Sample Shots

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Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 160 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/2.5 Exposure 1/5000s	Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 160 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/5.6 Exposure 1/1250s
Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 160 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/8.0 Exposure 1/500s	Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 100 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/6.3 Exposure 1/640s
Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 100 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/1.4 Exposure 1/5000s	Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 100 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/1.8 Exposure 1/5000s
Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 100 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/2.5 Exposure 1/2000s	Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 100 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/2.0 Exposure 1/2500s
Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 100 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/4.0 Exposure 1/1250s	Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 160 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/3.2 Exposure 1/800s
Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 160 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/5.6 Exposure 1/800s	Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 160 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/2.5 Exposure 1/6400s
Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 160 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/7.1 Exposure 1/320s	Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 160 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/3.5 Exposure 1/2000s
Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 160 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/1.8 Exposure 1/8000s	Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 160 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/2.2 Exposure 1/5000s
Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 160 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/3.2 Exposure 1/2500s	Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 100 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/2.0 Exposure 1/3200s
Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 100 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/2.8 Exposure 1/3200s	Make NIKON CORPORATION Model NIKON D3X ISO Speed 100 Focal Length 58.0mm Aperture: f/1.4 Exposure 1/8000s

Verdict

The amount of vignetting is unusually low for an ultra-fast aperture lens and distortion is usually nothing to worry about either. Lateral chromatic aberrations mostly irrelevant. The quality of the bokeh is good although it doesn't stand out. Especially the foreground blur could be smoother, although that's a lesser issue admittedly.

The build quality is very high thanks to high quality materials and tight tolerances. Some may raise an eyebrow regarding the use of plastic rather than metal for the lens body though. The AF speed is fine without being a benchmark. AF noise is a non-issue thanks to the Silent-Wave motor.

Now this doesn't sound so bad actually, right ? However, the much cheaper Nikkor AF-S 50mm f/1.4 G isn't really significantly worse and if our Canon review of the Sigma 50mm f/1.4 HSM DG Art can be a guidance, the Sigma will be able to beat the Nikkor at almost half the price (which is still high enough for a nifty-fifty).

Click here for an explanation of our star ratings