Nikkor 50mm f/1.2 First produced July 1978
From "The Complete Nikon System", By Peter Braczko
This is the fastest lens available in Nikon's current line-up of non-autofocus lenses.
It provides a very bright viewfinder image and is particularly well-suited for press photography, in which the photographer must work with the available light and may not be able to use a flash.
In opposition to its equally fast predecessor, the 55mm f/1.2, this Nikkor has noticeably superior definition and can be used at full aperture without reservation.
Its features include a wider rubber-covered focusing ring and lens data engraved between the focusing and filter rings.
Already in 1976 - before the conversion to AI - all of the Nikkor standard 50mm lenses except the f/2 had the wider mounting colar and colored depth of field markings typical of the AI lenses to come.