Which is the best version of the 50mm F/1.8 AI, AI-s, AF, or AF D?

One more question. When the ebay seller says their are "no scratches but cleaning marks" on the lens. Does those cleaning marks affect the image in any way?

Only if they used Comet.

The optical formula is the same for all of these lenses. Cleaning marks sounds kind of vague to me. I would want to see a photo of the glass taken with the right lighting to show the marks. I usually don't buy lenses with marks on the glass. Check with KEH.COM for this lens and get one without any marks.

If it's a knowledgeable, reputable seller, cleaning marks just means minor marks that at worst might make flare a problem in really adverse lighting (seldom a problem with the 50/1.8 due to the deeply recessed front element - the barrel itself serves as a lens shade).

If the seller is the slightest bit vague or evasive, assume that "cleaning marks" means "horrible, deep gouges suffered when fending off a Britney Spears umbrella attack." Move on to the next lens.

The 50/1.8 is such a good value it makes better sense to buy from KEH or another solid online vendor. Pay a few extra bucks and save peace of mind.

Remember that a new one, as inexpensive as it is, will get you a 5-year warranty from Nikon. The newest version is just as good as the older ones... but with less risk of damange to the lens coatings. A recent-vintage 50/1.8 would have to be a real bargain before it would be worth going for a used one. Any damage to it - even vaguely described "cleaning marks" - would be a show-stopper for me. Again, ONLY because of how inexpensive a new one is. This may be the only lens where the math works out that way.

Forget buying it if you need to ask about cleaning marks. Cleaning marks may contribute toward flare, which is generally an undesirable trait. They can be removed by certain professionals, but the process is expensive - figure around $200-300. A small scratch one can live with, particularly if it is on the front lens, because it can be filled in with black ink.

Jerry - -

buy one from B&H or on Amazon.com - - about $ 100.00 and new with warranty. On a 50mm f/1.8 I see little reason to buy off eBay. Granted mine was bought used, but that's because I wanted one made in Japan....

JMHO

Lil :)

I'm not concerned about the price at this range. I want a good one.

I had won an auction a couple weeks ago for a 50mm f/1.8" in excellent condition. The auction had no picture. I thought I'll risk it with a small bid. I won it for $20.00 bucks. The selling is not shipping it but giving me a run around. I think he's waiting for me to demand a refund. So I'm looking again.

Actually, I'm more interested in a wide angle prime. Like the 24mm or the 28mm. Is there any difference in the image quality between 28mm f/2.8 and the 28mm f/3.5 lenses. I doubt I'd use those lower f/stops. I'd probably shoot at f/8 or higher for my close-up work.

It those were only cleaning marks in a common sense of it, they should be easily removable, and no need to mention them. Most likely there is some damage there.

Buying the 50 1.8 AF-D brand new at $110 is really a no-brainer. It's essentially the best deal around.

I got a feeling that the "cleaning marks" means something more serious.

You're looking for Nikon's cheapest lens' on ebay? A new one will cost you $100, i doubt the risk of buyin used is worth the 30 bucks you might save. I have found that cleaning marks are usually hiding other problems. For used equipment i use KEH.com and i have been satisfied EVERY time.

Sam, I am suffering from KenRockwelloisios. Reading about all the real good AI & AI-S lenses, and then saying to myself "Geeee, that's the lens for me."

That's definitely a disease :\

Jerry,

if you're going to get one of the "old" style lenses - - buy the 50mm f/1.2 or a 50mm f/1.4

f/1.2 is MF, but the build & feel of that lens................... dreamy....

Lil ;-) P.S. KR really has a few people fooled...... please don't join his troops..... JMHO. ;-)

I've used just about all versions of the 50mm f/1.8 in the Nikon mount. They're all good. If you want to get the most 'consistently' sharp images and also have an AF body, just get yourself the 50mm f/1.8 AF-D, most current version and be done with it. There may be sample variation between the AF-D, or AI/AIS versions, and some may be a hair sharper, but they're all so close you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference. The AF-D version has the obvious benefit of being an autofocus lens, and an in-focus shot is going to be sharper than an out-of-focus shot from a sharper manual focus lens any day. Good luck.

Jerry, althought some Nikkors share optical design throught the versions, in my experience they not share performance. Probably different coatings, haze (dirtiness), dust, or whatever could be the culprit.

Ai and AiS lenses are great, but think that first 50/1.8s are 25-30 years old lenses. If you want to buy used, I advice you to assure a very good sample or look for a very late version. If you really want the best performer, probably a new 50/1.8 AFD is the more secure choice (don`t use it on a MF camera!).

About "cleaning marks"; all marks are somekind of scratches, more or less long or pronounced. Cap blows usually are "cleaning marks", too. I have cleaned a lot of lenses in my life and -never- left a lens marked (I don`t use toothpaste for this task, thought). I have bought 50+ years old lenses, with obvious signs of use but pristine glass. Don`t buy marked lenses if you want perfomance.

