- Hey everybody, this is Roberto Blake of robertoblake.com
helping you create something awesome today.
So, today we're going to be taking a closer look
at the Nikon 85mm f/1.8G Lens.
This is a sweet Nikkor lens.
It is actually great in terms of build quality,
despite being a little plasticky.
It's a lot lighter
than the previous versions of this same lens
and according to everyone that I talked to,
it's a lot sharper.
So, recently I decided to rent this lens from Lumoid
and play with it a little bit.
They're not sponsoring this particular video.
Actually, I just decided to go out-of-pocket and rent this,
so that I could make a decision as to whether or not
I'm going to buy this lens
and that's what we're here to talk about today.
We're here to talk about
whether this lens is worth it or not.
This lens retails in Amazon for around $400 bucks.
It used to be a little more expensive.
Overall, I'm very proud of the shots that this lens took.
I think that the bokeh quality
was tremendous in the shots that I used it for.
Both when doing video and for doing still photography.
So that was really cool.
The auto focusing was pretty smooth on this
as you're seeing in the view hole here
and it worked pretty fast.
My only issues with this lens
are a little bit of the lack of flexibility.
This is great for when you want to do head shots,
but if you are not doing portraiture,
there are some limitations to this lens
due to the fact that
the minimum focusing distance is about .8 meters
or roughly two point two feet.
So, if you need to get close to a subject,
this is not a lens for you.
Unless you want to get a close-up shot
while you're standing a few feet away,
like maybe closer to two and a half to three meters away.
Then you can get the shot.
But if you need to be a foot away,
this is not the lens for you.
So, in tight spots, this is not
going to be very practical for you.
You'd be better served with something
like the 35mm Nikon f/1.8 or the 50mm f/1.4 or 1.8, as well.
The advantages of this lens are the fact that
you can do really good in terms of portraits
due to a lack of lens distortion
and a lack of compression.
So, this actually takes some of the best head shots
if your looking for something
that's gonna be better glass for you,
can shoot low light situations,
get tremendous head shots and you actually have the room.
You're in a long corridor or in a larger room.
You're outdoors.
You've got plenty of space.
This lens is perfect for that situation.
This could be really good,
if you're a new wedding photographer
and you have situations where you're doing your stage shots
or you have a little bit of time to do set-up.
This could be a great portrait lens
for weddings and for events.
I think that's tremendous.
If you're a filmmaker and you're composing your shots.
This is fantastic for you.
So, I think that whose this lens is for
and that's what I would say,
makes it a good investment.
I think overall, if you already have a 35mm,
that this is probably a better investment
for you than getting a 50mm,
because the difference between the 35 and 50
is not going to be that much,
even on crop body.
I would still say that with your full frame or crop
that this lens will give you another option,
as far as primes go.
If you have a 50 and you're looking at another lens,
I would say either this or the f/2.8 105mm.
Overall, this is great for video.
This is great for photography,
but only in certain situations.
The 50mm prime is probably going to be the most flexible
out of the primes that you can get.
So, I would highly recommend that you get that,
if flexibility and space is an issue.
If you want to get the best portrait shot you can
on a budget, in terms of a lens that's going to be
under $600, $700 dollars,
then I would highly recommend this for you.
So, is it worth it?
Yeah.
I think that I'm going to be investing in the 85mm prime.
I won't be doing that anytime soon,
just because right now my focus is not portraiture.
But I do like the idea of having this option.
So, if I'm going to buy a $500 dollar or less lens,
this would be the next one
that I would probably look at getting.
Anyway, I would love to know your thoughts
on the 85mm prime, also.
Look forward to my full review,
covering all the technical specs of this lens
and showing off a few more of my shots.
You need to be subscribed to the channel,
in order to get those.
If you want to try out the 85mm f/1.8G lens
from Nikon for yourself,
you have a couple of options.
You can buy it either directly from Amazon with the
link and description below that helps out the channel
or if you want to try it before you buy it
and like I did and make a decision,
you could always rent it from our friends at Lumoid.
There will be a link for that in the description,
as well as probably one here in the info card.
So you can definitely check that out.
This lens is actually really affordable,
both to rent and to buy outright.
So, either way, I think this could be
a really good investment for you.
And of course, you can always see for yourself.
Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed my review of the 85mm f/1.8.
If you still have questions,
leave those in the comment section.
Like this video, if you like it.
Don't forget to subscribe.
Check out the other awesome content on the channel.
As always, you guys, thanks so very much for watching
and don't forget, create something awesome today.