Lens question

[Tickla]

I currently have a 35mm SLR and love it, but want to get a bigger zoom lens for it, but I am having a hard time finding anything but Digital SLR zoom lenses--does anyone know if the Digital SLR lenses are compatible with 35 mm cameras of the same brand? Thanks for any help!

 

[Anewman]

I currently have a 35mm SLR and love it, but want to get a bigger zoom lens for it, but I am having a hard time finding anything but Digital SLR zoom lenses--does anyone know if the Digital SLR lenses are compatible with 35 mm cameras of the same brand? Thanks for any help!

Most will have a line of lenses that fit Film & Digital and they will have a seperate line that fits Digital only.

Take Canon
EF lens = Film and Digital
EF-S lens = Digital only

If the lens you are looking into states "DIGITAL" lens, I would assume that it does not fit film cameras.

But if you ask about a specific lens, I am sure that somebody here will own that brand of camera and might give you a decent answer.

 

[ukcatfan]

The digital lenses have smaller openings, b/c the digital sensor is smaller than film. They digital lenses are generally smaller/lighter b/c they can be. They will fit, but not work correctly. There would be no way to avoid extreme vignetting.

Unless you are set on a new lens, have you checked for a used one? I bought two from KEH that I am happy with.

Kevin

 

[Groucho]

Don't forget eBay - also check your phone book for local consignment shops or photo stores that might carry used lenses. Lenses are usually pretty hardy and a few external scratches or nicks shouldn't affect the optical quality.

Make sure that you're looking for the right type of lens, though. Some manufacturers have switched mounts now and then and certain bodies will only work with certain lenses.

Like ukcatfan said, the advantage of the digital lenses is that they can be smaller, lighter, and cheaper due to the smaller sensor in a DSLR versus the 35mm frame in an SLR. Handy for DSLR users, not so good for film users.

 

[handicap18]

I currently have a 35mm SLR and love it, but want to get a bigger zoom lens for it, but I am having a hard time finding anything but Digital SLR zoom lenses--does anyone know if the Digital SLR lenses are compatible with 35 mm cameras of the same brand? Thanks for any help!

What brand SLR do you have. I know that most of Nikon's telephoto lenses are not digital based. Their 3 70-300mm lenses are for both film and digital. I believe Sigma's and Tamron's 70-300mm lens is also for both film and digital.

For Nikon if it has DX in the lens description then it is meant for digital (ie: 18-70mm f/3.5-5.6 ED-IF AF-S DX ). They will work on film slr's but you will have to crop the picture down to the digital size after the film is developed.

Sigma lenses that are made for digital have DC in their description (ie: 10-20mm F4-5.6 EX DC HSM)

Tamron lenses that are made for digital have Di II in their description (ie: SP AF17-50mm F/2.8 XR Di II LD Aspherical [IF])

Some else already explained Canon's.

Good luck.

 

[Tickla]

Thanks everyone--I didn't think of trying used. My brand is a Nikon (N75). Handicap18: thanks for all the info on each brands digital description-that helps alot!! Maybe I should convince myself to just go digital,but I really LOVE my N75--anyone else still like film cameras?

 

[Master Mason]

I still like film cameras, but for the easy of use and convience, cost of developing, ease of post processing etc.... once you jump to digital you'll never look back.

Another huge plus is you'll take so many more picutures with digital, as they really don't cost anything at that point.

 

[Groucho]

I just got back a couple rolls of film yesterday... one of which was one that I took back in '98 I think, and had some neat photos from a Florida trip. My favorite is a shot of my future wife interacting with Laurel and Hardy at Universal Studios - it's really, really cute.

I had some newer photos on there just to make sure that the camera was still working as expected, so I could use it with the fisheye lens for the full effect (it's not as fishy on a DSLR) and I was happy to find that the old girl still works perfectly.