OK, I'm ending this here and now. Contrary to everything you might have read on the web,(K. Rockless) the AF version of the Nikkor 50mm 1.8 is NOT the same optical formula as the Nikkor 50mm 1.8 Ai. Both front and rear elements of the AF version are smaller, hence, the optical formula is changed. Just because it maintains the '6 element, 4 groups' formula doesn't mean its the identical formula. As Jose pointed out, the performance is not shared as well.

Whether or not it matters to you or if you can see the difference (or even care!) is up to you. I've personally found the AF version to be a bit softer wide open with more flare overall, compared to the Ai version, which always gets my recommendation for best overall Nikkor 50mm.

After reading the start of this thread, I was compelled to pull out my AF 50 and one of my many Ai 1.8 to compare. The Ai version has a front element 5mm larger and the rear element 3mm larger. Change the diameter, you change the shape of the curve, changing the formula, it Can't be the same with different diameters! If you dig up the optical diagrams, you can see if you look closely that the curvature and thickness of the elements have changed over the generations of 50mm 1.8. Which does make sense, Nikon is just looking to maintain performance while trimming costs, and it looks as if they tweaked the formula a bit in order to use smaller elements ( less glass). Thats why I like the Ai version, from the coatings to the internal construction, its built with very few corners cut.

Read this discussion: http://nikongear.com/smf/index.php?topic=10521.0

All I can add to Roland's reference is that the 50/1.8 lenses are a diversified lot. There are outstanding and not-so-outstanding members of that group. They do NOT share the same optical design.

My favourite is the "long-nosed" early 50/1.8 AIS.

I always had the believing that Ai and AiS ("long nose" as BR says) are pretty similar with the only difference on coatings.

The design looks to be changed from the cheapened "E" series on: looking at the specs, despite of the minimum working distances, there is a difference on magnification measures when using several attachments like extension tubes of close-up lenses. Looks like this new design could be maintained from that "E" version up to the plain AF version, with the only exception of the first "short nose" AiS (same size but able to focus up to 0.45).

I wonder if the current "chinese" AFD version has been improved.

I wanted to mean "extension tubes or close-up filters".

Anyway, this differences could ought to mechanical issues, like very slightly longer (or shorter) barrels.

You can read a little about the two versions of the f/1.8 manual lens (and more on the f/2) on the Nikon site at:

http://imaging.nikon.com/products/imaging/technology/nikkor/n02_e.htm

They seem to claim that the later "pancake" version (there are two variants of this) is better, but then they would hardly say it was worse!

I heard (can't remember where) that the AF version was optically the same as the later pancake version.

Lots of stuff about other Nikon lens designs there too.

to answer your first question IMO:

in MF the AIS have the best design, I'm talking from inside out (I open pretty much every 50mm 1.8 lens ;)

on AF I like the one with serial numbers from 200XXXX to 212XXXX

My favorite description from the Bay a few months ago, describing a lens: "mint with scratches."

Then there's the 50 1.8 E lens. Picked one up for $30, which is about what it is worth.

Like others around here, I have an "embarrassment" of 50mm Nikkors. The plain vanilla 50/2 AI is truly stellar, followed by the 50/1.8 AI. I got a 50/1.8E with a mint $40 FG last summer and was very pleasantly surprised how sharp and contrasty it is. The 50/1.8AFD is great but not jaw-dropping, though the rickety build-quality worries me about its ability to survive even a mild bump.

50mm F/1.8 AI, AI-s, AF, or AF D; 50mm 1.2, 1.4?

I'm about ready to say the hell with the budget and buy one of each.

I've had two different versions of the Series E 50/1.8, and found both to be really excellent. Yes, they're made with more plastic and less metal than the AI and AI-S, but they're still sturdier and have better fit-and-finish than most of the kit lenses I've seen and used.

Optically, my two Series E 50s were just as sharp as my 50/1.8 AI-S. The only difference I could see was that the color balance was ever-so-slightly cooler than the AI-S, and maybe a tiny bit less contrasty, but really, the difference was barely noticeable. The Series E lenses are great values, and anyone who turns his nose up at one is doing himself a disservice!

I am *so glad* I found this thread. I just bought an AI 50 1.8 used for $80. Sounds like I payed a bit much, but I really love the solid build. The sharpness is astonishing even on my 'little old' d40.

"Cleaning marks" are maybe to be expected on old soft coatings and glass from the 1950s and earlier, but they shouldn't be appearing on a more modern lens that's been properly cared for. There are far too many 50/1.8 Nikkors out there to mess with one that isn't 100%.

I'm curious, Jerry, to know what you did.

I happened to pick up a 50mm AI 1.8 for $80 and I love it..

HOWEVER - I am finding myself spending quite a bit of time in post processing correcting exposure since I cannot meter with it.

Now... I hear the AF-D version calling my name..... AAAGGGGGHHH!!!!!

I've only had it (the 50 1.8 AI) for a few months. Maybe I should give myself more time and perhaps my metering skills will improve. It *sure* would be nice to shoot in shutter priority with a prime lens, though is what I'm thinking.