Nikon 50mm 1.4 vs 85mm 1.8

ChrisGanz

Hey guys i'm trying to decide between the 50mm 1.4 AF-s and the 85mm 1.8. I just want to use it to shoot the wife and kid around the house and outside. I have the 18-55mm but i wanted something to throw the background out of focus. I'm leaning more toward the 85 just because i already have the 18-55 but i wasn't sure which one would make the subject pop more.

Thanks,
Chris

Edit: I have the d5000

ziggy53

I presume you mean the Nikkor 85mmm, f1.8G AF-S, since the "D" version won't autofocus on the D5000 body.

A 50mm, large aperture prime and an 85mm, large aperture prime, both have a place on a crop camera, but slightly different purposes. Indoors the 50mm, f1.4 will probably be more useful, since the 85mm has a smaller angle-of-view. Other than head shots and head-and-shoulders it's fairly tight indoors.

Outdoors I would rather have the 85mm.

The 85mm prime plus a constant aperture standard zoom, like the Tamron 17-50mm, f2.8 XR Di-II LD Aspherical [IF], would be a very nice combination and it would likely do most of what you want to do. (Assuming that you want better separation of subject and background than your 18-55mm "kit" lens.)

ChrisGanz

I never thought of a constant aperture zoom, thanks. I guess my main question is between the 50mm 1.4 af-s and the 85 1.8 AF-s is which one would throw the background out of focus more, or would they be fairly similar?

ziggy53

Either would be a level of magnitude better than your 18-55mm standard kit zoom. The practical difference between bokeh is much less a consideration than the focal length consideration.

The 85mm is the better choice for head shots and head-and-shoulders, while the 50mm lens is a better choice for 3/4 length and full length. You are correct in that the 85mm will give you a focal length that you don't currently have in the 18-55mm kit lens, so I recommend it as your first purchase.

ChrisGanz

Thanks for the info. Yay for the birthday and christmas coming up. Which could mean 2 new lenses...

dave.turley

Chris,
I have the 50mm but have recently purchased the Nikon AF-S DX 35mm f1.8G and I love it. You can put a little more distance between you and your subject, and the bokeh is great! I use a D5000 as well btw.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001S2PPT0/ref=asc_df_B001S2PPT010232606?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B001S2PPT0
Have a look, here's a shot taken with it: http://500px.com/photo/15074397
Dave

ChrisGanz

Awesome face paint.

About how far away were you when you took that pic. i'm trying to figure out the distances between the various focal lengths.

dave.turley

Hi,
I was quite close on that shot and the 50mm would probably have given similar results. I found quite a good discussion in another forum.
http://photo.net/nikon-camera-forum/00Zwwr
The thing is, if you want to get a little further away from your subject, then the 35 mm works better for me than the 50mm. They both have great DOF and are both very crisp on focus. There are some issues with CA on the 50mm, but it is nitpicking to say don't get it for that reason.
Flicr has groups for both lenses and that's usually where I head when I'm looking at a new lens.
Either lens is great, but since I got the 35mm I don't really use the 50 that much. That's really all I can offer.
Hope I've helped a little, (probably not)
Dave

babowc

In my opinion, 85mm would be far too long unless you're mainly going for headshots. Especially indoors.

When I was using the D7000, I often used either 35mm or 50mm.
the 50mm 1.4G is a great, lightweight lens that you won't regret getting!