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Nikon 85mm f/1.4G

Comparison with Nikon 85mm f/1.4D

This was a difficult comparison; focus is ambiguous at f/1.4 due to uncorrected aberrations with the 85/1.4D, especially with haze-inducing spherical aberration.

The 85/1.4G is definitely easier to focus in Live View mode (not ambiguous), because it shows visibly lower levels of uncorrected aberrations (less veiling haze), a very practical advantage over the 85/1.4D, or for that matter, the Zeiss 85/1.4 Planar (not shown here).

The results here represent the best I was able to obtain with my documented technique of Live View and a focusing loupe. I did not attempt extensive focus bracketing of numerous series at every aperture to get some theoretical best result; I simply achieved the best possible focus at center at f/1.4 with the practical tools at my disposal: Live View and a loupe, shooting two series for each lens (each focused independently).

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Diglloyd DAP is DSLR-oriented, but also contains workflow and other topics. Much of the focus is on Canon and Nikon but also Pentax and Pentax medium format.

Special emphasis is placed on lens evaluation, focusing on Canon and Nikon and Sigma lenses, but with a few others like Rokinon/Samyang.

Make better images by learning how to get the best results right away.
Save money by choosing the right lens for your needs the first time, particularly some of the new Sigma Art lenses vs Nikon and Canon.
Workflow discusses image organization, raw conversion and post processing. Many examples show processing parameters for direct insight into how the image was converted.
Jaw-dropping image quality found nowhere else utilizing Retina-grade images up to full camera resolution, plus large crops [past 2 years or so].
Real world examples with insights found nowhere else. Make sharper images just by understanding lens behavior you won’t read about elsewhere.
Aperture series from wide open through stopped down, showing the full range of lens performance and bokeh.
Optical quality analysis of field curvature, focus shift, sharpness, flare, distortion, and performance in the field.

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