Nikon AI-S Nikkor 50mm 𝒇1.8 Lens Review

Nikon AI-S Nikkor 50mm 𝒇1.8 is a lightweight normal manual focus lens for Nikon F cameras. It protrudes just about 2.5cm/.98” from the mount, which makes it a compact and affordable ($100-200) option for the system.

The 50mm Nikkor is the second kit Nikon F lens reviewed on this website; the first was the Series E 50mm — a slightly lighter and cheaper option. TL;DR: the Nikkor feels a bit better in hand and appears to have superior optical qualities.

In this review, I’m sharing my experience with this lens on my Nikon FM2n and FE cameras, a bit of history and identification for the six variants of this lens, and my thoughts on whether the Nikkor is worth the extra ~$75 as compared to the cheaper Series E.In this review: Specifications. “Non-AI” vs. AI vs. AI-S lenses. The SIX manual AI/AI-S Nikon 50mm pancake lenses and how to tell them apart. Nikon Series E vs. Nikkor. Build quality. Image quality. Where to buy your Nikkor AI-S 50mm 𝒇1.8 lens. Support this blog & get premium features with GOLD memberships!

Specifications.

The 148g (5.2oz) Nikon AI-S Nikkor 50mm 𝒇1.8 lens protrudes 2.5cm/.98” from the camera body. It’s one of the most compact lens options for the F system.

The lens uses seven aperture blades to stop down to 𝒇22 with clicks to funnel light through its six multi-coated elements in five groups that employ the Double Gauss/Planar design. The 𝒇1.8 is a modified version of the earlier, bulkier Nikkor 50mm 𝒇2; the newer 50mm uses thinner/flatter elements and a shorter gap between the groups for the aperture blades.

The nearest focus distance is .6m/2’ on my copy, though a variant exists with a min of .45m/1’6”.

The focus throw on this lens is ~75°, and it uses a 52mm filter thread.

“Non-AI” vs. AI vs. AI-S lenses.

The F mount is incredibly long-lived; Nikon still uses it with their new cameras. However, it has changed a few times, which affects the compatibility.

The earliest Nikon SLR lenses, produced between 1959 and 1977 (often referred to as “non-AI” lenses), used the “rabbit ears” prongs. Once mounted, the photographer needs to move the aperture ring on the lens between its min and max values — which is necessary for the built-in light meter to correctly calculate the exposure.

Nikon’s newer AI “auto-indexing” F mount lenses use a ridge on the lens mount that mechanically couples to the camera and a second set of aperture numbers you can see in the camera’s “periscope” view. AI lenses are backward compatible — but they have to have the “rabbit ears” to work with the older cameras’ (like the Nikon F2) built-in light meters; most can be easily modified for that purpose.

Unfortunately, Nikon F AI cameras that came after the F2, FE, and FM will not accept the older non-AI lenses. Forcing them on can break the cameras. Whereas most older Nikon F cameras will mount the newer AI lenses, they will not couple the aperture, and thus, you won’t be able to use the built-in meter or see the aperture values in your finder — but the FE and FM can take both types of lenses with the meter fully functional.

AI-S, introduced in 1981, is an updated version of the AI coupling that improved aperture priority modes on certain Nikon F cameras, like the FA, the FG and the F301. You can identify them by the half-round slot on the lens mount.

The SIX manual AI/AI-S Nikon 50mm pancake lenses and how to tell them apart.

The first version of this lens (1978-1982) was an AI Nikkor 50mm “Longnose.” This lens featured some technical improvements over the previous generation Nikkor 50mm 𝒇2, such as the 𝒇1.8 max aperture, better control for aberrations and a recessed lens element providing better protection from flaring.

Nikon’s updated “Longnose” (1981-1985) used AI-S coupling while the rest of the specs remained the same.

The Longnose was about the same size as Nikon’s original 50mm design, but its elements were flatter with less space between them, which Nikon had finally taken full advantage of with their first pancake design:

The first compact 50mm AI-S lens (1980-1982) was a lot flatter with dimensions similar to the lens reviewed in this article. You can identify this lens by the serial number, which follows the pattern 2xxxxxx. Source.

