50mm on a d5100

M

max50011

New member
Hey guys,

Im still really noobish at photography but slowly learning, i recently purchased a nikkor 50mm 1.8G and from what i read since it is a fx lens and my camera is a dx the frame is effectively a 75mm right? from my understanding as well a 50mm is supposed to have a wide viewing angle (which I'm assuming means you can get a lot of what you see with your eye in the photo) but when i take photos i find that i can't fit much in the photo, for example if i want a photo of a whole person i have to stand relatively far away, and i was also trying to take a photo of a building but i had trouble getting the whole building in from where i was standing so i had to switch to my kit lens. I understand since its a fixed length away i really gotta use my feet but i find my self having to move more than i few steps. i had to clear some room off my memory card so the photos i tried hadn't survived, and the lens is really great for taking portrait or face shots, but i read a lot of people saying how a 50mm is such a great lens to always have on your camera and they use it all the time, i got the sense that it was quite versatile in that i could use it for almost everything, but im not sure if thats the case or if i just haven't learnt it well enough.

Sorry if i rambled a bit, just though it was worth getting everyones 2 cents.
any constructive criticism is welcome

​Thanks guys
 
D

Don Kuykendall_RIP

RIP :(
The field of view is different than the apparent view. The 50mm will look like the same Size as what your eye sees. That is different that the Amount of what you see. If you are close and want to see the entire person you would need a wide lens like the kit lens like the 18-55. Did you get that lens with the camera? If you did then put it on and set it to 18 and look through the lens. then set it to 50 and see the difference.
 
J

jwstl

Senior Member
A 50mm lens is not wide....not on film, not on FX, and especially not on DX. 50mm was considered "normal" or close to what your eyes see on film and on FX. On a DX camera it has the field of view of a 75mm lens which is considered telephoto. If you want wide on your DX you need to look at lenses around 24mm or shorter.


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Ijustwant1

Ijustwant1

Senior Member
I have said it before and I will say it again I Love my 50mm 1.8G , it will force you to think about composition and make walk around trying to find the best angle , and then it rewards you when you get it right :eek:
 
D

Don Kuykendall_RIP

RIP :(
Ijustwant1 said:
I have said it before and I will say it again I Love my 50mm 1.8G , it will force you to think about composition and make walk around trying to find the best angle , and then it rewards you when you get it right :eek:
Click to expand...

I have the 40 2.8 macro and I do love it. I agree with the statement that it make you think and work to get a shot. BUT sometimes you just can not get back far enough or get close enough to get the shot you need so that is why my 18-105 stays on my camera most of the time.
 
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pedroj

Senior Member
When shooting landscapes with the 50 and can't fit it all in, I usually take a few shots in portrait and stitch together in PS...

Put the lens and camera in manual, then focus once and shoot away...
 
Michael J.

Michael J.

Senior Member
You can get beautiful shots with the 50mm on the D5100. I tested a lot

kho-loy-14.jpg

kho-loy-10.jpg

loykrathong.jpg

Out from a moving car

bkkdrive-7.jpg

also night shots a great

nightsafari-11.jpg
 
Horoscope Fish

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
max50011 said:
Hey guys,

Im still really noobish at photography but slowly learning, i recently purchased a nikkor 50mm 1.8G and from what i read since it is a fx lens and my camera is a dx the frame is effectively a 75mm right? from my understanding as well a 50mm is supposed to have a wide viewing angle (which I'm assuming means you can get a lot of what you see with your eye in the photo) but when i take photos i find that i can't fit much in the photo, for example if i want a photo of a whole person i have to stand relatively far away, and i was also trying to take a photo of a building but i had trouble getting the whole building in from where i was standing so i had to switch to my kit lens. I understand since its a fixed length away i really gotta use my feet but i find my self having to move more than i few steps. i had to clear some room off my memory card so the photos i tried hadn't survived, and the lens is really great for taking portrait or face shots, but i read a lot of people saying how a 50mm is such a great lens to always have on your camera and they use it all the time, i got the sense that it was quite versatile in that i could use it for almost everything, but im not sure if thats the case or if i just haven't learnt it well enough.
Click to expand...
In short, yes; you are correct about your 50mm lens and it's 75mm perspective. Your 50mm does not give you a "wide viewing angle"; a 50mm lens on a full-frame (FX) camera would give you "normal perspective", meaning the lens perspective would be the same as what the naked eye perceives. This is not really "wide angle" by any means. On your DX sensor you don't have "normal" perspective due to the crop factor, you have what amounts to 50% zoom or, roughly, a 75mm lens perspective. You might want to move to a 35mm f/1.8 if you want to stick with a prime lens and have a "normal perspective" sort of lens. For something truly wide angle the Nikon 18-105mm is a great all-purpose lens. For a lot less you could pick up a Nikon 18-55mm which would be lighter and more compact as well. There are other choices of course, those are just a couple off the top of my head.

This whole dilemma is what I call the "double-edge sword" of the DX format sensor: I love that my 55-200mm zoom acts like an 85-300mm by virtue of the 1.5x crop factor but it on the other hand gives me fits when I want to go wide angle... For example my Tokina 11-16mm is has an 18-24mm perspective because of this crop factor which I find really freaking annoying if I think about it too much.


...
 
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J

Just-Clayton

Senior Member
This is why I got a 35mm lens. I had a manual 50mm on my 3100 and when I got my300s I bought the 35mm. I knew that I need something wider for portraits.
 
M

max50011

New member
​wow thanks for all the input guys, i def learned a lot. yeah i was off about the wide viewing angle lol my bad. i will definitely practice my shot composition
 
Mycenius

Mycenius

Senior Member
laubach road said:
IF the AF 50mm1.8D is a 75mm on a DX cam, then, it can be used as a similar "portrait DX 85mm lens"?
Click to expand...

Nope! Because an 85mm DX is equivalent to 127.5mm! ;)

It's all relative, EVERYTHING on a DX is equivalent to x1.5 it's published FL. :)


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Mycenius

Mycenius

Senior Member
Moab Man said:
​There is both an FX and DX for this lens. Below is a link for the no such thing lens. :)

Tokina | Digital Eyes - Visionary technology makes a difference you can see
Click to expand...


:confused-new:

Err - that's not the 11-16mm that link points to MM...

There is only one 11-16mm Tokina lens: Tokina | Digital Eyes - Visionary technology makes a difference you can see

EDIT: There are 2 versions of the same lens - the original and the 'II' version, which might be what you are meaning... But they are not FX series?
 
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Horoscope Fish

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
The 50mm f1.8 G would be an excellent choice for a portrait lens on a DX sensor.

Don't get all freaked out about the about the crop factor. We know what kind of perspective you will be getting with a 50mm lens on a DX sensor and that's why we're suggesting it. The same goes for the 35mm f1.8G. I could use either very effectively as a portrait lens; I would just need to move a little closer if I was going to be using the 35mm.
 
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