Your thoughts on Nikkor 50/1.8 AI-S Japanese pancake version

Nice shots dourbalistar. I especially like the cliff face and the shot of your daughter (?) with just the right amount of background blur. We can tell something about the surroundings, but it's blurred enough not to distract.
 
Smaug said:
Nice shots dourbalistar. I especially like the cliff face and the shot of your daughter (?) with just the right amount of background blur. We can tell something about the surroundings, but it's blurred enough not to distract.
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Thanks, Smaug! The cliff face is Half Dome in Yosemite, a favorite subject of St. Ansel. ;)

And yes, that's my daughter at the Christmas tree farm. I was hoping to achieve exactly what you noted, and I was glad when it turned out as I intended. :)
 
I do not need a new lens, I do not need a new..., I do not need...:D

...but now I'm curious and I would like to try one on my FM2T !!!

Excellent photos in the thread...
 
I have shot with various versions of the 50mm 1.8 such as the Ai, Ai-S, E Series, and this Ai-S pancake version you speak of - I realize that they aren't all identical and have slight variations, but I couldn't personally tell you how they differ.

My hands aren't massive, but I find the pancake version to be just a bit too small to be comfortable for me. I've settled on the 50mm f/2 as my primary F mount 50, but if I had to pick one of the 1.8's, it would be the plain jane Ai version.
 
AAlfano said:
dourbalistar: Amazing photo! Would you mind sharing details of how you made this exposure!

All your work in this thread is brilliant. Nice looking family!
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Thank you for the kind words! Here's how I set up the star trail shot. I framed up the shot before it got dark, and set the aperture and focus. Once it was dark enough, I set a 90 minute exposure using a cable release, then went and sat by the campfire and enjoyed a beer. :cool:



I took two exposures, and the one you quoted in Post #65 is actually the second one. It was already dark when I set up the second exposure, so I just pointed at a different part of the sky and left it up to f/8... I mean fate. ;)
 
robert blu said:
I do not need a new lens, I do not need a new..., I do not need...:D

...but now I'm curious and I would like to try one on my FM2T !!!

Excellent photos in the thread...
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Thank you, Robert! Luckily, this lens is not terribly expensive, and it makes for a nice, compact package on the FM2. I got mine on the Big Auction site for about $120USD shipped. :D
 
jrose125 said:
I have shot with various versions of the 50mm 1.8 such as the Ai, Ai-S, E Series, and this Ai-S pancake version you speak of - I realize that they aren't all identical and have slight variations, but I couldn't personally tell you how they differ.

My hands aren't massive, but I find the pancake version to be just a bit too small to be comfortable for me. I've settled on the 50mm f/2 as my primary F mount 50, but if I had to pick one of the 1.8's, it would be the plain jane Ai version.
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Yeah, ergonomics is a personal preference. As far as versions, there three different pancake versions, and I believe they're optically identical:
Series E < Ai-S < Japanese market Ai-S

The differences between them are:
Single coated < multi-coated < 0.45m MFD

I've not tried the other 50/1.8 variants so I can't comment on those, but I can say that I really like the results I've gotten from this Japanese-market pancake. :D
 
Was considering a pancake lens for my FM2 but the price differential for the ‘S’ version doesn’t seem meaningful enough though nice to have 0.45m close focus. The images appear lower contrast, probably typical for the era. The 45/2.8 AIP, though a stop slower, is truly a pancake. Personally, the slightly wider CV 2/40 has a closer focus of 0.4m and is a higher contrast optic too. Tried the SLI version and it’s every bit as solidly built as any Nikkor AIS.
 
The 45 pancake is *definitely* overpriced for its performance, which is good for a Tessar, not that that says very much. it’s more of a collector lens and still sells for $300ish, plus or minus. The earlier 45 GN is truly a low contrast Tessar.

The Voigtlander is the best of this comparison (as expected as it’s a contemporary design and manufacture) but also sells for quite a bit more. I prefer the larger 40/2 SL IIS that focuses to 0.25 without a close-up filter; great lens!
 
james.liam said:
Was considering a pancake lens for my FM2 but the price differential for the ‘S’ version doesn’t seem meaningful enough though nice to have 0.45m close focus. The images appear lower contrast, probably typical for the era. The 45/2.8 AIP, though a stop slower, is truly a pancake. Personally, the slightly wider CV 2/40 has a closer focus of 0.4m and is a higher contrast optic too. Tried the SLI version and it’s every bit as solidly built as any Nikkor AIS.
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Given that the non-Japanese market pancake and the Japanese-market "S" versions are optically identical, I'm sure you could get similar results for a bit less cost.

splitimageview said:
The 45 pancake is *definitely* overpriced for its performance, which is good for a Tessar, not that that says very much. it’s more of a collector lens and still sells for $300ish, plus or minus. The earlier 45 GN is truly a low contrast Tessar.

The Voigtlander is the best of this comparison (as expected as it’s a contemporary design and manufacture) but also sells for quite a bit more. I prefer the larger 40/2 SL IIS that focuses to 0.25 without a close-up filter; great lens!
Click to expand...

I considered the Voigtlander pancake, too, but ultimately it was quite a bit more expensive in comparison. Style-wise, the larger 40/2 SL IIS reminds me of a modern version of the Nikkor 50/2 non-AI, albeit a slightly wider focal length. I'm sure it has better overall performance, being a more modern version.
 
Agreed. An SLR lens that doesn’t have decent close focus won’t qualify to be in my bag. :)

Another portrait gem...
 
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