need assistance

[pete wilson]

Hi,
My name is Pete i grew up in a house that was focused on photography. My dad was a photographer for the govt. I still have boxes and boxes of black and white prints. The most common phrase in our house was " stand over there i'll take ya phota". When i was a teenager i was given a Leica camera with about 6 types of lenses. Dad bought home linhoffs, motorolas and every camera in between. When he died he left me a nikon camera 35mm film format and a swaqg of lenses including a 50- 300 1:4.5 Nikkor. I would love to be able to use them as i enjoy photographing birds and wildlife. The problem is they are not auto focus and i am not sure which camera body i could mount it to. Any tips would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

[ricktas]

With a few exceptions, you can put them on most Nikon bodies. But we would need to know lens specific information to confirm this. Also I would get the lenses checked first, being old, they could well be prone to fungus and then it is advisable to not use them at all, and keep them away from other lenses.

Welcome to AP

[pete wilson]

they are manual focus and most nikon bodys are auto is that a problem

[ricktas]

they are manual focus and most nikon bodys are auto is that a problem

Not at all, you will just have to manually set the aperture on the lens body and focus the lens manually. BUT there are some exceptions so without know the exact lens details and the camera body we cannot give you 100% that they will work.

[pete wilson]

no 770485 nikkor 50- 300mm 1 :4.5 no199243 Nikkor auto 1:2.8 f 135mm no 766759 Nikkor 0 auto f = 135mm no 388496 Nikkor S 1:1.5 50mm

[ricktas]

There have been so many versions of these lenses over the years. Nikon still produce current versions of all three of theses lenses. Are you able to photograph the front (lens), side with the nomenclature (words) on it, and the back of the lenses?

But they should generally be mountable on current Nikon cameras. If you want to know for sure you could take them to a camera dealer, often one that deals with second hand gear and have them take a look for you.

This site might help you determine which actual version of each lens you have: http://www.photosynthesis.co.nz/nikon/serialno.html for example your 50-300 is probably this one : http://www.photosynthesis.co.nz/nikon/k50300.jpg

[ameerat42]

Hi Pete. Welcome to AP.
That sounds interesting. Generally, old lenses will fit digital bodies.
I still have a few that I used on mine. Manual focusing/aperture setting was no big deal,
though modern AF lenses are "handy" when they (and mostly do) focus right.

Look in the Library for a heap of stuff. See you around.
Am.

[Kym]

:gday: & Welcome to AP!
- lets see some photos in the main CC forums (http://www.ausphotography.net.au/forum/forumdisplay.php?5) maybe try a competition or 2 and have fun!

[arthurking83]

no 770485 nikkor 50- 300mm 1 :4.5 - is most likely non Ai

no 199243 Nikkor auto 1:2.8 f 135mm - two possibilities: 1/. is an old non Ai lens too, or alternatively could be a series E model that is Ais

no 766759 Nikkor 0 auto f = 135mm - ? - Not exactly sure about this lens. I know of Nikkor Q 135mm lenses, and I know of Nikkor O 35mm lenses. The Nikkor O nomenclature seems to indicate non Ai too.

no 388496 Nikkor S 1:1.5 50mm - ? - Again, not sure about this lens either. Nikon made either F/1.2 or F/1.4 version of their fast lenses .. not f/1.5 tho. The 1:1.5 marking describes the max aperture value.

For the - ? - lenses, double check the markings, is the 1:1.5 a typo .. is the O in the Nikkor O a typo too, or is it a Series E lens?

As for which camera you can mount these lenses too ..

Any of the Nikon camera without an internal AF motor .. ie. D40/D40x, D60, D3xxx series and D5xxx series cameras. Problem is they only work in full manual mode without metering either!

I personally wouldn't mount to any other Nikon camera body as the non Ai status makes compatibility questionable.

One camera body that will work really well with these lens types is a Nikon Df, as it is specifically designed by Nikon to allow non Ai lenses to mount without problems.

