Last summer, I finally invested in a prime lens. I bought the Canon 50mm 1.4. Upon receipt, I compared it to the 50 mm 1.8 and the difference was immediately apparent. The 1.4 was more sturdy and compact than the 1.8. The bokeh/blurry effect between the 1.8 and 1.4 was very impressive. I don't know why I ever bothered with the 1.8. In retrospect, the 1.8 is an inexpensive alternative to the 1.4. However, if I were faced with the choice between 1.8 and 1.4 knowing what I know now, I'd definitely add a few more bucks and get the 1.4

             There was quite a learning curb that accompanied the 50mm. My primary lens has always been the 18-135mm zoom lens. So shooting was relatively easy with the zoom option and automatic aperture adjustment. However, the 50mm is a fixed lens and you must walk towards or away from your subject while shooting. Additionally, if you're shooting in manual, you'll soon find that a fixed aperture doesn't work for every shot. You must adjust the aperture as you shoot depending on the subject, the amount of light you want to be in the frame and so forth. A quick reminder, at 1.4, the lens eye is opened to its fullest and the most light is let in. At higher apertures, the lens eye becomes smaller and less light is allowed. So you must compensate for the loss of light via ISO or f/stop adjustments. 

             Ever since I added the 50mm 1.4 to my camera bag, it has become my "go to" lens for portraits. Here's some of my favorite portraits I've taken over the last six months. Of course some tweaks were made to enhance some colors and spot heal, but most of what you see is directly from manipulating various camera settings to get the most out of the 50mm and the 1.4 aperture.

          I'm still learning the parameters of this lens and how to work it best. Here's a great blog post on the importance of manipulating aperture to achieve better results with the 50mm.