Nikon 50mm f/1.8D AF Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras Reviews

• One of the best lens for portrait and low light photography.

  
  By A1TQZUSOU22E9M on 2006-10-09
  I don't even know where to start. This lens produces sharp pictures and great color and contrast. And for its price (which seems to climb recently), it is worth more than 5 stars rating. I initially get this lens for low light action and sport photography (as this lens is famous for being one of the fastest lens together with its brother 50mm f/1.4), but I also found out that this lens is also perfect for portrait and other general purposes (macro etc). This is definitely a very versatile lens.
  
  As much as I want to encourage everyone to buy this lens right away, let me mention some of the limitation that you would see (which I think will be helpful to go over before deciding to buy this lens):
  
  First, being a prime lens, you will need to move your feet a lot to compose your picture. If you are used to zoom lens, don't underestimate this limitation. It takes me a while to get used to it, and sometime I still find people looking at me wondering why I am moving forward and backwards. the good news is that most of the time, they don't think I'm weird, but they are actually wondering if I'm a professional photographer.
  
  Secondly, the focal range of 50mm, which is considered the normal lens and great for portrait lens. but on a DSLR (which I assume most of you use nowadays), this lens become a 75mm equivalent which is in the border of a short tele lens. I actually like the 75mm equivalent though I often have to move backwards when taking picture of a group of people.
  
  Third, in some situation the autofocus might not able to focus (which is common for many other lens too). It is hard for the autofocus to lock when aiming at a wall that is one color (usually black or white), or on a clear sky (day or night). This kind of makes sense to me actually. IN these situations the AF assist light doesn't help either so you can opt for manual focus or set the focus to infinity when you can't find focus lock on scenic/landscape or sky photography. So far I don't have many problems with the autofocus.
  
  Sharpness increases as you stop down to f/2.2 or f/2.5. I actually use f/1.8 most of the time and the results are still nice. Personally, I'd rather use f/1.8 aperture settings than stopped down (e.g to f/2.8) and compensate with higher ISO setting which often gives me grainy picture. But if your object is not moving (static) then it is better to stop down to f/2.8 or more.
  
  If you are wondering whether you should get a fast lens or a lens with VR, here's my take: VR does help a lot (and produce better/sharper picture than equivalent faster lens without VR) if the object is static. If the object is moving (sports/action) then VR feature doesn't really help and fast lens (like this lens) will be a far better solution. Using tripod (and a remote) will substitute for the need of VR feature. In general I would recommend getting a fast lens with VR feature (and usually it is expensive) such as the 70-200 f/2.8 VR, but if one can only get for one or the other, then find out what do you want to use the lens for and then use the guideline mentioned here.
  
  Here are the summary of pros and cons for this Nikon 50mm f/1.8D AF lens:
  
  Pros:
  1. Very fast (f/1.8)
  2. Very sharp pictures (especially when stopped down to f/2.2, f/2.5 or more.)
  3. Great for sport/action photography
  4. Great for indoor and low light situation
  5. Great for portrait
  6. Bokeh is almost as good as many expensive Nikon tele-lens
  7. Fast autofocus
  8. Good for wedding photography (or no-flash event). However, if this is your main objective then you might want to get the 50mm f/1.4 version or 28-70mm f/2.8 lens)
  9. 75mm equivalent which can be considered a short tele lens (I actually like the fact that it's 75mm equivalent vs 50mm in DSLR. if you need more zoom, you can get the Nikon 85mm f/1.8, or the 70-200mm f/2.8 VR)
  10. Inexpensive
  
  Cons:
  1. Being prime lens, you need to move your feet a lot to adjust/compose
  2. Autofocus issue on some situations (read detail above)
  3. Plasticy build
  4. Autofocus is not the most silent but very reasonable
  5. 75mm equivalent with 1.5x multiplier on DSLR (many people find this is an odd range for normal lens. I actually like it)
  
  Bottom line: This lens is so versatile (and inexpensive) that I think everyone should own in addition to all the lenses that they already have. Being a very fast lens, it enables me to take pictures in low light (sport/action photography) that I otherwise wouldn't be able to do.
  After knowing its limitation, I would predict that 99% of you that decides to buy this lens will find this lens very useful. And if you decide that you don't like it (which I think not more than 1%), I'm sure there will be a lot of people who wouldn't mind buying it from you (with some discount of course).
  
