Best 50mm lens?

The Canon 50 1.4 is perhaps the best performance for value. The Sigma 50 1.4 is also good if you get a good copy (see Amazon reviews).

The Canon 50 1.8 is great for a disposable lens; the 1.2 is excellent but expensive.
 
I would have to say the Zeiss 50mm 1.4. If budget is no issue then the Zeiss 55mm f/1.4 Otus would be a great lens.
 
The 50 1.4 zeiss is certainly not the best 50mm out there and it's really expensive. It has some significant barrel distortion and the vignetting is quit strong wide open.

Sigma has been crushing it with their art lenses in terms of price, quality and build. I have the 35 1.4 and it's pretty sweet! Can't wait to get my hands on some of the other ones.
 
the otus
then the leica summilux ASPH (which won't work in your camera)

or we could even talk super-expensive cinema primes

but I guess you mean "somewhat affordable", so...
not easy right now
I would go for the canon 1.4, not because it's stellar but because it's ok and doesn't cost an arm and a leg
but then, Sigma is expected to bring out a 50mm ART in a few months, and given how awesome the 35mm and 18-35 are, this could be the one to go for

anyway...
check this
http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2012/01/the-great-50mm-shootout
 
The Zeiss ZE / ZF 50mm f/1.4 is very soft wide open and suffers from quite a bit of CA. I sold mine after owning it for a year. ( the Canon and Nikon equivalents aren't much better, but this new Sigma lens might be something worth waiting for )
 
Zeiss Otus! Definitely grabbing this one when its in stock. The Zeiss ZE ZF 50mm is the dawg of the bunch.

BTW, first post here. For years I have really only been on REDuser. Recently I added a C100 to the mix and decided to join this group. So...hey everyone!

Definitely drooling over the new Otus line. I almost went with a sent of Schneider Xenons but have decided to wait for the new Otus lenses. There seems to be a bit of CA with the Xenons.
 
Ok my contax pitch. 50mm 1.4 I love but needs to be stopped down, like most, to get tack sharp ($300). If you want sharper I'd say go 50mm 1.7 but its going to cost less, say $150. I'd put them against any other 50!
 
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thekreative said:
Ok my contax pitch. 50mm 1.4 I love but needs to be stopped down, like most, to get tack sharp ($300). If you want sharper I'd say go 50mm 1.7 but its going to cost less, say $150. I'd put them against any other 50!
Click to expand...


I agree...contax lens look pretty fantastic.
 
I'm not that into sharpness as most lenses get sharp stopped down a few. I think its the way it renders colour and and geometry that really matters. I'd take a little softness for great colours anytime. Damm, digital is sharp, all my Red friends have diffusion in front most of the time.
 
If we are going to suggest vintage glass, like those contax lenses... Vintage Leitz for the Leica-R mount! It's not as cheap as other vintage glass, but it is pure awesomeness.

Of course, vintage is a lottery. But this old Leitz glass is absolutely lovely, much better than anything new at the same price. I shot my last just-for-fun piece with the 24mm f/2.8 and 90mm f/2.8: here.

My sharpness tests and bokeh rests, where you can see how great these lenses are (especially in the bokeh test) and also that I haven't actually tested a lot of contax glass.
 
The best 50mm for filming would be something with proper filming controls. That would be the Zeiss CP.2 50mm or the Canon CN-E 50mm.
Double the budget and you get into Schneider Cine Xenar III 50mm and Cooke S4/mini 50mm territory, except these cover S35 sized sensors only and I guess you are not interested in that in this sub-forum.

The sharpest vintage FF photo 50mm I've seen is the Contax Planar 50/1.7. Sharper than Contax Planar 50/1.4 and Leica-R Summilux 50mm E55. The Leica-R Summilux 50mm E60 might be in the same league of better, but I haven't used that. The planar is not terribly suitable for filming also. It is quite small and the aperture clicks full-stops so definitely needs decklicking.

My personal favorites for video among stills lenses are the Leicas. They usually have somewhat less contrast than Contax Zeiss; sharp but smooth rendering - the closest cine analogue are probabaly the Cookes; very easy to declick and half-stops are standard on aperture rings if you are not keen on declicking. Focus rings are generally smoother than Contax. Can be color matched into sets (same as Contax) if you choose glass carefully based on the production period.
 
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