350D with Old-Skool Canon Lenses

[jophassa]

Hello. Some may remember or may have posted in my thread asking for recommendations for cameras. I think i will go for the 350D.

One more thing before I chose for def. is: will it work with some Canon lenses i inherited with an Canon A-1?

Thanks

 

[Digital Matt]

Any lens with an EF, or EF-S mount will work. No FD mount lenses will work.

 

[jophassa]

OK, cool, thanks.

It would appear that all but two have FD written on them.

As for the other two, they have no clear indication of EF or FD.

Can you enlighten me to what FD and EF mean? Thanks

 

[JonK]

there may be adapters available that would allow you to use the FD lenses on your 350D. However you will not have AF ability and you will probably have to shoot in manual mode all of the time.

 

[jophassa]

I guess that raises the next question: Should i get a DSLR with a fixed lense or one with interchangable ones?

I can't decide if i will actually bother getting new lenses or not. Surely one is sufficient. No?

 

[Digital Matt]

I think after 5 minutes of shooting, you will want more than 1 lens. The lens is the most important part of your setup, and no one lens can meet all the demands of photography. (portrait, macro, wildlife, landscape, etc....)

 

[jophassa]

That is really annoying to hear that as it makes it impossible for me to afford a setup with my measly budget of £500. Maybe I could just make do with a film SLR whilst I save up. Either that or I could just wait and get a dSLR when I am an adult. I wonder. Any ideas?

 

[Big Mike]

Well, if you bought a film SLR that shares lenses with a DSLR, then you can shoot film now and then upgrade the body later and keep the lenses.

Should i get a DSLR with a fixed lense or one with interchangeable ones

Every DSLR, that I am aware of, has interchangeable lenses. There are some "SLR-Like" digital cameras that look and feel like a DSLR...but the hidden difference is the size of the sensor. And that's a big difference.

The only non-DSLR that has a decent sized sensor is the Sony R1...but it costs just as much or more than an entry level DSLR.

 

[jophassa]

Yeah, i read about how that R1 has a much bigger sensor over the poor F828. I was considering getting the R1 as the lense is apparently worth $900 on its own and the whole thing is just a bargain. The only bad thing about the R1 is its limited optical zoom - 5x or 7x? - is just not enough for a fixed lense.

Could a kind angel enlighten me with what film SLR has lenses which can be used on a dSLR? Thanks

 

[Big Mike]

Any of the Canon EOS cameras (film or digital) have interchangeable lenses. (with the exception of a few EF-S lenses)

Nikon has more compatibility because it's DSLR cameras can use many of the older, manual focus Nikon lenses as well as any of the new autofocus lenses.

I think the Pentax DSLRs use the Pentax lens mount, which goes back a while and encompasses quite a few lenses.

 

[jophassa]

I think all my lenses are Canon or Tamron. They are also, unfortunately, FD which I understand is not compatible with the likes of the 360D - the camera I aspire to have.

What do EF and FD stand more? Thanks

 

[Big Mike]

I forget what they actually stand for...but FD lenses are all manual focus and EF lenses are all auto focus. Also, the size of the mount is different, so you can't interchange them.

There are some FD to EF adaptors available...but from everything I've read, they are not worth the hassle...unless of course you have some really fantastic FD lens.

It's kind of a pain in the rear...Canon ****ed off a lot of people when they switched their mount. Nikon kept their lens mount when they went to auto focus cameras.

However, film is not dead yet. There is still a place for it in the digital age. There are a fair number of people who still use their old Canon manual focus cameras and FD lenses. The best part is that FD lenses are very available and quite inexpensive.

 

[jophassa]

Is autofocus really that big of an advantage? I guess it saves a lot of work but i thought that all automatic processes were frowned-upon by photographers?

If I got a fixed lense SLR which would you recommend?

If i chose to buy a film SLR with EF lenses so i can use them when i upgrade the body, would i only be able to buy into Nikon?

 

[Big Mike]

Auto focus is nice, some people still do manual focus their AF lenses though. The real advantage is the technology of new cameras and that few companies have made an manual focus SLR in the last 20 years.

EF lenses will only work with Canon EOS cameras. Nikon has it's own designation for lenses...but I don't know what it is.

Canon lenses are not compatible with Nikon cameras and visa versa. Same with all other camera companies. Some companies do make lenses for other cameras...Sigma and Tamron, for example make lenses for Nikon & Canon.

You pretty much have to stay within the system that you buy into. If you get Canon lenses and cameras...then you stay with Canon etc. Well, you don't have to stay with one company...but it can get expensive if you switch...and redundant if you go with both.

 

[jophassa]

Yeah, I do like Canon cameras. Do you think i should just go for a film SLR and get EF lenses so i can use them on a DSLR in the future? I think that may be the most sensible option.