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Nikkor
50mm f/1.8 AF
The Dwarf-sized, Giant-Performance Lens, with a Midget price-tag by
Nelson Tan
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What is so great about the 50mm lens ? Plenty. First of all, the 50mm lens is a very sharp lens. Among major lens manufacturers, the 50mm lens could easily rank amonst the sharpest lenses in their line of optics. In the past when 50mm was the standard lens, you could make comparison of the quality of the manufacturers by comparing their 50mm lenses. The 50mm lens has a long heritage of optical designs, constantly being developed and refined. The proven optical formula and simple configuration led to the extremely high quality optical design, and low grinding and molding costs. And it is cheap. In fact, the 50mm lens is easily the cheapest lens in the whole range of lenses offered by any manufacturer. The mass-production, proven production methods and low cost of production led to a low price tag. What a deal - the best optics for the lowest price ! Because the 50mm lens comes closest to the human eye's perception of distance and depth, it is called the standard lens. The compression of the image is very close to what your eye can see, as opposed to the compressing effect of a telephoto lens, or the stretching of distance between objects by a wide-angle lens. It thus offers the most natural perspective of all the lenses. Some people love it, calling it natural. Some people hate the lack of dramatic perspective, calling it boring. But because it do not distort the image in any way, it offers you the opportunity to learn a lot about perspectives and how to see the object without resorting to effects offered by telephotos and wide-angle. Some people claim that the zoom-lenses of today retard the beginner photographer's progress, and that they messed up the meanings of perspectives. It may be true. The standard lens also offer low distortion in rendering the image. Do not confuse this with perspective. Low distortion means that there is little barrel and fisheye distortion. It does not refer to the slight distortion of the face when using the 50mm to take a close-up portrait. Although not designed as a flat-field optic, the 50mm lens is sufficiently corrected to take images of non-critical applications which do not demand 100% corrected optics. 50mm lenses are also
extra bright. The usual aperture of zooms is from f/3.5-5.6, and
the usual for prime lenses is f/2.8. Standard lenses come in 2 variations,
f/1.4 or f/1.8, which is brighter than most other lenses. This means you
are able to shoot in lower light than usually possible. The 50mm lenses
are also light-weight and compact, and they usually are the lightest
and smallest lens around. They also come with close-focusing ability,
and are great for closeups and still-lifes.
Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 AF The Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 AF is the cheapest lens in the AF Nikkor line-up, at only $180. Nikon took some cost saving measures to attain this low-price, without compromising the optical quality. For starters, there is no rear Nikon black lens cap, just a white rear lens cover. You can buy a Nikon rear lens cap for $20 seperately. And the 50mm f/1.8 comes in Non-"D" version only, possibly because the price of including the "D" chip will drive the price up. The uses for this lens do not really call for Distance Technology any way. The overall built of this lens is very good, given that you paid only $180 for it. Although the lens construction is largely plastic, the optics and mechanical contruction is firm and sturdy. The aperture ring clicks smartly and the focusing ring is smooth and nicely dampened. More importantly, the 50mm f/1.8 sports a metal mount ! Nikon launched plastic versions of its budget short-zooms in an attempt to cut costs, but fortunately this lens still retained the traditional stainless steel Nikkor F-mount. The bokeh of this
lens is average, although the bright highlights do reflect the hexagonal
shape of the aperture when it is stopped down beyond f/5.6. The auto-focusing
fast but slightly noisy, and the focusing ring is well frictioned. When
focusing, the filter ring does not rotate, which is a plus point for people
using filters. The lens is very light at 156g, and only the 50mm f/1.8
AIS weighs less !!
One of the uses is
a (approximately 4x) loupe. To use it as a loupe, the front of the lens
is facing the slide and one views through the rear element. Full frame
of the slide is visible, but only a center portion of the image is clear
and without distortion. Personally, I find that although it is possible
to use it as a loupe, it is more advisable to buy a proper loupe, since
the lens is heavy enough to scratch the surface of your slides if you're
not careful enough.
Many people are unsure of whether to get the f/1.4 or /1.8 of the 50mm lens. It is pretty easy to decide. Just ask if you really do enough low-light work to justify paying twice the price of the f/1.8 version for the f/1.4 version. If you think you need the extra light, by all means get the f/1.4 version. Otherwise, save the money for something else.
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