50 mm 1.4 D or G?

G

grifter09

Active member
Im selling my 50mm f1.8d to get a 50mm 1.4d.

I was about to buy the 50mm 1.4d today but realised that maybe on the next d400 or whatever the new 50mm f1.4G will be the one to use.

I'd be kicking myself if i found in a couple of weeks that i should have got the G. Even thought the G as it stands in terms of aperture is is pretty much uncontrollable with the d90. Would i be correct in saying this?

Any opinions on what I should get? or if i should wait on and see what happens with the next model?
 
i'd never choose a lens without an aperture ring for D90. Then again, maybe i'm just superstitious (for example, some people use the Tokina 11-16mm which has no aperture ring, etc.).
 
The G would be uncropped on the D90 – in other words it would act as a true 50mm*– while the D is cropped to a field of view equivalent to 75mm or so. On the other hand, it has the aperture ring and is probably built much sturdier. Personally, I've never given the G lenses any consideration at all. I like to maintain full compatibility with full-frame cameras in my lenses.
 
Good point dougspice, and one i hadnt considered. The only thing holding me back from going ahead with the 1.4d right now is that maybe, just maybe, the next camera will require the newer dx lens for silent autofocus to work while shooting video. Or is that just wishful thinking.......
 
why would you want to use an autofocus lens for making films?
The lens with the best manual focusing action is the ai-s
 
agreed but its simply a case of why not have it if its on offer (might come in handy for steadicam shots).
until dougs point i was on the fence. i had forgotten about the crop factor.
Now id say im leaning towards the 1.4d.

which model(s) have the ai-s ?
 
I'd be surprised to see autofocus in movie mode anytime soon.

the manual focus lenses from 1981 onwards are ai-s.
 
Gotcha, i actually used an old manual lens a couple of years ago and couldnt believe how smooth it was.
what about the 50mm f1.2 manual if i could find one? would that be the pick of the litter?
 
I've been looking into this further and it appears that the G has the exact same crop factor as the D. They both behave the exact same.

I do a bit of photography and the G does look tempting.
Why is it anyway that with the G lens aperture cant be controlled in video mode on d90, anyone?
Why is it hampered? or what exactly is the problem?
I mean I know theres no ring, but can it not simply be set with the command dials? either before or after entering live view.
 
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Yea its easy happen. The newer than this lens, the 35mm 1.8g is DX only.

Its true though that DX is definately a no no for the likes of myself starting a collection. Who knows when video could show up on a full frame Nikon.
 
Go with the D, the G is not much (if any) sharper, and the optics are pretty much the same.

The D is more ideal for video because the aperture ring.

The G is not bad, but not worth the extra money.

Sigma has a sharp and contrasty 50mm 1.4 that is better than the G. But for video purposes, just stick with the D.
 
dougspice said:
The G would be uncropped on the D90 – in other words it would act as a true 50mm*– while the D is cropped to a field of view equivalent to 75mm or so. On the other hand, it has the aperture ring and is probably built much sturdier. Personally, I've never given the G lenses any consideration at all. I like to maintain full compatibility with full-frame cameras in my lenses.
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Don't confuse "G" with "DX"
There are Full Frame "G" lenses, and there are DX "G" lenses; in fact, all DX lenses are "G", which means that they have no aperture ring.
Full frame "G" lenses (which Nikon calls FX, and have no iris ring) cover the same area as a AF D, Ai-s, and Ai lenses.
 
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There's no need to look at the letters to determine crop factors or field of view. Just the numbers before it. A 50mm lens is always a 50mm lens. Optical properties of lenses don't change by putting sensors behind them or giving them obscure model names. A dx lens projects a smaller image that's all. Sometimes i wonder whether half the world's population slept through science in high school but then i realize i did myself and still didn't miss this... :-)
 
mattsand said:
There's no need to look at the letters to determine crop factors or field of view. Just the numbers before it. A 50mm lens is always a 50mm lens. Optical properties of lenses don't change by putting sensors behind them or giving them obscure model names. A dx lens projects a smaller image that's all. Sometimes i wonder whether half the world's population slept through science in high school but then i realize i did myself and still didn't miss this... :-)
Click to expand...

Your from Sweden though, you have a more constant quality of education there. America is much more hit or miss when it comes to public education. And some of mainstream media in America actually encourages lack of creative thought and laziness. No excuses though. :costumed-smiley-047:smile: Many people find it cool to be ignorant and unintelligent in America. The cattle of corporate America, if you will. America has great education as well, some of the best, I guess it's just the country of extremes.

Back to topic:

I'm personally trying to stay away from DX lenses, just incase there becomes a FF DSMC that I can afford.
 
Ignorance is fine, it's false truths that annoy me and nowhere does it seem as evident as in photography. I mean there are several areas where i'm completely ignorant, by stubborn choice, but i don't hang out on let's say real estate law forums trying to push my misconceptions on others. :-)
 
They are both FX lenses.

The main difference is that the 1.4D is an old lens, released back in 1986, the 1.4G is a new with a design that is only a year old. Also, the new 1.4G has 8 lens elements compared to the 7 elements in pretty much every other fast 50mm (except the new Sigma which also has 8). The G-lens is also a good deal larger and heavier then the old 1.4D.

I've tried both lenses, and 1.4G is significantly faster in focusing then the 1.4D, its also an AF-S lens which means you can mount them on D40/D60/etc and the AF will still work. Also, switching to manual focusing in easier on the 1.4G due to the M/A switch.

The 1.4D is still an excellent lens, and if you need the aperture ring that's your choice, but I've noticed that the 1.4G has virtually no flaring and is less hazy compared to the 1.4D in direct light, likely due to the new lens design and new lens coating. In fact, ghosting/flaring seems to be on par with my Nano-crystal coated lenses like my 24-70 f/2.8G (which is a $1,700 lens).
 
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