The “first compact” version of the lens, originally made for the Japanese market, uses a rubber aperture grip (whereas the new version uses a plastic one). But most importantly, it can focus as close as .45m/1’6” — whereas the rest of the variants will have you step back to .6m/2’.

The new compact 50mm AI-S lens (1985-2005) has had an impressively long run, and it is the version reviewed in this article.

The remaining two variants differed in image quality, build, and price:

Nikon Series E vs. Nikkor.

The 50mm Nikon Series E (1979-1981) was the “economy” variant that used more plastic components (perhaps even fewer parts, judging by how the focus ring behaves) and a single coating.

It was later updated (1981-1985) with a metal ring to look like the Nikkor variants — though you can still easily identify it by the print on the front that remained: “Nikon Lens Series E.”

While comparing the results between Series E and the new compact 50mm AI-S, I’ve also noticed significant differences in how the images were rendered, notably the coma aberration (see examples below). This aberration was noticeable at all wider apertures, especially in backlit scenes — which may have also contributed to the diminished sharpness at infinity. Fewer coatings would cause more flaring with the Series E glass — but the non-E lenses are not immune to flaring either.

While the Nikon’s vintage 50mm lenses aren’t particularly expensive, Series E variants usually sell for ~$75 less.

Whereas that’s worth the savings will depend on your preferences. I haven’t had much of an issue with fewer coatings and I preferred the look of an all-black lens on my black paint Nikon bodies. However, the focus ring on the E isn’t as smooth, and the occasional coma aberration feels distracting, which is not what I want in my images.

Build quality.

Compared to Series E, the new Nikkor 50mm AI-S is a better-made lens. The difference is slight but noticeable.

On its own, this lens is on par with the rest of vintage Nikkors: well-designed and sturdy. There’s plastic on the outside, but despite being at least twenty years old, there are no signs of deterioration, chips, or scuffs — and my copy came from a well-used body. I’m confident that this lens can outlive me.

Image quality.

Other than corrected coma aberration, better assembly, and additional lens coatings, the Nikkor appears to be an overall sharper lens than its Series E counterpart — at least when it comes to far-away objects. This, of course, is just an opinion since I haven’t tested them side-by-side. Nevertheless, I’m very happy with the results I got back with this glass.

Other aberrations, such as chromatic aberration are negligible on the 50mm Nikkor. It appears sharp and well-resolving across the frame when stopped down with just a little softness and swirls in the corners when shot wide-open.

This lens produces natural contrast across the frame with no vignetting.

But of course, no lens is perfect, and the 50mm Nikkor is not an exception to that rule. I found that it’s possible to get it to flare (when the sun is slightly beyond the frame), and when it does flare, the results can look extreme:

The light flares can flood most of the frame which can give a dreamy look or a serious distraction.

That is not to say that this lens has no flare resistance. Another example (below) shows the sun blasting straight into the glass without significant effect on the rest of the image — partially because it’s an overall bright scene but also because the worst flares usually appear when the light is at an angle.

Overall, I wouldn’t say that flaring is a serious issue with this lens, but if this is something you’re trying to prevent by all means, you may need to look elsewhere.

The bokeh on the 50mm Nikkor has a slight overcorrected “bubble” effect and no swirl (unless you look in the tiny parts of the utmost corners). It looks nearly identical to the Series E variant; I like both versions.

The below sample had a lot of contrast thanks to a small studio light, which may’ve helped produce this very sharp image that I felt was impressive enough to be the header for my “How to Make Sharper Photos on Film” article.

A couple more samples with colour film:

Where to buy your Nikkor AI-S 50mm 𝒇1.8 lens.

Nikkor AI-S 50mm 𝒇1.8 lenses are easy to find online (see links below) and even at brick-and-mortar shops that sell camera gear. They typically sell for $100-200, depending on condition. If this is your first time shopping for vintage glass, see this guide.

❤ By the way: Please consider making your Nikon Series E 50mm 𝒇1.8 lens purchase using this link so that this website may get a small percentage of that sale — at no extra charge for you — thanks!