8 Best 50mm Prime Lenses in 2024

In the world of photography, 50mm prime lenses are a must-have for both beginners and professionals. They offer a perfect blend of versatility and image quality, making them ideal for a wide range of photography styles.

Our top pick, the Nikon Z 50mm f/1.8 S, stands out for its exceptional sharpness and performance in low light. This lens is a great choice for professional photography, thanks to its high-quality build and optical design. Alongside this top contender, we also explore seven other lenses, providing options for every photographer’s needs and preferences.

What Is the Best 50mm Prime Lens?

Selecting the best 50mm prime lens involves considering sharpness, low-light performance, and build quality. Brands like Nikon, Canon, Sony, Fujifilm, and Pentax offer top options. We prioritized lenses that deliver exceptional image quality, fast autofocus, and robust construction, ensuring they meet the needs of both professionals and enthusiasts.

Our Favorite 50mm Prime Lenses

So let’s dive in and take a closer look at our favorite 50mm prime lenses. From the sharpness and low-light prowess of the Nikon Z 50mm f/1.8 S to the stunning bokeh of the Fujifilm XF 50mm f/1 R WR, there’s a lens here for every style and situation. Explore these options to find the perfect addition to your camera bag.

The Nikon Z 50mm f/1.8 S lens offers outstanding sharpness and low-light performance. Its optical design includes two extra-low dispersion elements and two aspherical elements. These reduce chromatic aberrations and improve image quality. The lens is sharp across the frame, even at wide apertures. This makes it great for professional photography where detail is key.

Its autofocus is decently quick and very accurate. It is geared up more for perfection rather than speed. The lens is also lightweight at 14.5 ounces (415 g), making it easy to carry around for daily shooting. However, it lacks built-in image stabilization. Photographers must rely on the camera’s stabilization, which might not be as effective in very low light.

This is possibly the most advanced 50mm lens that Nikon has produced. Not the fastest, but for optical excellence, amazing bokeh, and solid construction it’s hard to beat if you’re looking for a Z-Mount lens.

The Canon RF 50mm f/1.8 STM is an amazing lens, perfect for those just starting out or looking for an easy-to-carry option. Its f/1.8 aperture makes it good for low light and creating images with a blurred background. This lens is sharp in the middle at wide apertures and gets even better when you stop down a bit. It’s made mostly of plastic, which keeps it light at just 5.5 ounces (160 g), but it feels sturdy enough for everyday use.

This lens does a decent job at keeping images clear of color fringing and distortion, though some minor issues can show up when shooting wide open. These problems are easy to fix with a bit of editing. The autofocus is quick enough for casual shooting but might make some noise, which could be a problem for video. It doesn’t have its own stabilization, so you’ll need to rely on your camera or a steady hand in darker situations.

The Canon RF 50mm f/1.8 STM offers outstanding value for money. It’s impressively sharp, so tiny that it suits a mirrorless camera perfectly, and faster than any zoom lens you’re ever likely to own. It’s especially suited for portraits and everyday photography, offering a nice balance between quality and ease of use.

The Sony FE 50mm f/1.4 GM is probably the best 50mm lens you can get for your Sony camera. But you pay quite dearly for it. This lens is part of Sony’s G Master series, promising top-tier sharpness and performance. It’s built tough with metal and quality plastics, ready for professional use. Weighing in at just over 1 lb (516 g), it’s quite manageable for daily shooting.

Optically, this lens packs a punch with 14 elements in 11 groups, including specialized elements to cut down on aberrations and ensure crisp images. Its autofocus is quick and silent, thanks to two XD Linear Motors, making it a good option for both photos and videos. However, it lacks built-in stabilization, relying instead on the camera’s system to keep shots steady.

Professionals and enthusiasts will find the Sony FE 50mm f/1.4 GM to be a great fit, especially for portrait and street photography. It’s sharp across the board and produces bokeh that is second to none. Its combination of speed, optical quality, and build makes it a valuable addition to any Sony shooter’s bag.

The Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L USM is a standout lens, especially for those who value sharpness and a shallow depth of field. Its f/1.2 aperture is perfect for low light and creating beautiful bokeh, making it a favorite among portrait photographers. Built to last, it combines metal and high-quality plastics, ensuring it can handle the demands of professional use. At 2.1 lbs (950 g), it’s hefty but balances well on Canon’s mirrorless bodies.

Optically, this lens impresses with minimal distortion and chromatic aberration, thanks to its advanced design featuring aspherical and UD elements. The autofocus is both quick and quiet, suitable for capturing fleeting moments in street photography or during events. While it lacks built-in stabilization, its wide aperture often compensates by allowing faster shutter speeds.