  Again, I would recommend everyone to get this lens. In some ways I can say that this lens makes me a better photographer.
  
  Happy Photographing!
  
  

• Will make you a better photographer

  
  By A362LYIXWNUVOV on 2004-11-11
  This is the lens to get for any Nikon SLR, from the simple N75 all the way to the Digital D70. It's faster than a zoom and much, much sharper. That's right, no zooming! If you want to make the image bigger, move closer. Want to make a wider view? Step back. This is the lens that all photographers should start with. Most of Henri Cartier Bresson's photos were taken with a 50mm lens. It forces you to think about perspective, composition, and arrangement. You can take more pictures without the intrusive light of a flash. It's cheap too. This lens is a classic and will make you a better photographer by enabling you to make creative choices. It works on almost every Nikon ever made. What more do you need to know? Get one.
  
  

• Dollar for dollar the best buy in a bright sharp lens

  
  By A3LMS2UO0ESHX5 on 2004-11-28
  This lens is probably the sharpest lens that Nikon makes--see lens reviews/specs at www.photodo.com. I use this lens for low light situations outdoors and indoors so I don't need a flash. also, small dept-of-field. Using this at f/2.0 I will get at least four-six times as much light (which means four-six times faster shutter speed) as my zoom at around f/4.8 and also have a sharper image. For $99.00 this f/1.8 is a steal and a much better buy than the f/1.4 which is almost as sharp a lens and costs about $250.00--it's a no brainer.
  
  I use this with my Nikon D70--remember, with a digital SLR this is equivalent to a 75mm lens for film which it a pretty good portrait lens.
  
  Just buy it--for the price you can't go wrong.
  
  

• Better than the 50mm f/1.4 AF D Lens

  
  By A3IGKWA4I35N0T on 2006-07-04
  I owned both the 50mm f/1.8 and 50mm f/1.4 lens. I also own a Nikon D70s and D200. I took test shots to compare the sharpness of these two lenses. The 50mm at f/1.4 is very very soft. The pictures at f/1.4 look like you are looking through a sheer veil. A dreamy look for sure, but not at all pleasing. At an aperture of f/1.8 the 50mm f/1.8 is still sharper than the 50mm f/1.4 at f/1.8. It isn't until the 50mm f/1.4 is at f/2.8 that the two lenses have similar sharpness. At no aperture was the 50mm f/1.4 better than the 50mm f/1.8. Why spend so much more money for the 50mm f/1.4, when it is so soft at f/1.4 as to be useless and does not match the sharpness of the 50mm f/1.8? Softness at f/1.4 will also affect the ability of your camera to autofocus correctly because the lens autofocuses with its widest aperture. If the autofocus sees a soft image, you'll have problems getting a focus lock. The 50mm f/1.8 works like magic on the D50/D70/D200 cameras. Trust me.
  
  

• A must have for any collection

  
  By A1RKW8NS3SMX09 on 2007-02-24
  I purchased this lens to supplement my kit 18-55 which I found wasn't fast enough to capture indoor shots of my two little girls without flash. I have to say that EVERYONE should buy this lens. As one of the first additional lenses I purchased for my Nikon D40, I was absolutely stunned and blown away by the tack sharp images and speed of this tiny little gem. While it is manual focus only with the D40, everything else works just fine. It even tells you when the image is in focus via the green focus light found inside the viewfinder. Keep in mind that at 1.8 its easy for your main subject to slip out of focus. For portrait shots, 2.8 is usually plenty to get a fast shutter speed with plenty of bokeh. For those split between this and the 1.4, if the price difference wasn't so big, I'd say go for it. But at 1.8 you're getting an extremely fast and capable lens at a price that just cannot be beat. I'm filling up my hard drive every day with pics that I simply could not have captured with my kit lens. There are some shortcomings like the manual zoom, manual focus with the D40 and that it's small plastic casing probably won't survive a fall (my 70-300 VR is MASSIVE next to it) but it more than makes up for its shortcomings with the amazing shots it takes. I promise you, you'll be hard pressed to find any other quality glass in this price range.
  
