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Archive 2011 · Loving the Old AIS. 50mm 1.2

  
 
CGrindahl
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p.2 #1 · p.2 #1 · Loving the Old AIS. 50mm 1.2


Two shots wide open with the 50 f/1.2 AI-s that I posted previously on the Nikon Manual Focus Glass thread. It was one of the first MF lenses I bought after beginning my Nikon adventure and contributed substantially to what has been a year long shopped trip...

In addition to producing some lovely images, it is a joy to hold in the hand and use. There is nothing quite like turning the focusing ring and watching the image come into focus in the viewfinder. It is a sensual experience...

http://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_YajwMTB6j0w/TJKK7LNJQcI/AAAAAAAAC3s/3fM_Ndf-giQ/RinieRestaurant.jpg

http://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_YajwMTB6j0w/TJKL3Zdl2qI/AAAAAAAAC3w/tyBUDKqKd0M/50.1.2Fork.jpg



May 05, 2011 at 11:27 AM
passthegravy
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p.2 #2 · p.2 #2 · Loving the Old AIS. 50mm 1.2


Curtis, I've been wanting a really fast lens to pair with my D700 for night club shots and other really low light situations, and this seems like the perfect match in a reasonable price range. (I certainly can't afford or justify the expense of the 58mm 1.2 Noct.)

I can't wait to get my hands on it. Thanks for the sample shots to tide me over. I'll have to go shoot with my 24 f/2.8 AI-S and 105 f/2.5 AI-S in the meantime to get my manual focus "fix".



May 05, 2011 at 11:54 AM
Jim Casteel
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p.2 #3 · p.2 #3 · Loving the Old AIS. 50mm 1.2


I have a 17-35mm and I recently had to have the AF motor replaced. The amazing thing is Nikon is still producing this lens so parts are not hard to come by as many older AF-S lenses are. Additionally, I heard somewhere that they have been replacing the motors with higher quality motors. Less squeaking and failure issues. The best part is when I got it back from Nikon the lens is sharper than it was when I sent it off. I was considering a 16-35mm but I think I am going to stick with the 17-35.

BTW How much do you want for your 17mm 3.5? It seems like it may make a great backpacking lens for me.



May 05, 2011 at 12:26 PM
jhinkey
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p.2 #4 · p.2 #4 · Loving the Old AIS. 50mm 1.2


dionysis wrote:
I have a 17-35mm and I recently had to have the AF motor replaced. The amazing thing is Nikon is still producing this lens so parts are not hard to come by as many older AF-S lenses are. Additionally, I heard somewhere that they have been replacing the motors with higher quality motors. Less squeaking and failure issues. The best part is when I got it back from Nikon the lens is sharper than it was when I sent it off. I was considering a 16-35mm but I think I am going to stick with the 17-35.

BTW How much
...Show more
It's already sold and in the new owner's hands. As soon as I mentioned wanting to sell it someone contacted me. My 17-35 is hopefully on it's way today and hope to get it this weekend or early next week. I hope that mine is one of the sharper copies. The sample that I tested, though good, was not nearly as sharp as the one tested by photozone.de which seemed to be excellent (at least far away from the corners).

Now back to the 50/1.2 . . . .



May 05, 2011 at 01:16 PM
passthegravy
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p.2 #5 · p.2 #5 · Loving the Old AIS. 50mm 1.2


I received my 50mm f/1.2 AI-S and have been working on my MF skills with it. Trust me when I say I have a LOT of work to do. It seems harder to MF this one than either my 24 f/2.8 AI-S or 105 f/2.5 AI-S.

What I've found so far is that Sam's comment about "endearingly soft at f/1.2" is true. Not only soft, but the contrast suffers a lot too, which adds to the overall softness of the image. It's better at f/1.4, excellent by f/2.0 and fantastic at f/2.8 and beyond.

I had some time today to snap some samples to show my findings. Nothing artsy here - just testing the lens. These are all SOOC in RAW, exported to JPG in LR3. Camera mounted on tripod. [B]No sharpening or post processing of any type.[/B] Full size and crops.

Disclaimer: I tried to focus on the front sprocket of the bike on the beer label, but I missed it. Instead, the focus is on the word "Belgium" on the bottom of the label.

f/1.2 Full Size and Crop

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-kKDs9wp/0/XL/i-kKDs9wp-XL.jpg

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-p3Q8gMJ/0/XL/i-p3Q8gMJ-XL.jpg


f/1.4

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-PLFvKf6/0/XL/i-PLFvKf6-XL.jpg

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-rW9CrB2/0/XL/i-rW9CrB2-XL.jpg


f/2.0

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-mp4HJmS/0/XL/i-mp4HJmS-XL.jpg

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-pGHdSMJ/0/XL/i-pGHdSMJ-XL.jpg


f/2.8

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-TN2frLJ/0/XL/i-TN2frLJ-XL.jpg

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-vLbSJjH/0/XL/i-vLbSJjH-XL.jpg


f/4.0

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-hXPNSfz/0/XL/i-hXPNSfz-XL.jpg

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-wpFMz6t/0/XL/i-wpFMz6t-XL.jpg


f/8

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-QKBcMhJ/0/XL/i-QKBcMhJ-XL.jpg

http://lesbrannon.smugmug.com/photos/i-n29Rg34/0/XL/i-n29Rg34-XL.jpg



Edited on May 15, 2011 at 07:50 AM · View previous versions



May 14, 2011 at 11:48 PM
passthegravy
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p.2 #6 · p.2 #6 · Loving the Old AIS. 50mm 1.2


Jorge, I didn't mean to hijack your thread. If you want me to delete this and start my own thread, I will.


May 14, 2011 at 11:51 PM
j.liam
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p.2 #7 · p.2 #7 · Loving the Old AIS. 50mm 1.2


If you look REAL closely at images shot @ 1.2, the detail/resolution is there but the dramatically lowered contrast gives the impression of diminished sharpness. Because I had a drawer of fast MF Nijkors, I had a split circle focusing screen (KatzEye) put into my D700 not long after purchasing it. This made my focus hit rate rise dramatically, especially in low light situations.


May 15, 2011 at 09:12 AM
Jorge Torralba
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p.2 #8 · p.2 #8 · Loving the Old AIS. 50mm 1.2


passthegravy wrote:
Jorge, you are a bad influence. Being inspired by your photos, I just bought one of these off the buy-sell board. Perhaps you could post some more photos to tide me over while I wait for mine to arrive.



here you go

http://nikonimages.com/standardgallery.php?lenstype=793&showall



Aug 30, 2011 at 05:13 PM
hmzimelka
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p.2 #9 · p.2 #9 · Loving the Old AIS. 50mm 1.2


It's a great lens, but with it's own character.
I recently compared it to the Zeiss Planar 50/1.4 ZF, which was a lens I considered purchasing.
Here is my comparison review sample images, with mouse over comparisons and such.
LINK
Well, the Zeiss has benefits, but I have changed my mind with regard to purchasing the ZF and selling the 50/1.2.



Sep 01, 2011 at 12:38 PM
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