Nikon 50mm f/1.8 or 50mm f/1.4??

rich_g85

rich_g85

rich_g85

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I'm looking to buy a nice fast prime lens for taking indoor shots of.. well, indoorsy stuff - cats, family etc.

I've seen the Nikon 50mm f1.4 advertised for £190, and the Nikon 50mm f1.8 for £80.

Has anyone used either/both of these lenses? Would you be able to post some examples so I can work out whether the extra f/stop is worth the extra £110..

I'm currently using the Nikon 18-70 f/3.5-4.5 which really struggles when snapping black cats indoors even at maximum aperture!

Thanks
Rich
 
f/1.8 --> f/1.4 is only 1/2 a stop.
the extra 1/2 stop isn't worth the £110, but the better build quality is (imo) worth the extra.
 
Compared to the Canon 50mm f1.8, the Nikon 50mm f1.8 is built like a bomb shelter so don't worry about bad build on the f1.8. The f1.4 is still plastic I think.

You can get the Nikon f1.4 for £160 (HK).
But you may want to consider a f2.8 zoom, like the Tamron 17-50mm. I got mine for £200 (HK). It's my 'always-on' lens at the moment, or at least until I get the Nikkor version :P

Personally I wouldn't buy the f1.8 now I have the f2.8 zoom. I've used a Canon 50mm f1.4 and the amount of light it finds is pretty incredible.

Alternatively buy a flash (SB-600), especially if you have a D80 or better as the built in commander mode allows for some really creative lighting.
 
i think it is less plasticy and also little bigger therefore the focus ring is more bigger and easier to adjust.
 
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