My Favorite 50

The focal length lens I use more than any other is the standard 50mm prime. And my favorite 50mm lens is this Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 Ai-S, serial number 5359395.

I can’t remember when I bought it, nor do I recall if I bought it alone or if it came on a camera. Over the years, it’s lived on various F2 bodies and my F3HP. I’ve used it recently on my Nikkormat EL and right now, it’s on a Nikon FM. Camera bodies have come and gone but this Nikkor has stayed with me. Why?

For me, photography is a very tactile experience. The way a piece of gear feels and handles is right up there with the way it performs. This particular lens just feels good to me. I have several other Nikkor 50s, both the f/1.4 and the f/1.8. The focus on those feels a little loose. On my favorite 50, the focus feels sublime, well-damped and precise. I am not sure if that is the way it supposed to feel or this one is getting a bit stiff. I never had the opportunity to try a new manual focus Nikkor, so I have nothing to compare it with. But the focus ring resistance on my favorite 50 feels just right.

Because of the way this lens feels, I use it more than any other lens I own. I keep this Hoya 52mm metal hood on it. Of all of the lens hoods I have used, I really like this Hoya.

I also love the way the Nikon chrome ring filters look on these old Nikkors. This one is a Nikon L39. I am a member of several Nikon Facebook groups and very often, when I post a picture of one of my old cameras sporting this lens set up, I’ll get comments from people telling me to remove the filter because it will cause glare or flare or whatnot. I’ve shot oodles of images with this lens and have never seen anything of the sort, so I keep using it because…well…because it looks cool to me.

I’ve had a few other lenses that felt as good as this one. Those early Pentax Takumars focus like a dream and I once owned a Leica-R Vario-Elmar 35-70 zoom that was very nice to drive. I knew a carpenter once who told me how important a good hammer is in hitting a nail straight and true—it had to be balanced and feel good in the hand. Cameras and lenses are simply tools a photographer uses to make pictures, so your gear should feel good and inspire you to use it. This lens does it for me. Do you have a camera or lens that inspires you? Please share in the comments. I would love to hear.