Zf and F mount lenses-- basic questions from a Z newbie

[yardcoyote]

I am pretty sure by this point that I am going to end up with a Zf eventually, and it's also pretty clear that there's going to be a wait before that happens. So I am trying to learn a few things ahead of time to help me make what I hope are wise lens choices and avoid spending a ton of time and money going down dead ends.

I know I can get the FTZii adapter and use a wide range of F mount SLR and DSLR lenses going back quite a long way. It's my understanding that autofocus lenses with their own internal motors, like the G series, will autofocus normally through the adapter. But autofocus lenses that depended on the motor in the body, (what I think of as "screw drive " lenses since I come from Pentax), like the D series, will not, since the Zf does not have an in body motor.

But what about manual focus? I know the Zf has a lot of interesting MF aids that make it a great choice for use with manual lenses. In particular, there is a focus confirmation thing where the lens can use the camera's AF system to confirm accurate focus by turning the focus box green. I know this works with the "chipped" MF lenses from Voigtlander (and very attractive lenses they are too), but I have also read several places that this system also works with certain F mount lenses through the adapter.

Is this true? Can I use AF F mount lenses in MF mode and get focus confirmation through the Zf's viewfinder? If so, will this work with D series lenses as well? In other words, can I use D series lenses as MF lenses on a Zf? Will the aperture rings work normally? I actually own a 50mm f/1.8 D leftover from another project-- it's quite a nice lens optically and I was keeping it to use on a Df if I ever got one. Is it a candidate for MF project status on a Zf?

What about older, non AF lenses? Is there a generation of MF F mount lenses with electronic connections that will provide the "green box" focus confirmation through the FTZii adapter and also allow me to use the aperture rings normally?

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Instagram: @yardcoyote

 

[skyrunr]

If you're not familiar with how good the z-mount glass is, you'll want to look into Ricci's videos on YouTube. Older lenses focus better on mirrorless than DSLR's (more accurately) with a few quirks. Adapting got old for me, and there are enough affordable lenses in the lineup to consider.

The 14-30F4S, 24-70F4S ($400 used mint start with THIS period,) and 100-400S should cover 90% of most photographer's needs. All of these are available used, refurbished, or watch for black Friday specials. If you're a pro (paid/wedding/event/sports/etc.) you're doing to want the f2.8S zooms lenses.

There are some great YouTube videos on using older lenses you'll want to search and view there.

Nikon Info:

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www.nikonusa.com

Nikon Z F site (Check out the reference manual):

Nikon | Download center | Z f

 

[AshleyMC]

Can I use AF F mount lenses in MF mode and get focus confirmation through the Zf's viewfinder? If so, will this work with D series lenses as well? In other words, can I use D series lenses as MF lenses on a Zf? Will the aperture rings work normally?

What about older, non AF lenses?

Yes.

This article may be relevant:

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www.techradar.com

 

[Ruby Rod]

Older all-manual lenses work great, or as good as they're capable of. That said, the new Z glass is vastly better than almost all of them. AF is usually better than you can do manually, even with focus aids. With fast lenses you probably won't consistently hit the focus point you want. I had a 50 mm f/1.2 AiS Nikkor and I could never get perfect focus in real-world shooting. I still use a couple AiS lenses when I can't justify or afford something modern, but I sold everything else to help pay for new glass.

 

[yardcoyote]

Thank you for the links. But otherwise, I think we are on different pages. No interest here in "pro" glass, or zooms, or covering 99% of most photographer's needs. I'm just looking for a few primes, starting with my basic two lens kit, a 40mm and an 85 or 90mm to walk around with. Maybe adapting a MF lens might allow me to get a macro prime eventually too if I find an interesting one that isn't too enormous. My other needs are met already in other systems. This is going to be an art/fun camera. I'm in no hurry and have nobody's expectations to meet but my own.

I figure the 40mm f/2 kit lens will be good to start with, with the tantalizing prospect of the Voigtlander 40mm f/1.2 if I want to step up. So I'm mostly looking for all the options at 85 or 90, with focal lengths in between always an option. Not interested in anything wider than 40, or much longer than 90.

 

[yardcoyote]

Super, and thank you very much for the link. I'm excited by the prospect of practicing manual focus with this camera with a lens I already have.

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Instagram: @yardcoyote

 

[yardcoyote]

Fair enough. I can't imagine that I'm not going to have some new Z lenses (starting with the kit lens), plus an older G series AF lens or two too. I always liked the look of the results from the basic f/1.8 Gs and there's that 60mm Micro that might be fun. Hopefully there will be more third party AF Z glass eventually as well.

 

[AshleyMC]

Super, and thank you very much for the link. I'm excited by the prospect of practicing manual focus with this camera with a lens I already have.

I used to enjoy MF assist features on my Nikon DSLRs (Canon was the worst in this regard). Today, the Zf brings MF to a “sublime” level.

BTW, I notice there is a K-5 IIs in your gear list. I still have mine.

At one point, I was drooling over the K-3 Monochrome. I think I am OK now, with the Zf B&W renditions. Sure, in an “ideal” world, I would pick up a Leica Q2 Monochrom… But life would be less romantic without dreams…

 

[yardcoyote]

I need to tidy up my gear list. The good old K-5iis went to new home last year. I just found I wasnt using it much since I got the KP. It was my first "real" digital camera and I miss it sometimes. The KP is just much more useable with the third control wheel.

