My first Canon ever: an AE-1 with 50/1.8 and 28/2.8 ;-) What do you think??

AgX · Feb 23, 2013

-) "FD" refers just to the bayonet in combination with the arrangement of all the actuators

-) "FD-new" is used to distinguish between the older FD breechlock bayonet from the newer "true" bayonet-handling coupling. As indicated this is in first instance a handling/design issue. In same cases the optics are slightly different too.

-) "L" stands for very advanced (and expensive) optical designs within Canon's different lens ranges

Dennis S · Feb 23, 2013

There are plenty of battery doors available : NOT MY advertisement: http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Two-2-Batter...362?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2563e343ca

As well as instructions how to do it properly.: http://www.sdcamerasolution.com/index.php?p=page&page_id=ae1instructions.

So there should be NO excuse for not doing it ;o)

StoneNYC · Feb 23, 2013

AgX said:
-) "FD" refers just to the bayonet in combination with the arrangement of all the actuators

-) "FD-new" is used to distinguish between the older FD breechlock bayonet from the newer "true" bayonet-handling coupling. As indicated this is in first instance a handling/design issue. In same cases the optics are slightly different too.

-) "L" stands for very advanced (and expensive) optical designs within Canon's different lens ranges

When you say that, do you mean the difference between the lenses that attach and then sort of have a screw on lock, to the ones that have a click button lock? Both styles fit fine on my AE-1

AgX · Feb 23, 2013

Yes. There are the older ones where you attach the lens and twist a breech lock and the newer ones where you attach the lens and twist the whole lens, and which is secured by that push button. Just two versions of the same bayonet locking.
The older version could in cases need a bit more fiddling, though that breech lock is typically self-arresting and only need a further twist for tight fit.

StoneNYC · Feb 24, 2013

AgX said:
Yes. There are the older ones where you attach the lens and twist a breech lock and the newer ones where you attach the lens and twist the whole lens, and which is secured by that push button. Just two versions of the same bayonet locking.
The older version could in cases need a bit more fiddling, though that breech lock is typically self-arresting and only need a further twist for tight fit.

Yea, I prefer the older ones actually, I like the crew tightening at the end, it's always seemed a but more secure to me. The new lenses seem very loose on the EOS system, like there's always a little too much play, it should be snug.

Thanks

brucemuir · Feb 24, 2013

StoneNYC said:
However none of the basic canons have that, just the L series glass.

~Stone

Mamiya: 7 II, RZ67 Pro II / Canon: 1V, AE-1, 5DmkII / Kodak: No 1 Pocket Autographic, No 1A Pocket Autographic | Sent w/ iPhone using Tapatalk

There is L glass for the older manual Canons also.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ontarian/6381067855/ :devil:

There is also a manual
24 1.4L New-FD
50 1.2L New FD
85 1.2L New-FD

Scroll down this page for a tasty list of non L's…and these are only the N-FD range
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canon_FD_lens_mount

StoneNYC · Feb 24, 2013

brucemuir said:
There is L glass for the older manual Canons also.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ontarian/6381067855/ :devil:

There is also a manual
24 1.4L New-FD
50 1.2L New FD
85 1.2L New-FD

Scroll down this page for a tasty list of non L'sand these are only the N-FD range
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canon_FD_lens_mount

There may be more, I believe the older FD white lenses had L glass too, especially the the giant primes... like the $2,000,000 give or take a mill or two, 1600mm prime lens... it's pretty damn awesome, would like to see a nikon beat that haha.

or the 8mm prime was pretty nice too... though Nikon has Canon beat on that with a 6mm prime, a friend of mine actually has one, he bought it NEW for $20,000 for a job for an airline, they payed him about the same price, it was for interior cabin shots, film work really used to pay!

brucemuir · Feb 24, 2013

Yea, while alot of FD mount can be had for cheap the L's still retain a pretty penny for manual glass these days.
I'm all EOS these days so get the best of several worlds via adapters.

TheToadMen · Feb 24, 2013

Some interesting lens options out there, but I will restrain myself. I'm not gonna buy a lot of extra lenses (can't afford it) and stick to these two lenses for now.
Keeping in mind my favorite quote from Ansel Adams:

" ... avoiding the common illusion that creativity depends on equipment alone ..."

BTW: See also http://thetoadmen.blogspot.nl for an interesting film about & with Ansel Adams from 1957.

StoneNYC · Feb 25, 2013

TheToadMen said:
Some interesting lens options out there, but I will restrain myself. I'm not gonna buy a lot of extra lenses (can't afford it) and stick to these two lenses for now.
Keeping in mind my favorite quote from Ansel Adams:

" ... avoiding the common illusion that creativity depends on equipment alone ..."