It is interesting just how different film looks... even beyond the grain and such. It just has a different feel. I'll be using it for some fisheye and b/w work on our next trip - might as well use up some of the film I have lying around! I have a TON of it - a relative worked for a company that made some equipment for Kodak and were provided with big boxes of film to test the equipment with - so there was lots of film to go around when they were done. Most of it is use-by 2003 or so, but should still be mostly fine.

Still, DSLRs are clearly the way to go for most stuff. I was recently going through some PhotoCDs that were made around 1995 by Kodak - where they scan the negative when it's developed and give you an image that is approximately six megapixels - and when seen in that detail, the DSLRs can easily give the detail levels of the 35mm a run for their money, or beat them outright. And the feel of a DSLR can be pretty similar to the feel of a 35mm SLR, especially since you're using the same lenses.

 

[jann1033]

i just switched over from film about 6 months ago when my 35mm camera needed more repair than i was willing to spend for it...i love the immediacy of digital and being able to try things out for "free"( hehe 1000s of $$ worth of digital equipment for "free" photos... hmm what 's wrong with that picture) as well as the relative "ease" of working with the photos in editing

but i still haven't found a program that imo i am getting the same results from black and white that film gives( although maybe that is my printing/editing). i'm happy with color photos i print out but not black an white yet so if my 35 mm camera was working right and i had a better lens for it ( although i think all my lenses can go on either)i'd probably use it for b&w

 

[Tickla]

What kind of camera produces the clearest prints--digital or film? That is the most important thing to me--how great my pictures look on paper. I like them sharp, good color and not blurry--can I get that from a digital p&s--like Canon's Powershot SD600 Elph?? Anyone know?

 

[Anewman]

What kind of camera produces the clearest prints--digital or film?

In prints 8x10 and smaller I doubt you can tell the difference between film and good DSLR. It is even debatable as to which is better in larger prints.

IMO other than the upfront cost of a DSLR, Film no longer(35mm) no longer has any advantages over digital.

That is the most important thing to me--how great my pictures look on paper. I like them sharp, good color and not blurry--can I get that from a digital p&s--like Canon's Powershot SD600 Elph?? Anyone know?

Digital p&s cameras are very capable of taking good(sharp, not blurry) photos. But conditions(lighting, subject) must allow it.

 

[Groucho]

Jann1033 - have you tried any of the commercial filters? There are several that claim to do a good job of converting color digital photos to look like b/w film photos.

Tickla: We just got a SD600 a couple weeks ago for my wife. It's very nice but it's no competition for a DSLR or a decent 35mm SLR. It's got some noise in darker photos and while some photos show remarkable sharpness, most photos are a little soft (difficult to avoid with that many megapixels in such a tiny sensor.) The small sensor also means that it can't grab light like a DSLR so it has to do slower shutter speeds, hence you're more likely to get blur. The noise also kills fine detail. Really, though, it's very nice for such a compact camera.

If you care about image quality enough to still use a film SLR at this point, you probably wouldn't be happy with it as your primary camera. A DSLR should be able to come awful close to matching what you're getting out of your SLR, plus it's much easier to adjust colors, sharpen, crop, etc the photo when it's digital. Since it sounds like you already have an investment in lenses, the most logical choice for you is the Nikon D50, probably. If you don't have an investment in lenses and are willing to switch systems, they you can choose between Nikon, Pentax, Canon, Sony, and Olympus.

 

[jann1033]

What kind of camera produces the clearest prints--digital or film? That is the most important thing to me--how great my pictures look on paper. I like them sharp, good color and not blurry--can I get that from a digital p&s--like Canon's Powershot SD600 Elph?? Anyone know?

i don't know about the elph.. i know the powershot a600 series ( what ever the other numbers were600, 610 something like that) has the same sensor as the s2 IS and the pics i have seen on here look good as do daughter's who has that camera...now if you enlarged them to billboard size i don't know but how often does anyone do that
i recently read( and think it's probably so) that in general digital is a little less sharp than film but you can fix that with photo shop like editing programs( one usually comes with a digital camera).in that particular article i read the guy always does a 20/60 sharpening off the bat..I've been doing that and it seems most times i don't usually have to sharpen much after that . it just kind of neatens it up...anyway, digital is way closer to film than it used to be as far as that goes. they are nothing like the old 2 mp things that look like someone run them through a smudge machine

just as a disclaimer i thought you were supposed to sharpen last but that's the way he does it and i haven't had anything looking weird like i thought it might, well at least not any weirder than it looks already

i just think the b&w looks "different" but i can't really put my finger on what makes it so... maybe i could fix it if i could figure that out...maybe

