Short Tele, Alternative Legacy: The 85mm f/2 AI-S

When discussing short Nikkor telephotos or classic portrait lenses, a number of lenses come to mind: the 105mm f/2.5 AI-S and the 85mm f/1.4 AI-S. However there was another: the 85mm f/2 AI-S.


^{85mm f/2 AI-S sitting between a 105mm f/2.5 AI-S and 50mm f/1.8 AI-S pancake}

An economical wide alternative: 28mm f/3.5 AI

The 28mm f/3.5 has a long history reaching back to 1960, with the Auto-H, and cumulating in the Nikkor 28mm f/3.5 AI/AIS of the late 70s/early 80s. All variations had a 6/6 design although the Auto-H and the AI/AI-S having different optical formula. By the time the AI/AI-S was released in 1977/1981, it was already seen as the economical 28mm with its slower f/3.5 max aperture with the f/2 K and f/2.8 K/AI making its debuts in 1975 and 1974 respectively.

The f/3.5 AI-S was sunset in 1983 by which time the very well regarded 28mm f/2.8 AI-S had been released. Over time, the 28mm f/2.8 AI-S reputation (and its long production run) keeps it in conversations but if you were to consider a manual 28mm, is the slower f/3.5 worth considering?

Reverse the macro trend: the Nikon BR-2A Macro Adaptor Ring

Getting into macro photography has its challenges, typically given the need for a suitable lenses. However, there is another option with reversing ring such as the Nikon BR-2A that can be used your existing lens.

Widely Regarded: Nikkor 20mm f/4 AI

The Nikkor 20mm f/4 AI (and its near identical predecessor, the K) was the optical successor to the very well regarded Nikkor-UD 20mm f/3.5 Auto. The K was produced from 1974 to 1977 and the AI released for a short period after til the start of 1978, at which point the Nikkor 20mm f/3.5 AI had been released. Both the f/4 AI and f/3.5 AI lenses had good reputations but how are they really?

Precision Macro: Using the Nikon D300 with LiveView and Focus Peaking on Linux

Macro photography is a game of millimeters. When you are shooting at 1:1 magnification, the depth of field is so thin that even the slightest movement or a poorly calibrated viewfinder can ruin a shot.

The Nikon D300, while a solid workhorse even more than a decade and a half later, lacks the modern "Focus Peaking" found in mirrorless cameras. However, with a Linux machine, some open-source tools, and a custom Python script, we can give legacy liveview enabled DSLR real-time focus assistance.

The Designated (JIS) Driver

The general guidance for vintage Japanese lens repair is to use JIS drivers to avoid stripping the screw heads so what and how many do we need?

Serv(ic)ing A Micro legacy: Micro Nikkor-P Auto 55mm f/3.5

The Micro Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 series of lens has had a long history with the first iteration arriving in 1961 and lasted nearly 20 years with the same optical formula, cumulating in the Micro Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 AI. Of course, the 55mms prior to the AI version were all pre-AI although Nikon provided factory AI aperture ring conversions and its reasonable rare for still find a pre-AI factory converted 55mm. I found a late edition (1969-73) factory converted P-Auto and give it a service and here's what I found.


^{Micro-Nikkor P Auto 55mm f/3.5, with factory AI conversion and non original rubber grip}

Nikkor 20mm f/3.5 AI repair / service

I've loved this lens for a while now for its a ability to resist flare like no other vintage Nikkor I've used, but I've put off servicing this lens since theres been NO online repair resources/service manuals available, not even from the usual places that may have alerted us to identified gotchas. In the end, I decide to attempt the service regardless given recent successes in servicing other Nikkor AI/AI-S lenses.

Old school shade - vintage lens hoods

Rick Housh's archived Geocities Lens hood page was the bible for helping us finding the right lens hood for our vintage Nikkors - whilst this is archived on OOCities.org I've found it a little slow and tempermental. Rick's original domain http://housh.net has long gone sadly and it reminds us that the internet is very much fragile and we hope other resources such as Roland Vink's phenomenal Nikkor lens db is maintained - Roland's pages list the official lens hood for each lens but without hood specs.


