55mm f/3.5

[Fons Baerken]

A song of praise for the micro-nikkor 55mm f/3.5

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMnXXYvdY90

[Birna Rørslett]

He touted it as a "2:1 macro" lens..... So the reviewer knows a thing or two about optics?

[Fons Baerken]

That's a verbal misspelling for 1:2 afaik he is not  the only one making that error.

[Birna Rørslett]

Slip of the tongue if done once, a misunderstanding if repeated over and over again.

While the 55/3.5 is a good lens and excels for close-ups, it also has drawbacks used as a generalist optic. The bokeh is on the harsh side partly due to the 6-bladed iris, partly due to the optical compromises built-in. Chromatic aberrations can be visible too. Whether the lower image contrast is a drawback or not, is up to the end user. I never liked the 55 for general photography, but opinions differ.

Not mentioned in the video is the favourable IR capability of the 55/3.5.

[pluton]

My experience with the 55/3.5 on D800 era cameras: Absolute sharpness at 1:10, falls off closer and farther.  Infinity needs f/8 to cure various blurry tendencies across the frame.  Beautiful bokeh wide open. 

[Birna Rørslett]

Agree that the bokeh of the 55/3.5 is smooth when the lens is wide open. On the other hand, sharpness improves if the lens is stopped down a few clicks. One "pays" for the increase in sharpness by harsher bokeh. For close-ups and near distances, the balance point might be around f/5.6 nominal.