Has the Nikon 50mm f/1.4 AF-S started to ship yet?

Yes, a couple of days ago - not got mine yet.

I've just bought a Sigma 50mm f/1.4 EX so when my Nikkor arrives I'll see which one I prefer :)
 
I wish Jessops would get them in, it's going to be a company purchase :) for me and carlzola to use in our work.

I've got first dibs on it for xmas though!!
 
I called a few dealers the day before yesterday and the day before and they had either not had stock or had, but had sold out already or were going through back orders first. Then I got an email back from one saying they had one left over after pre-order allocation, should be sitting at home waiting for me right now with any luck!
 
I'd love to check this lens out - my current 50mm 1.8 takes forever to focus!!
 
The same one you PM'd me about the other week kevshore? Might give them a call tomorrow :)
 
Anyone had one from Jessops?

Mine was ordered from them as they usually get oodles of Nikon stock, but its still showing as Out of Stock for Home Delivery - Usually Available Within 10 Days

Bit odd - Jessops are normally excellent for early availability.
 
I've had a brief play with mine and it's confirmed my earlier thoughts - CA is far better controlled, it's sharper wide-open, the AF is whisper-quiet and appears to be more accurate than the older lens, particularly with a moving subject. AF feels subjectively a little slower but it's not - it's a full half-turn whereas the AF-D is a 1/4 turn and a D3 screw-drive really snaps the older lens in. The newer one is whisper-quiet and I think it'll be far more accurate for micro-adjustments.

As for the bokeh - it seems good to me, but I want to get it outside in daylight and try it with some busy foliage and see.

Some quick shots taken in grim indoor light - looking forward to using this outside this weekend.

f1.4

3101426296_faab5b09c1_o.jpg


f2

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f1.4

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Mine arrived today as well, only had a brief play as it arrived just before I had to go to work. It's sitting here with me now though so I'll have a play with it when it's quiet here tonight. I see what people mean by the autofocus appearing slow, it certainly feels less snappy than other AFS lenses but not sure if it is or not.
 
The bokeh on that is pretty damn nice - at least compared to my 50mm 1.8 - haha!
 
The autofocus speed might depend on the body? On the D700 the AF-D is virtually instant.

On a D40 class body then I guess any AF is a bonus.

For me personally I'd be looking at improved bokeh and CA control rather than AF-S as a reason to upgrade.

Having said that when my Sigma arrives, it'll be interesting to see if the HSM is faster than the AF-S?
 
I often think if you can hear a lens focusing it appears slower, even if it actually isn't?
 
I managed to grab some very quick shots on the way out this morning:

f1.4

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f1.8

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f2.2

3103284126_a42b59e05c_o.jpg


In a nutshell - I finally have a 50mm I'd happily use wide-open rather than at f1.8 onwards. Good job Nikon.
 
haha ME TOO!!! ITS NOT FAIR!!!
I NEED IT NOW HONEST!
lol
 
can some one tell me what CA is please


there is s good revue here

http://www.luminescentphoto.com/articles/50mm/50mm_Nikkor.html

seems the d focuses faster,you can also still use it on old nikon bodies

i expect unless someone told you it was taken with a d or a g you wouldnt realy be able to tell

it dosent seem so much a better lens as just bringing it into line with the new range of [gelded[ lens.

i rarely mf with my D its that good.
so moveing a button to mf is not slowing me down it also sounds like the old ones build quality is better.

then of course when i look at the pictures i achieve in appaling light i see no reason to change.

of course those whos cameras need this lens it is a godsend....
 
ditchdigger said:
seems the d focuses faster,you can also still use it on old nikon bodies
Click to expand...

It doesn't per se - the older lens is a 1/4 turn, and the newer one 1/2. It's more accurate (the G) as well.

ditchdigger said:
i expect unless someone told you it was taken with a d or a g you wouldnt realy be able to tell
Click to expand...

I could - the nervous bokeh, halation wide open and CA are dead giveaways of the D.

ditchdigger said:
it dosent seem so much a better lens as just bringing it into line with the new range of [gelded[ lens.
Click to expand...

No, it's a better lens. Sharper from f1.4, CA controlled, whisper-quiet, far nicer bokeh. That's all better.

Not sure what a gelded lens is.
 
ditchdigger said:
can some one tell me what CA is please


there is s good revue here

http://www.luminescentphoto.com/articles/50mm/50mm_Nikkor.html




seems the d focuses faster,you can also still use it on old nikon bodies

i expect unless someone told you it was taken with a d or a g you wouldnt realy be able to tell

it dosent seem so much a better lens as just bringing it into line with the new range of [gelded[ lens.

i rarely mf with my D its that good.
so moveing a button to mf is not slowing me down it also sounds like the old ones build quality is better.

then of course when i look at the pictures i achieve in appaling light i see no reason to change.

of course those whos cameras need this lens it is a godsend....
Click to expand...

The older D version has quite a lot of blue and purple fringing tendancies wide open - these disappear around f/2.2 - f/2.8

Yes, the AF-S is slower than the older one, according to quite a few sources.ie:

http://www.luminescentphoto.com/articles/50mm/50mm_Nikkor.html

I timed AF performance on my D700 body. The 50mm AFS required 0.8 seconds to travel from minimum focus to infinity. The 50mm AFD only required 0.5s. While some may find this disappointing, it is not entirely suprising-- the 50mm AFS is not an internal focus design as most of the other AFS Nikkor lenses are.


Personally I don't really care about AF speed or noise, but I do care (somewhat) about fringing and wide open sharpness.

My lens still hasn't arrived, I do plan to compare it against the Sigma 50mm f/1.4 (due tomorrow)
 
I'm undecided how I feel about this lens. I did a couple of shots, on a tripod and set to f11 which is where I'd use it for a landscape shot. Looked nice and sharp to the corners, even at f16 which is the smallest aperture it was very sharp. Then did a couple of closer focus tests at f1.4 to 5.6. Looked ok but nothing amazing so I stuck on my 28-70 at 50mm to compare. The 50mm was much SOFTER at all equal apetures! However, I did some more focus fine tune on the D3 and eventually got it to sharper right up, beyond the 28-70 but at a setting of -15 which seems a little excessive!?

I'll stick a few pictures up later on my blog.
 
I definately would not be happy if I needed to use Fine Tune.

That would get a trip back to Richmond, regardless of anything else.

Is the softness without AF fine due due to spherical aberation, or focus shift when stopping down?
 
Will be testing properly tomorrow. I had done some 'real' shots with it and taken a few photos OF it then noticed the possible softness and had almost run out of time by then.

In the meantime, here she is :D

side_front.jpg


side_front_hood.jpg
 
Another mental Nikon hood then, wish they'd tone them down a bit!!

I just use a rubber doobrie on my AF-D!
 
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