Nikon 85mm f/1.8D, Inexpensive, Professional Lens

It is very easy for Photography to become a really expensive hobby, and with no difficulty at all to spend thousands of dollars on photographic gear. While most people love a bargain, experienced photographers appreciate photography as an art (and science) of compromise, and the majority of conceived photographic bargains appear with a grave trade off, usually in terms of image quality loss. or lens speed loss. Once in every blue moon, you can still find a genuine bargain, the AF 85/1.8D Nikkor Lens is one of those exceptional bargains. it is a fast short telephoto "pro quality" lens that will deliver images with a crisp tack sharp resolution, absolute color fidelity, superb Bokeh, and excellent contrast, at an extremely reasonable price, especially when being measure up to other other "pro" quality lenses. It is seldom that you can photograph with a legend, let alone purchase one. To that end, I have absolutely no reservation in recommending the AF Nikkor 85/1.8D lens.  The Nikkor AF 85/1.8D is the latest embodiment of Nikon’s longest running established prime lenses. The 85mm lens is light, fast, tough, and most significantly razor sharp at every aperture and from center to edge. After fifty years of refinement and continuous enhancement, this lens has arrived at its theoretical maximum capability. The Nikkor AF 85/1.8D is possibly the finest short range telephoto lenses ever built.

This 85mm lens is ideal for general photography, intimate portraits, candid, travel photography, street shooting, and landscapes. Every Nikon prime lens has benefited from the continued input from literally thousands of major Nikon customers, the professional photographers, who use Nikkor optics. Simply compare any prime lens found on my site (or any site) with any zoom lens ever built and you will find, the primes win with no contest in every category, contrast, resolution, fidelity, color, and bokeh. I have photographed with practically all of Nikon’s prime lenses, many in autofocus and others using manual focus. The 85/1.8 sits at the head of the crowd The AF 85mm lens is superior or equal to any professional camera lens (manufactured by any company) in its focal range, and quite a lot less expensive, than most of the others. The Nikkor 85/1.8 has a long and memorable family background, and has been enjoyed by many of the best photographers in the world, and has helped create literally millions of remarkable images. 

The AF 85/1.8D Nikkor lens is just perfect for street photography, Physically, It's the same size as a normal 50mm lens, but the stand off distance from your subjects is 70% more . I have used both the auto focus and manual focus adaptations of this lens. Shooting images of people just being themselves is not easy, as just about everyone will go into pose mode as they become conscious of being photographed. This lens allows an extra stand off distance for the photographer to be somewhat more annoying, and the fast maximum aperture allows for blurred backgrounds to compliment the subject. The AF Nikkor 85/1,8 is absolutely ideal for travel photography, the ideal focal length for capturing colorful costumes, crowded markets, exotic architecture close-ups, and local characters The AF 85/1.8 is also fabulous for available light portraits, since 85mm to 105mm short telephoto range lenses provide the most agreeable perspective for portraits of heads and shoulders. The fast maximum 1.8 aperture will create blurred backgrounds and put the prominence on the subject. The Bokeh provided by this lens, allowing out of focus backdrop highlights to appear subtle, rounded, and soft.

The bokeh is just fair to average. There's purple fringing (Chromatic Abrasion) when photographing a light subject that has a contrasting background) wide open. Stop it down a notch to f2.2 , else raise the ISO, problem solved

• AF - Nikkor's initial autofocus label, signifying that focus handled by a motor integral to the body of the camera.

• D- Distance. Denoted after the  f-number. It signifies the lens has the capacity to use Nikon's 3D Matrix Metering on camera bodies where it is supported.

• DX - NIKKOR - Compact and lightweight Nikon DX lenses feature a lesser image circle and are specifically created and optimized for the Nikon D-series, digital SLR camera bodies. An ideal option for photographers and enthusiasts who require shooting of expansive landscapes with Nikon DX DSLR

• FX-format sensor
The leading factor setting the Nikon FX apart from other sensors is the large size of the pixels, which allows for more light collection. For example, The D3 contains 12.1mp, encompassing a 8.45 x 8.45΅m pixel size which is 2.4 times the pixel size of the DX image sensor employed in the D7000 camera body.

• RF - Rear Focusing
Nikon’s Rear Focus system divides all lens elements into express lens groups, allowing only the back lens group to move for focus purposes

• SIC - Nikon Super Integrated Coating
Nikon uses an elite multilayer lens coating to augment the operation of its lens elements which also helps diminish ghosting and flare to minute levels. Nikon Super Integrated Coat also accomplishes several purposes,

• Subtle blurring of background for beautifully natural and evocative portraits

• An excellent choice for your first telephoto lens.

The 85mm comes with a metal, screw-on hood which is not as convenient as the plastic bayonet mounts, but you might find that you don't need the hood that often since this lens doesn't tend to flare.

The mount is metal, the AF is the "screw type" and the lens has an aperture ring so it is compatible with all past Nikon cameras, only no AF on Nikon D40, D60, D3000 or D5000.

• Compact and portable telephoto lens that is ideal for portraits

• Lens,

• 62mm snap-on front lens cap,

• Rear lens cap LF-1,

• Screw-in hood HN-23.

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