Nikon 50mm f/1.4D AF Nikkor

A few weeks before going to Disneyland, I was pondering which lens to bring along. I needed something light and flexible. The Tamron 28-75 2.8 Di lens I have is great, but often time indoor shots require a flash, which is a pain to have on the camera while walking around Disneyland. After reading a lot of great reponses from people at dpreview.com forums, I decided to pick one up. For under 300.00 bucks, this is the best lens for the money. While some major lens only go down to 2.8, this baby goes beyond it all the way down to 1.4

You can find it on Amazon (Nikon 50mm 1.4 AF)

Couping this with Nikon D200, this lens can shoot pretty fast. Given it is also 1.4 helped. The lens handles well in both indoor and outdoor situation. On major draw back, and this affects all lens on a digital SLR is the crop fact. Though this is a 50mm lens, when using it on the Nikon D200 (or any other Nikon dSLR line for that matter at this point), you are really subjected to 1.5x crop factor. In turn, I am really using a 75mm lens because of it. At times I find myself stepping way back to get the pictures I wanted. I was not able to get the wider shot I would like.

Nikon does have a wider lens, but it is not as fast. The Nikon 30mm 2.0 AF lens is a great lens as well. With the crop factor, this should be equal to the 45mm lens on a 35mm film lens.

The Nikon 50mm 1.4 AF lens, at f8 produced outstanding sharp images. When using at f1.4 it produces a slight soft image, but gives outstanding bokeh!

The macro ability on this was fair. Focus distance wasn't there to get close to the object. The Nikon 105 VR Macro would be a better fit for those who wanted macro. With the crop factor, getting the Nikon 85 1.4 lens wouldn't be a great thing for those indoor shot as well. It might flare great for evening outdoor shots, like one by the beach capturing the sunset as a couple walked along the sand.

For the price and the quality it produces, this is one outstanding lens. If you could have only one lens and on a budget, this is the lens to get. It handles well indoor with natual daylight lighting without having the need of using a lens. It is light, so you could bring your shuttle down to 40-60 w/o the fear of weight causing you to shake. The most important part, it is excellent priced.

Here are a few sample pictures I've taken with it. More could be found at http://www.photographybykevin.net/

This one was hand held standing by Pirates ride.