Nifty Fifty

that's right...
 a post about the ubiquitous 50mm f 1.8 lens.
the standard prime.
the NORMAL lens.....
the one no one uses....
even me.....
until a few months ago that is.

so some history , and how I came to love this lens all over again......

see this was often the first lens that came with the camera back in the day before auto everything set it on "P" for PROfessional cameras with 14-600mm zoom kit lenses...
when I got my first 35mm SLR it came with a 28-70mm 2.8- 5.6 zoom and a 50mm 1.7
go get em kid!

well  with all the figuring out how this stuff works I found myself shooting with the 50mm for the wide aperture...because I was often in low light situations....Punk Bands at the time were not known for playing in well lit venues....
and I happened to smash the zoom while skate boarding to the next spot to session.....
so 50mm it was!

then, off to school I went and all manner  of cameras were coveted, borrowed, rented, scrounged....
and I mostly lived in the Medium/ Large format arena....but always had a trusty Nikon 35mm.
still do.....2 F3 hp's 2 FM2ns 1 F100 and an F and some nikkormatts.....cause...
and a ton of glass.
24mm 28mm 35mm 50mm 85mm 105mm 200mm....and some zooms
SOLID WORK HORSES.
I shot at Mardi Gras with only the 50 and 35
the F100 paid for itself in no time and it's Auto Focus and meter were amazing for the time.
and all that Manual focus glass went on the shelf.
then.
DIGITAL happened.
and boy did it happen..... and the F100 went on the shelf.
and new lenses came and went and were coveted, borrowed, rented, scrounged....

Then a few years ago I settled into a do it all kit that traveled with me for almost every job.
D3 D700 20mm2.8  24-70mm2.8, 80-200mm2.8 and a 50mm1.8

I was on a job with  that very kit.... and one of the group I had just photographed inside and was about to photograph outside picked up a camera bag to help me.....................
you know those moments when time slows down?
Hunter S Thompson called it "that sickeningly sweet here we go sensation..."
she grabbed the top of the bag, which hadn't been secured (my fault, it was next on my list of things to do right after packing the light in my hand....) and DUMPED IT.
D3+24-70 onto a concrete floor. lens first BAM...smash.....no lens hood but a B+W filter!

 she looked at me and asked  "Was that expensive?" ummm yeah....
and it just got more expensive....

but I have a 5 person group shot to take in front of the office....the real reason I'm here not the little add on groups  I just did.....breath, don't panic....
so...ummmm 80-200mm or 20mm for the next shot.....?
neither would work....I'd be  on top of them making them look like hobbits or dodging traffic, but there...right there, in a lens wrap in the forgotten bottom of the bag...was ...

 the ubiquitous 50mm f 1.8AF lens.

job saved.
and off to the repair shop I went.
E.P.Levine
they are super people who have always treated me right, big shout out to Jon!


I had bought this one used ( from Jon at EPLevine) as a back up and it served it's purpose.
so I started shooting with it...now and again...but wasn't happy with the passable results.

always just kind of meh...

so back in the bottom of the bag it went.
then one day I was shooting some video with a D7000....
and man those AF motors are NOISY! as in LOUD...I was shooting dudes on Harley's and could hear the servos on the lens....I know I know camera mic blah blah blah...

and this here AF lens was not really meant to be used Manually.... it can be...but...so I went to the shelf.

and sitting there was  the ubiquitous 50mm f 1.8 MF  lens

so I slapped it on the front of the camera and shot some cool looking video...

so I swapped it out for the AF one in the bag. because ounces count when your a lazy guy with a ton of gear....and if I was shooting with the 50 it had all gone to hell already so what ever on the AF....

Then one day on another job, with it all shot, "in the can" as they say, I went into what I call the bonus round.
Once I have something that the client wants  I like to get a little crazy and try stuff, at this point we are free to experiment.
More often then not something cool will happen and we go with that instead of the original shot idea.
so I through the 50mm 1.8 MF on there.
and...wow....that glass is the SH1T!
It has a slice of focus wide open that is amazing.... and it handles like...well like it should!
butter smooth action.... the only time it misses is when I miss...1.8 is pretty shallow....
but it brings me back to the days of "The Rat" and racking focus in the dark.

GOOD TIMES...

so.. I think this is some of the best Glass Nikon ever made...the 1.4? sure...but I don't have one...that works.....
I got a 1.8 and for me.. that's just fine....
it's paid for itself 100 times over look what it can do...

DAVE TEST( fluorescent)

Jaquetta (natural light)

Flash

Florescent + natural+ fill flash

BIG WINDOW LIGHT+ reflectors

Natural + fill flash

Well this is one of the times I'm glad I'm not super web famous like David Hobby of Joe McNally...

that means these little gems will still be available for short $$$$$

and with repair bills and new fangled cameras I need every penny I can get.