Using Nikkon Lenses on Canon Bodies (and vica versa)

Hi all,

After reading the post on the Canon 1D mkIII lots of people are talking
about using Nikkon lenses on the canon cameras.

While I have heard of this as a possibility I always thought that it left
you with manual focus and the cons outweighed the pros.

Can somebody clarify for me what you need to do it, which cameras it would
work with and how much it would cost please?

I am still using a lowly 300d but I have never considdered using Nikkon
lenses before and if it is a possibility my upgrade path may be revised....

Thanks,

John

 

Yes, such adapters have been available for quite some time. For instance,
Canon sold adapters to connect various other
makes to their Canonflex R cameras, their Canon FL cameras, and their Canon
FD cameras. These adapters were
merely stop gap things. An adapter for the EOS mount is probably made by
somebody somewhere.

However, as you stated, you are left with manual focus and manual aperature
controls. Although I own Nikon gear, if
I did own Canon gear, I would never consider such an option.

As a result of the difference in back focus between the bodies of Canon and
other makes, it may or may not be possible to manufacture
and adapter which will maintain infinity focus.

Jim

 

Yep, Nikkor to EOS adapters are widely available and work extremely well.

Never tried one I see? My Nikkors meter just fine with my Mk III as they do
on the 5D.

UTTER NONSENSE! Haven't a Nikkor yet that had any focus problems and every
one of them works fine for infinity focus.






Rita

 

And you won't because the back focus of Canon bodies is much less than the
back focus of Nikon bodies.
In fact, I never said that you would not be able to get infinity focus from
mounting a Nikon lens on a Canon body.
This entire post was intended to show why such a thing is possible, but the
reverse is not. If my intentions were
not clear, just blame it on the weather.

What I do not know (and don't much care) is whether other manufacturer's
lenses can be mounted on a Canon body.

I must admit that not one time during my 20 year's use of a Canon FT-QL did
I ever consider mounting a Nikon lens on it.
That was during the time that Canon made excellent adapters.
Jim

 

When you say the Nikkors "meter just fine", are you saying that with
the proper adapter, Nikkor lenses will communicate with an EOS body
allowing autofocus and aperture setting?

 

Pentax SMC Takumars work fine on the Canons... all in manual, of
course.

KS

 

It would be easier to say that Nikon's mount is too small to accept a Canon
lens via adapter and wouldn't work properly. The idea of putting Nikkors on
a Canon is to achieve optimum image quality. Why do the reverse and go
backwards?

Sure they can, it just depends on the quality of the adapter. It is kind of
a moot point when confronted with the question of why you would want to use
any other brand lens than Nikon.

That was because you had decent glass. Wasn't that the timeframe when Nikon
was making lenses for Canon? Adapting Nikkors to Canon didn't come in vogue
till after the FD mount was discontinued. This is about the time people
realized Canon was pumping out crappy glass.






Rita

 

There's no communications between the Nikkor and the camera body at all.
The camera does all the metering by itself. You just focus and select
aperture manually by turning those fancy rings on the lens that so many
people forgot what they are for. I've seen adapter rings that have
electrical contacts that transfer focus confirmation data, but I feel they
are a waste of time and a gimmick when the Mk IIIs viewfinder is so sweet.







Rita

 

OK.. So you do have manually focus. And I imagine then, that Nikkor
lenses allow you to manually adjust the aperture. If so, I wasn't
aware of that.

I've been an EOS user since 1994 and have *no* experience with Nikkor
lenses I know that the aperture of EOS lenses can only be changed
electronically by the camera. There is no way of doing it manually.
I was assuming the same was true for Nikkors.

 

Depends on the type. Only G-type lenses don't have an aperture ring any
longer and therefore need a compatible camera to change the aperture
electronically from the camera.
For all others you can set the aperture manually using the ring on the lens.

jue

 

That is correct. The latest generation of Nikkors is the "G" lens that
doesn't have an aperture ring.

This is where Canon screwed the pooch and really don't need an aperture
ring. They have no backwards compatibility; well they don't have any
cameras that would need modern lenses since they abandoned FD users. Nice
thing about the Nikkor is I can always grab one and throw it on the old FE
and enjoy shooting film. Needn't fret, Nikon has gone full G so they will
be like Canon when all the D lenses and film bodies die.







Rita

 

OK.. So you can use Nikkor lenses on an EOS body with the appropriate
adapter. Focus and aperture settings will be manual only.

G type lenses will fit but I would imagine you can only shoot wide
open since there is no way to change the aperture. It seems they
would be a poor choice if you were looking to fit a Nikkor lens on a
Canon body.