Nikon 50mm F1.4 (AI,AIS,AF,AFD) Review

[Evin Grant]

50mm f1.4 Nikkor (AI, AIS, AF & AF-D)

History:
This design of the 50mm Nikkor was first introduced in 1963 as an available light tool for photojournalists. Originally only single coated it still became very popular because of its high quality. It has seven elements in six groups and a seven bladed iris. In 1973 it was Multicoated and received Nikons AI meter coupling, In 1979 it was updated again to the AIS meter coupling and got a shorter focus throw. In 1986 the first AF version appeared. As far as I can tell there is no difference in optical quality from 1973 on.

Sharpness was set to 10% in Adobe ACR, very light to counter AA filter.

Performance:
This is a very good optic, not perfect, especially wide open but still very capable of producing sharp, well-defined 4k images with a buttery transition to out of focus. See examples…

Zoomify links below images for 10-100% viewing.

http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/zoomify//50WideF1.4.html
http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/zoomify//50MCUf1.4.html
F1.4
Lower contrast, ghosting and chromatic aberrations are all visible at 100% magnification here. This is the lens at it’s weakest as almost all lenses are. However most low light situations are high contrast to begin with and this combo works well.
F2 is a better choice for shallow depth of field work in better light. Most of the aberrations are gone and micro-contrast will increase dramatically.

http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/zoomify//50Widef2.8.html
http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/zoomify//50MCUf2.8.html
F2.8
This is the sweet spot of this lens, very sharp, almost no CA and a very pleasant DOF.

http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/zoomify//50Widef8.html
http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/zoomify//50MCUf8.html
F8
The lens is at its sharpest here. No aberrations to speak of, this is the preferred aperture for wide shots. After F8 diffraction may become a factor, although small.

http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4//Bokehtest.gif
Bokeh & Aberrations:
This lens has wonderful Bokeh, possibly my favorite of all 50mm SLR lenses. The only optics in this focal range that are smoother are the Leica M Summilux and Summicron.
It does display some Coma wide open but it’s quite beautiful and not an issue. If wide open shooting is your primary concern the 58mm f1.2 NOCT Nikkor is the lens you want.

http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4//breathtest.gif
Breathing:
As you can see this lens does breath, it’s not horrendous but more visible than any modern cinema prime from Zeiss or Cooke. Then again it’s 1/300th the price of either of those.

Build and adaptability to cinema style shooting:
I recommend the AI 1973-1978 version of this lens. It is multi coated, metal bodied, built for use in Vietnam, durable and has a longer focus draw than it’s newer AI-S or AF brethren. The AF is now made in China but seems just as good optically; cheaper plastic construction is less desirable though.

Application:
This is a great general-purpose short tele. lens for your Red One. In the 35mm still format that equates to about 83mm. So medium close ups and close-ups should be cake for it. As well as any other general applications. It focuses to 1’6” and is very sharp there too, so inserts shouldn’t be any problem either. You can get some pretty cool images shooting at 1.4 if you’re looking for a softer effect, especially in low light, high contrast situations.

Price/Value:
The AI version of this lens can be found on E-bay for under $100. That’s a no brainier.
The current new AF-D version goes for $250 and even that’s not a bad price, but spend the extra time and get a good condition AI, it’s totally worth the effort.
Also try http://www.keh.com

Uncompressed Tiffs (27MB each, Be patient!)
http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/tiffs/50MCUf1.4.tif
http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/tiffs/50Widef1.4.tif
http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/tiffs/50MCUf2.8.tif
http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/tiffs/50Widef2.8.tif
http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/tiffs/50MCUf8.tif
http://www.reduser.net/evin/Nikon50mmf1.4/tiffs/50Widef8.tif

 

[Alexander Nikishin]

Not bad for a $100 lens eh?

Thanks for the insight Evin!

Also, please include a wide lens into your reviews, maybe the AF 14 mm f/2.8 ED-RF Nikkor ?

 

[Jason Francois]

This is great Evin. Thanks for putting in the time.

I've got a set of 4 Nikons that I hope to get started with and this helps immensely.

 

[Brook Willard]

That's a stunning bang:buck ratio. Thanks for the report... I'm looking forward to the rest of your findings.

 

[Mark Thorpe]

Fantastic Evin, really fantastic. Great work mate.

 

[Finner]

What does the AI and AIs stand for and mean for each lens?

Thanks

 

[Milan Nikolic]

Thanks Evin for the great lens test. This is the lens that I have in mind in the first place. Keep the good work!