 

[DeanSolecki]

I was thinking of getting a zf with some quirky 'art' lenses, but, looking at comparisons with something like the 50 1.8, the art lenses aren't much cheaper and they come with every conceivable disadvantage.

If you wanted to play around with some "wild" looking glass just for kicks it might be fun for a bit, but when you put this stuff side by side with the 85 1.8 or 50 1.8, it's not going to hold its own for anything besides quirky street photography or art pieces, unless you go the voigtlander route, and...

The voigtlanders seem interesting and have better packaging, but that's a lotta dosh for a play around build.

At least for me, any way I tried to stack it up, a 35 1.8, 50 1.8, 85 1.8, and 24-70 f4 all give you more flexibility and performance until you're spending way, way too much money (just get a leica and tattoo "rob me" on your forehead, at that point.) I already own most of this Z gear, along with 1.2s and 2.8s, and z6iis and a z8, so outside of the aesthetic I can't figure out what I'd be getting from that build other than modest packaging advantages.

I'm sure there will be some competent MF glass for Z mount that isn't expensive and niche, with tight packaging and an approachable aesthetic, but I don't think that glass exists, yet.

If I were going to buy a screw-around camera at the moment I think I would be more tempted by a cheap, older fujifilm/lumix APS-C off ebay with a couple cheap primes; a proper bar-crawl build that is light, discrete, serviceable enough, and could walk off without too much heartache (I use my z6s enough that losing one of them would be pretty inconvenient.) I'd be a little interested in how these manage low light, but with reasonable expectations I'm sure they're good enough. In my eyes that's the camera you'll actually take to the bar or in a carry on without thinking twice, which means you'll actually use it.

tl;dr: A screw around camera will get used at a rate inversely proportional to its value.

 

[jthomas39]

You probably saw this recent Zf thread:

Nikon ZF manual focus with dumb adapters

I don't know about manual lenses on an FTZ, though.

...

I like my Z6's F2 button setting of "100% zoom". It zooms to the current focus point, then a second press zooms back to the full scene view. It's easy to get good focus on a tricky subject, like a bird with bare branches in front of it. I like it. It works the same way in Image Review too.

My Z6 does turn the focus box green when I switch the Z lens to manual focus, but it's extremely sensitive and flips back to red most all the time. It's not very helpful. The ">o<" indicator at the bottom left works, but then I'm not looking at the image. So I use the 100% zoom method most of the time instead.

 

[yardcoyote]

Got that-- Fuji X-M1 is the best screw around camera ever.

 

[yardcoyote]

I have a note here to map that setting to the Zf's function button for MF shooting. It's been recommended a couple of times.

I definitely see a dumb adapter in my longer term future if I go ahead with this project, since I still have all my Pentax K mount film gear ready and waiting. But I think I want to start with something that works with focus assist.

 

[AshleyMC]

Screw-around camera?

For years, that has been my cheap, well-worn, great-sensor Sony a7 (original). I adapt all kinds of “vintage” lenses to use with it — notably the Soviet lenses.

Actually, some of my favourite images were created with my screw-around camera.

 

[yardcoyote]

I have tried a couple of times over the years to assemble and use a "sensible" kit that "covers 90% ( or whatever) of what a photographer needs" and it has never ended well for the sensible lenses. I just don't like zooms, or anything wider than a 40, and I will go quite a long way to get a working aperture ring on a lens to use on a camera that seems suited to it, which the Zf definitely is. It is not a sensible camera, which of course is why I like it so much.

I may very well end up with the 85mm f/1.8, but I fully intend to be grumpy about it if I do.

 

[Ruby Rod]

Once you see how good the 85 f/1.8 is, you'll have trouble being grumpy.

 

[HyperCypher]

Vastly ?

 

[HyperCypher]

The whole AF D catalog is waiting for you and your ZF. Most of them are cheap exactly because they don’t auto focus in Z world … but they focus manually as if they were Z lense in MF with full aperture ring meter coupling and green box confirmation, peaking and zoom focus at hand. New for the Zf is eye af focus confirmation in manual focus

Even cheaper is the whole Nikkor manual focus back catalog . No focus confirmation green box but peaking is there and zoom focus. Enable auto iso and you will get excellent metering and you just set aperture manually on the lens and auto iso and exposure comp will do their thing and the EVF will “show” you the effect of your exposure

Are these lenses sharp enough … of course. Beware the DPR Sharpy virus.

 

[yardcoyote]

No aperture ring is not promising. If I wanted to control aperture on a wheel on the body, I could choose from a whole range of dual wheel FF cameras, many of them half the price of the Zf secondhand. Compromising on shooting experience is not the way to my heart. We are not talking about a cheap "starter" lens here. The 85mm f/1.8 would be a foundation lens for me and represents a long term commitment.

 

[yardcoyote]

Don't worry about that with me. I'm very much a "Sharpness is a bourgeois concept" kind of person. These ultra sharp, ultra corrected modern lenses often don't amuse me. I like a little crunch in my art. As mentioned above, I already have a decent 50mm f/1.8 D knocking around so I would have something to test the concept on right away. If I can get the "green box" system to work for me, then maybe I could make friends with an 85mm f/1.4 D. That lens always seemed to be a bit of a dreamboat.

Thanks for the advice about working with fully manual lenses too. Manual +Auto ISO is my favorite mode in general and I like the idea of finding a new way to work with it.

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Instagram: @yardcoyote