"requires Ring"

Markok765

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What does this mean? I'm thinking of buying a EL-Nikkor off of KEH.com.

Is the ring like this?:

Ring
Lens Board
Lens

Ring screws onto 39mm threads on lens? IS this right?

In addition, the main 2 choices are EX and UG. How would someone make a enlarger lens UG?! Its not like you are using it in the elements or having it on a camera that you drop or something.
 

keithwms

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Yeah, the ring is what holds the enlarging lens to the lensboard. You can reverse screwmount an EL lens to an SLR to use as a macro lens, but I wouldn't recommend it- so many superior macro options at low cost.

EL lenses can take quite a lot of abuse- they are usually left uncapped in an enlarger for long periods, and can be quite easily damaged in handling. They are also (AFAIK) usually uncoated.

I would pass on an EL lens for 35mm work, frankly. For LF they are fine. None of my EL lenses are up to par with comparable 35mm lenses, that's for sure.
 
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resummerfield

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I use el Nikkor lenses for enlarging, and I find them all, from 50 through 300mm, excellent. For 35mm MACRO work, where you are getting into the 1:1 range, I have found the enlarging type lenses superior to a conventional camera lens. A specialized macro-type camera lens is usually about equal to an enlarging lens when operating in the 1:1 range.

To mount the enlarging lens, if the lensboard is not threaded, the ring screws onto the lens, with the lensboard in between, to "capture" the lensboard.
 

keithwms

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Well, Marko, if it works for you then it works for you. Good.

Just bear in mind that some of the very best lenses ever are the Nikkor "micro" lenses and these have far more sophisticated formulas and coatings than what you find in the Nikkor ELs. Note also that the prices of the manual focus micros are very reasonable, they can be mounted and hooded in a standard way, and they also make damn good general purpose lenses. They have superb colour rendition at all reasonable magnifications and you can easily deploy extension tubes if you want more mag. You can also easily attach good macro flashes e.g. an sb29.

Depending on the EL, you may need to black out the aperture scale to prevent light leak.
 

MattKing

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A prospective bride?

Sorry, but Markok is a teenager - maybe he doesn't know!!!

Matt
 
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Markok765

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I'm confused. I'm looking to get a lens for my enlarger, not to use for macro.
 

richard ide

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Hi Marko,

I guess some people drag threads in different directions. EL Nikkors make excellent macro lenses as well as enlarging lenses. I have used them professionaly for many years. Get a 6 element design like a 50mm f2.8
 

JBrunner

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For your enlarger the Nikkor EL is a very good lens for the money. If your enlarger uses a lens board you will need the ring. If your enlarger has a threaded mount, it will just screw right in.
 

Bob F.

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I'm not sure what a "ring" is in this context. The vast majority of enlargers have threaded lens mounts (usually 39mm but there are a few others such as larger threads for some 150mm and longer focal length lenses).

I guess there may be un-threaded mounts that need a retaining ring similar to when mounting lenses on large format camera lens panels but I do not think they are at all common - at least, I've not seen one but that is not necessarily a major indicator...

Given the price of these things these days, I'd go for (and already do own) the f/2.8 50mm El-Nikkor rather than the simpler designed f/4 version.

Have fun.
 

MattKing

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Bob:

In North America, a large percentage (possibly a majority) of the enlargers out there are Beseler enlargers. If I understand things correctly, Beseler enlargers are much less common in Europe.

All the Beseler enlargers I have ever worked with have flat boards with a plain hole, and require retaining rings for the lenses.

IIRC Marko has a Beseler enlarger.

Matt
 

David Brown

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MattKing said:
In North America, a large percentage (possibly a majority) of the enlargers out there are Beseler enlargers. ...
All the Beseler enlargers I have ever worked with have flat boards with a plain hole, and require retaining rings for the lenses.
Click to expand...

And the ones that aren't Beselers are mostly Omegas, which can have either kind of mount.
 

Bob F.

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Thanks - once again, I learn something new on APUG!
 
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