Metal Lens Mounts
As my old Nikkormat FTn shows, I can be rather rough to brutal on camera gear over time. It's not that I don't care, I do take care of my equipment. I don't pamper it though. 
When I am traveling, a camera is on a strap around my neck and shoulder. It is frequently uncased in the car. It dangles when boarding boats. Things get tossed on it, it gets bumped into things. I demand equipment that will stand up to that kind of use. To me, a camera with brassing is the same as an old distinguished Smith & Wesson that has muzzle and cylinder wear. It simply shows that a great piece of kit has been performing the job it was designed to do.
Unless it is marketed as such, a camera should not be disposable. For a photographer to fully realize a camera's potential and to use it as an extension of his eye, a period of getting to know (and then forget about) the equipment must take place. After that happens, the shots become automatic. Lenses are a part of that equation and should not be disposable either. Nikon lenses are quality optics, and that quality should not be limited to the glass. If I can't get a metal barrel and rings, I at least want a metal mount. When I discussed my preferences for a 70-210 zoom, some readers wondered why I needed a metal lens mount. Here is a photo lifted from an ebay auction that speaks a thousand words.
When I am traveling, a camera is on a strap around my neck and shoulder. It is frequently uncased in the car. It dangles when boarding boats. Things get tossed on it, it gets bumped into things. I demand equipment that will stand up to that kind of use. To me, a camera with brassing is the same as an old distinguished Smith & Wesson that has muzzle and cylinder wear. It simply shows that a great piece of kit has been performing the job it was designed to do. Unless it is marketed as such, a camera should not be disposable. For a photographer to fully realize a camera's potential and to use it as an extension of his eye, a period of getting to know (and then forget about) the equipment must take place. After that happens, the shots become automatic. Lenses are a part of that equation and should not be disposable either. Nikon lenses are quality optics, and that quality should not be limited to the glass. If I can't get a metal barrel and rings, I at least want a metal mount. When I discussed my preferences for a 70-210 zoom, some readers wondered why I needed a metal lens mount. Here is a photo lifted from an ebay auction that speaks a thousand words.
Labels: Cameras
posted by Xavier at 7:30 AM
5 Comments:
Yup. That never happened with any of my F-mount lenses.
I've heard of that happening just by picking the camera up by the lens!
as someone that commented on the metal mounted lenses, and someone that owns 3 of the plastic ones... i have to say, the one you show seems to be a whole lot flimsier than the af-s lenses that are made for the D series SLR Nikons...
i dont know for sure about their durability... but in the 2 years ive had my D series, the only lens problems i have had were internal ones...
Yep, I'm not quite certain what happened to this one Chris. Just call me spooky and old fashioned.
Check out some of Michael Yon's old dispatches. He did a breakdown a year or so back on sturdy cameras he used in Iraq following solders.
Post a Comment
<< Home