New Nikon 50mm Lens

Theresa Stone

While the general public may be wowed by the look of big lenses, savvy photographers know that the seemingly modest 50mm lens is often the best choice. They’re usually great in low light, with a small size that means they’re easy to fit in a bag (and makes you less conspicuous), and they often deliver a quality shooting experience for less money than big glass.
Nikon has just announced a new 50mm lens that fits Nikon FX-format digital-SLR cameras: the AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G. This fixed focal length has a maximum aperture of f/1.8; combine that with an aspherical lens element and Nikon says that this lens is excellent in dark indoor situations.
The lens includes a motor designed to be autofocus quietly. This same motor also enables autofocus shooting even when you use the lens with Nikon’s DX-format D-SLRs (the D5100 and D3100, for example), which don’t have built-in autofocus drive motors.

Like many other prime lenses, the AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G is relatively inexpensive: it will retail for $220. It should be on sale in mid-June of this year.