 

[Evin Grant]

What does the AI and AIs stand for and mean for each lens?

Thanks

AI stands for "Auto Indexing" AI-S stands for "Auto Indexing-Stupid!"

Seriously the "S" is Nikons way of saying second generation, as in D2Hs or D70s or N90s. Nikon usually extends the life of thier camera platforms by doing a minor upgrade after 18-24 months.

Thanks guys, it's fun to do, but involved.

 

[Alex Boothby]

Thanks Evin. This is killing me - I've put in a res for the RED zoom and I was starting to think that it would be too much hastle to switch mounts all the time, so I've slowly begun to shy away from the NIKON option.

But, now I just don't know. This has WAY less breathing than I was expecting. Maybe I should just cancel the RED zoom and go NIKON all the way. Argghhh...

Can anyone guess how long it will take in the field to switch between the PL mount and the NIKON mount? This will become the deciding factor for me.

 

[Júlio Taubkin]

Great start for the database, and fair to start off with this lens, the lens that probabbly most people already own and didn't even know. Let's see how the others compare!

Thanks for the effort Evin!

 

[Sanjin Jukic]

Thanks Evin and looking forward to the next one.

 

[David Nardini]

Thanks Evin and looking forward to the zooms

 

[mezmo]

Hi Evin,
Thanks for the info on the Nikkor 50, a great old lens. My concerns with
using vintage still lenses on the Red camera would be color matching them
into a usable set for higher end motion picture work while shooting multi lens scenes and the reverse focus control problem if using them with a
conventional follow focus unit. But the price is right at $100-$200 per bottle. Also guys beware the fungus. Grab another Nikkor 50 in the shop
and use it to look into the lens your buying. If present, spaws can be seen
sitting on the elements having a great old time. Pass on that lens.
____________________________
Mezmo

 

[Zane Roach]

Thanks Evin, your efforts are appreciated!

I had been planning to get the 50mm f/1.8 AF based on this review:

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/5018af.htm

If you are familiar with that lens, your opinion would be great. It's only about $100 new.

Thanks

 

[Don Woods]

Thanks EVIN that is a very good and very helpfull review. I think for around a 100 to 200 I agree its a no brainer.

 

[Evin Grant]

Thanks Evin, your efforts are appreciated!

I had been planning to get the 50mm f/1.8 AF based on this review:

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/5018af.htm

If you are familiar with that lens, your opinion would be great. It's only about $100 new.

Thanks

That's a very sharp lens, but the 50 1.4 is great at F2 while the F1.8 needs to be at f2.8. Also the 50 1.4 AI can be had for the same priced used.

 

[Stephen Williams]

Hi all,

It's a lens I often use for macro (with a bellows) on a motion control rig. Far nicer than the 55mm micro Nikkor's IMHO. I usually work between f2.8 & f4. It's the only lens that I can rent out per day at 50% of its cost! LOL

Stephen

 

[chuck colburn]

Hi all,

It's a lens I often use for macro (with a bellows) on a motion control rig. Far nicer than the 55mm micro Nikkor's IMHO. I usually work between f2.8 & f4. It's the only lens that I can rent out per day at 50% of its cost! LOL

Stephen

Hello Stephen,

I'm sure you know this, but have you tried reverse mounting the lens on the bellows? It's an old trick when using non macro lenses. It sometimes helps to reduce curverture of field. And with enough bellows extension a reversed mounted 16mm cine type ( "C" mount etc. ) lens provides some very nice images at higher magnifications.

Chuck

 

[Blue]

Lower contrast, ghosting and chromatic aberrations are all visible at 100% magnification here. This is the lens at it’s weakest as almost all lenses are.

Hi Evin. Does this cause the increased shadow detail in the bushes (bottom left) as the aperture gets smaller or has a camera setting been changed between shots? It just looks funny that the 'fully open' image appears the darkest.

Please enlighten me. Cheers.

 

[Stephen Williams]

Hello Stephen,

I'm sure you know this, but have you tried reverse mounting the lens on the bellows? It's an old trick when using non macro lenses. It sometimes helps to reduce curverture of field. And with enough bellows extension a reversed mounted 16mm cine type ( "C" mount etc. ) lens provides some very nice images at higher magnifications.

Chuck

Hi Chuck,

I have gaffer tape reverse mounted a Zeiss Super Speed on my Ultracam LOL!

With the Fries Mitchell AF35R belows one has about 10 inches of bellows extention. As one passes through 1:1 its amazing watching what the camera change direction to stay in focus. (The lens is fixed and the camera moves relative to the lens to focus)

Stephen