old lenses and nikon cameras

[memoteran]

other than the 1.5x zoom from the small sensor digi cam got
what would be another problem from getting old lenses if you know they are working proberly?

i kinda want to buy this lens and flash ( ill put the link down here) and if theres any expert of photography that could tell me if they would work on my nikon d50
please help me out i cant afford a 600 new fisheye right now but i need one so bad

http://www.adorama.com/US 204761.html - lens

http://www.adorama.com/US 161392.html flash

 

[filmamigo]

The lens -should- be fine. It's a Nikon AF.

The advantage of your D50 is the ability to use all of the AF lenses -- the "screwdriver-type" originals, which are often simply listed as "AF", and the newer AF-S type. The D40 can only autofocus an AF-S lens, which keeps you from buying a lot of used bargains.

One thing: sometimes people report third-party (i.e. non-Nikon) lenses that don't work right on newer models of Nikon cameras. While this Sigma lens has a really good chance of working on your camera (because the mount and type of lens are correct) there is a tiny chance that an older lens won't work right on your newer camera. The best thing to do is to buy from a reputable dealer with a good return policy (in case your D50 doesn't like this lens). Don't think I'm down on third-party lenses though -- I use Sigma and Tamron on my Nikon F80 almost exclusively.

As for the flash, it's tougher to say without more research into the flash itself. Check their website, and fire them off an email to see how compatible it is with a D50. I suspect that flash will only operate in "Auto" mode, not TTL.

Good luck,

Dave

 

[jlcharles]

I'd honestly go and purchase something used from Keh before Adorama. They rate very conservatively. I picked up a Nikon SB-28 in bargain condition for $72 and it looks like it just came out of the box.

If you look under 35mm and Nikon Autofocus, there's lots of good stuff.

 

[ChrisA]

It's not an "old lens" if it is an AF. Old ones are manual focus and still will work but not meter.

Nikon did change their strobes. The older "TTL" strobes don't work in any automatic mode with the newer cameras. I have to use older Nikon flash in either manual or "A" mode. The camera will trigger it but not much else. It's not so bad. My medium format camers was the same way, manual focus and no built-in meter

Back to the lens. how wide is 14mm? It will not be a full fisheye on the D50 body. More like an extra wide with distortion likely. Also the DOF will be such that I doubt you will really need to focus it.

 

[compuwar]

other than the 1.5x zoom from the small sensor digi cam got
what would be another problem from getting old lenses if you know they are working proberly?

Nikon generally lists which older lenses won't work with a particular body in the manual. A very few very old designs will recess far enough into the body to get in the way of the mirror. Outside of that, the only issues you'll have with old f-mount lenses is that very old ones won't do autoexposure, and if you have a D40 series body, you don't get AF with non-AFS lenses. My rule of thumb is AF-D or later for anything other than the D40, which gives a bunch of good reasonable glass.

I second the KEH recommendation, though Adorama, B&H and Ace Photo in Virginia are all good sources of used gear.