Nikon 85mm f/1.8D AF Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

Nikon 85mm f/1.8D AF Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

from: Nikon List Price: $565.00 Price: $479.00 You Save: $86.00 (15%) as of 11/23/2009 04:18 EST Used Price: $399.00 Third Party New Price: Too low to display Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Binding: Electronics Brand: Nikon EAN: 0018208019311 Item Dimensions:433709113433 Label: Nikon Manufacturer: Nikon Maximum Aperture: 1.8 f Maximum Focal Length: 85 millimeters Minimum Focal Length: 85 millimeters Model: B00005LE75 MPN: B00005LE75 Publisher: Nikon Studio: Nikon Features: Portable medium telephoto lens that is ideal for indoor and outdoor portraits Rear Focusing system for fast and smooth optical performance Subtle blurring of background for beautifully natural and evocative portraits High-speed f1.8 aperture Compact and lightweight at 13.2 ounces Accessories: Dolica CF9-ND62 62mm 0.9ND 8X Neutral Density Filter Dolica CF3-ND62 62mm 0.3ND 2X Neutral Density Filter Dolica CF-C62 62mm CPL Filter Dolica CF-U62 62mm UV Filter Tiffen Domke F-505 Lens Case - Compact Related Items: Tiffen 62mm UV Protection Filter Nikon D700 12.1MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) Nikon 35mm f/2D AF Wide-Angle Nikkor Lens for Nikon 35mm and Digital SLR Cameras Nikon SB-900 AF Speedlight Flash for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras Nikon 50mm f/1.4D AF Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras see more Browse for similar items by category: Click to Display Editorial Review: Product Description: This fast, compact lens is an excellent choice for indoor or outdoor portraits, as well as indoor sports and stage productions. Customer Reviews Average Rating: Rating: - Fantastic lens! Great contrast, bokeh, and speed! Only wish you didn't have to be 3' from the subject. This lens is a keeper. Rating: - Killer optics & build; but can be tricky to focus This is a solid performer on any Nikon, although the old-school screw-drive AF system will render it less useful on less compatible models. The depth of field is so narrow at f/1.8, that users will have hard time nailing sharp focus on moving objects if they're limited to manual focus mode (as you would on a D60 or D5000 for instance). On my D90, this lens is awesome -- razor sharp with professional-looking bokeh. I never liked the built-in flash using my other lens (16-85mm Nikon), but I find that shots taken with my 85mm look totally different -- the bokeh is so rich that the harsh background shadows otherwise captured with lesser lenses just disappear in the blur. Even with functional AF on my D90, accurate focus tracking can be tricky on moving subjects. I suspect that if this lens was updated to AF-S, it might focus a tad quicker (and not drain my battery so fast). But overall, this is a great lens for the price. Flawless optical quality. Rating: - my new favorite lens! i really struggled over whether or not to drop the extra $1000 and get the 85 1.4. i decided to save my money for now, and i must say i am really pleased with this lens. it's by far my favorite lens i own, and i have rarely taken it off my camera. the clarity is great, and the colors even seem more vibrant. beautiful DoF, sparkly bokeh, and sharp. a definite must-have for portraits! Rating: - Poor contrast and not sharp with wide open apertures. Whenever I try or buy a lens, I perform a simple but fairly objective test on the lens: I photograph a bar code from a glass bottle on a tripod. Why a bar code from a glass bottle? Because the definition of the lines are very sharp. I photograph the bottle's bar code with the aperture wide open then stop down an f-stop at a time. With the 85mm 1.8 lens at f1.8 aperture, the contrast is poor and bar code is fuzzy. At around f5.6, the bar code is perfectly sharp and the contrast is excellent. I've also owned the 85mm 1.4 lens and it's perfectly sharp at 1.4 but it is nearly 3x the price and a lot heavier. All of my $1000+ Nikon lenses are astonishingly sharp wide-open. You do get what you pay for. I also own the Nikon 50mm 1.4 lens and it too is fuzzy and has poor contrast wide open. Only when the aperture is closed down several stops does one obtain very good sharpness and contrast. I think the Nikon 50mm f1.8 lens is a cheap piece of junk. I wish reviewers wouldn't arbitrarily state that a lens is perfectly sharp wide-open without stating how they arrived at that conclusion. If I could, I'd post my results as proof but Amazon won't allow links and I can't include images. Rating: - Solid lens, expensive, NO LENS Pouch! The bad: Major dissapointment not to have a lens bag, Nikon went cheap on this one. The lens hood is metal and screw style mount, it is a hassle. You got to be very careful as it is metal to metal threads, so you better screw it in right to prevent permanent damage. I bought it from Adorama and had no tamper seal, so keep an eye on that... The good: Excellent picture quality, very sharp, solid like a tank. I only wish the lens hood was bayonet style. see more