slr vs. dslr lens - Photography Help Forum

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Q. slr vs. dslr lens

Asked by Amy Scott (K=290) on 5/3/2009

Can someone explain to me what the advantage is of buying a lens made specifically for a dslr? It seems to me that the downside would be you can't ever use it on a film camera. Why do people buy lens that can be used only on a digital camera?

Chelsea Burke

(K=5750) - Comment Date 5/6/2009

Since the switch to digital a few years back, and the prevalence of digital cameras, a lot of people only have a digital camera. If you're using both film and digital cameras it makes sense to get one that will work on both formats. It really depends on the individual, what kind of camera they have, and how they will use it.

Gilbert Leoncio (K=161) - Comment Date 5/14/2009

Lenses made specifically for digital cameras are designed to the exact magnification in relation to its sensor size which is smaller than the dimensions of a conventional 35mm film.

A film camera lens used on a digital body will have a magnification factor of 1.5X or 1.6X depending on the brand. That means a 50mm film camera lens zooms to the equivalent of 75mm or 80mm.

Most film camera lenses, both manual and autofocus, will fit their digital counterparts on manual mode and without metering except on higher end digital bodies. This is true for Nikon. With Canon only EF lenses can be used on digital bodies. Earlier manual focus lenses can't be used directly because they have a different mount unless you use an adaptor.

On the other hand using a digital lens on a film camera body could cause vignetting on the corners owing to the bigger film measurement against the smaller rear elements of a digital lens.

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