nikon film cameras

what nikon film cameras are actually able to use the modern nikon f mount and auto focus lenses, like the sigma 150 - 600?

Nikon F6 up to and including G lenses. The new E electronically controlled aperture only wide open. If Nikon would update the F6 for these lenses I would buy one. Since I like the old all mechanical camera bodies, I have several Zeiss lenses because they have an aperture ring and modern lens quality.

The F100, F6, F5, and N80 all have similar levels of compatibility.

 

They are fully functional with G type lenses, work great with AF-S(the F5, F100, and F6 in particular are really speedy with those), and also VR. These three cameras are also great with manual focus lenses, although the F6 is "best" because it can do matrix with MF lenses.

 

There are two types of lenses that will not work with any film camera. "E" aperture lenses will only work wide open. AF-P-stepper motor focusing lenses-will not focus at all(not manually, not automatically). I keep hoping for a firmware update for the F6 to address this, but I seriously doubt it will happen. It seems a shame, though, for Nikon's flagship SLR(and the best they've ever built) that is still in production to not work with their newest and best lenses.

It all depends on what exactly you mean by "use." You can mount a latest 24-70mm/f2.8 E AF-S VR on a Nikon F and take pictures, but there is no AF, of course, VR doesn't work and aperture is stuck at f2.8. You can still zoom, though.

 

For AF-S to work, you need at least an F4 or F90/N90. Essentially all Nikon AF bodies after the 1992 N90 can drive AF-S lenses, but the earlier N8008/F801 cannot. You need an AF body with multiple AF points for VR to work, i.e. since the F5 and F100.

 

No Nikon film SLR can control the aperture on E lenses. The lens will be stuck wide open. For something like the 500mm/f5.6 PF and 200-500mm/f5.6 AF-S VR, that is barely an issue as those lenses are mostly used wide open anyway. I can't imagine anybody will be happy with their 24-70mm/f2.8 E stuck at f2.8 only.

The F100 can focus with either "screwdriver" or AFS lenses, and can operate a G aperture (no aperture ring). It cannot operate E electronic apertures or P pulse motor AF. It can operate VR.

 

The F4 can also focus with AFS, and operates G apertures on S and P modes only. Cannot operate E apertures or P focus, and does not activate VR.

 

I think Ken Rockwell (yes, I know, but he's good at this stuff anyway) has a pretty complete chart on what works with what.

To the F6, F5, F100 and F80/N80 you can add two low-end cameras, the F75/N75 and the F65/N65. Both of these only have a single command dial, so manual mode is a bit fiddly. All work with AF-S, 'screwdriver' AF, G and VR. Anything before the F5 will be less compatible (none can control the aperture manually with G lenses, for a start). The only post-F5 camera with less compatibility is the very low end F55/N55, which can't drive AF-S or VR. As above, no film camera is compatible with E or AF-P. While the F6 has no better lens compatibility than other late film cameras, it is the only one that will work with iTTL/CLS flash. Anyone wanting to maximise compatibility between digital and film systems should probably choose mostly AF-S G lenses. Screwdriver AF lenses won't autofocus with lower end dSLRs, or the FTZ adapter for the Z system. The motors in the handful of AF-S lenses with aperture rings are getting a bit old, tend to suffer from the 'squeal of death' syndrome, and some of them have reportedly blown the fuse in the FTZ adapter.

I was hoping for a bit better set of news.. all i have is that sigma and af-p

I was hoping for a bit better set of news.. all i have is that sigma and af-p

There isn't much you can do about AF-P, but that Sigma is the equivalent of an AF-S lens. I would just an F100 and that is pretty much your best choice without spending a ton of money on an F6.

I love the F100-I really do, and it's pretty much my default recommendation to someone wanting a film camera to work in the digital world(i.e. same lens set as their DSLR). To me, it's very much a sweet spot of features, size, and build quality. The fact that it uses AAs standard is a nice benefit also, but not the big pile of AAs the F5 takes.

 

I do tend to lean on the N80 as a great "less expensive" camera for this situation, although it's not without its weaknesses. The biggest one is the film door catches, which have a nasty habit of breaking. The standard batteries are CR123s, which are nice in that they usually last a long time, but can be pricey if you just pop into Walgreens or the grocery store and buy two. They get inexpensive in bulk(one of the best deals I've gotten was something like $15 for 24 at a Batteries+, a price that surprised me given that they're not known for being inexpensive), which is worthwhile if you have a couple of uses for them.

 

With that said, there's also a small battery grip for the N80 that doesn't add much bulk but lets you use 4 AAs.

