Für jeden ambitionierten Portrait-Fotografen ist dieses Objektiv ein Muss. Mit der klassischen Portrait-Brennweite von 50 mm haben Sie die Möglichkeit wahrhaft schöne Aufnahmen in überzeugender Schärfe zu machen. Ich bin für meinen Teil schlichtweg begeistert ;)

Dieses Nikon Standardobjektiv besticht durch seine Lichtstärke und sein geringes Gewicht. Die damit gemachten Fotos werden auch bei offener Blende gestochen scharf. Das perfekte Zusammenspiel mit den Nikon Kameras F80 oder F100 macht einfach sprachlos (und das will bei mir etwas heißen!). Trotz der vielfältigen Zoomobjektive im gleichen Brennweitenbereich ist diese Fixbrennweite ein Muss für jeden ernsthaften Amateur.

I avoid using flash at all costs, and this gets the job done in low-light conditions. This lens is amazingly sharp too- probably one of the sharpest of all Nikon glass today. Regardless of what I am carrying in my bag, when sharpness is my ultimate goal in a photo, I always use this one over any others. If landscapes or people are your goal, and you want to harass your subject with as little (or no) flash as possible, this is the lens for you. Does black & white beautifully too.

Yes, the f/1.8 is a real bargain - but it's a bit soft when shooting wide open. It's still soft at f/2, but pretty decent by f/2.8. The Nikkon f/1.4, on the other hand, is decent at f/1.4 and quite sharp at f/2.0. I often need to shoot at f/2, so I've sold my f/1.8 and purchased the faster lens. For me, it's worth the extra $$$.

If you are looking at this then you have probably looked at the 50mm f/1.8 lens as well--for one third the price of this one. That lens is a great value to be sure, but don't buy the hype about the f/1.8 being enough. I shoot indoors a lot and can't always use a flash, and I don't like using flashes anyway.

Much more often than not, my camera automatically goes straight to f/1.4 when in autofocus mode shooting indoors. That being the case, then obviously the f/1.8 would not be quite fast enough. It might seem like a small difference to some, but small differences in lighting can make or break a picture.

Let me also just say that it is not doing this lens justice to merely say that you can shoot without a flash with this lens. It is better than that. I am not a fan of flashes. This is just a personal preference of course, but I think flashes add a certain staged look to pictures, and also they tend to give that "flash-y" look to the picture where everything is saturated in brilliant light. With this lens, it is better than having a flash because the lighting is full, bright, and adequate without looking like there is a spotlight on everyone. I wish I could show you guys the pictures this thing takes indoors in low light without a flash. It is really amazing. Even one of my friends who knows nothing about this stuff commented on how amazing the pictures looked--in a lighting sense--knowing that a flash was not used.

In addition, I am several situations where flashes would be distracting or annoying to other people in the room. People tend to get more nervous when they see a $400 flash going off every minute or two in the corner of their eye because they think you might zero in on them next. With this lens, and not having to use a flash because it is so fast, I can be much more in "stealth" mode and much more likely to get a great unscripted and natural photo. Again this is just a personal preference of mine based on the types of situations I find myself in. if I was big into outdoor photography, I doubt any of this would matter much.

This is a high quality, ultra-fast lens that in my opinion is a must if you do a lot of indoor photography and portrait work like I do, and especially if like me you hate flash photography. On a side note: keep in mind it does take the 52MM size filter despite the slightly deceiving 50MM stamp on the inside of the lens rim where they usually stamp the correct filter size.

When looking for fast nikkor lenses, there are no other that I could find matching this price. The 85mm and 28mm 1.4 are more than 3-5x the price of this lens. The closest speed nikkor is around the 35mm f/2 and even that's around 300 at it's lowest priced.

This lens is a bargain in my book.

The copy I recieved was tack sharp on my D50 at f/1.8 up to f/8. I have not had a chance to shoot at anything smaller than the f/8 aperture setting. At f/1.4 one must be VERY careful with focusing (suggest manual focusing) because it is very shallow. At times it is annoying (I have to rely on AF due to my bad eyesight), but most of the time I have had fun learning with this lens. It's exciting to take candids indoors, and during the afternoons, where people would expect a flash to accompany a picture.

My gripes:
1. Plastic Filter Threads.

The Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 is a classic 135-format lens that is still invaluable as a portrait lens or for taking advantage of the fantastic existing light capabilities of today's digital SLRs. Its optics are excellent, but one would expect that from a 50mm. I only gave it 4 stars because it is not necessarily the best value out there: it's still a plastic-barrelled lens with no SWM or VR, and it's more than twice the cost of a f/1.8. You're basically paying for the extra 2/3 stop of optical speed and the shallow depth-of-field. All that said, the lens is very fast and very sharp and it's a joy to use.

This is a fantastic little lens. Great for portraits and ambient light photography. The bokeh at wider apertures is beautiful. I use this lens to take party pictures at dimly lit restaurants, after dusk shots and portraits.

For about a year, I've been happy with the 50mm MANUAL 1.8.

