Olympus OM-10 lens to Nikon D3000

CamCracker · May 26, 2010

Is there any way I can fit my Olympus OM-10 Lenses on a Nikon D3000 with some sort of an adapter? Or will it not work? Any one have a similar experience? If this won't work, then what's another digital SLR camera that will work with my lenses (with or without an adapter) that's (camera) under $300 (used or new)? Thanks!

P.S. I saw the D3000 on google shopping refurbished for only $289 or something.

Dwig · May 26, 2010

CamCracker said:
Is there any way I can fit my Olympus OM-10 Lenses on a Nikon D3000 with some sort of an adapter? Or will it not work? Any one have a similar experience? If this won't work, then what's another digital SLR camera that will work with my lenses (with or without an adapter) that's (camera) under $300 (used or new)?...

Adapting the OM lenses to modern digital cameras is of limited use. When adapters are possible, they don't magically make the lens able to autofocus nor to they magically give the lens the electronic interface needed for some or all, depending on brand and model of the body, metering functions to work. With many bodies, the register distance (lens mount to sensor distance) is too close to that of an OM body, or possibly greater, making it impossible to have a simple adapter and still have the lens focus to infinity properly. Some adapters are offered with lenses which act a slight tele-converters and allow for infinity focus, but these degrade optical quality.

The bodies that are the most successful at accepting OM lenses via adapters are the 4/3rds SLRs and the Micro-4/3 models. You are limited to manual focus, something more difficult with modern digital SLRs than with older manual focus SLRs, and some metering modes are disabled (body can't set the lens aperture). Also with the SLRs, the lens closes down to working aperture as you turn the f/stop ring making the VF dim when using anything other than the maximum apeture. This is not an issue with the electronic finders in the Micro 4/3rd models.

If you could find an adapter for the Nikon D3000 (I don't think you can) the camera would not meter at all, even in manual exposure. The entry level Nikons do not provide for any metering with lenses other than the modern AF lenses that have the electronic interface.

CamCracker · May 26, 2010

Dwig said:
CamCracker said:

Is there any way I can fit my Olympus OM-10 Lenses on a Nikon D3000 with some sort of an adapter? Or will it not work? Any one have a similar experience? If this won't work, then what's another digital SLR camera that will work with my lenses (with or without an adapter) that's (camera) under $300 (used or new)?...

Click to expand...

Adapting the OM lenses to modern digital cameras is of limited use. When adapters are possible, they don't magically make the lens able to autofocus nor to they magically give the lens the electronic interface needed for some or all, depending on brand and model of the body, metering functions to work. With many bodies, the register distance (lens mount to sensor distance) is too close to that of an OM body, or possibly greater, making it impossible to have a simple adapter and still have the lens focus to infinity properly. Some adapters are offered with lenses which act a slight tele-converters and allow for infinity focus, but these degrade optical quality.

The bodies that are the most successful at accepting OM lenses via adapters are the 4/3rds SLRs and the Micro-4/3 models. You are limited to manual focus, something more difficult with modern digital SLRs than with older manual focus SLRs, and some metering modes are disabled (body can't set the lens aperture). Also with the SLRs, the lens closes down to working aperture as you turn the f/stop ring making the VF dim when using anything other than the maximum apeture. This is not an issue with the electronic finders in the Micro 4/3rd models.

If you could find an adapter for the Nikon D3000 (I don't think you can) the camera would not meter at all, even in manual exposure. The entry level Nikons do not provide for any metering with lenses other than the modern AF lenses that have the electronic interface.