Peter Klein wrote:
>Moose: The lack of MF lens compatibility in DSLRs is unfortunately true,
>with one great exception.
>
The generality is true, but the specifics matter, some are much more
generally compatibile than others.
Many mounts can be used on the Can*n and E-1 with adapters. They then
meter and shoot in manual or aperture priority modes. I don't know about
the other adapters, but with the OM=> EOS adapter you can set it up so
the DOF button closes the aperture down for metering and shooting. In
the other mode, you use the aperture ring. They also both have short
flange to film/sensor distances and relatively wide mount diameters, so
adapters for most MF lenses can be easily made without additional optics.
Nik*n has a longer flange to sensor distance than most other 35mm
mounts, so adapters must include optics. Then all but the pro models
won't meter at all with MF lenses.
>The Pentax *ist D meters with MF M42 and "K"
>lenses with a single button push. Pentax released a firmware upgrade that
>stops the lens down when you push the "green button," meters, and then
>opens up again. It also stops down for shooting. So you get an aperture
>priority mode with one-touch metering.
>
Interesting. That means they still use mechanical stop down for their
newest AF lenses or included an electro/mechanical linkage in the
design. If they had had that capability when first announced and tested,
I would have looked into them more seriously. As it was, I looked into
them and found they didn't work for me. I have a fair number of
Adaptall2 lenses, which would work quite nicely with that set-up. Just
like the old days of M42 auto diaphram lenses. Why on earth would they
wait to implement that feature instead of announcing it right away? I
suppose, like Oly, they hoped to sell lots of new lenses, so were
reluctant to provide compatability with the old.
>I recently read a post by an *ist user who said that of all the DSLRs he'd
>handled, the *ist seemed to best embody the spirit of the OM cameras.
>
I agree. In my wanderings to handle DSLRs, the *ist D was pretty much my
favorite for size, look and feel.
>Obligatory OM content: Unfortunately, the *ist does not take MF
>Zuikos. If it did, I'd buy it in a heartbeat. And if the E-1 treated MF
>Zuikos as the *ist does legacy Pentax lenses, I'd buy *it* in a heartbeat,
>too.
>
The problem is that most current AF lens systems rely on an
electronically activated mechanism in the lens to stop down the
diaphram. So adding a mechanical mechanism to stop down legacy lenses
adds cost in a very competitive market. Both C and N have been that way
for some time. C abandoned backward compatability with the FD mount with
introduction of the EOS line some years ago. A smart move as it has made
the transition to digital painless for them. N keeps backward
compatability only in their high priced pro bodies, which have the
mechanical stop down mechanism needed. The extra cost, size, weight
doesn't mean much in these huge, expensive bodies and allows pros to
keep using their special old lenses. I think that Oly had sufficient
perfectly good reasons to leave backward compatibility with an old
mechanical stop down system out of the E series. Their waffling back and
forth of the OM=>4/3 adapter was really silly and annoying, though.
Moose
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