I decided to upgrade, and I'm so glad I did. that one stop of light makes ALL the difference.
Take care not to become obsessed with it as I have. And be careful shooting portraits with big noses. Believe it or not, the DOF at 1.4 is so shallow, that a person's FACE can be IN FOCUS and their NOSE can be out. And Vice Versa. But some of my clients love that.

AMAZING LENS! And I'm getting a D3 when it comes out, and this will be my number one portrait lens.

If you want a standard nikkor prime lens, this is the one to get! It's cheap and works great! It has a cheap(ish) build, not pro quality like their metal lenses. But in this class and focal length. You really have no choice. But it is a trooper. If you want this lens with a metal case, then go for the old manual version of this lens. They are more or less identical. Minus the auto focus.

I cannot add much to what has been said here, but I have to say that this lens is worth every single penny. If you struggle with low light situations, this is the perfect lens to help. I do not like to use my flash at all because I just have never been able to accomplish a "natural" look, so this lens is going to help me SO MUCH. I would recommend this lens for professionals and novices alike!

I gave this lens five stars because it is one of the best lenses I have ever purchased. It is possible that I was lucky (after reading some of the reviews). I believe pictures can tell a better story; therefore, I posted some of the images I took so you can see them. Click on the "See customer's images" on this page and decide for yourself.

You could not ask for a better lens. It's super fast, great for indoor portrait work without a flash, fantastic for isolating out a subject with it's amazing bokeh - you just can't ask for more in a lens. I know it's been the only lens I've used since it came in.

You can see examples of this lens in use all over FlickR. Just type in 50mm f/1.4 It is a lens that was designed to impress. Any photography field could use this glass.

You just couldn't ask for a more versatile lens. It's also amazingly light, and it makes carrying the camera around all day so much easier (no more bumping into everything with the long lens!). Buy it. You won't be disappointed.

I considered, for some time, the f1.8 Nikon and the 30mm Sigma, but decided on the f1.4 50mm Nikon. I was looking for a lens which could fit indoor images (wide-enough for small groups of people) and one which would allow me to be less reliant on flash.

In it's first use, I shot, indoors, family and children and was able to use available light. The photos truly shocked me with their sharpness, right out of the camera. My first reaction was that I had I had mis-configured the camera sharpness setting (I usually set this to zero.) I had not. Compared to the 18-70mm kit lens of my D70, this lens is amazing. It's difficult to imagine the f1.8 sister lens as substantially more sharp. If even somewhat more sharp than this lens at f1.8, I'd prefer the having the extra available aperture available.

On day 2 of use, I was able to take close-up photos of a falconer's hawks and to document a hunt with hawks. The day was a bit overcast with flat light, but the photos are terrific. I was pleased with the flexibility of this length lens for these different situations, it really fit that sweet spot in a situation where I would not be taking time to change lenses. My favorite shot took advantage of the razor-thin depth of field of a lens at f1.4 to shoot a hawk's eyes. Both the near and far "shoulder" of the hawk are softly out of focus and the eyes are as sharp as light through a diamond.

I have used the 50mm f/1.4D and it has allowed me to take pictures in low light situations. It does everything I wanted it to do.

The 50mm f/1.4 is the lowest priced and fastest AF lens in the Nikon arsenal. It cost 3 times more than the 50mm f/1.8, giving 2/3 more stops of light. What I like about the lens is that it is fast, however, it is a little soft wide open, but is sharp at f/2.8 and above. This lens is sharper than the 50mm f/1.8 all round (I used to own the f/1.8 but upgraded to this lens). This lens has a 7 blade aperture, and the bokeh is not as nice as the 85mm f/1.8 lens. On a 1.5x crop factor camera, it is 75mm (which is almost like using a 85mm f/1.4 on 35mm film format camera).

I am a beginner and only have a few Nikon lenses. However, I was surprised when I opened the package to find this lens as the only Nikon lens I've seen to have 1) No lens hood, 2) No lens cap (on the film/sensor side).

This lens is razor sharp and very, very fast. The optics are top notch, and the low-light performance is amazing.

I should have bought the f/1.8 instead, and put the difference in cost toward a wide angle lens.

YEs, it is overpriced to me but you pay for the metal quality/weight, the great lens clarity and of course the 1.4 and in some cases it does make a big differnce over 1.8. I also own the 1.8 and it works very well and is very affordable by comparison.

gekauft, getestet, genial!
Foto`s auch bei normalem Licht ohne auf ISO 400 oder mehr zu schalten!
Super wenig Verzerrungen!

This lens is one of the best I own so far! It surely is a really good portrait lens. I use it on my D40x. There is no auto focus but that is not a problem. It is fairly easy to use once you get the hang of it and the price is not bad for it at all!

Although advertised: 'delivery within 1-3 business days' it took well more than 3 weeks until the item arrived at its shipping destination.

As I moved in the meantime - I'm still waiting to receive the lens.

The additional money I spent on the 'express shipping' option was not refunded either. I would have expected to be at least notified concerning the delays - no notice - just nothing.

Disappointing experience - very poor service

Great lens for low light.
But, this lens is not auto focus with the Nikon D-40 line.
It works fine, but it is manual focus only.