)

groucho can't you type slower, I'm always like 3 mins. behind your posts ...probably cause i misspell so much and have to change it...

i have alienskin(s) that some one kindly gave me( who no longer posts on here) and virtual photographer both of which i like but they still look different... i just read you can buy special ink cartridges that have more black colors ( like black, not so black, kind of black, hint of black evidently) but i think you have to have more than 2 cartridges and i only have 2 in my printer.. i might take them into an in house developing place and just see if they look different...not that they are museum quality or anything to start with but just one more thing to obsess about but as my husband says..."you could just use a disposable camera and be done with it but you don't want to so that's OK too"( when he said he doesn't mind buying me yet another lens, just not the $2000+ one, poor guy never knew what he started when he bought the camera )

 

[handicap18]

I have a Nikon N70. I used it exclusively from about '97 till '02. Before that I had a Nikon N6006 that I used from about '89 to '96. I went digital in '02 with a Canon P&S S30. Didn't use the N70 that much until last year. Went to Disney and used both the S30 and the N70. Only took 3 or 4 rolls with the N70 and almost 600 pics with the S30, but the pics with the N70 were so much better. I decided than that I needed to go back SLR's exclusively again, but wanted digital. I went with the Nikon D50 in January of this year.

When I compare 8x12 enlargements I made with the N6006 and N70 to the D50, I like the one's taken with the D50 better. They look much cleaner to me.

I absolutly love the D50. Very similar to the N70 (and N75). A bit smaller, but still just as easy to use. I changed my everyday lens from the 28-90mm I used with the N70 to a Nikon 18-70mm (just about the same focal length after the crop factor) with my D50 (28mm on a dSLR isn't wide enough). I still use a 70-300mm lens I bought with the N70 (though I am going to upgrade to the new 70-300mm VR when ever Nikon finally decides to release it). And the 50mm f/1.8D is just as sharp with the digital as it is with the film.

 

[Tickla]

Thanks so much everyone! It helps a bunch to get opinions from people who know so much about this stuff!! I guess I felt a little behind the times with my 35mm, but I just don't know if I'm ready to learn all the digital stuff with a DSLR-it seems so scary!! But all your help is VERY appreciated!

 

[ndelaware]

I guess I felt a little behind the times with my 35mm, but I just don't know if I'm ready to learn all the digital stuff with a DSLR-it seems so scary!!

A DSLR works exactly like an SLR until it's time to take the "film" out.

I took nearly 7000 digital pictures this year. Can you imagine how much it would cost to develop 7000 pictures?

 

[Anewman]

Can you imagine how much it would cost to develop 7000 pictures?

About the same as it would cost to PRINT those 7000 digital pictures

Just a guess.

 

[Groucho]

anyway, digital is way closer to film than it used to be as far as that goes. they are nothing like the old 2 mp things that look like someone run them through a smudge machine

Any older camera that was a smudge machine was that way due to poor design, not the mp... my old 2mp PnS took really nice photos, sharpness-wise they could easily beat more 5+ mp PnSs when those photos were set to the same size.

groucho can't you type slower, I'm always like 3 mins. behind your posts ...probably cause i misspell so much and have to change it...

You should hear me type... I exclusively use those old IBM "clicky" keyboards and I can type pretty fast (been doing it for a looong time, since I was maybe 8 or 9, in the late '70s), occasionally it annoys people who sit near me at work when I really get banging away on the keyboard!

For B/W Photoshop filters (I haven't tried these, just found them) with free demos, there's also Black and White Studio, Silver Oxide, and probably a few others. This site seems to have a lot of info on doing B/W with digital and comparisons of different conversion tools.

