Nikkor-SC 55mm f/1.2 review:

What I have today is a classic Nikkor lens made way back in the late '60s, until its update(s) and subsequent end of production when Nikon ceased to manufacture all of their manual focus lenses. Nikkor-SC 55mm f/1.2 is more or less a bargain today, namely due to a lack of auto focus motor and its age (and possibly problems like mould and scratches after years of use). Having said that, use for it is quite wide especially when combined with a low-light friendly Nikon D700/D3 class of camera. In other words, if you do come across one on eBay make sure you read the review and decide whether a slower, manual approach suits you before you make a purchase. On another note, I bought my lens from a videographer who used it for his moving image camera via an adapter, because of the lenses' low light ability and smooth handling. Anyway, onto the review!

Sharpness: Center of frame has reasonable sharpness at f/1.2 but extremely shallow DoF (approx. 4-6mm @ 60cm, more at longer distances), which means that any subject on a flat plane which isn't parallel to the imaging plane will be OOF. Fully flat subject planes (i.e. test chart, writing on walls etc.) which are completely focused suffer from lower contrast and quite a bit of spherical aberration giving it a hazy, vaseline over the filter look wide open.

By the time you stop down and focus at f/2, center sharpness and contrast are remarkably similar to a smaller aperture of f/8! Spherical aberration becomes a non-issue by then. Corners are a lot sharper from f/1.2 to f/2, and much sharper at f/8. I'm guessing that front element curvature and extreme shallow DoF cause corner softness, and why most people moan at "mediocre" sharpness from these lenses - i.e. they do not focus properly, or they shoot test charts.

I haven't done any more tests at different apertures, since I figured you'd own a fast lens for low light shooting or for creating very shallow DoF. Most modern lenses are similar at f/8-11 anyway - even with super zooms.

Out of focus highlights are wiry as lens diaphragm has 7 blades, which gives the bokeh a slighty rougher character over 9 bladed designs. Have a look at samples on the right hand side, and decide whether you like the look or not.

Handling: Focusing ring and weight/texture exude quality. The focusing ring has deep grooves, and is quite wide with perfect resistance - i.e. not stiff and not flimsy. It feels like it's built to last forever, but that is not to say that it is without any issues. First of all, aperture ring is quite stiff so you're not sure if you've changed the aperture or not. What also impairs its use is that old lens on new digital body equals Manual mode only.

Setting it up on D700 body under Non-CPU Lens Data (to help determine the distance and exposure in Aperture mode) will not fully work. Camera displays maximum aperture, and if you change it beyond f/2, it gets stuck at f/2 (or sometimes at f/4). But the good news is that on digital you can nail an exposure within three frames or so, so how much of a hindrance is really up to the individual. Another issue is that your aperture is written as f/1.2 (or whatever its stuck on) in exif. You can reset the stuck aperture setting to f/1.2 by switching the camera off and taking the lens off the mount, then turning it back on.

In use: Very good focal length on FX body, and it suits my type of shooting. Essentially it's not too long and not too wide for street shots. I can see this relationship being lost on DX sensors though, making it more portraiture oriented. Low light shooting: okay, teamed up with D700, this gives you a bit of an unfair advantage. This means that 1/60 at 6400ISO and a single ambient light at night (kitchen fluorescent, or driveway security lights) and you get a properly exposed image, even having highlights burning out on smooth surfaces! That pretty much changes the way you shoot, with even more possibilities open for night time street photography. But achieving critical sharpness is *very* hard, not only because of extremely shallow DoF but also because pitch black on precision focus screens (i.e. not ground glass with split prism viewfinder) means that you can't actually see your subject's eyes, let alone if they're moving about the frame. Also, shooting in Manual means that any lighting change, and you have to readjust your shutter speed or ISO. Just like in the old days :)

In conclusion, Nikkor-SC 55mm f/1.2 is a fantastic lens, if it can be had for a bargain price. Due to its slower and somewhat fiddly operation I cannot recommend it to anyone over a newer 50mm f/1.4, which does most things Nikkor-SC 55mm f/1.2 does, but with AF too.