BTW: See also http://thetoadmen.blogspot.nl for an interesting film about & with Ansel Adams from 1957.

I may have a zoom lens for you, I have to check

~Stone

Mamiya: 7 II, RZ67 Pro II / Canon: 1V, AE-1, 5DmkII / Kodak: No 1 Pocket Autographic, No 1A Pocket Autographic | Sent w/ iPhone using Tapatalk

ntenny · Feb 25, 2013

One of the nice things about Canon FD lenses is that there are a lot of third-party lenses floating around, and it's cheap to do some bottom-feeding on eBay and experiment. I got a Kiron 80-200 zoom that way---I think it cost me ten bucks---that's stupidly sharp for a zoom lens and competitive with some respectable primes. There's a lot of rebranding (Vivitar never made lenses themselves, for instance, just branded lenses sourced from a bunch of Japanese manufacturers) and a lot of uncertainty, which kind of adds to the fun---you may get a terrific lens for cheap, you may get something so bad that it's kind of entertaining, or anything in between.

-NT

Markster · Feb 26, 2013

The battery door is replacable, as mentioned above. However, it is not replacable by the user. You need to remove the top of the camera, and it is complicated and difficult. You need to take it in and have the door replaced by an actual person or shop that does that kind of thing.

I read one web write-up describing how one guy forced the pin with needle nose pliars without removing the top, but I have been unable to get my pin to budge even with excessive force. I dare not risk the camera.

Best thing for the battery door is the "action grip" that screws over top of it. That will keep the sucker in place even after you break it, most times. What it doesn't keep in place a bit of electrical tape will do.

I have an AE-1P. It was my first SLR, and I still use it today. It is amazing in its simplicity and ease-of-use but will still allow you to do almost anything you want.

P.S. If you want shutter priority, set the shutter to program and manually select your f-stop. It will adjust accordingly. If you want aperture priority, set manual shutter speed and set f-stop to A or "dot". It will adjust accordingly. If you want it to think for you, set to program and A or "dot." Or it's nearly perfectly suited for full manual as well. The only thing I missed (and only on occassion) was an f-stop readout in the light meter LEDs. It wasn't necessary, though, and the shutter dial was so perfectly placed I could notch it up or down on the fly without even thinking for a fast light meter adjustment.

Awesome camera. Will last you 20 years if you CLA it once in a while.

AgX · Feb 26, 2013

To my understanding not the door would brake but the lock. This could be replaced by taking from a spare door.

EASmithV · Feb 26, 2013

StoneNYC said:
To be a jerk, canon GROWS their glass (some of it) which isn't glass it's a crystal, it cuts down heavily on CA, something Nikon can't do. So

However none of the basic canons have that, just the L series glass.

~Stone

Mamiya: 7 II, RZ67 Pro II / Canon: 1V, AE-1, 5DmkII / Kodak: No 1 Pocket Autographic, No 1A Pocket Autographic | Sent w/ iPhone using Tapatalk

that's funny, when you compare new canon kit lenses for digi they had TONS of CA, while the respective nikkors are much, much better

Markster · Feb 26, 2013

AgX said:
To my understanding not the door would brake but the lock. This could be replaced by taking from a spare door.

That's one minor problem. Another problem I've experienced as well as heard about was the part where the door hinges/connects. There is a thin loophole of plastic through which a metal pin passes. A spring around the pin pushes the door away from the camera body. If one of the plastic loops (one top, one bottom) snaps you can still keep the door shut with some ease, however if both snap (as mine currently have, one then the other some time later) you will need the action grip and a bit of electrical tape.

Well, any tape will do, really... but the electrical is black and tacky enough to hold but soft enough to peel away when you need to get the battery in or out. Just about the right tape for the job!

StoneNYC · Feb 27, 2013

EASmithV said:
that's funny, when you compare new canon kit lenses for digi they had TONS of CA, while the respective nikkors are much, much better

Like I said, the L glass has better CA than the Nikkor pro glass, but the nikkor's prosumer lenses are probably better than canon's prosumer lenses, that wouldn't surprise me, because anyone who only buys a $300 lens isn't really pro enough that the CA would affect them, they aren't really printing for gallery shows or anything, and the difference in CA is negligible for even 11x14 prints that you probably wouldn't even notice it unless you were using a calibrated machine to see it. Heck I'm using a shitty 24-85 lens on my 1V right now, this lens came from my EOS IX APS camera from roughly 1997 and I haven't noticed any real CA to complain about. Both systems are great, and none of our discussion is helping the OP, so, lets just say it doesn't ultimately matter, I was just describing something for the OP since he wasn't a canon user, it was info I thought he might want to know. Both Nikon and Canon and Minolta/Sony and Pentax are good systems with good glass, and everyone wants to fight about who's better, and I find most often the people who tout the most about about how perfect their lenses are *cough* Leica *cough* have the shittiest pictures

