Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens USA

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

This is a beautiful lens. I've only used it 3 times, but I am loving it! The bokeh is creamy and soft. It gives the photos such a romantic feel. It is a hard lens to use at first. Any camera shake on 1.4 will not be tack sharp, but when you do get it tack sharp, what a prize it is. I am anxious to learn this lens and pull every bit out of it that I can.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

I did not expect this poor auto focus performace from a lens for this much money. Specially it has been in production for so long.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

I've been using this lens mainly for portraits. Super sharp with great bokeh as billed. My biggest gripe for the lens would be that the auto-focus is often inaccurate in low light. Perhaps the newer version of this lens does a better job with this.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

I am a wedding photographer and this lens is a very usefull tool in my work.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

Perfect portrait lens...

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

The 85 1.4D is a Nikon classic, nicknamed "The King of Bokeh" and "The Cream Machine" when it was released in 1995. I love this lens. It creates beautiful bokeh, sharp, great build quality and the images seem to pop off the page. Although, Nikon offers the updated version of this lens (85mm 1.4G) and from what I've read the new G lens is optically sharper. However, the 85mm 1.4D has a "look" that can't be reproduced with the newer G lens. The focus isn't lighting fast, but fast enough where I'm not complaining. Wide open at 1.4 the corners are slightly soft and you may see slight vignetteing, which I believe is part of the charm of this lens, but stopped down to 2.8 or more, that disappears. It's an awesome lens to have in your bag.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

I have only used my product once and liked it very much! Hope to be able to get even more positive results with more and more upcoming use!

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

Beautiful and sharp! Can't ask for more!

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

I am getting spectacular results with this lens. It is sharp and fast and is very comfortable to shoot with. Lovely to be shooting with a fixed focal length lens. I would definitely recommend this lens for portrait and wedding photography.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

This lens is the best portrait you can have for FX camera. Image quality and sharpness are incredible. Built as a tank. Due to the nature of portrait photography I personally think AF-S or VR is not something you need on 85mm therefore the balance price/quality is just right on this one. Its bokeh is so creamy @ wide! And the resale vealue? It just sells for almost the same price second hand so get it new @ B&H!!!

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

This beauty is a monster. Weighs as much as a Buick Skylark and is worth every penny. I gotta say I've had mine for a few years and it has NEVER disappointed. If you don't have this gem you owe it to yourself to buy one for your arsenal. Bokeh is stupifying, beautiful, wonderful. I'm a wide angle kinda guy, but this is phenomenal for weddings, sports and portraits. This is a no-brainer, if you never buy another lens do yourself a solid and purchase it. You can't go wrong.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

This 85mm 1.4d lens is just extraordinary. I've had low and mid-range lenses, all Nikons; most performed well. But this lens does something to light to make pictures look almost surreal. Skin tones are rendered in rich, vivid colors and nuanced gradations. When opened up to f2.5 and below, it takes a slice of perfect clarity -- the focus plane -- and paints behind it a lovely blur of background. I don't understand how it can be so sharp and clear, so detailed and clean, out of doors in daylight, and then so painterly, gentle, but still accurate in dim indoor lighting. Just amazing.

If you're considering buying it and have a DX-format camera, think very hard about whether you're willing to work with a very narrow field of view. Remember than 85mm on a full-frame is 127.5mm on a DX... and things get very tight at 127.5mm. In one of our larger rooms, 30-something feet by 15-something feet, I often have to back up nearly to a wall to get more than a face-only shot of our toddler. You'll save yourself and B&H time and effort by deciding before purchase whether you can live with this design factor.

And though focus on the 85mm is quick, precise, and makes a purposeful little whirring noise, it has trouble maintaining a lock on moving faces when mounted on my DX-format camera. That's the camera's fault; no trouble at all on my D700.

This lens is art and science together -- precise, detailed, gentle, expressive.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

Relatively fast focusing lens that really allows one to create fantastic baby photos and portraits. Very Happy with this lens

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

Disclosure: I made up a list of "lenses I wanted someday", and this one wound up under my Christmas tree. Lucky me!

This lens takes absolutely beautiful portraits, and I'm a photographer of limited ability shooting on a DX body. The bokeh is pleasing to the eye. The autofocus works really well. Manual focus is what-you-make-of-it. (I'm learning.) The lens is sharp enough at f/1.4, very sharp at 2.0, and tack-sharp at 2.8.

It is a little heavier than I remembered but that's the trade-off for super-solid construction. This lens feels brick-solid and I find that a comfort. I use filters on it and the filters thread on and off easily.

Should you buy this lens? Well I tested the 1.4G, roughly 60% more expensive, and saw no real difference in quality (again on DX). So I'm glad I have this one. A better photographer might be able to coax out differences. One other thing to consider is that at time of writing (January 2012) Nikon has announced a 1.8G for February release. Both the 1.8G and the 1.8D which it is presumably replacing are half the cost of this lens. So you may want to wait for the 1.8G's release, test all four lenses, and find the 85mm prime that suits both your needs and budget.

This is the best lens in my current collection and it's really maximizing my slow-growing talent.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

I love this lens, can't use it for everything, but it really can't be beat for portraits and is fun to shoot candids with! The focus ring is slightly loose on the one I got though...

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

I'm a beginning professional photographer and this lens attached to the Nikon D3s is a dream especially for fast moving pets but also for soft touches in portraits. It's an expensive investment but worth it.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

I just switched over to Nikon after shooting with Canon equipment for years. One of the primary reasons for switching was this lens.

I'd been using the Canon 85mm f/1.8 and wanted to upgrade for a few reasons (among others, it had terrible problems with fringing in areas of high contrast). When I rented Canon's L series 85mm, though, I was terribly disppointed. That lens took FOREVER to focus, and since I shoot kids 90% of the time, that wasn't going to work for me.

I rented a D700 and this lens and I was sold. The fringing issue is nearly non-existent. The color, clarity, sharpness and bokeh are fabulous. I am going to acquire additional Nikon lenses over time, but I don't feel like I'm in a rush because I'll probably want to use this one 80-90% of the time.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

This is a fabulous len!

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

This is a terrific lens- the focus is sharp, even wide open. I photograph primarly children, and it has been wonderful to use. I find myself reaching for this lens over the others, as I know I'll get beautiful results.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.4D IF Autofocus Lens:

I've had an opportunity to use this for three types of shooting so far: high school soccer under the lights (and in fog), night time shooting of a college campus, and portraiture. In all 3 cases I am very pleased.

As mentioned in other reviews, it is not the fastest at focusing, but it was not slow enough to deter me from using it - it simply requires that you factor this in when taking action shots. Even with that limitation, I was still able to capture images that would not have been possible otherwise.

Excellent for night time street shooting, and no suprise at all that it excels with portraiture. An excellent lens that helps address specific challenges in my shooting, and does so with outstanding quality.