  
• This is a lovely little lens but....
  By A2HN5RGDQZ517I on 2005-08-05
  This lens is as sharp as any, light, small, fast, and inexpensive. It has a tough, light, plastic body which interferes with its functionality not in the least. The only caution about it is that on a digital SLR it is a portrait lens (corresponding to about a 75 mm lens on a 35 mm film camera), not a normal lens. Most Nikon SLR's extend the functional length of their lenses by 1.5 to 1.55 compared to their film equivalents. Which means that on a Nikon DSLR a normal lens is a 35 mm lens, not a 50 mm like this one. "Normal" means that the angle of view of the lens roughly matches that of the human eye.
  
  
• Excellent inexpensive 50mm lens from Nikon
  By AKT8TGIT6VVZ5 on 2005-07-30
  Personally I would opt for the 50mm f1.4 Nikkor lens, but if you are tight on a budget and don't need the additional speed, then this 50mm lens would be ideal for you. I have owned several 50mm f2 and f1.8 Nikkor lenses which were all very capable performers and this autofocus version of a Nikon Series E 50mm f1.8 lens is no exception. It is without question still sharper and contrastier than a zoom lens in the equivalent 50mm focal length, since it has substantially less barrel distortion than any zoom lens. Even if you own a zoom lens covering the 50mm focal length, I would still recommend acquiring either this lens or the 50mm f1.4 lens since either would be fine normal perspective portrait lenses for photographying friends and family. If you work primarily in digital photography, then this lens wouldn't be a normal perspective lens in the 45mm to 55mm range, but instead, offer a slight telephoto perspective at a 75mm focal length; this would yield more of a head and shoulders portrait and may be more pleasing to the eye than the normal perspective taken with a 50mm lens.
  
  
• I'm in love with this lens: it's absolutely a dream to work with
  By A2ERK5P0A56UP4 on 2006-12-12
  As a professional photographer, I cannot praise this lens enough: it brings me closer to my subjects, and connects my photographs with viewers from the level of intimacy it imparts. Why? When you fall in love with someone, they are right in front of you, and the rest of the world blurs away. That's how this lens makes me see: as though I am right in front of, and in love with, what I'm viewing.
  
  I take lots of pictures of food, people, and farms. (See the samples I've uploaded here.) This lens has a quality of gentleness in it that is unsurpassed. Because it's fast, it's great for low lighting, and brings a romantic quality to beautiful food in restaurants. It's also the perfect portrait lens, seeing people much as we ourselves do, with no distortion, only kindness. Yes, I am ascribing emotional qualities to an inanimate object, but it doesn't exist in a vaccum. It makes me a better photographer, by showing me how to see.
  
  It's wonderful, and wonderfully priced.
  
  
• The perfect portrait lens
  By A3C7QT9SWPAKG1 on 2006-02-28
  This wonderful lens was the first lens I bought for my SLR (aside from its kit lens).
  
  It has everything you'd want for a portrait lens: it's fast (f/1.8) so you can shoot in low light and without a flash, its focal length (50mm) lets you compose a good shot without getting right into the subject's face, and the depth of field can be made extremely shallow, making the subject pop out from the scene.
  
  The one downside is that the 50mm focal length is limiting. You won't be taking many group shots with this thing; you'd have to step waaay back to get everyone in the picture.
  
  Also: this lens shines best when stopped down a little, due in no small part to the extremely shallow depth of field at f/1.8. I stop mine down to f/2-f/2.5 most of the time.
  
