The Nikon Z 50mm F1.8 - My personal Review

F1.8, 1/160, ISO100

I had some fun writing reviews for my Nikon Z gear on DPR recently, and I am happy to be able to continue with the Nikon Z 50mm F1.8 because of the outstanding quality of this lens. Again, I try to write this from the perspective of an amateur travel and street photographer.

I have to admit that I had several nifty-fifties over the years (35mm on APS-C), and was never a huge fan of this focal length. I bought them mostly because of their size, prize and weight. The optical performance usually surpassed comparable zoom lenses, and they were all fast. But I felt that they constrained me at this one focal length, which I always felt too restricted.

I have since changed my mind, and embraced the 50mm cutout of the world, which has been used by so many great photographers. This is indeed an angle of view which feels very undistorted and natural. And that's how I use the lens now. If anything, it is more a telephoto lens than a wide-angle lens, but also not really condensing the scene. It restricts the view in a way that looks just okay.

F4, 1/30, ISO1600

I always put this lens on the camera for museums or indoor shooting, where speed of the lens really helps. It is not always at F1.8 because you often need some depth of field, sometimes even F4. But if needed, a wider aperture is available.

I previously used the Nikon Z 85mm F1.8 for family portraits, being told that one should do so to avoid distortion. I find the 50mm much more convenient for any portrait that goes wider than just the face. Especially, children should not be reduced to beauty shots. The 50mm can just show the right amount of the surrounding. Unfortunately, I can't show portraits here.

F4, 1/160, ISO100

To help me overcome my reservations against the price, the weight and the size of this specific 50mm , the immense quality of this lens (together with my beloved Nikon Z system) helped a lot. From lens reviews (like here), you learn that the lens is extremely sharp in the center, even wide open, and the corners start getting excellent at F4, being already perfect at AF2.8. The lens is also an S-line lens, which means a superb flare and glare resistance, and great contrast. This coincides with my observations.

F2.8, 1/50, ISO1600

The lens has an AF-MF switch. I'd have preferred a programmable button, which the lens does not feature. The AF is perfect, by the way. I did not notice focus breathing, but I don't do much video work, nor a lot of focus stacking. The IBIS allows my hands to go to 1/15 and beyond. (By the way, I do not think it is a good idea to use the lens on a Z50/ZFC as a portrait lens, because of the missing VR.)

F1.8, 1/5, ISO100

The lens is not small, but also not too large. But it is way more bulky than any 50mm I know. Some may not like that. It is also more expensive than expected from a standard lens. For the quality, I think the price is reasonable.

One problem might be the long minimal focusing distance of this lens. The image at the top of the page shows the closest distance you can achieve. It also shows the quality of the Bokeh when it is used wide open. To help out, I often use Meike rings. E.g., the following is an image with the 11mm Meike ring. 

F8, 1/50, ISO 100, Meike 11mm

What are the alternatives?

• Since the lens goes up to F1.8 with excellent center sharpness and contrast, there is no zoom lens that can hold up. Only if you plan to use the lens at F8 and above, you can just as well use one of the excellent zoom lenses of the Z system.
• Another obvious alternative is the 40mm F2.0, which may be good enough for almost anything, plus being smaller and less expensive. I had it with great results, but in this case, the better has beaten the good.
• Of course, the even better would be the Nikon Z 50mm F1.2. However, this is out of my price range and a lot bulkier again.

In summary, this is a superb lens if you can handle and like the somewhat neutral standard 50mm view, and if you do not mind the unusually big size for a nifty-fifty.

F2, 1/125, ISO100, Meike 11mm