Non Ai type lenses have a specific mount tab that needs to be taken into account.
The low end consumer models allow fitment of almost all non Ai lenses, and the Df is desinged with a special tab that needs to be set so that it allows non damaging connection to the camera.
The other issue with non Ai lenses is that metering is going to be variable across the linear operation of the aperture settings. Non Ai lenses have non linear aperture couplings.
What this means is that lets say (at the same ISO settings), you want to use f/2.8 and your shutter speed is 1/100s. Normally if you stop down to f/4, shutter will need to be adjusted by an equivalent 1 stop for the same metering. The aperture coupling movement in an Ai/Ais lens works in a linear manner. Non Ai lenses don't, so the required shutter speed may be different.
Each lens is going to be different, so it's not a simple point of remembering which way to compensate. One non Ai lens may require no compensation and simply meter correctly at 1/50s at f/4, but another may require 1/25s, and another may require 1/125s!
The only way to know is to test each lens and commit the need for compensation for each lens at each aperture setting to memory!

I'm not sure of the Df is programmed to compensate automagically or not either tho.

Now, there is the possibility that each of those non Ai lenses has been Ai'ed!
When Nikon changed from the non Ai to the new Ai system, they offered a service to replace the non Ai mount types to the new Ai types.
The non Ai component is literally the rear flange of the lens itself. The rearmost collar ring thing will be smooth if you run your finger around the corner of the lens at the mount. Not so much the metal face, but the corner where the black skirt of the side of the lens almost meets the mount face.
If this is all smooth without any notch .. the lens is still non Ai.
If the lens has a widely spaced notch around this rear corner, it's has been Ai modded.

NOTE!!! all modern CPU type lenses are also smooth around this rear corner of the side to rear of the lens. This is not the same thing. This rear skirt of modern lenses doesn't physically meet the camera body .. there is a gap! Aperture communication is done electronically.

The Ai notching of the skirt are different across all different types of lenses. Some of the raised notches may encompass 1/3rd of the circumference of the rear corner of the lens, other more, others less.

If you have any Nikon digital cameras not mentioned above, then I would recommend against mounting it. Even tho some non Ai lenses can mount to some of these technically incompatible bodies, mounting them can damage the camera body .. its safer to be sure!

if you are looking to acquire a Nikon digital camera for these lenses, then the Df is the most suitable camera for this purpose.

Note those lenses are all very capable ones too!
if the >$2K of the Df is an issue, then look for an old D40/40x or D60 or any of the D3xxx/5xxx type cameras just to get you by.
Cameras such as the D70s, D80 D90, D7xxx or D300, D700/800 or any of the recent models are not recommended.

Other info that may be of value to you too.
Until the release of the Df a few years back, non Ai lenses were generally avoided in the use sales markets. Obviously due to the need to mod the lenses for compatibilty.
Since the Df, these lenses values have all skyrocketed. Most lenses by at least 2x .. many by much more.

Some of those old 50/1.4's used to regularly sell for something like $20 or less in quite usable condition. Now they regularly sell for $200 or more in the same condition.

Years ago, I was always on the look out for werid and quirky lenses, without regard for easily compatibility .. damned should have bough them all back then!!
It's not all that hard to mod a non Ai lens to an Ai compatible type(except remember the non linear/exposure compensation requirements).

The problem now is that non Ai lenses have risen in price so much that it doesn't make the effort economically feasible! You can get Ai/Ais lenses for rougtly the same prices.

[pete wilson]

thank you so much for your reply it was simply magnificent. I will look around for a suitable body and get back to you. Once again thank you!

[arthurking83]

Not knowing how 'tropical' Mt Morgan is in QLD .. I'd do like Rick said and make sure none of the lenses have fungus.

You can safely mount fungus affected lenses to a camera and not really contaminate the camera .. it's still generally advised not to do so.
Fungus seems to manifest more readily in more damp conditions, and generally under low/not-much light.

