Hasta La Gadget!

Accessory maker Novoflex has a new lens adapter that will let you use Nikon F-mount lenses on Canon EOS bodies. It adds one big extra over previous versions: you get a ring to control aperture on Nikon G-lenses (those without an aperture ring.)

One of the great things about the little mirrorless cameras like the Panasonic G-series, the Olympus Pens and the Sony NEXes is that their currently meager lens line-up can be supplemented by other lenses old and new, just by using an adapter. SLRs, on the other hand, are pretty much stuck with the glass that was made for them.

An adapter has a thickness, and when you put one on a lens, you move that lens away from the film (or sensor). This stops the lens focusing at infinity (and will also allow it to focus a little closer). Thus, mounting a Canon lens on a Nikon body doesn’t work so well. The mirrorless cameras already have a lot of extra space to spare, so the adapters have room to fit. Novoflex has managed to get this ring thin enough not to cause focus problems.

The new EOS/NIK-NT adapter has an integrated aperture ring so that you can still set the hole-size. As G-series lenses are controlled entirely by electronics in the camera body, they need this extra to work on a Canon camera. Thus, auto-exposure (aperture priority) will work by actually stopping down the lens. Focus will still be manual, although infinity focus is maintained. If you have lenses with aperture rings, another adapter is available.

The problem is that there are plenty of great lenses for both Canon and Nikon, so we wonder why you’d need this adapter. For quick, fun experiments it will be great, but otherwise its hard to see the point. Especially when you consider the price, a rather odd $292.99.

Novoflex Adapter Finder [Novoflex via Photography Bay]

See Also:

• Lens Adapters Put Leica, Nikon, Canon Lenses on Sony NEX
• Digi-Diana: Lomo Lens Adapter for Canon, Nikon DSLRs
• Hands-On With the Diana F Lens Adapter and Fisheye: As Bad As You …

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We’d obviously take this one with a grain (or two) of salt, but Nikon Rumors has it that Nikon’s fixing to give entry level DSLR buyers yet another option in the not-too-distant future. Of course, with the planet’s largest photo show coming up in just a few months (Photokina, if you’re curious), it’s about time that some of these rumors start to pick up traction. Truth be told, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard of the D3100 — a few months ago it was being bandied about as the D4000. Word on the street has it that the shooter will boast a 10 megapixel CMOS sensor, a dozen autofocus points and a fixed LCD on the rear (read: no swivel). But that’s just the beginning; the D3100 will purportedly boast 1080p and 720p movie modes, and each will support continuous autofocus while filming. Yeah, you read that right — continuous autofocus in video mode. That’s a killer feature that we’ve been begging for ever since the D90 became a reality, and while we’ll probably want to swap out the stock 18-55mm lens for something with a bit more flexibility, we couldn’t be happier to hear of these features hitting Nikon’s range. Look forward to a price and release “in a few weeks.” We are.

Nikon D3100 to split the D5000 / D3000 difference? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 16 Jul 2010 07:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nikon’s D3S didn’t exactly emerge out of nowhere, but the DSLR’s boosted ISO ceiling of over 100,000 (102,400, if we’re being precise) has certainly shaken up the industry. Nikon claims that it’s set a new bar for low-light performance and raw speed in the crowded DSLR arena, and we were tickled pink when given the chance to see if this thing was worth its weight in gold. Now, the master photogs over at DP Review have already broken down the nitty-gritty details in an exhaustive 34 page critique, but for those just looking for a little insight — and perhaps a short answer to “should I buy this?” — we’ve got exactly what you’re looking for. Head on past the break for two distinct takes on Nikon’s most capable shooter yet — and some thoughts on how Nikon’s latest monster professional cam will radically change the consumer camera as well.

Continue reading Shooting around with the Nikon D3S: the field review

Shooting around with the Nikon D3S: the field review originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 Jun 2010 16:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Despite the built-in pico projector and a freakish publicity stunt, Nikon’s Coolpix S1000pj camera hasn’t exactly been flying off the shelves. That said, French magazine Chasseur d’Images — a publication with good track record on product leaks — is reporting that Nikon’s cooking up a second projector camera, and this time it’ll even work as a conventional pico projector for computers. Sounds pretty swank, but according to Nikon Rumors, we’ll have to wait until the first half of August for the next batch of Coolpix cameras to come out. Hopefully it won’t be too late for our summer getaways — otherwise we’ll just have to hop on over to another hemisphere.

Nikon rumored to be working on second projector camera with video-in capability originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Jun 2010 14:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oh sure, Nikon‘s got its own solution for adding native geotagging to your existing DSLR, but the GP-1 dongle definitely has its drawbacks. Aside from sucking down around 4x more power than Gisteq’s new PhotoTrackr Plus, it also eliminates the ability to use a dedicated flash in the hotshoe while capturing GPS data. Moreover, it has to warm up every time you turn the camera on / off, and there’s just 18 tracking channels compared to the Gisteq’s 44. Regardless of the back and forth, we do appreciate the PhotoTrackr Plus’ ability to plug directly into the 10-pin terminal that few amateurs even think to recognize, though we do fear that the reliance on Bluetooth could cause issues if you stray too far from the transceiver. Still, this newfangled dongle is far superior to its past iterations, both of which simply logged data as you went and then added metadata after you synced the information with your images via PC; this dongle, however, embeds the data right away into every image. Better still, there’s even a price advantage to going third party — Nikon’s aging GP-1 is pushing $200 on many webstores, while the Gisteq apparatus can be procured right now for $179. Take your pic, as they say.

Continue reading PhotoTrackr Plus brings geotagging to Nikon DSLRs, leaves your hotshoe open

PhotoTrackr Plus brings geotagging to Nikon DSLRs, leaves your hotshoe open originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 30 May 2010 04:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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