NSXType-R said:
+1, I love the old lenses. Tried the 50mm 1.2 after getting used to the 35mm 1.8 for about half a year, I was blown away by the smoothness of the focusing ring. No contest.

Yeah those old manual focus rings are somthing arent they? My brother has a 50 1.2 for me that I am unwilling to get him to send via mail/courier. Its pretty much ireplaceable. Planning to visit him and physivcally have it handed to me :-)!

@ abhinav : If you like cheap lenses seriously consider the old ais and afd lenses, some of them are magic! Search the small local camera shops for them, they may have one gathering dust in the corner. I got a 35-70 F2.8 AFD for $180 !!!

Oh .. and bokeh is not just the shape of the aperture! seriously that 50 1.8 does not have nice bokeh :-) better than most kit zooms but you got to look through a 85 1.4 then you will know what bokeh is!

@:heartyfisher : Well for poor people like me price can a big reason to love or hate lenses ;)

heartyfisher said:
LOL !! Price is a reason to like the bokeh !! :-) Yeah? That maybe why I really love the bokeh from my 50mm 1.4 ais ;-) (Got it for $70) . Those old lenses are amazing.

I understand that the 60mm autofocus speed is VERY fast.

+1, I love the old lenses. Tried the 50mm 1.2 after getting used to the 35mm 1.8 for about half a year, I was blown away by the smoothness of the focusing ring. No contest.

looks like I will get 50mm 1.4 right now .I have two weeks before I get one :)

Shivaswrath has it right on -

I have both older AF versions and they are very different lenses even it the focal length is close. Simply stated for this discussion the 50mm is great for low light and the 60mm is for macro work. If you are looking for bokeh, the 50mm is easier to achieve than the 2.8 of the 60. If you are looking for a good portrait lens the 85mm 1.8 may be moving closer to what you are seeing with the 50mm and light.

The Food photography throws a twist, and is sort of a different use - 60mm would be great for this. It sounds like you may want two different lenses maybe? The older AF version of the 60mm is fantastic and I have not found any good reason to upgrade as long as you don't need the AFS for the body you have.

For the bokeh of the background lights, the spec I look for are 9-blade+ diaphragms. That will give you the rounded "lights" rather than the hex or octagon looking ones.

They are both pretty fast...get both!
yup, indian born in US, abcd yaar!

LOL !! Price is a reason to like the bokeh !! :-) Yeah? That maybe why I really love the bokeh from my 50mm 1.4 ais ;-) (Got it for $70) . Those old lenses are amazing.

I understand that the 60mm autofocus speed is VERY fast.

@padlockd: I did search on images from the lenses I'm looking for but couldn't find hollywood style night bokeh picture for 60mm.maybe people don't use that lens at night at all .

@heartyfisher: thanks for your advice ,but right now I want to stick to nikon for this focal length .Regarding 50mm 1.8, its an incredible lens for the price .reason why I liked its bokeh.

@shivaswrath: thats cool :) you're from Indian origin living in US ? :)

Yeah ,I know about the price difference in US ,but here price difference in grey market is about $40 between both the lenses .(I'm not buying from Nikon India retail because price is almost double ).Reason, why I got confused after knowing the price difference here.

Isn't 50mm1.4 faster in AF as compared to 60mm? from what I understand it seems like I will have to buy both the lenses to be happy ,since they are for different purposes like you have already mentioned in your post :)

another thing to consider is size - the 50 1.4 is 2.5 inches smaller than the 60 2.8.

If you're doing food shots, both work, but the bokeh is a little prettier with the 60 (the 50 1.4 has been typed a little spastic on the bokeh).

I carry both on wedding shoots for different purposes.

I have both Abhi (my cousins name is Abhinav!), and they are totally different lenses.

The 50 1.4 is great low light, slightly soft wide open, and your normal lens on a FX.

60 2.8 macro is a macro lens, sharp as all hell stopped down or wide open, and of course can close focus. It's so sharp, I shy away from using it in portraits (highlights too many flaws, lol).

Price difference is about $150 in favor of the 50 1.4.

I should add that my 50mm 1.4 is a bit soft wide open. I don't know what that means for you, but I'm guessing the 60mm will be sharper all around.

Hi Abhinav. Both are nice lenses. I have had a play with the 50 1.4g and its a superb bit of glass. The 60 F2.8 micro is also great but I have not played with it only know it from reviews. I have had a play with the older AFD and 55mm micros and they are incredible lenses. I have a forum friend who is a top class portrait photographer and he uses the older AFD for his work. all the micro nikkors are VERY Sharp. I have had a look at the 50 1.8 and I didnt like the bokeh from it .. If you liked that 50 F1.8 bokeh you dont know what you are missing! These 2 lenses are at least 2 levels above the 50 1.8 ( LOL HF levels !! ) For what you intend to do both lenses are excellent if you have a DX camera. for FX I would go with the 85mm instead or the 105. If you are on DX also consider the tamron 60 F2.0.

What I would recommend is going to flickr and searching for a 50mm 1.8 group and 60mm 2.8 group, then compare the photos. That should give you an idea of the kind of images they produce.

My two small cents.

I did some search on forums ,but couldn't find a topic on 60mm Nano af-s vs 50mm 1.4g .

I've used 50mm 1.8 ,but I didn't liked the construction quality.Though I loved the roundish night lights bokeh from that lens .

I want to know does 60mm AF-S "N" have similar bokeh to 50mm AF-S1.4 (say at f2.8 )?

will be using the lens for portraits ,food photography,indoor of course night :)

note : I can't rent lenses where I live :(