Customers Review Amazon Product

Best Lens Purchase Possible
I was thinking about getting the 50mm f/1.8 but once I went to the store and saw it I changed my mind. It already felt like a plastic toy that was going to fall apart in my hands. The manual focus ring is non-existent. The 50mm 1.4 on the other hand is a beauty. It really feels nice in the hand especially with a metal mount I can rely on. The full time manual focus is great even though this camera isn't a true USM. The low light focus ability of this lens is decent. Although the lens has somewhat of a soft focus at 1.4 is gets sharp at 1.8. All in all great lens. It id definitely worth paying extra over the f/1.8

Excellent Lens
Great lens, worth the money. Very, very sharp, amazing low light capabilities, great bokeh, smooth and fast auto focus. What more can you want?

watch your sensor size "crop factor"
I totally love the lens. It has been reliable for the past year. Canon has pretty much admitted that their lenses have focusing problems... That's why the D50 camera body now has memory auto focus adjustment so you can adjust the autofocus and have the camera remember the lens to automatically adjust the focus.
Actually though, my lens always focused perfectly. The color and clarity are superb. You can't beat a prime lens (no zoom) for picture quality. This 50mm lens is not suitable for candid photography around the house if you are shooting a Rebel or any other camera with the smaller sensor area because of the "crop factor" associated with the smaller sensors- you can't get far enough away to frame a good shot. But for posed portraits and macro, I'm totally satisfied with this lens. Hopefully I will not fall victim to the build quality problems that other reviewers have noted. It seems to be quite sturdy enough to me.

The Great Compromise
I already own the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II lens but wanted something that is sturdier and QUIETER. The EF 50mm f/1.4 fit the bill for me because the f1.2L is not in my budget and the f/1.4 can certainly hold its own in most situations. I rarely shoot wide open with this lens but would not hesitate to set it in really low light situations. I have a couple mid-range L zooms but the 50mm f/1.4 stays on my body most of the time now. I think I would prefer this on a full frame body so I can better handle tight situations indoors. I also advise either screwing on a nice multi-coated UV filter for protection or not using one at all. I get really bad flare shooting into strong light. I have to do more test shots to get a better grasp on these situations. I have also encountered some problems focusing in low light but that could also be user error or my outdated 20D camera body.

In retrospect, I would've purchased the f/1.4 over the f/1.8 II with the knowledge I have now. It focuses accurately for me and f/1.4 really comes in handy when the situation arises.

Too Good!
I was on the fence for months, deciding between this f/1.4 lens and the Canon f/1.8. I ultimately decided I'd go with this one, both for the reputation of the superior build quality and the focus gauge.

Currently, it's my favorite lens in my kit as it takes the most wonderful pictures even in low light. Unfortunately though, it's not ideal for most situations with the 1.6x crop sensor bodies. Most of the time when I've gone out with just this lens on my camera, I find myself backed up into a wall just to get medium shot of someone or something across the room. I am now inspired to pick up a full-frame sensor body just to take advantage of the awesomeness that is this lens.

Yes, I think there just might be a 5D Mark II in my future (can you IMAGINE using this lens for HD VIDEO? Oh man)...

If you're looking for a great comparably priced portrait lens on a crop sensor body, check out the Sigma 30mm 1.4... I've used it and it's also a very good, very sharp, very fast lens... and wide enough to get great portrait framing from a few feet away.