  Anyhow: marvelously sharp, simple, and produces tremendously great pictures. I highly recommend it.
  
  
• For amatuers, as good as the faster F 1.4 at less cost
  By on 2004-07-13
  I have had this lens for a while now, bought to replace the Nikon F 1.4 lens after that lens was stolen while on vacation.
  The lens is lighter than the F 1.4, presumeably because it contains less lens elements, and is slightly slower @ f 1.8. For the majority of photographers ( we amatuers and weekend warriors ), the lens is MORE than fast enough, and I have noticed no difference compared to my old F 1.4 in how sharp my slides are when using the same film ( Ektachrome 100 ).

  Considering the lens is available for less than $ 100, compared to the F 1.4 ( which I have seen as high as $ 269 ), I believe it is a steal. Every aspiring photographer should have a 50 mm lens in their arsenal, and I believe for the money, you cannot go wrong with the Nikon F 1.8
  
  

• Best lens for this price
  By A2NNW12J0RNVKT on 2005-10-11
  You do not have to think. This lens is the best lens that you could get at this price. Nikon quality, very sharp and very fast. A must have for DSLR owners. You won't regret for having it in your bag.Do not forget you will need a fast lens (F1.8 at least) if you shot in low lights.
  
  
• razor sharp prime
  By A3E68EBGXTWDNP on 2007-01-18
  For around $100, it's impossible to beat this prime lens. it's a nikkor AF with a five-year warranty. it's cute. it's lightweight enough to carry in your pocket. its sharper than a ginsu. it takes great portrait and low-light photos. at 1.8, it's one of the quickest lenses out there--fire off a burst in continuous-shooting mode and you can get a "freeze-frame" effect for animation-like sequences that capture motion as slight as someone blinking. best of all, it makes your dslr fairly inobtrusive, so you can use it for candid, no-flash shots in any lighting condition without rousing the ire of the photo police. it's perfect for tight shots where you don't have a lot of room to maneuver, but it can do landscapes as well if you're far enough away. the 50mm focal length isn't exactly wide-angle, but you can spring several hundreds more for a 24 or 28 prime for that, or get a 90, 100, or 105 if you want to get in even tighter or take shots from farther away. no macro either, but did you really expect a macro for $100? plus it has good depth of field and nice bokeh. great addition to any nikon d-series kit, and more versatile than you might think. it's hard to find any real faults with it for the $ -- it's cheaper than the 50mm sigma prime, which does have macro, but for a "real" macro lens you're probably looking at $400-$500 anyway. if you're thinking of the tamron 90, you could get this plus the tokina 100 or sigma 105 for the same price. consider this lens one of the benefits of going nikon -- olympus, for example, offers a 50mm 2.0 macro for the E-series, but it's $500. few lenses rate as a must-have for nikon users, but this is one of them.
  
  
• Bargain that is Best
  By A1QDKO8ZFJZ509 on 2005-05-13
  For 99 dollars what can you say to a 50mm lens that is fast and may be as sharp or even sharper than other Nikon lenses costing over 1000.00??? I also have the 18-70 and 28-200, but when I photograph my son I often use the 50mm 1.8 for it's wonderful detail, color and focus. If you're angry about spending 1500 dollars on a Nikon lens, just pretend that this was a 800.00 lens you got for 100 bucks and subtract the difference! That's how good this lens is. For the price it's a miracle and we don't get many price-miracles from Nikon now do we?
  
  
• The most versatile lens you'll own.
  By A2BN67MBQQ23G1 on 2006-08-17
  This lens is amazingly versatile. At f/1.8 it's fast enough for available light shooting, and is sharp enough wide open to use at that aperture. Its focal length is perfect for portraits on a camera with a 1.5X crop factor. It's small enough to make a compact camera when weight and size is important. With an extension tube or reversing ring, this Nikkor makes a great close-up lens, too. Yet, this lens costs in the $100 range. It's a bargain that performs superbly. Every Nikon photographer should own one.
  
