I've fallen for manual focus lenses and I blame all of you!

[Bjørn Rørslett]

The 105 is well suited to any F-mount camera but shines on the Df because of the synergetic effect it has on the overall handling of this particular combination. To illustrate, the 14-24/2.8 is still a glorious lens on the Df, but the handling isn't great. That lens better fits a heavier camera in my opinion. So it goes. One always must take the entire ecosystem into account.

[David H. Hartman]

I would rather use a small lens on a larger camera than a large lens on a small or light camera. The large lens on a small camera can be painfully unbalanced. The larger cameras will be balanced even without a lens.

Dave Hartman

If the small lens is a pancake lens one can think of it as a body cap and toss it in the back seat of the car when putting a real lens on the camera.

[John Geerts]

If the small lens is a pancake lens one can think of it as a body cap and toss it in the back seat of the car when putting a real lens on the camera.

That´s a good method to loose a 45P 

Agree with the 180ED. 

The later versions of the 55/1.2 (K) and multicoated come very close to the 50/1.2 AI.

[David H. Hartman]

That´s a good method to loose a 45P 

I thought everyone who owned a 45P had already lossed theirs.

I used to buy use neverready cases cheap. Take the thumb screw thing out of the bottom and attach the neck strap to the camera. I really did toss the whole case in the back seat of my Corvair Spyder. It worked great if only carrying the camera with one lens. Alas the supply of cheap mint neverready cases has dried up.

Dave

[Airy]

No such case, but 105 on Df is a good match in terms of size, proportion, and balance.

The 105 is also pleasant on m4/3.

[jhinkey]

Yeah, the 45P is on my D800 the vast majority of time as it does double duty as a fine lens and a fine lens cap.

Losing it?  Not yet, but occasionally I misplace it in my lens drawer among all the other much larger Nikkors. 
For that reason I own two excellent copies just in case.

[simsurace]

Ok....so I don't "need" any manual focus lenses....and I'm going to get probably both of these eventually.  If you could get one of these right now which would you get first.

Nikon 55mm f/1.2 or the 180/2.8

There is a shop close to me and they have both on the shelf.  I've done some research and have a good haggling price structure setup....just don't know which one to pull the trigger on first.  kind of leaning toward the 55mm first.

Personally I would get the 180 first, make sure it is the ED version.
I would get a 50/1.2 ais and then the 55/2.8 micro, unless you are fine with two different 55s.

[Fons Baerken]

Moreover to reply to the name of the thread, getting excellent, near mint mf nikkors has become a search they are growing rare and less affordable, prices have risen significantly over the years.
We may hope and pray Nikon will continue to deliver cameras like the Df that will remain f-mount compatible.
In other words get these mf lenses if you can afford, at least the 35/1.4, 50/1.2, 85/1.4, 105/2.5, 180/2.8 etc..

[gryphon1911]

Moreover to reply to the name of the thread, getting excellent, near mint mf nikkors has become a search they are growing rare and less affordable, prices have risen significantly over the years.
We may hope and pray Nikon will continue to deliver cameras like the Df that will remain f-mount compatible.
In other words get these mf lenses if you can afford, at least the 35/1.4, 50/1.2, 85/1.4,105/2.5, 180/2.8 etc..

Agreed.  Unfortunately, not any local 50/1.2...only the one 55/1.2 that I know of.

I currently have the AF 20/2.8D...which works well, so I might wait on getting a 24mmfor a bit.  Concentrate more on the 55 or a 180. 

[David H. Hartman]

I'd go for the 180/2.8 ED over a 55/1.2.

Dave

[gryphon1911]

Yesterday I went into the camera store and the 55/1.2 was gone....but there was a 50/1.2 in its place.  They were asking $500USD, which I did not think was a bad price....but not exactly what I was wanting to spend right now.

I did take a minute to test drive the Nikon 180/2.8 AIS (Not sure if it was the ED...forgot to check)....but man is that one sharp lens!  I can see me getting that one in the future as well.   looked to be in like new condition.

I did however, walk out of there with three lenses for not a whole lot of money.

What came home:

Nikon 55/3.5 Micro-NIKKOR - I cannot believe the sharpness from this lens.   So very awesome and the close focusing is a bonus.  The zoom ring is very smooth and the aperture ring is solid as well.  $75USD
Nikon 60mm f/2.8D - inexpensive and I was not sure which one to pick, this or the 55/3.5....so I got both.  I kind of like the shorter focus throw of the 60 in some ways...but that 55 is great and small.  I'll do some testing and see which one to keep...or I'll juts keep both. 
Zhongyi Creator 85mm f/2 - this was one of those "what is that"...got intrigued and for under $100 I decided to take a chance on it.  All metal build, smooth aperture ring.  The focus ring turns the wrong way(no big deal for me).  Initial impressions show a decent quality on the bokeh, a little dreamy at f/2 but comes together by f/2.8-4.  The focus throw is enormous though.

I'll probably review all these at some point and share my thoughts.

I was able to get out nad do some street photography yesterday.  It was a warm spring day here in OH, so I took my adapted PEN-F and the 55/3.5 Micro and Zhongyi out for a test drive.  Actually yesterday was a "vintage" lens day all around as I also took the Df and the Nikon 28-105/3.5-4.5D and 80-200/4.5-5.6D out in the morning for some street shooting as well.

While "modern" lenses have faster focusing and give some benefits....I like something about the rendering D and older lenses. 