 

When I want to shoot film(and am not using an F2), this is a frequent walk-around set-up for me. I hover between the 24-70 f/2.8 and the 24-120 f/4. I like VR on the 24-120, and even though it's not optically the best it's good enough for film. Aside from it being double the cost, I intentionally skipped the 24-70mm f/2.8E VR since it's stuck at f/2.8 on film.

 

The F100, F6, F5, and N80 all have similar levels of compatibility.

I keep hoping for a firmware update for the F6 to address this, but I seriously doubt it will happen. It seems a shame, though, for Nikon's flagship SLR(and the best they've ever built) that is still in production to not work with their newest and best lenses.

 

I agree 100% !

 

I intentionally skipped the 24-70mm f/2.8E VR since it's stuck at f/2.8 on film.

 

I did exactly the same thing for the same reason, I bought the 24-70 f/2.8G and also the 70-200 f/2.8G VRII instead of the latest VRIII E version!

how do the light meters on the f5 f6 f100 compare to the d7500?

how well would the fm10 work on the sigma 150-600 or the af-p? seem awfully cheap on the ebay, and most come with the complete factory kit and gear....

how well would the fm10 work on the sigma 150-600 or the af-p?

Obviously no AF and no way to control the aperture. On G lenses, the aperture would stay closed down all the way; on E lenses, the aperture would be fully open. The AF-P lens would not even focus manually.

but that Sigma is the equivalent of an AF-S lens

True. Some of the newer Sigma lenses have the electronic diaphragm and hence are the equivalent of the Nikon E lenses. I don't think the 150-600 C is one of those though - at least the Sigma website makes no mention of it. The best way to make sure is to look at the lens itself - if there is no aperture tab inside the mount, then the lens is an E.

[...] I hover between the 24-70 f/2.8 and the 24-120 f/4. I like VR on the 24-120, and even though it's not optically the best it's good enough for film.

 

The 24-120 f/4 mm is more than good enough.

I had both the 24-70 f/2.8 and the 24-120 f/4, and sold the 24-70, because it was not as wide at 24 mm as the 24-120 (though the same nominal focal length, the difference was quite clear), it was a bigger, less ergonomic lens, the 24-120 mm obviously goes further on the long end as well, and the 24-120 did not perform less good.

No regrets whatsoever. Good lens, the 24-120 f/4.

 

(By the way: instead of the 14-24 f/2.8, i ended up using a Sigma 12-24 mm (an older one, not the Art version). Also a significant difference in angle of view, and more ergonomic, while more than good enough.)

Edited August 8, 2020 by q.g._de_bakker

how well would the fm10 work on the sigma 150-600 or the af-p? seem awfully cheap on the ebay, and most come with the complete factory kit and gear....

 

Manual focus and minimum aperture only. I wouldn't do it it.

 

Aside from that, if you want a manual focus Nikon, you can do a lot better than an FM10. The original FE and FM are likely less expensive, if not similarly priced, and are much better cameras all around.

In case it was not clear above, the AF-P will not work at all with any film camera. There is no mechanical linkage for the manual focus, so it will not focus at all.

In case it was not clear above, the AF-P will not work at all with any film camera. There is no mechanical linkage for the manual focus, so it will not focus at all.

 

For that matter, it won't on a lot of digitals either!

 

I have one AF-P lens, the 10-20mm DX. It works at 14-20mm as a full frame lens, and is a whole lot lighter than the 14-24mm(which is a beast).

 

I had to do a firmware update(not a terrible thing) on my D800 and D610 to get it to work at all, and even those don't have the ability to turn off VR. My Df, D500, and D810 all work out of the box with them, but I don't think they work on anything older than D800 era or so.

 

Without looking at a compatibility table, I THINK there's a difference between compatibility with some of these ~2012 era cameras(and maybe a bit older) with FX AF-P lenses as compared to DX. The 10-20mm is admittedly a fringe case that a lot of use in a way Nikon didn't intend it to be used.

 

E Aperture was rolled in on models introduced around 2007, or around the time as the 19mm PC-E. That makes them roughly D3/D300 era, which means cameras most people will be using now work with them. I've also heard an "Any CMOS" rule, but don't have any to actually check. Something tells me the D2X, which has a CMOS(and the D2H, which has a Nikon proprietary sensor that I think is CMOS-like) don't work with them, or at least can't stop down the aperture.

Has anyone had experience with the Nikon N6006? What lenses have worked well with it?

Has anyone had experience with the Nikon N6006? What lenses have worked well with it?

Slow early AF, with screwdriver AF lenses only (AF, AF-D). Doesn't autofocus with AF-S, can't control aperture of G lenses manually. And like the other film cameras, no aperture control at all with E lenses, no AF with AF-P. Compatible with manual focus AI lenses, but not pre-AI.