  
• Pure joy
  By A1J99REDHEGJIJ on 2007-03-04
  I was using this lens for a week now with D50 and I can tell you that in low light indoor shooting this lens is AWESOME. At 1.8f this lens should be fast enough for any semi-professional (like myself). At 8f this lens produces the sharpest photos ever and given that you shoot in NEF (RAW) format and use photo editor software (I use Nikon's Capture NX) photos become master pieces. At 22f, outside group portrait are sharp to the last hairy detail on each single person. I highly recommend this lens.
  
  
• If u have D40/D40x don't bother with this.
  By A31Q7NE0NP3IH4 on 2007-11-15
  I was mislead said manual focus will be easy with this lens, i was wrong, is much harder to focus in this lens using manual, i find easier to focus using manual with my zoom lens 55-200mm VR, even in focus i still often get bury picture, i don't recommended for d40 or d40x user, u should try it before you buy it. U lens kit is good enough no need this lense since only gave you 50mm, 1,8d is nice but little useless when is so hard to focus. Hopefully nikon will be coming out a motor build in prime lens for d40 and d40x in the future. Some shot does look sharp but is not worth the time to get it right, a VR Telephoto will do better in low light i compare to both. I was expect more from prime lens, i think downfault is probably frustrated manual focus.
  
  
• High quality performance at a more-than-reasonable price
  By A22WBN1QEUFSV8 on 2006-05-27
  I bought this lens to use on my Nikon D50. I'd read review after review of this lens and each one seemed to leave the same impression. That impression was that it was cheap (in terms of price) but performed like a much more expensive lens.
  
  As it turns out the reviews were all true. I immediately saw the benefit of having a large apeture lens, as there are indoor and low light shots you can get with this lens that you simply can't get with other consumer lenses where the largest f-stop is 3.5 or smaller. One of my favorite examples - taken soon after I bought it - was of one of our cats sitting behind a sheer curtain early one morning as the sun was rising. I was able to capture her in mid-yawn without having to use a flash. The resulting picture looks like a mountain lion wrapped in a soft fog that allows you to see just her silhouette.
  
  There is alway the question of whether it's worth spending the money to get the f1.4 version of this lens instead of the f1.8 about which this review is being written. All I can do is share my own experience. I feel that since I'm just an enthusiastic amateur the f1.8 version is more than sufficient. Sure, the slightly larger apeture would be nice, but at the significantly larger price it just wasn't worth it for me.
  
  If you're just getting back into photography (perhaps thanks to a Nikon D50 or D70s) then I can't recommend this lens highly enough. It's small, lightweight and (as already noted) really useful. You'll want to keep it in your camera bag at all times or even pop it in the pocket of a jacket if you're wanting to travel light.
  
  Of course no lens will make you a better photographer, but a lens like this can certainly make your photography experience more fun and probably more rewarding in the end.
  
  
• The Best Bargin in Photography?
  By A212MDP6K4VJS5 on 2006-06-23
  The problem: My daughter's recital pratice came out horrible with my f2.8 zoom lens. Too much motion, and no flash was going to be allowed on the big day. After some fast research I came up with this inexpensive solution. On my D50 this is a 75mm lens. I got front row seating, set the ISO to 1600 and used shutter priority set at 1/200. The results were fantasitic!!! This excellent little lens, that looks so puny on my D50 offers sharpness (some say Nikon's sharpest lens!) and speed at a small price. Go get one and have fun.
  
  
• Great lens, but d-SLR shooters beware
  By A5JLAU2ARJ0BO on 2005-01-27
  This is a nice, fast 50mm lens, great for portraits. High-quality construction and excellent optics, all for a great price.
  
  But digital SLR shooters should be aware. Most Nikon d-SLRs have a focal length factor, usually of 1.5x, so this lens is effectively a 75mm lens on the likes of D70, etc. It's still good for portraits -- in fact, a little telephoto helps portrait shooting -- but if you want a totally normal lens (45mm-55mm), this is not the one to get. Try something with a marked focal length of 35mm or so, for an effective focal length in the normal range.
  
