Why no "focus tab" on manual focus Nikkors?

[pete_s.]

<p>Leica lenses have a focus tab or thumb lever attached to the focus ring to aid in focusing with one finger.</p>

<p>Why doesn't older manual focus Nikkors have the same tab? Didn't Nikon kind of take over after Leica as the camera of choice for photojournalists?</p>

<p> </p>

[ellis_vener_photography]

<p>Leice R lenses don't have a thumb tab either, and not all M lenses have/had one either. My guess is that becasue SLR lenses lenses have a larger diameter they don't need it. </p>

[Ed_Ingold]

<p>Only Leica M lenses have a focusing tab, and only wide angle (35mm and shorter) lenses at that. That's because those lenses are so short, physically, that it is impractical to focus the lens with the knurled ring.</p>

[jose_angel]

<p>Don`t know exactly the reason, I think Edward is obviously right, certainly the tab helps with the smallest lenses. As Ellis say, it also makes the focus barrel radious a bit longer for better precision, thought. Non tabbed small Leica lenses seem to me difficult to manage with even medium sized hands. Mine are a bit above average size, and with certain "untabbed" lenses I have to check and secure finger position <em>before</em> taking the camera to my eye.<br /> There are some manufacturers that make similar accessory devices for their lenses; I remember Pentax ones for the 6x7 system, and I think I have seen something similar for Hasselblad.<br /> Check in the image below the lenght of the focusing rings (image from a previous thread):</p>

<p><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-iBUq5eOABKs/TXFrDb03-6I/AAAAAAAAADM/e4tbQk3OuTQ/s1600/35s.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="374" /><br /> <em> 35/2 Nikkor vs. 35/2 Summicron</em><br /> I have never feel the need of any focusing aid for the Nikkor, and in the opposite, the Leica could result unusable without the tab (the focusing ring is extremely short!).</p>

[dan_brown4]

<p>This question is silly.</p>

<p>Only a couple to teh M lenses have focus tabs.</p>

<p> </p>

[Michael R Freeman]

<blockquote>

<p><em>Why doesn't older manual focus Nikkors have the same tab?</em></p>

</blockquote>

<p>Because you're not using the right manual focus Nikkors. Doesn't everyone have one of <a href="http://www.mir.com.my/rb/photography/companies/nikon/nikkoresources/zoomsMF/12001700mm.htm">these</a> ... ;-)<br /> <img src="http://www.photosynthesis.co.nz/nikon/p121700.jpg" alt="" width="664" height="360" /></p>

[henryp]

<p>Funny thing is Hasselblad (and I believe Nikon) made auxiliary focus handles you could attache to their lenses.<br>

<img src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:hTpQ7p3QAhZLEM:http://static.photo.net/attachments/bboard/00I/00I9b7-32549884.jpg" alt="" width="131" height="98" /><br>

Henry Posner<br /><strong>B&H Photo-Video</strong></p>

 

[SCL]

<p>You could certainly make a focus tab which would slip on/off the lens focus ring out of wood or plastic if you are handy with tools. Bronica also made one like Henry shows for their lenses.</p>

[lex_jenkins]

<p>The Canonet GIII QL-17 had a focus tab. I found it more annoying than helpful.</p>

[Dieter Schaefer]

<p>Well, here is a manual focus one that has a tab on it - albeit it really is on the hood and not the lens itself:</p>

<div></div>

[jose_angel]

<p>Dan, <em>many</em> Leica M lenses (up to 50mm, included) have focusing tabs.</p>

[craig_shearman1]

<p>I have a Leica M3 with collapsible 50 f/2 Summicron and it has a focusing tab. Honestly I find it a little finicky to focus and prefer the big rubberized focusing rings on my Nikon lenses. But I do like the focusing tab on my Canonet GIII QL 17.</p>

[szrimaging]

<p>Certain cinema companies make ones you could add to your lenses. I know RedRock has a few.</p>

[rodeo_joe1]

<p>The question I want answered is: Why isn't there a meter coupling eye on Leica lenses?</p>

<p>And for that matter why didn't Hasselblad ever fit a coupled rangefinder to its SWC? Why didn't Franke&Heidecke ever chop the top off their Rolleiflexes and turn them into Box Brownies. Why didn't Sinar ever make a digital compact? Why can't I screw a Minolta Dynax lens into a Pentaflex? Why does my brain hurt?</p>

[richard_hammond1]

<p>The focus rings on most Nikkors are so smooth, and the rubber grips secure enough, that you really don't need a focus tab. Some of the older Nikkors with the scalloped metal focusing rings have a stiffer action to them, but they are still reasonably easy to focus with just one finger.</p>

[bob_sunley]

<p>Some of the earliest pre-scalloped aperture rings, the ones that screw onto the lens body, need a tab for adjusting the aperture if you have really dry skin or are wearing gloves in the winter.</p>

<p> </p>

[Ed_Ingold]

<p><em>The question I want answered is: Why isn't there a meter coupling eye on Leica lenses?</em></p>

<p>The accessory meter couples with the shutter speed dial on M models. You set the aperture according to the direct reading.</p>

[andylynn]

<p>I never found not having a tab on an SLR lens to be a problem, and these Nikon focusing rings are easy enough to use. I don't think I would want extra bits sticking out of my lenses - that's just another opportunity to snag on something while handling the lenses.</p>

[rick_keir]

<p>A non-obvious advantage of the focusing tab on the Leica wide angle lenses is it aids in zone focusing. If you know where focus is when the tab is at 4 o'clock, 6 o'clock, etc., you can zone focus without even looking at your camera, an important trick in many journalistic and street photography situations. Medium format lenses aren't common for this kind of street shooting, but a focusing ring gives you the leverage for smoother control of a heavy lense. These days, good autofocus eliminates many uses of zone focusing, and the stock viewfinder screen in DSLRs isn't all that well designed for manual focus anyway (that's why people buy Katzeye screens) so tabs don't make much sense.</p>