*Not heavy or bulky at all--I found it to be lighter than most any lens yet the build quality is robust--and the wide grip focus ring allows a rapport 'gliding with preciseness'-meaning great levels of subtle adjustments.
*At f2 it's truly sharp-you read of those saying this lens and that lens is sharp wide open--only to find this is BS--well f2 isn't wide open but it's so sharp that didn't want it any sharper (without any post processing I could see the faint stitch patterns in a baseball cap--and I don't mean the main stitch threads--I mean within the smooth surface of the cotton--and 2.8 was sharper than that even--in fact sharper than I thought lenses could get and yet a faint creaminess was still there!)
*Since at f2 you have real world-perfectly usable sharpness (this is where I keep the lens set for 90 percent of my work) you are no longer in the basement of 2.8 and below. All of which means f2 on this lens sends the world of available light photography through the roof.
*Its bokeh is beautiful stuff and tends to define in a Monet-like way rather than other worlds of surrealistic soft cotton. But there is an almond shaped disc effect it does to background lights that is famous when used at 1.2...I have as of yet to replicate this with accuracy. But it has happened. Flickr will show you what I mean.
*I found the colors to be more than just accurate--they were spot on. (Using Nikon D3)In fact, I am still kind of stunned at the color fidelity.
*IQ --Okay the only fair thing to compare it to is the legendary Nikkor 85 1.4---I have the AIS (MF only)and the 85 is creamier with more dynamic range--meaning the 50mm is rendered just a bit more clinical in comparison. Basically the 85mm gives you a bit more romance--the 50mm tells you like it is. I think I carry the 50mm more because of its light weight and it's easier to focus. Which of them is sharper? Depends on how you like your sharpness. I have found the 85 sharp to the point of being a bit brittle--of course this depends on the aperture you use. But peak sharpness on the 50mm (which I consider overly sharp around f4 and up)I find to be less brittle. I wouldn't choose sharpness as the deciding factor of these lenses--it's too close--if I had to kill one and marry the other--the 85mm would be at the altar. But try to pry the 50mm from my cold dead hands--because I'll be holding onto it from the afterlife.
0 comments:
Post a Comment