Fungus looks a bit like dust in some situations and sometimes more like scratches/hazy spots. You would normally use a magnifying glass/loupe or a close up shot of it to be sure if any marks on the glass are or aren't fungus.
Most of the time fungus reduces a lens to 'junk' status. It can be cleaned and removed, but it can be so costly as to prove a futile endeavour in the long run(it's probably cheaper to purchase another equivalent lens .. and still have change remaining).

[pete wilson]

i have tracked down a Nikon D 40 with an 18-50 lens, charger and bag for $75. Are there any pics of fungus on site? I do not have one camera in the house, i enjoy taking pics of birds, stone masonry and all type of gardens and associated infrastructure. Mt Morgan is subtropical and i had a look at the lenses with an illuminated 10 x magnifying glass and i think i can detect a fungus on one of them. I will research more and return enlightened.
Thanks again everyone.

[ricktas]

just go to google and search under the images search tab for 'lens fungus'

[ameerat42]

There are some - somewhere. Best if you just Google (verb, transitive, irregularly capitalised) "fungus on lenses"
and look at the images. The first few are quite illustrative.

Further discussion of this topic should be made in a new thread in the "...Gear..." forums.
Am.

[arthurking83]

..... Are there any pics of fungus on site? .....

Note that there are different types of fungi that can develop on lenses.
Apparently the fungus like the coatings on lenses :confused:

I have one lens with fungus, which I pulled apart to clean.
Can't find the images I thought I uploaded, but I'll post them here again.

114397
This is the fungus. Most have a stringy worm like appearance when viewed close up. When seen from a normal viewing distance, it may look like a cloudy hazy or cleaning mark.
Of course some cloudy hazy cleaning looking marks are just that .. but to be sure .. you need to look at it closely to see if it has this string like properties.

114396
This lens was a really cheap lens I got off ebay. Had the seller mentioned it had fungus, I wouldn't have taken it if he paid me!
Anyhow, after the realization I was 'had' had sunk in properly .. really for less than $20 I then changed my POV to one that this may have been a blessing .. it would force me to 'hone my skilz' as a lens fungus cleaning noob! :p
So lens came apart(with this lens very easily!) and a cotton swab thingy was doused in Eclipse fluid(sensor cleaning fluid) and the lens was attacked from behind.
(the fungus was on the rear lens element).
After about 5-10 mins the result was a fairly clean lens. With a bit more effort and care, I reckon it'd clean to a better level.
Note tho, that you can never fully clean a lens from fungus, as all the small nooks and crannies can be affected by the spores. Only professional cleaning may be able to remove it all.
The only reason I did this to this lens, was that the lens was cheap! So after I found I was duped(ebay seller shut up shop after the lens had arrived) .. I just changed my attitude towards it, and decided this lens was my crash test dummy. I also tired to modify it to focus to infinity(it couldn't do so natively), and I got that to work with a bit of cutting and grinding, but in focusing to infinity the internals of the lens self destructed(aperture mechanism). That lens now sits as a pile of parts away from all other lenses.

Once you get your camera lens, it could be sufficient to take an image of the lens you suspect may have fungus.
Just take an image focused as closely as you can get at the longest focal length to produce the highest magnification, then zoom in to 100% pixel view. It should reveal the nature of the texture of whatever is in any of your lenses.

Like I said earlier, usually there is no issue with using a fungus infected lens on a camera. The spores won't really transfer from lens to camera in the time you use that lens on the camera.
BUT!! don't store that lens attached to the camera!!!! and don't store that lens with other lenses(in the same small contained space).
This is how fungus spores can be transferred.
I've read that if you do have a lens with fungus, the best method of storage is a strange one. You place it somewhere where it will receive plenty of light and heat with the lens caps removed. Of course this also means dust will probably get inside the lens too tho. The idea is that fungus don't like light and heat(dry heat).