Nikon 50mm f1.8G for landscape

<p>i have d3200 and nikon 50mm f1.8g, i want to know can i use this lens for landscape photography and which fstop i should use in landscape?</p>

<p>You can, but there are much better choices. If you want to use this lens for landscape use a smaller aperture, like f8 or f11 for depth of field and sharpness. It's not a very sharp lens wide open.</p>

<p>If the viewing angle suit your needs, why not?<br /> For maximum DoF, the closer the better, but you`ll have to cope with diffraction effects beyond f8.<br /> As usual, maximum sharpness is achieved at f5.6-4.</p>

<p>Jose has it right. Maximum sharpness at f/4 to f/5.6. Only use smaller apertures when you have something in the foreground that you need to keep in focus. As always, you'll get the best results with the camera on a tripod.</p>

<p>You certainly can use this lens for landscapes. I have a 50mm f/2 (old manual focus) lens that I have used probably more than any other for landscapes. I usually use f/11 as a good balance between suppressing aberrations and not running into serious diffraction problems while at the same time getting a reasonable depth of field. And, as Hector advises, use a tripod whenever you can. I suggest that you do some tests of your own, trying different apertures to see if real world sharpness at these different values meets your personal standards.</p>

<p>Just to be clear as language can get in the way, when Jose says "closer the better" he means the more closed or stopped down the aperture, not close in distance. Depth of field increases with distance.</p>

<p>Ooops, thanks Matthew :) </p>

<p>I have had better results with the 35mm f1.8.</p>

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<p>I have had better results with the 35mm f1.8.<br>

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<p>I think that is only because you personally prefer the field of view that the 35mm lens gives, isn't it? The broadest range of focal lengths can be used to take landscape shots. While most people agree that a relatively narrow focal range is best for other types of photography (for example moderate telephoto for portraits, longer telephoto for sports and action, moderate wide for street and journalism etc.), it is not unusual to see landscape pictures taken with anything ranging from ultra wide angle to super telephoto. So your 50mm lens is just fine, as long as you can find subject matter that fits the frame. As for settings, "f/8 and be there". Well, with modern fast primes it could also be "f/5.6 and be there". The more important part is "be there".</p>

<p>matthew means that max DoF using f8 or more, but he said maximum sharpness in range of f4 to f5.6.</p>

<p>50mm on DX-sensor camera's for landscape.. I have done that very often! In fact very often making a series of images and then stitching them together afterwards with software. That is how 'the magic of the 50mm' really became obvious again. A small and sharp (and cheap) lens that suddenly opens up wide panorama's, lovely.<br /><br />As a seperate 'single shot' lens, I also still appreciate the 50mm. Also on DX. Also for landscapes.</p>

<p>This summer I spent a couple of months photographing Yosemite's high country. I brought three lenses including an old non d version of the 50 1.8. </p>

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<p>It's not a very sharp lens wide open</p>

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<p>The 50mm f/1.8G is perfectly fine, also near wide open (the f/1.8D isn't).<br>

I've used about any focal length for landscape from 12mm to 500mm on DX, and any aperture. There is no right or wrong; a landscape shot isn't always f/8 or f/11, as sometimes it can work fine isolating a single item and having the rest of the landscape as a softer out-of-focus background. The standard mantra that landscape is stopped-down work at wide® angles is, in my view, just limiting creativity. Using a lens only at its "optimum aperture" is equally putting the cart before the horse: the differences between the less optimal and optimal are so small that they're not worth it to bother about - choosing the right aperture for right DoF is many times more important.<br>

So yes, your 50mm f/1.8G can work perfectly fine, at any aperture you like.</p>

..And what Wouter says! :-) :-)