  
• Can't Go Wrong with this one.
  By A2Y08KFEHZO280 on 2006-07-10
  If you have a Nikon SLR, film or digital, then this is a must have lens. Don't let the small price tag fool you. This lens takes sharp photos.
  
  I have a D50 and this lens is on the camera just as much as the 18-70mm zoom lens.
  
  With the digital crop factor this lens is the equilivent to a 75mm lens on a film camera. Just about perfect for portraits. I love using this lens when taking pictures of the kids. I turn off the flash and use natural light. I may have to bump the ISO to 800 or 1600, but it is worth it. The pictures are outstanding. 100 dollars well spent.
  
  
• I use this as my main lens
  By AJA20XE1WO09E on 2006-08-13
  I am a newbie to the world of DSLR's, and this was the first lens that I bought to compliment my Nikon D50 kit. I find that I use this lens far more than the 18-55mm that comes with the D50 kit, has a faster focus and slightly sharper image. For the record, my main photo subject is my 16-month old toddler, so I tend to be more of a portrait-oriented amateur photographer. For the money, it's hard to beat.
  
  
• AN AWESOME LENS - BUT DON'T BUY IT AS YOUR MAIN
  By A1SHHQSPOWR00F on 2007-09-26
  Do not buy this lens as your primary lens if you own a Nikon DSLR (D50, D70, D80). The focal length (50mm) makes it a telephoto lens (75mm) on a digital camera. Imagine trying to take photographs of your family indoors using a telephoto lens. You will only be able to capture the head and part of the torso of one person. Instead, buy the 28mm f/2.8 or the 35mm f/2.0 focal length lenses (stay away from the Sigma 30mm).
  
  With that said, this lens is awesome for low light indoors and outdoor night work. I bought this lens for "available light" photography, meaning indoors or from street lamps outdoors at night. I am very pleased with the results. It is quite a bit sharper than the 18 - 55 or 55 - 200 Nikon zooms that I own. To me, sharpness is worth doing without a zoom. This would be on my camera 24x7 if the focal length was 28mm, not 50mm. So, if you need a lens for available-light use in portrait or some telephoto work (not as a prime on a digital camera), this lens is perfection.
  
  Please note that my three star rating is based solely on the quality of the lens, not on my review of the application above. The resulting sharpness of the photos is very good, but not nearly on a par with my Yashica-brand Zeiss lenses (which had a similar price point in 1980, adjusted for inflation), and the build is plastic made in China. Therefore, the quality of what you get compared with the price you paid is about a three or a four (very good), not a five (the best).
  
  Nikon 35mm f/2D AF Wide-Angle Nikkor Lens for Nikon 35mm and Digital SLR Cameras
  
  Sigma 30mm f/1.4 EX DC HSM Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras
  
  
  
  
• Warning - Will NOT AUTOFOCUS with D40!
  By A1DJ98K7JBYOO7 on 2007-03-12
  If you buy this for a Nikon D40, please read the title AGAIN. If you quick read the other reviews, you may not get to read that some mention the fact that this lens WILL NOT AUTOFOCUS WITH A NIKON D40. If you don't care about this, you'll find this little lens great. The pictures are crisp and clear, full of light. Great addition to your lens collection.
  
  
• Overrated but still a good buy
  By A1Z5CYJ5E9O9WM on 2007-05-12
  This lens draws raves from its fans, and while it isn't that good, it is still a good bang for the buck. 50mm for DX size sensors is an odd focal length. It isn't really a wide angle, but it is too short to be a tele. It is a little long for me as a "normal" lens. I use it mostly for low/available light shots indoors, but I find that I wish the field of view were a little larger.
  
  This is a lens that most Nikon DSLR owners have in their bag, and for good reason. It is well made, reasonably priced, and relatively small. Just don't make it your only lens.
  