TheToadMen · Mar 5, 2013

If I were to buy just one (very) good Canon FL lens in the range between 20 and 50 mm (not a zoom lens) which one should it be?
Mostly to be used in street photography or landscape.
Just for "fun" to have one old, good Canon lens - but also to use on my AE-1 (without aperture control, I know but don't mind).
And maybe to put on an old F1 (as a working set) if I can find this camera in good working order for not too much money.
I like to go out occasionally and wander around with an old camera and shoot what comes on my path (or not).
Just one manual camera with one manual lens and a few rolls of Tri-X .... and enjoying a nice camera and a good day ;-)

BTW: I don't want to spend too much money, but I'm told the old FL lenses are not much wanted thus much cheaper.
But the glass can still be very good (for me and my old manual mania).

Markster · Mar 5, 2013

I don't think FL are any cheaper than FDs, from what I've seen. They're scarcer, and harder to find (maybe).

Just one good lens? Depends on what you want. You said landscapes and street photography, but IMO those are 2 mutually exclusive kinds of lenses.

I'd go for a wide for the landscapes. Get anything in the 20-28mm range. Usually that's 20, 24, or 28, with 28 being the more common (IMO). For street, you often want a bit of distance. If you want to take pictures of unaware people a 100mm maybe. If you want an all-purpose and don't mind being closer to your subject, a fast 50mm will suit you in almost all environments.

StoneNYC · Mar 6, 2013

Markster said:
I don't think FL are any cheaper than FDs, from what I've seen. They're scarcer, and harder to find (maybe).

Just one good lens? Depends on what you want. You said landscapes and street photography, but IMO those are 2 mutually exclusive kinds of lenses.

I'd go for a wide for the landscapes. Get anything in the 20-28mm range. Usually that's 20, 24, or 28, with 28 being the more common (IMO). For street, you often want a bit of distance. If you want to take pictures of unaware people a 100mm maybe. If you want an all-purpose and don't mind being closer to your subject, a fast 50mm will suit you in almost all environments.

Yea I'd agree I think the FL's are scarcer as well.

The FD system sold TONS of cameras, the AE-1 in particular was a very popular "prosumer" camera of the day. If you like Nikon, then consider Steve McCurray ... please accept my apologies if I'm wrong, but he was a Nikon shooter and his lens of preference was a 35mm ... so take a Nikon users example (since you're primarily a Nikon guy) and go with a 35mm ... you'll have the ability to shoot a wide range of images and not get stuck with the issue of not being able to get everything in the frame and also still not so wide that everything looks warped.

Good Luck!

E. von Hoegh · Mar 6, 2013

TheToadMen said:
If I were to buy just one (very) good Canon FL lens in the range between 20 and 50 mm (not a zoom lens) which one should it be?
Mostly to be used in street photography or landscape.
Just for "fun" to have one old, good Canon lens - but also to use on my AE-1 (without aperture control, I know but don't mind).
And maybe to put on an old F1 (as a working set) if I can find this camera in good working order for not too much money.
I like to go out occasionally and wander around with an old camera and shoot what comes on my path (or not).
Just one manual camera with one manual lens and a few rolls of Tri-X .... and enjoying a nice camera and a good day ;-)

BTW: I don't want to spend too much money, but I'm told the old FL lenses are not much wanted thus much cheaper.
But the glass can still be very good (for me and my old manual mania).

I'm not very well informed about Canon glass, but for a useful focal length it's hard to beat 35mm. The 35/2 and 50/2 lenses spend about an equal amount of time on my cameras. I've been known to carry two bodies - one with a 50, one with a 35.

Gee, I need a third body for the 85/2...

Jeff Kubach · Mar 7, 2013

The 85/1.2 L is good!

Jeff

Markster · Mar 7, 2013

I don't like "just" 80mm or 100mm lenses. I know some folks swear by them and rave about them. If I'm in a room I can't take a picture of somebody in the same room. I have to back out to the door or further. They have their uses and may be great lenses overall, but if that's the ONLY lens you get you'll find it limiting. Or, at least... I would find it limiting.

My first Canon ever: an AE-1 with 50/1.8 and 28/2.8 ;-) What do you think??

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