For that matter, it won't on a lot of digitals either!

 

I have one AF-P lens, the 10-20mm DX. It works at 14-20mm as a full frame lens, and is a whole lot lighter than the 14-24mm(which is a beast).

 

I had to do a firmware update(not a terrible thing) on my D800 and D610 to get it to work at all, and even those don't have the ability to turn off VR. My Df, D500, and D810 all work out of the box with them, but I don't think they work on anything older than D800 era or so.

 

Without looking at a compatibility table, I THINK there's a difference between compatibility with some of these ~2012 era cameras(and maybe a bit older) with FX AF-P lenses as compared to DX. The 10-20mm is admittedly a fringe case that a lot of use in a way Nikon didn't intend it to be used.

 

E Aperture was rolled in on models introduced around 2007, or around the time as the 19mm PC-E. That makes them roughly D3/D300 era, which means cameras most people will be using now work with them. I've also heard an "Any CMOS" rule, but don't have any to actually check. Something tells me the D2X, which has a CMOS(and the D2H, which has a Nikon proprietary sensor that I think is CMOS-like) don't work with them, or at least can't stop down the aperture.

 

I think the AF-P FX lenses have VR switches on their barrels, so you're not stuck with having that on all the time with the D800 etc. The D2 series aren't compatible with E, which came in with the D3 and D300. I think everything after these was compatible except the D3000, which was still CCD.

I love the Nikon 24mm F2.8 lens. Worked perfectly for me on my F100 and now on my F6. Very compact. When I need a longer lens it's the 85mm F1.4. Heavy but perfect. Sold my 80-200 zoom years ago.

When I need a longer lens it's the 85mm F1.4. Heavy but perfect./QUOTE]

Err, really? Which version?

The AFP-FX 70-300 differs from the DX versions in that it has switches for both VR and AF modes. It is also an E aperture lens, while the DX are not. However, according to the compatibility charts, it also is compatible with several cameras, such as the D300, D7000, and D3 and D700, which the DX lens is not. I don't know just why that is, but that's Nikon's chart:

 

https://www.nikonimgsupport.com/eu/BV_article?articleNo=000035705&configured=1&lang=en_GB

The 24-120 f/4 mm is more than good enough.

I had both the 24-70 f/2.8 and the 24-120 f/4, and sold the 24-70, because it was not as wide at 24 mm as the 24-120 (though the same nominal focal length, the difference was quite clear), it was a bigger, less ergonomic lens, the 24-120 mm obviously goes further on the long end as well, and the 24-120 did not perform less good.

 

On film, yes I'd agree that there's no discernible difference in IQ.

 

There are arguments for both for in terms of distortion, which is something I don't really care about on digital but can be a big deal depending on your use on film. Per Ken Rockwell's correction tables, the 24-120 is better at 24 and 28mm(in particular 28mm), but the 24-70 pulls ahead at other focal lengths.

 

If you look at vignetting, the 24-70mm is better at f/4 across the board than the 24-120. The 24-70mm has somewhat less vignetting at 24mm and f/2.8 than the 24-120 at f/4, but comparing both wide open, the 24-120 is better at all focal lengths though. Still, though, that's not exactly a fair comparison since wide open is a full stop larger. I also don't mind vignetting per se in the right situations, but I also prefer more control over it.

 

On what digital bodies have you compared the two?

Edited August 9, 2020 by ben_hutcherson

Has anyone had experience with the Nikon N6006? What lenses have worked well with it?

 

I was going to answer this earlier, but am glad I didn't since my answer would have been wrong! I have two of them(I think) but have never actually put film through one, and at least one of mine had a broken film door catch.

 

First of all(and this is what I would have said earlier) the N6006 is happiest with screwdriver-focusing lenses with aperture rings. It will be fully functional with those, including of course AF and all operating modes. AI-P lenses(CPU manual focus) will also work in all exposure modes with all types of metering. AI/AIs lenses work in A and M without matrix metering.

 

In common with the other first-gen AF cameras(save for the F4), no in-lens motors will work, including AF-I and AF-S.

 

I stuck an AF-S G lens on the one I had handy, expecting it to have some functionality with G lenses. On an F4, N90, and I think N8008, you can at least access P and S modes with a G lens mounted and it will meter and expose fine.

 

The N6006 is a different story. I tried with two different lenses, and it's actually semi-functional in M, although the lens is stuck wide open. Still, though, it correctly reports the maximum aperture. In P and S, however, it gives an fEE error, the same as what you would normally see if a lens with an aperture ring weren't set to minimum aperture.

 

So, probably the most direct answer is "don't do it".