Nikon mirrorless question

Maybe a dumb question, but if and when Nikon comes out with a mirrorless body, is it known or knowable at this point as to whether or not these bodies would be made to accommodate existing glass? I don't know anything about what Sony or Canon does with theirs, and I am a Nikon shooter, so am a bit interested. Thanks!

 

Best,

Thomas

No one knows. But Nikon would be stupid not to accommodate the millions of existing lenses out there. The D750 body is an example of how they might go about it in terms of design - it has a deep handgrip. The Nikon 1 series allowed the use of FX and DX AF-S lenses with an adapter, so it is very likely Nikon will provide some sort of accommodation.

Thanks NetR!

Nikon already has the Nikon 1 which is mirrorless. As far as APS-C or Full Frame mirrorless who knows. But I can be almost certain that a mirrorless system from Nikon will have new lens line and can use F mount lenses with adapter. If they use the F mount lenses natively they will lose a lot of the advantages of the mirrorless system.

Thanks BeBu, I think I'm starting to understand better now. And, that was my fear, I think we are many years from being able to have a mirrorless body that will use all the DSLR glass we have (or never), without some sort of compromise. I don't want to deal with adapters either. I think when the D810 replacement comes out I'll keep going that way, and worry about mirrorless... down the road.

Never! The DSLR lenses were designed with very long flange distance to accomodate the mirror. Without the mirror but using the same lens you would have empty space that is good for nothing and the camera is bigger. Also long lens flange distance makes it's more difficult to make wide angle lenses.

Thanks again, huge help. That certainly puts that issue to bed for me. :)

My guess is that Nikon will introduce DX and/or FX mirrorless cameras and provide an adapter to enable the use of its AF-S lenses (those with a internal focusing motors) together with a small line of mirrorless-only lenses. The long flange distance needed to have space for the mirror box is less of a problem for longer lenses. Wide angle lenses for SLRs and DSLRs need a retrofocus design that makes them larger and may have a deleterious effect on image quality. I would guess (hope) that among the first Nikon lenses for mirrorless would be wide-angle primes and zooms.

 

As has been said many times on photo.net, the only people who know what Nikon is planning have signed non-disclosure agreements and will abide by them.

Thanks Hector!

"I think we are many years from being able to have a mirrorless body that will use all the DSLR glass we have (or never), without some sort of compromise. I don't want to deal with adapters either."

don't be afraid of the "compromises", the adapter is just a small tube. DSLR lenses work fine on mirrorless cameras.

And without a mirror means you can have a small "pancake" style lens

 

www.flickr.com/photos/mmirrorless