Every Nikon shooter knows the new 50mm f/1.4 AFS G is here. We all know it’s probably better than the previous AF-D lens. But how much better? And can it compete with the new Sigma 50 1.4 with it’s aspherical and specially coated elements, not to mention the f/1.2 caliber design overall?

Or, the quality that is by definition the most difficult-to-quantify, the lens’ bokeh.

So far, it’s not looking good.

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1021&message=30420165

Just a sample of how bad it COULD be if you have anti-bokeh stuff in the background? I hope. Here’s a sample that shows some CREAMY bokeh coming from the new Nikon 50, from my b-school friend and NPS member Jan Oscarsson. Check out the 4th image in this blog post, the bokeh is just buttery!

http://www.oscarsson.dk/blog/?p=69

Overall, I’m still skeptical as to which will out-perform the other for bokeh and sharpness, the Sigma or the Nikon. I suspect that the Sigma will prove slightly better for both, but the Nikon being less glass will inherently be a bit faster to autofocus, and being a Nikon name-brand AFS, it might be a tad more acccurate, Sigma HSM can be finnicky sometimes…

So, it’s still a toss-up unfortunately. I think I’ll go on Ebay and check to see if there are any used Sigma 50 1.4′s floating around…

=Matt=