Nikon AF-S Nikkor 50mm f/1.8G

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 50mm f/1.8G Performance

Even when shooting wide open at f/1.8, the clarity in the central portion of the frame is very good, although the quality towards the edges of the frame is fairly good.

As with most lenses, stopping down the aperture increases this optics performance across the frame and by f/2 the lens produces images with good sharpness from edge to edge with near excellent clarity in the centre. Peak performance is achieved between f/5.6 and f/8, where this lens' performance is truly outstanding across the frame.

Resolution at 50mm	How to read our charts
	The blue column represents readings from the centre of the picture frame at the various apertures and the green is from the edges. Averaging them out gives the red weighted column. The scale on the left side is an indication of actual image resolution. The taller the column, the better the lens performance. Simple. For this review, the lens was tested on a Nikon D700 using Imatest.

The simple optical design requires no exotic ED glass to keep chromatic aberrations under control. At its worst, fringing chromatic fringing covers and area that just exceeds 0.5 pixel widths, which should pose few issues, even in very large prints or harsh crops from the edge of the frame.

Chromatic Aberrations at 50mm

How to read our charts

Chromatic aberration is the lens' inability to focus on the sensor or film all colours of visible light at the same point. Severe chromatic aberration gives a noticeable fringing or a halo effect around sharp edges within the picture. It can be cured in software. Apochromatic lenses have special lens elements (aspheric, extra-low dispersion etc) to minimize the problem, hence they usually cost more. For this review, the lens was tested on a Nikon D700 using Imatest.

Falloff of illumination towards the corners is quite pronounced on FX format cameras at f/1.8. Here the corners of the frame are 2.5 stops darker than the image centre, which can be a blessing, or a curse depending on your preference. Stopping the lens down results in more even illumination across the frame and visually uniform illumination is achieved at f/4.

For a prime lens like this, barrel distortion is quite pronounced, which may pose problems for critical applications such as copy stand work. Imatest detected 1.98 barrel distortion and the pattern of distortion is uniform across the frame, which should make it relatively easy to correct in image editing software afterwards.

The deeply recessed front element is already well protected from extraneous light that may cause flare or loss of contrast and a deep circular hood is also provided to provide further protection. When shooting into the light, the simple optical design ensures this lens maintain good contrast and is resistant to flare in all but the most extreme of conditions.

Out of focus areas are rendered smoothly thanks to the rounded aperture blades - ISO500, 1/6400, f/4, 50mm	The compact size and light weight makes this lens an ideal travel companion - ISO200, 1/1250, f/4, 50mm
Sharpness is outstanding from edge to edge when stopped down - ISO200, 1/250, f/11, 50mm	The simple optical design is very resistant to flare - ISO450, 1/250, f/8, 50mm
ISO200, 1/400, f/8, 50mm	ISO200, 1/640, f/1.8, 50mm

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