Why does Nikon make G lens?

[Carl Stone]

"only that I don't know if it's exactly 1/2 or 1/3 f/stop."

 

Well Al, with a newer body, you would know, and so would everyone else that used

that feature. I really suspect anyone's ability to accurately set 1/3 stops with the

aperture ring unless they have a lot of experience, and are not pressured to shoot

rapidly. Modern equipment is giving much more control, and it's repeatable, to any

user.

 

"They're still selling MF bodies!! "

 

And they're still selling manual lenses to go with them also. Manual folks have not

been left out in the cold.

[ilkka_nissila]

Actually when using the aperture ring my aim was 1/6 stop as in between 1/3 stops the manual meter readout of AF Nikons blinks, so that you can get it very accurately. It's very easy and not a pain at all. With the current system, changing apertures and shutter speeds takes a lot of time so that even I'm inclined to switch to A with so-so results on the F100, a bit better with the F5.

 

However, I don't like the placement of the aperture ring as it's too close to the body to be comfortably used.

[n m]

Auto aperture is encouraging manufacturers to design aperture rings with minimal respect to the user of the minority of systems that demand the rings. There are sigma lenses using a narrow and recessed aperture ring which is not at all optimal.

[lars]

Vernon Deardruff wrote: "<i>When the 80-40mm VR first came out, it was stated in various press releases and articles that VR uses the AF points to detect side to side and top to bottom motion.</i>"

<p>

This way well be the case, but a role of the AF sensors are not mentioned in this <a href="http://www.nikon-image.com/eng/Nikkor_Lenses/vr/index.html">description</a> or in this <a href="http://www.nikon-image.com/eng/news_release/2000/vrlens.html">online news release</A>.

[Carl Stone]

Is it possible that the AF sensors are merely signposts for the VR feature, and the that

that they are AF of MF signposts is irrelevant?

[jbq]

It's possible that the AF sensors are involved in calibrating the lens at startup, but not after that.

[carl smith]

N M, although the Nikon aperture ring hasn't shrunk in to a rubber band yet, it does feel very cheaply made. Like it was an afterthough. To me it seems they've been feeling cheesier and cheesier since about the mid 90s on the majority of the Nikon lenses.

[Carl Stone]

"To me it seems they've been feeling cheesier and cheesier since about the mid 90s

on the majority of the Nikon lenses."

 

One needs to decide what's important, aesthetics or performance. To paraphrase Ken

Rockwell, Nikon lenses are getting cheaper feeling and working better.

[triode___]

I don't want to have to carry two sets of lenses(G and Ai-s)just so that I can backup my F5/D1h with my FM2/FM3a.

 

Yes, I would like to have my cake and eat it too. I would like the option of mounting and using my (bleedlingly) expensive Zoom AFS/VR lens(if I owned one) of a lens on both my F5/D1h and FM2/FM3a. I just can't do that with a G lens.

 

Let the rank amateurs/beginners/fools have their G-lenses, just don't handicap the pro-level lenses. How much would it have cost Nikon to include the aperture ring on the new 70-200 AFS VR? US$5-10??

 

If a professional photog can't understand how to lock down his lens at the minimum aperture to in order to use Program mode/shutter priority, he should think about changing professions.

 

Nikon is throwing the one advantage it has over Canon i.e. the ability to backup a battery dependent AF body with that of a mechanical backup (and not have to carry 2 sets of lenses).

 

** Yes I know the FM2/FM3a still require batteries to run their meters but, the proability of those batteries running out are pretty slim. Besides, you could always keep a selenium meter(Gossen Pilot) handy if you really wanted to be anal about things.