Tickla, the main workflow difference you'll have going from a film SLR to a DSLR is the ability to change ISO at will instead of having to load in a new roll of film. Gotta love that! You will lose the split focusing ring if you have one now - which can be frustrating if you like to use manual focus. My DSLR tells (via beep and/or light) when when a manual focus is in focus, though, and I assume that the Nikon does as well, so that helps.

 

[handicap18]

Thanks so much everyone! It helps a bunch to get opinions from people who know so much about this stuff!! I guess I felt a little behind the times with my 35mm, but I just don't know if I'm ready to learn all the digital stuff with a DSLR-it seems so scary!! But all your help is VERY appreciated!

If you've been using an SLR for years, then there is really nothing to learn. Sure there are some differences that you might need to learn, like white balance settings, but there is an Auto setting for that so you really don't have to worry about it much. Shutter speeds and f/stops are going to be the same on digital or film. The advantage you'll have with a dSLR is not having to change a roll of film. If you put a roll of 36 exposure ISO 200, then you have to take all 36 frames or lose part of the roll. With digital you can take 10 pictures at ISO 200, then change to ISO 400 and take as many as you'd like or change back to 200 or change it up to 800 or 1600. Oh yeah, if you want black & white, you can do a simple change on the computer to make a color picture B&W. You don't have to worry about bringing extra rolls of film with you everywhere. I currently have a 2GB memory card in my D50 and I have about 600 pictures on it now and have approx 120 pictures left I can take to store on the 1 card. Also when you take a picture you can go through them afterwards, right away or any other time and delete one's you don't like right then and there. I'll take 7 or 8 pictures of the kids, then look though and delete any that they have their eyes closed or aren't looking at me or have bad looks on their face. Then I'll take a bunch more. With film, you wont know about someone's eye's being closed until you get the prints back. With digital you can choose to print what pictures you want, or all of them, or none of them, instead using your computer as the photo album (ie: screen saver).

Also don't feel left behind for using a film SLR camera. Many people still do, I'm trying to convince one of my cousins to make the switch to digital, but he's still glued to his 25 year old Canon slr. SLR's take great pictures and if you've been using one for a while, they are a lot of fun to use. Personally, I've found that my photography has improved since I went to a dSLR (and coming to this board also has a lot to do with it). One of the biggest advantages with digital over film that doesn't get a lot of talk is EXIF data. With this info, you don't have to worry about writing down or trying to remember what film speed you used, what shutter speed and f/stop was used, what lens was used, did the flash fire, when was the picture was taken: Time and date, as well as a bunch of other information. This info is stored automatically into the pictures file. It comes in very handy, at least for me, for helping understand the relation of light and exposure time and how to get an image to come out the way I want it to in various situations.

In the end its you who makes the decision. Since you've come here and have asked a lot of questions and continue to ask questions you've shown that you definately have the interest. There are a lot of good people on this photography board, many just like yourself. We take pictures because we like it and we want to learn more. Oh yeah and we LOVE Disney. Well, its a great combination. I've learned a lot since coming here and I have fun. Stick around, you might just learn something. And don't be affraid of digital. It doesn't bite. The transition is a lot smoother than you think.

Good luck

 

[handicap18]

You should hear me type... I exclusively use those old IBM "clicky" keyboards and I can type pretty fast (been doing it for a looong time, since I was maybe 8 or 9, in the late '70s), occasionally it annoys people who sit near me at work when I really get banging away on the keyboard!

Oh I loved having one of those keyboards when I worked in an office years ago. Those were my favorite keyboards. I liked the way it felt and sounded. Especially when you get going, CLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICK It felt a little more like a typewriter which I learn on back in the mid 80's. In high school Typing I & II we were only allowed to use the big huge manual typewriters. Senior year I took Typing III & IV and we got to use the electric, that was big time!! The IBM keyboard you mention felt more like the electric typewriter I used to use in HS and college. That might be why I liked using it when I used to work in an office.