Ideal for professionals and serious enthusiasts, the Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L USM excels in portrait, street, and low-light photography. It may well be the best 50mm that Canon has ever made, and that is reflected in the price. Its combination of optical excellence, durability, and creative control makes it a valuable addition to the Canon RF lineup.

The Nikon Z 50mm f/1.2 S is another prime lens for mirrorless cameras that sets exceptional standards. It’s super-fast and very sharp, making it a top choice for professional photographers. With a maximum aperture of f/1.2, it excels in low light conditions and creates decent bokeh, ideal for portrait and street photography. Its optical design includes elements that minimize aberrations, ensuring images are crisp and clear.

Weighing 2.4 lbs (1.09 kg), it’s on the heavier side for a prime lens but balances well on Nikon Z series cameras. The lens is built to last, with weather sealing that protects it in challenging conditions. Despite lacking built-in stabilization, it pairs well with Nikon’s IBIS-equipped cameras for sharp images in various settings.

Professionals and serious enthusiasts will find the Nikon Z 50mm f/1.2 S to be a valuable addition to their gear, especially for work requiring high optical performance. Its combination of speed, sharpness, and build quality makes it a standout option for those committed to the Nikon Z system.

The Sony FE 50mm f/1.8 is a prime lens much liked for its simplicity and effectiveness. With its f/1.8 aperture, it’s good at capturing images with a shallow depth of field and performs well in low light. This lens is lightweight at just 6.5 ounces (186 g), making it a comfortable choice for day-long shooting. Its optical design includes an aspherical element that helps to improve image clarity and reduce aberrations.

Despite its affordability, the lens delivers decent sharpness in the center at wide apertures, with some softness towards the edges. It’s particularly suited for amateur photographers or those looking for a budget-friendly entry into prime lenses. The autofocus is reasonably quick but can be noisy, which might be a consideration for video work.

The Sony FE 50mm f/1.8 offers good value for photographers seeking a straightforward, effective lens for everyday use. Its compact size and light weight make it a popular choice for street and portrait photography, especially on Sony’s APS-C cameras, where it offers a 75mm equivalent focal length.

The Fujifilm XF 50mm f/1 R WR is a knockout lens with amazing performance. With its wide f/1 aperture, it’s a prime choice for photographers who need excellent low-light performance and desire a shallow depth of field. This lens, weighing in at 1.8 lbs (845 g), is built solidly, featuring weather sealing that ensures reliability in various shooting conditions. Its optical design, including one aspherical element and two extra-low dispersion elements, ensures images are sharp and free from aberrations.

Autofocus is quick and precise, making it easy to capture spontaneous moments or detailed portraits. The bokeh quality is especially noteworthy, with a smooth out-of-focus background that highlights the subject beautifully. While the lens lacks built-in image stabilization, its superior optical performance in challenging lighting conditions compensates for this.

Ideal for portrait and street photographers, the Fujifilm XF 50mm f/1 R WR is a valuable addition to the Fujifilm X-mount lineup. A 50mm lens with an f/1 maximum aperture is an incredibly rare beast. But this one proves its worth time after time. Its combination of a wide aperture, robust build, and exceptional image quality makes it a compelling option for those looking to elevate their photography.

The HD Pentax-FA 50mm f/1.4 is a prime lens that excels in delivering sharp, clear images, especially valued in portrait and low-light photography. Its wide f/1.4 aperture not only allows for shooting in dim conditions but also creates a beautifully blurred background, emphasizing the subject. Weighing around 8 ounces (223 g), it’s relatively lightweight, making it easy to carry for daily shooting or travel.

Optically, this lens is designed to minimize aberrations and flare, thanks to its high-grade coating, ensuring images are of high quality with accurate colors. The autofocus is reliable and quick, suitable for capturing fleeting moments. However, it lacks image stabilization, a feature that might be missed in very low light without a tripod.

Ideal for Pentax DSLR users, the HD Pentax-FA 50mm f/1.4 is a solid choice for those seeking a blend of performance and portability. Its construction and optical quality make it a valuable asset for both professional and hobbyist photographers alike.

Conclusion: The Best 50mm Prime Lenses

In the past, photographers were often in a rush to ditch their 50mm lenses on their film SLR cameras. Now we see the value of a “nifty fifty”, and this review has covered some of the best 50mm prime lenses available, highlighting their key features, strengths, and areas where they could be lacking. We’ve covered a range of options suitable for various photography needs, from professional work to casual shooting, ensuring there’s a lens for every type of photographer.

Our top choice, the Nikon Z 50mm f/1.8 S, stands out for its exceptional sharpness and low-light performance, making it the go-to lens for detail-oriented photography. While this lens takes the lead, the article also presents seven other lenses, offering a variety of choices to suit different preferences and requirements.