  
• Great lens... no auto focus with D40 but in-focus indicator DOES work
  By A30K5JHZ1VV3Z4 on 2008-01-13
  Bought to use with D40, knowing the auto focus wouldn't work. Had HORRIBLE difficulty getting focus and was going to return it when I realized that the 'in-focus indicator' (green dot) DOES work. Once I figured this out, it was a breeze to properly focus the lens manually and it has become a great part of my lens lineup. A must have for low light non-flash photography. Awesome value once I figured out how to focus it!
  
  
• Fantastic!
  By A1PLCYDN2MRV9H on 2006-08-08
  I am in love with this lens! I bought a D50 with the 28-80 kit lens. I was talked into buying the 50mm lens by friends who are real photographers. I am blown away by how much sharper the 50mm lens is. It is super fast. You can shoot indoors without the flash. I highly recommend it.
  
  
• Great Lens!!
  By A2SCQSFRDI8RXK on 2007-02-19
  Sharp, cheap and fast 50mm prime lens. The f/1.8 aperture allows you to take great pics in low light situations without using flash as the lens can gather more light. Good for potraits, indoor weddings, fast action shots etc. The small DOF is wonderful for potraits and the bokeh is also nice. It also comes with a 5 year warranty. A lens every Nikon user should own.
  As far as negatives, nothing to complaint about, though having a macro feature would have been the icing on the cake.
  I use this lens on my Nikon D80.
  
  
• Great Lens -- Great Value
  By A1UCT10PYYXQP2 on 2005-09-10
  Great lens for portraits. Great value. A must have in the camera bag.
  
  
• Best value product
  By A5OCRUW61J98Y on 2006-07-14
  Nikon 50mm 1.8D is an essential item in any Nikon SLR lens kit. Despite being one of the cheapest it's build quality compares quite well with other expensive consumer lenses. The range of creative opportunity provided to any photographer by it's light weight, small size and large aperture makes it the best value for money lens products.
  
  The results are amazingly sharp and the normal focal length makes it the best lens for candid, portrait and fast action shots. Despite having a wide angle and a telephoto lens this is the one which I end up using most for it's versatility in low light situations. While the AF is not the fastest and motor is a bit noisier than its AFS counterparts, at around $110 this lens is a steal.
  
  Similar performance as this model can be found only in the bulky and prohibitively costly zooms in the $1500 range which may be out of range for many due to economics as well as convenience. I would recommend this lens as a starter to any new buyer of Nikon SLRs without hesitation.
  
  
• Hard to get more bang for your buck...
  By A1AJA1T3GWKMGZ on 2006-11-22
  An absolutely tack sharp lens, very much professional quality, for a tiny fraction of the price of professional glass. It does have it's dangers though. Nikon doesn't make any other comparable lenses that are this cheap. Once you use the 50/1.8, you'll find yourself doubting the quality of the rest of your non-pro lenses, and eyeballing lenses that you'll have to take out a second mortgage to pay for.
  
  It's obvious that all of the money went into the glass, as the actual construction of the lens leaves a lot to be desired. Entirely too much plastic.
  
  Out of focus rendition ("bokeh") is decent, but nothing to write home about. A bit on the harsh side, but not distractingly so.
  
  

• Tiffen 52mm 25 Filter (Red)
• Tiffen 52mm 11 Filter (Green)
• Tiffen 52mm 47 Filter (Blue)
• Tiffen 52mm 58 Filter (Green)
• Tiffen 52mm 80A Filter

• Tiffen 52mm UV Protection Filter
• Nikon ML-L3 Wireless Remote Control for Nikon D40, D40x, D60 & D80 Digital SLR Cameras
• Nikon Lens Pen Cleaning System
• Nikon EN-EL3e Rechargeable Li-Ion Battery for D200, D300, D700 and D80 Digital SLR Cameras
• Nikon SB-600 Speedlight Flash for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras