gabriel_gerena Posted September 20, 2014 Share Posted September 20, 2014 <p>Hello!<br>I keep reading conflicting info so just wondering if the FL 55 or 58mm non aspherical lenses are actually any better then FD 50mm 1.4 wide open in sharpness and other image qualities.<br>Thanks!</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick_janes Posted September 20, 2014 Share Posted September 20, 2014 What's your source? The FL 55 /1.2 is very good in its own right, with really pleasing image quality. As to beating the FD (or FL) 50/1.4 in wide-open resolution that's a brave claim! The older 58 I think will be less competitive, and the vast majority of those found today will have strong yellowing from the glass' actinide content. This can be bleached out with some success by ultraviolet exposure, but that's its own thread... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCL Posted September 20, 2014 Share Posted September 20, 2014 <p>Most sources I'm familiar with indicate the wide open sharpness of all three is very similar, but I've never seen any controlled head-to-head tests.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_roberts10 Posted September 20, 2014 Share Posted September 20, 2014 <p>There's no way the 55 or 58 out-resolve the later 50's; they just don't correct aberrations as well. That said, the lack of correction gives the older lenses unique character that many consider far more important to attractive rendering than a resolution test could measure.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gabriel_gerena Posted September 20, 2014 Author Share Posted September 20, 2014 <p>Thanks guys.<br />That is what I thought when reading about the comments in this forum so it makes sense. That means if I want to better my 50mm 1.4 then my real choice will be the 50mm 1.2L'</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
User_502260 Posted September 20, 2014 Share Posted September 20, 2014 <p>I have the 55/1.2 FL. It isn't as good at or near wide open as the 50/1.4 FLII or any of the 50/1.4 FD lenses. I recently had a first version 50/1.4 FL overhauled and will do some shooting with it soon. If you are shooting at a closer range and can close down you will find that thr 50/3.5 (FD SSC or New FD) is sharper than all of these. </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gabriel_gerena Posted September 21, 2014 Author Share Posted September 21, 2014 <p>I am really looking for max aperture performance. I did have the Macro as well but is not what I need for this, really want the 1.4, 1.2 performance. :)</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
awahlster Posted September 21, 2014 Share Posted September 21, 2014 <p>The coatings on the 50mm f1.4 FD S.S.C. or nFD versions is vastly superior to what was being used on the earlier FL lenses.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gabriel_gerena Posted September 21, 2014 Author Share Posted September 21, 2014 <p>I will stick to my original plan of the 50mm 1.2L then :)</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim_bielecki1 Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 <p >If you can find one, maybe consider the FD 55/1.2 aspherical. I've owned the aspherical and the 50/1.2L and consider the 55mm to be a better lens, especially when shot wide-open. The differences between the two lenses are slight, but they are noticeable. The only negative about the 55mm aspherical is it's size and weight. It's a substantially larger lens than the 50/1.2L. Just something to consider.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick_janes Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 Jim, I tend to agree that the 55 Asphericals were snappier, with a little busier bokeh maybe; I have both an FD 55 f1.2 AL SSC (with gold stripe) and FD 55 f1.2 SSC ASPHERICAL, the former somewhat yellowed and the latter essentially clear. It's astonishing to read the original prices of these lenses: the first, FD 55 f1.2 AL, with hand-ground aspherical element, was ¥ 145,000 in 1971! Its successor, the AL SSC, also hand-ground, ¥ 147,000 in 1973. Prices dropped a lot for the FD 55 f1.2 SSC ASPHERICAL of 1975, ¥ 80,000. When the New FD 50 f1.2 L appeared in 1980 it cost ¥ 90,000. I'll leave the adjustments for inflation to someone else, but it's clear these Asphericals were well beyond the reach of most! Today they remain splendid jewels of Canon history. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flavio_egoavil Posted September 23, 2014 Share Posted September 23, 2014 <p>The 58/1.2 lens (R or FL) is full of aberrations in general. Which doesn't mean it's a useless lens. Quite the opposite, you can get a very peculiar look with it. I never owned one but experimented with one. Loads of coma aberration!</p> <p>The FL and FD 55/1.2 lenses (non-aspherical) are of exactly the same optical design. I don't think that they can match any of the 50/1.4 FDs wide-open. However, i owned one and it's an excellent lens, my favorite FD lens. Bokeh is really smooth; resolution is very usable at f1.2 and once stopped down a little bit (f2.8) is an impressively sharp lens. Also, i like the look of 55mm focal length better than 50mm. Contemporary is the Nikkor 55/1.2 which is unloved by Nikon-ians, while the 55/1.2 FD is usually well liked by Canon-ists.</p> <p>The FD version is multicoated, and i think the FL version was multicoated as well -- one of the first FL lenses (or pehaps the only one) to have multicoating. The front lens has a strong red reflection. Beautiful.</p> <p>The aspherical FD 55/1.2 has been described by leica specialist Erwin Puts as superior to any Leitz offering at the time and probably the "best normal lens in the world."</p> <p> </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
User_4136860 Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 <p>Please note, if you are thinking of buying one according to the manufacturers user manual the Canon FL 55mm f1.2 lens will not work correctly on the Canon New F1</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim_bielecki1 Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 <blockquote> <p>It's astonishing to read the original prices of these lenses: the first, FD 55 f1.2 AL, with hand-ground aspherical element, was ¥ 145,000 in 1971! Its successor, the AL SSC, also hand-ground, ¥ 147,000 in 1973. Prices dropped a lot for the FD 55 f1.2 SSC ASPHERICAL of 1975, ¥ 80,000. When the New FD 50 f1.2 L appeared in 1980 it cost ¥ 90,000.</p> </blockquote> <p>Prices dropped big-time when Canon developed their special aspherical surface grinding/polishing machine. This is when they also brought out the 24/1.4 aspherical and 85/1.2 aspherical. </p> <p>I bought my 55/1.2 aspherical (used) many years ago. I primarily use it for portraits and shoot it wide-open or at F2.0. It requires careful focusing, but if you nail it, the resulting image is truly special. As i mentioned before, the only downside is it’s size and weight. This is a big lens!</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
User_502260 Posted September 29, 2014 Share Posted September 29, 2014 <p>If you really want to muddy up the waters with s fast standard lens you can find a 58/1.2 Noct Nikkor and use the Canon N adapter. It is optimized for wide open shooting and is still expensive when you can find one. </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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