[TheBee]

I'm totally new to these lenses, so a big thank you Eric and Steve for putting up with my panic and getting back to me!


I did a little more research and ended up finding about the interlock pin which did the trick! Thank you both for explaining it.

I've read that you need to move from auto to manual to use some adapters (mine will be manual), so I'm all good now.


Can't wait to try it out - it looks like an amazing little lens. I've very excited!

[goatsNdonkey]

I rather enjoy using those, and other similar vintage screw mount lenses in manual mode on a dslr, but it is confusing to people now who never saw how the "auto" feature in their name worked on a film camera of their era. It was something "auto" that didn't actually need batteries to work!

[titrisol]

Well, there's always a downside
if your lens in in Manual (lever over M) you can focus easily (more light) but you'll need to move to Auto to take the picture
if your lens is in Auto (lever over A) you can use aperture priority setting but the image might be too dim for manual focusing

PS. It seems I had it backwards... M is when the M/Manual is visible and A/Auto when that is visible
So this should be:
if your lens in in Auto (Auto/A showing) you can focus easily (more light) but you'll need to move the pin to be pushed to take the picture or move the lever to M
if your lens is in Manual (Manual/M showing) you can use aperture priority setting but the image might be too dim for manual focusing

I'm totally new to these lenses, so a big thank you Eric and Steve for putting up with my panic and getting back to me!


I did a little more research and ended up finding about the interlock pin which did the trick! Thank you both for explaining it.

I've read that you need to move from auto to manual to use some adapters (mine will be manual), so I'm all good now.


Can't wait to try it out - it looks like an amazing little lens. I've very excited!

[TheBee]

Well, there's always a downside
if your lens in in Manual you can focus easily (more light) but you'll need to move to Auto to take the picture
if your lens is in Auto you can use aperture priority setting but the image might be too dim for manual focusing

Thanks for the info Titrisol!
I will keep that in mind when I do still photography.

For the moment I'll be using the lens for video though...thus why I need it in manual mode.
I'll have to see how it goes...
best wishes!

[titrisol]

Neat idea!
I have a few dozen lenses of that vintage and each has its own character
the 35/2 is one I have never tested, honestly never even seen it in the flesh and is supposed to be great

Good luck

Thanks for the info Titrisol!
I will keep that in mind when I do still photography.

For the moment I'll be using the lens for video though...thus why I need it in manual mode.
I'll have to see how it goes...
best wishes!

[goatsNdonkey]

Well, there's always a downside
if your lens in in Manual you can focus easily (more light) but you'll need to move to Auto to take the picture
if your lens is in Auto you can use aperture priority setting but the image might be too dim for manual focusing

No. That's bassackwards.

If an old Takumar screw mount lens is set on AUTO, the aperture does not stop down until the shutter is fired. That is the entire point of the auto setting, letting the photographer focus and frame with the aperture wide open.

Camera's of that time may have had a button or switch on them used to let one see the depth of field of the actual aperture setting, but the idea was to use those only briefly. Also for cameras that didn't know how to use the set aperture for the meter reading, you could use that switch/button briefly for the meter readings. But without that feature activated, if the lens was set to Auto you were looking through the lens's widest aperture...until the shutter was activated.

[titrisol]

I guess i have always had it backwards...
to me M is when the lever is over M and A is when the lever is over A

No. That's bassackwards.

If an old Takumar screw mount lens is set on AUTO, the aperture does not stop down until the shutter is fired. That is the entire point of the auto setting, letting the photographer focus and frame with the aperture wide open.

Camera's of that time may have had a button or switch on them used to let one see the depth of field of the actual aperture setting, but the idea was to use those only briefly. Also for cameras that didn't know how to use the set aperture for the meter reading, you could use that switch/button briefly for the meter readings. But without that feature activated, if the lens was set to Auto you were looking through the lens's widest aperture...until the shutter was activated.

[goatsNdonkey]

I guess i have always had it backwards...
to me M is when the lever is over M and A is when the lever is over A

When the switch is in the position where you only see the M, it's in manual.

When the switch is in the position where you only see the A, it's in Automatic

I see that it could seem that moving the switch toward M would seem like you are switching "to" that setting, but you are actually covering up the setting you don't want and REVEALING the setting you want, which in that example would be A for Automatic.