Nikon 50MM F/1.4, distortion & focus?

[jettlich]

I just got the Nikon 50MM F/1.4 fixed lens. Love it, but am having trouble adjusting to it after having mostly used

zoom lenses w/ my D70, and now w/ my new D90. Wondering how to get the best focus & clarity w/ this fixed lens?

Most of my shots are candid . . . children playing, exploring, etc. Other day, pics of my son up close & his eyes

were in focus, but not his nose! Thanks for hints. Shall I step back & not have him as close-up? Love the effect of the

blur in front & back, but want to ensure my photos are still good in quality & clarity where it counts! Shall I use M, P,

A, S-priority? Thanks a lot!

[Matt Laur]

If you need more depth of field, stop the lens down a bit. You'll still get quite good lower-light performance at f/2 or 2.8, and you'll widen that hair-thin depth of field.

<Br><br>

You can use <a href="http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html" target="_blank"><b>this popular on-line DoF calculator</b></a> to do some virtual experimentation by plugging in your focal length, distance to subject, and various apertures. It will help you to understand how much room you have to work as you open that lens up.

[frank_skomial]

I guess you did not get the AF version of the 50 F/1.4 lens ? or else you would use the lens auto focus feature and

camera settings the same way as with your zoom lenses that you were happy with?. If you use AF - then focusing

at wide apertures is more critical.

 

Your zoom lenses perhaps did not have any of the wide aperture like, 1.4. 2. and perhaps 2.8 ? So, if you use

wide open lens, the DOF will be much narrower, and requires much more precise focusing.

 

Until you learn your 1.4 lens features, start with shooting parameters that you were comfortable with your zooms.

On your 50 mm lens you need to use apertures that you were using with your zoom lenses, and will achieve similar

depth of field at the 50 mm setting of the zoom and the same aperture.

 

But that is perhaps not what you purchased the 1.4 lens for ? So more practicing and you will soon know what

aperture to use to achieve desired effect.

[ed_ci]

Jenna,

The 50mm f1.4 is a great lens. I have one myself. I use a D80. What you are experiencing has nothing to do with

the fact that the 50mm is a fixed lens. You likely had a zoom with a maximum aperture of f3.5 or f4.5. Lenses

with that type of aperture won't exhibit the depth of field range of a f/1.4 lens. So it does take some getting

used to the effects of a fast lens. The range that is in focus is surprisingly narrow. This is the benefit and

curse of a f/1.4 lens. BTW I am still getting used to my 50 f/1.4.

 

As FrankS says you could shoot with apertures that your zoom has to see the resulting depth of field and get

comfortable over time. Or you could go through this simple exercise to get an idea of the ranges of depth of

field of your lens: lay out a long ruler, yard(meter) stick or tape measure on a table and place an object (the

focus point) next to it and shoot in Aperture priority mode. Shoot a couple shots* for various aperture steps

(e.g. 1.4, 1.8, 2.2, 2.8, 3.5, 4.5, 5.6, 6.3) Look at these images side by side on your computer screen and

notice which measuring markings are in and out of focus. you will see what the in focus range is for a specific

aperture. With this lens an inch matters. And the distance to the subject focused on matters as well.

 

* note: I suggest to shoot a couple at each if you don't use a tripod to account for camera movelment. only shoot

one if using a tripod. And shoot in bright light so you can use a low ISO.

 

Shooting in M, P, or A, S mode is a matter of desired outcome and control..... f/2 @ 1/500sec in A is the same as

f/2 @ 1/500 in S. You typically want to shoot at shutter speeds higher than 1/60 if hand holding unless you a

seasoned photographer.

 

A safe move would be to shoot at f/8 but you do not get the advantage of the hazy/blurry background. But you do

get the advantage of looking through a bright viewfinder that the f1.4 provides. Have you compared the brightness

of your viewfinder with your other non f/1.4 lenses?

 

good luck, ed

[neil_colton]

Jenna-

 

The 50 1.4 is soft (IMHO) at 1.4, but by f/2, it's razor sharp. DOF at f/2 is still very shallow, so practice

taking photos of your children at various distances, fstops + focus points. With the DX format, your effective

focal lenght is 75-80mm. Still great for closeups and for some wide work. Remember the DOF rule of 1/3 in front +

1/3 behind the subject and that should improve your results with shallow DOF-in other words, focus on the eye and

you'll get the chin + ears in focus on a head shot. I have used f/22 (for max DOF) for some tight head shots

(with big hair) and the results were very good.

 

Best regards,

 

Neil Colton

Washington, DC Metro Area