[Hugh_3170]

The ED version has a distinctive gold ring on the front section just behind the area where the lens hood retracts into.  It is marked as such on mine.

.....................................................................................

I did take a minute to test drive the Nikon 180/2.8 AIS (Not sure if it was the ED...forgot to check)....but man is that one sharp lens!  I can see me getting that one in the future as well.   looked to be in like new condition.
.....................................................................................

[David H. Hartman]

What came home:

Nikon 55/3.5 Micro-NIKKOR - I cannot believe the sharpness from this lens.   So very awesome and the close focusing is a bonus.  The zoom ring is very smooth and the aperture ring is solid as well.  $75USD
Nikon 60mm f/2.8D - inexpensive and I was not sure which one to pick, this or the 55/3.5....so I got both.  I kind of like the shorter focus throw of the 60 in some ways...but that 55 is great and small.  I'll do some testing and see which one to keep...or I'll juts keep both. 

The choice for me is pretty simple: I'll choose the 55/3.5 when I don't want or need auto focus and I'll choose the AF 60/2.8 when I do. My advice is keep both. My 60/2.8 is the non-D version. My first lens was a 55/3.5 Micro-Nikkor-P back in 1970. My first AF lens was the AF 60/2.8 Micro-Nikkor. My second lens in about 1970~71 was a 105/2.5 Nikkor-P. Today if starting from scratch my second manual focus lens might be a 105/2.8 AIS Micro-Nikkor as it can do double duty as a candid portrait lens and close-up to macro.

I remember using a 105/2.5 for a landscape detail and wondering about using a longer lens for landscape. My quick decision was screw any rules and I took the photograph of some mountain peaks. For landscape I figure any lens from 15mm to 400mm is valid as that's my widest and longest lens. I feel it's natural to survey a wide area (wide angle) and also to look at distant details more closely (normal to super telephoto).

I'll highly recommend the 105/4.0 AI or AIS Micro-Nikkor, 105/2.8 AIS Micro-Nikkor and 180/2.8 ED Nikkor. Very sharp f/5.6 to f/8 and good to f/11 except the 180/2.8 ED which is very sharp at f/2.8 to f/8.0. Good bokeh and I don't remember nasty habits for flare and ghost as I use deep hoods. Everyone (or almost every one) recommends the 105/2.5 Nikkor-P to AIS. The early ones are Sonar designs while the later ones are Xenotar designs. My favorite has been the 105/2.5 AIS but there are advantages to the longer focus throw on the AI version. I use the same HS-8 or 14 hoods on both. I used to own both AI and AIS but had to sell one to settle a debt. I should have found another way.

Dave Hartman

[Hugh_3170]

I too prefer the non-AiS versions of the 105mm f/2.5, but I have both. 

My "Ai" version is in fact a K, which I bought new in the 1970s as an impoverished student, and it has subsequently been Ai converted with a factory Ai aperture ring and now sports one of Bjørn's metering chips.  It is the same formulation as the Ai lens that succeeded it and it has the same 170 Deg. focus throw as the Ai (versus the 140 Degs. of the AiS).  Its minimum aperture is f/32, whereas the Ai and the AiS have f/22 as their minumum apertures.  So, if you cannot find a good copy of the Ai version and if you also want the longer focus throw, then see if you can locate a good K version of the lens.  Not very hard to Ai convert. 

The 180mm f/2.8 ED and the 55mm f/3.5 are excellent - I have both and both are favourites of mine.  The 55mm f/3.5 lenses must be about the highest value for money Nikon lenses on the second hand market these days - almost a steal!

The choice for me is pretty simple: I'll choose the 55/3.5 when I don't want or need auto focus and I'll choose the AF 60/2.8 when I do. My advice is keep both. My 60/2.8 is the non-D version. My first lens was a 55/3.5 Micro-Nikkor-P back in 1970. My first AF lens was the AF 60/2.8 Micro-Nikkor. My second lens in about 1970~71 was a 105/2.5 Nikkor-P. Today if starting from scratch my second manual focus lens might be a 105/2.8 AIS Micro-Nikkor as it can do double duty as a candid portrait lens and close-up to macro.

I remember using a 105/2.5 for a landscape detail and wondering about using a longer lens for landscape. My quick decision was screw any rules and I took the photograph of some mountain peaks. For landscape I figure any lens from 15mm to 400mm is valid as that's my widest and longest lens. I feel it's natural to survey a wide area (wide angle) and also to look at distant details more closely (normal to super telephoto).

I'll highly recommend the 105/4.0 AI or AIS Micro-Nikkor, 105/2.8 AIS Micro-Nikkor and 180/2.8 ED Nikkor. Very sharp f/5.6 to f/8 and good to f/11 except the 180/2.8 ED which is very sharp at f/2.8 to f/8.0. Good bokeh and I don't remember nasty habits for flare and ghost as I use deep hoods. Everyone (or almost every one) recommends the 105/2.5 Nikkor-P to AIS. The early ones are Sonar designs while the later ones are Xenotar designs. My favorite has been the 105/2.5 AIS but there are advantages to the longer focus throw on the AI version. I use the same HS-8 or 14 hoods on both. I used to own both AI and AIS but had to sell one to settle a debt. I should have found another way.

Dave Hartman

[gryphon1911]

The Zhongyi Creator 85/2

I know, I need to clean the glass again...street shooting Saturday got some dust on there.