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AF50mm f/1.8  Nikkor

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Nikon AF50mm f/1.8 Nikkor


 
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Rating
Reviewed by: 

Tonys

( Expert)

Review Date
March 21, 2006

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

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Review 1 of 93

Price Paid:  $100.00 from Individual

Summary:

I bought this lens jus to have one. It is small and light. It cost next to nothing when talking about lens. Do not let the word cheap fool you. It is cheap (around 100) and simple. It works great. The first thing I noticed when looking at the images taken with a digital camera was that the colors really popped and seemed very natrual. I noticed the reds really looked nice. I have not taken anything of great color yet. The lens works well through out its range. i found the best results at around F4 or so. The F1.8 is really handy when the light source is low. It takes great nature shots. It works great as a close up lens. I have used it on several objects close up and the detail is amazing. In the day of having the best and using the best I think this lens may get over looked by alot of people. If you are new to photography, get this lens, even if you do not use at all the time. It is well worth the 100 dollars you spend. When you see your images you will feel great about the bargain you got and the camera you bought. The lens is fixed so to get close you have to walk, oh well the excercise can not hurt. The images are sharp, in focus, and detailed. I know it works excellent on film cameras and it works great on digital. This lens is great to use to just to walk around and snap pirctures.

This lens is a bargain in the age of expensive quality lenses that can cost more than the camera. I think everyone wants a do all lens that this lens does not get the respect it deserves. I know it is plastic and feels cheap..Blah.Blah..if it breaks get another one. This lens goes with me everywhere. If you are into flowers and such this should be your primary lens. I have not used it for portraits but expect it will do great. I took some images of a bird up in a tree that was a little out of reach. I did some cropping and they look pretty good. It will focus fast. The bottom line is you want great pictures. Do not believe all the hype...buy this lens and you will not regret it.

Strengths:

Cost, simple, Fast, low light work horse and takes great pictures, color and sharpness with detail. You can not go wrong,

Weaknesses:

For a 100 dollars there are no weaknesses. Come on it cost a hundred dollars.

Similar Products Used:

Nikon 80mm F2.8. I like the 50mm better.



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Rating
Reviewed by: 

Ernest T

( Intermediate)

Review Date
January 27, 2006

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

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Review 2 of 93

Price Paid:  $104.00 from Adorama

Summary:

I bought this lens to shoot my kids basketball games. I was not expecting much due to the low price of this lens. The lens is a nice buy, and probably one of the best bargins you will get from Nikon. Everybody should have one in the bag.

Strengths:

Focusing speed is quick enough for my basketball shots, but no where near the speed of my other silent wave Nikon lenses. I have to shoot most of my basketball shots at 1.8 due to poor lighting, and still crank up the ISO, but even wide open the shots are reasonably sharp. The lens gets sharper above 5.6.

Weaknesses:

The lens feels sort of flimsy compared to some of the other metal Nikon lenses that I own. It is plastic, not metal, and has a "rougher" feel when focusing. It also tends to have a very tight fit to my D70 body, and I was a little worried at first, but it seems to be wearing itself in now. Nikon ships it with a standard Nikon lens cap, but without the usual screw on rear cap. Instead there is a white plastic cap that just pops on the end, and is not real stable.

Similar Products Used:

Lots of other Nikon lenses

Customer Service:

Never had to use.



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Rating
Reviewed by: 

matt_so

( Intermediate)

Review Date
December 5, 2005

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5,
1 votes

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Review 3 of 93

Price Paid:  $90.00 from eBay

Summary:

This is an excellent performer. Don't be fooled by its low price (new cost $100 to 110). This lens is takes very sharp image, even at 1.8. There is no distortion at all. No vignette and no light off. At 1.8, you have got yourself an excellent performer at any situation, even at low light. The only thing to watch for is flare. Use it on Nikon DSLR and you've got yourself a nice portrait lens (@ 75mm)

Strengths:

Excellent performer at any f-stop No distortion No vignette / light fall-off Very sharp image Unbeatable performance / price ratio

Weaknesses:

Flare. You may want to consider get yourself a multi-coat filter to use with this lens

Similar Products Used:

Nikon AF-S 18-70mm f3.5-4.5 DX Nikon AF 35-70mm f2.8



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Rating
Reviewed by: 

K-Whopper

( Expert)

Review Date
November 3, 2004

Overall Rating
 2 of 5

Value Rating
 2 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
1.21 of 5,
19 votes

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Review 4 of 93

Price Paid:  $200.00

Summary:

I've used a lot of 50mm Nikon lenses and made a lot of comparisons ranging from the ubiquitous "E" Series 50mm, to 1.4 & 1.8 Nikkors manual lenses and to this Nikkor AF 50mm 1.8 ... Seriously, I would rate this lens as the autofocus equivalent of the 50mm "E" - Crap! For sharpness don't even contemplate this lens, it's more your "Joe Average" type lens... if you want "Joe Average" shots you can settle for this. Go for 50mm "D" type lenses for sharpness!

Strengths:

It looks good and wears the Nikon/Nikkor name... Makes a real good paper weight... You can drop it onto concrete and not notice any difference in the optics because they weren't very good to begin worth!

Weaknesses:

Performance is very disappointing as far as sharpness is concerned!

Similar Products Used:

A variety of Nikkor lenses.



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Rating
Reviewed by: 

Matt_OSU

( Beginner)

Review Date
August 17, 2004

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

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Review 5 of 93

Price Paid:  $35.00 from eBay

Summary:

I bought this lens because my grandpa told me it would be a really good way to learn the basics of photography. I looked for the best price around and found it on eBay. Apparently, nobody was interested in it, so I got it for a very nice price. I loved it from the first picture I took with it ! Now I only use it for almost everything I do, and I only take the 28-80mm out when there is REALLY no other way I can do without. This lens is light, looks solid, and I got it in excellent condition. The view through it is clear, with a nice definition of details. And well, what is there to add, besides the 1.8 !

Strengths:

Light Solid Nice looking Very Good pictures, good definition Quality

Weaknesses:

The only thing I regret is that on my N75, I can not use the aperture ring to modify the aperture, but the dial... Well, that was just to say something ! :)

Similar Products Used:

Zoom Nikkor 28-80mm AF/G



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