^{Nikon HK-6 for 20mm f/3.5 AI}

Commodity old school 35mms

The 35mm focal length was a classic "candid" lens, for street photography/photojournalism etc but for me it was always a compromise: neither wide enough or long enough, preferring either a 28mm or a 50mm/85mm/105mm. These 35mm still command a decent price on the used market and I was able to obtain a 5/5 element/group 35mm f/2.8 AI-S and a 8/6 35mm f/2 AI for a short evaluation.

Cleaning, Repairing and Servicing a 50mm f/1.4 AI

The 50mm f/1.4 AI and its optical formula was inheritted by its successor and beyond which meant it was in production from the late 70s to 2025 so this lens as an option comes with a well known optical performance and can be found a slightly lower cost than its succesor. The f/1.4 AI ran from 1977-1981 so servicing is a must, with my copy having sticky and unusable focus as well as being very dirty.

Just One More: 50mm f/2 AI

Having serviced and owned a number of Nikkor 50mm I asked myself how many 50mm do we actually need? It turns out that just one more in the shape of a 50mm f/2 AI.

Helicoid Grease options: Japan Hobby Tool #10 and NPC FC-4 / BC-13A

Helicoid grease is a specialist item that is difficult to source and suitable options are limited. Even with options, the lens manufacturers do not disclose their greases and there are a very limited number of trusted resources that have reviewed various the greases. Two greases that are under consideration are Japan Hobby Tool #10 and NPC FC-4 (reportedly the grease used in some Nikkor lenses)

The Eutopian Light Mod? The Beauty Dish

As an amatuer photographer interested in lighting I was almost always drawn to a beauty dish, and I remember quite a lot of interest for Todd Owyoung's DIY beauty dish when it first appeared as a means for amateurs to obtain their very own cheap beauty dish - it wasn't for everyone but I've always been intrigued by the light quality from a beauty dish.

Budget Monolight: Godox MS300 practical observations

The Godox brand has been pumping out budget lights for a while now and in recent years the options for entry level monoblock has fallen away with Bowens folding, leaving only Elinchrom D-Lite RX One 100Ws (and its aging user interface/controls) or the Chinese Godox MS200/MS300 rated at 200Ws/300Ws. This is not a review (there's plenty of good ones over the years since its release in ~2019) but with budget/entry level monoblocks, there's generally reasons for the categorisation.



I had a chance to play with a loaner unit for a few weeks and some practical observations.

Regreasing an overly dampened Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 AI-S

My Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 AI-S was a favourite for many years and was one of my first manual focus lenses and the dampened, but not stiff, focus ring was a nice change from my plastic AF-S lenses. The major benifit at the time with the level of dampening was it helped with precise/limited movement for focusing at wide open apertures.



However with regreasing a number of other Nikkors I've started to prefer a softer focus feel - these are my notes for how to regrease/lubricate a Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 AI-S.

An old zoomer today: Nikkor 80-200mm f/4.5 AI

The Nikkor 80-200mm f/4.5 AI was a compact professional grade zoom produced from ~1977-1981 - it was regarded highly at the time with some preferring this iteration over the latter f/4 AI-S. This lens is fairly ubiquitous on the second hand market and its price is relatively low so it may seem to be a safe bet when picking up something used in this range. But how safe is this bet?

Sekonic L-478DR still relevant a decade on?

Hand held light meters relevance may been less common with photographers but they arguably still have a niche, particular in studio/flash applications. Certainly the availability of new light meters on is infrequent, with Sekonic being the only real players left in the market with their L-308, L-478 and L-858 series. The mid range L478 was release ~2012 with a touch screen but how does it fare a decade on?

Another closer look: Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/4 AI

The Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/4 AI was released along side the 55mm f/3.5 AI in 1977 and offered a more comfortable working distance and narrower field of focus over the 55mm - the longer lens is double the weight heavier (500g) compared to 245g of the 55mm.

Regreasing dry Micro Nikkor 55m f/3.5 AI Helicoids

The Micro Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 AI is an ~40 year old lens and my copy has various "dry or uneven" areas over its focus range after a few years of sitting idle. Lets see what it takes to fix that.