I appreciate all the helpful responses. That's not really how the crop factor works. The 50mm is equivalent to the field of view of a 75mm lens on a full frame camera. If she's setting her zoom to 75mm on her crop sensor, then a full frame equivalent field of view would be something like 112 (+/- a few mm, quick math ). So the 55-200 or whatever it is that she's using, a 50mm will be slightly wider than the 55 she currently has available. A prime that would be in the zone she seems to prefer is the 85mm f/1.8 that someone else mentioned before. The 50mm 1.8 is a damn fine lens though.  |
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