Phenomenal lens indoors and out at night. With the D3 I can walk around downtown at night taking pictures with no flash while walking at f/1.4.

I also have the new 24-70mm which I prefer (due to zoom) when I don't need the low light ability of the 1.4 but they are very comparable otherwise.

Spend the extra and get the 1.4 over the 1.8. It's better quality and you won't have to worry that there's something better out there you didn't get. =)

As you probably already know the D40-D60 series don't have built-in focus drive motors so you'd have to manually focus this lens (and most/all nikon primes) with those bodies. The D60 has a built-in rangefinder displayed in the viewfinder to help you focus however, so it's not really an issue.

I agonized over the 1.8 and the 1.4 for a few months before I started to notice a pattern. Nearly all of the negative feedback about the 1.4 was coming from amateur to mid-level photographers while nearly all of the praise was coming from mid to pro level photographers. It seemed the lesser learned guys put it down because they couldn't make it perform and praised the 1.8 because it was 'easier' to use. All the pro's I talked to hands down had the 1.4 and not the 1.8.

So this summed it up for me. It may have a longer learning curve--but why buy a lens TWICE! That was something else I noticed. Guys were buying the 1.8 for price but then wishing they had the 1.4. Why buy 2 prime 50's?

I do everything from crawling through brush to photographing my baby daughter with this lens and it blows me away every time. I even sold my Tamron 18-200mm that I got with my D80 to get this so I could start from scratch with solid lenses and work my way up (if money isn't an issue I wouldn't necessarily recommend this move, the 18-200 isn't perfect but it's nice to travel with).

Hope my observations help you out. You won't be sorry you bought the 1.4, believe me.

Cheers, DR.

Excellent lens for Low-light situations. Lowest priced and fastest AF lens in the Nikon lens lineup. On my Nikon D200 body, this lens gives an equivalent to a 75mm lens making it a good length for portraits in the field. At f/1.4 DOF is so shallow that if you focus on the eyes, the tip of the nose will be out of focus. Don't forget to buy a 52mm UV filter and HR-2 lens hood. This lens will continue to impress you with its speed, contrast and sharpness. I highly recommend this lens.

Wow. Tremendous clarity and light gathering ability. The only downside is the inability to zoom and crop with this lens. A must for the arsenal, however.

On the positive side, when stopped down, it is very sharp. Has nice Bokeh when used as a portrait lens. However, I'm not sure the f1.4 is all that useful, as the lens gets soft, with low contrast, and a sort of whitish haze to the image when wide open. Not sure it's that much of an upgrade over the slower, cheaper f1.8

I've got this lens for a couple of weeks now, and it is AMAZINGLY beautiful.
Creamy bokeh....much like a painting. Can't get that with a 1.8.

Very light so portable in many situations. The contrast and color saturation rivals some of the best lens from Nikon and Canon.

Sharp sharp sharp and very little flare. Don't get the 1.8 because it's cheap, get this for its solid build and its low light capabilities. This is an excellent investment.

Der Nikon-Standard, klein, leicht, lichtstark und scharf. Braucht man auch, wenn man schon ein Zoomobjektiv in diesem Bereich hat. Schöne Available-Light-Aufnahmen bei Blende 1,4 möglich. Lässt sich auch an älteren Nikon-Kameras verwenden, da ein Blendenring vorhanden ist. Die Gummi-Gegenlichtblende HR-2 ist sehr empfehlenswert.

Wer bei vorhandenem Licht aufnahmen machen will, für den ist dieses Objektiv ein totaler Traum. Wenn man dann noch ein wenig an der ISO Schraube dreht, gelingen selbst kurz nach Sonnenuntergang in geschlossenen Räumen Portraits, ohne dass irgend eine künstliche Lichtquelle eingesetzt wird. Einfach genial.
Einige beschweren sich über geringe Schärf bei Blende 1.4. Dieser Einwand gilt jedoch für alle weit geöffneten Objektive. Bei der Portraitfotographie ist eine sehr geringe Tiefenschärfe jedoch häufig gewünscht und deshalb lässt sich Blende 1.4 auch gut einsetzen. Wenn einige Teile des Gesichts weicher abgebildet werden, ist häufig von Vorteil, wenn man das Objekt vorher nicht geschminkt hat (Bartstoppel, Pickel, Sommersprossen, etc.). Abblenden kann man immer noch, und dann ist die Schärfe der Aufnahmen beeindruckend.
Zu erwähnen ist noch, dass Nikon ein vergleichbares Objektiv (50 mm, 1.8) anbietet. Ob sich der Mehrpreis für dieses Objektiv lohnt, muss jeder selbst entscheiden, aber anscheinend bereut keiner den Kauf des teureren (und wohl auch von der Haptik besseren) Objektivs.
Ich bin mit dem Objektiv einfach nur zufrieden.

I had researched both the f/1.4 and the f/1.8. Because of this model's ability to better take pictures in low lighting situations, I went with this one. It is awesome! I highly recommend that if you are trying to decide between the two lens, spend the extra money and go with the one that will handle more diverse lighting situations. You won't be disappointed.