Nikon Ai Nikkor 50mm f/1.2S

While modern lenses take excellent pictures, some people look for lenses with particular taste. And, depending on the standard, some lenses can be "better" than others. Image quality changes dramatically by switching from zoom to prime lenses, but it also changes by switching to old-design lenses like this one. When cameras had smaller number of pixels on their sensors, old lenses were hard to use because they only emphasized the variety of aberrations. However, as the number of pixels increased, the cameras could generate solid cores even in the soft depiction. Similarly, this 50mm F1.2 generates less clear images like cinematography and it's simply fun to play with it.

( Photography & Text : K )

Although this lens used to display the looseness with older cameras, it expresses a moisture feeling on the D800. This character is great for capturing the products made by hands.

The bokeh is soft but a little coarse, which is also classical. And, it should be because of the lens construction. This kind of lens is great for shooting subjects that have hard surface.

The bokeh feels wet and is double-lined. If you prefer round bokeh, you may not like it. But, give it a try as it will enhance your expression. The color reproduction is excellent.

I shot directly against the intense sunshine and got this nice taste. It generates more flair than modern lenses, but this is more similar to human vision.

The depth of field at f1.2 is very shallow. And, if you focus on a middle range, you can get interesting results.

The rendition is loose only wide open and it becomes very clear by stopping down by 1 step. And, it becomes very sharp at F4. The change of character is the fun part of using an old lens.

This way of capturing light may be the best use of this lens. With a clear modern lens, it will capture just like what I saw. But, a lens like this one takes us to a fantasy world.

Modern lenses must be far sharper, but I believe the residual aberration adds to the mood.

Because old lenses tend to make clearer outlines, even if the subject isn't focused. Using this character, you can also defocus intentionally. Quite an enjoyable lens, isn't it?