Gilkar

Hello to all.
I would appreciate suggestions about a problem I am having with my Z6 and FTZ adapter. When I use the camera with the kit lens there are no problems. However, when I attach my FTZ adapter and use it with my Tamron SP 70-200 MM F/2.8 the following anomalies occur.
1. As I am shooting, usually in burst mode, but also in single shot mode, occasionally, the image in the viewfinder will suddenly flash and I will get an greatly overexposed image. When I release my finger from the shutter button the viewfinder and exposure return to normal. This occurs in all camera modes including full manual.
2. Less frequently but enough times to be annoying, the camera viewfinder goes completely black and the message, "the camera shutter has locked, press the shutter button to reset", appears. Doing so resets the camera shutter and the problem goes away.
Neither problem is permanent but they are quite annoying.
My thought is the proper contact is not being made between the lens contacts and the FTZ adapter. There are 8 tiny ball bearing sized contacts at the back of the lens which I assume mate with the 8 contacts in the adapter. The lens contacts seem to be the weakest point between the adapter and the lens and there is some slight play in the rotation of the lens once it clicks into place. (if I had to say it appears to be between 1/16 to 1/32 of an inch but I have no way to measure it). The adapter itself locks firmly into place between it and the camera and has no movement at all. So my questions are:
Is this repairable? If it is, is there a way to do it myself? Am I wrong in assuming this is the problem? Is this just something that is normal and I just have to live with it?
All suggestions and comments will be read and appreciated. If any one has had a similar problem please share your solutions.
Thanks in advance.
Gilkar

User ID

Your suspicion about the lens contacts makes sense. Your lightweight kit lens causes no problems, likewise my af-s 50mm. I use a number of Leica lenses that do not rely on electronic contacts and those are no problem.

FWIW, I also checked my heaviest lens, an ultra wide f/2.8 zoom. No contact problems. The lens (Nikkor) fits on the FTZ with no detectable play in any way.

As to whether your problem might be repairable, I very much doubt it cuz it appears to be a designed-in flaw.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

It could be contact issues or it could be the Tamron lens is not operationally mated to the FTZ adapter. You might want to check with Nikon at 1-800-645-6687

LLC Loc: Ontario, Canada

I agree.
I would put my money on Tamron lens firmware...
I would contact Tamron.

JBRIII

A Tamron lens I have does not work at all on Canon R w adapter except in manual mode. Others have reported similar issues with certain lenses. I know sometimes companies publish specs with warnings that while it is possible to do a thing in software, don't, as future versions may not support what you did.

Gilkar

Gentlemen:
Thank you for your quick answers. In response to LLC and Bill Nikon, I checked with Tamron and Nikon before buying the lens. They both assured me that it would work with the FTZ adapter. And it does! except when it displays the problems I described earlier. As I mentioned there is a very slight bit of rotational play when after the lens is attached. I am of the opinion that play causes the lens to lose contact with the FTZ adapter. I was hoping the play could be eliminated with a simple fix. Several years ago a local camera repairman who was trying to get more clientele, offered a free cleaning for DSLR's. At that time I using D3's and I brought in older (much older), D70 as well. When the repairman examined the D70 he mentioned the mating contacts between the lens and the camera needed adjustment as the ball bearing contacts on the lens had become recessed and were not protruding enough to make proper contact with the body of the camera. I did not have the work done as I was having no problems and the camera was seldom used. The repairman's opinion is what led me to believe that this is the problem I am having with this particular lens.

JBRIII

If the contacts lose position due to rotation, is there anyway to stop the rotation, use a rubber band around the adapter and lens? A band would be removable and not leave any residue like Velcro. I know they make them to hold a lens focus in place, larger rubber bands, but not sure how the adapter you have and lens fit size wise, etc. My experience with small screws and camera materials is that it is easy to strip them and thus would not want to try adjusting the ball bearings, etc.

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

The lens has only one function that controls the amount of light passing through it which is the aperture. For some images to be okay and then one to become overexposed....if it is solely the lens...the aperture would have to open more.

However, the camera has many things that alter the perceived exposure and they all are part of what takes place as the sensor receives the analog signal and the camera analog to digital converter sends out the data for all processing. ISO, Exposure Compensation, White Balance, and all of the settings that determine brightness, contrast, etc., etc. are all functions of the camera and not the lens. The lens adjusts focus and lets light in and that's it.

baron_silverton Loc: Los Angeles, CA

Does any of this happen with Nikon G lenses and your FTZ? If not, I would suggest that you be sure that you have the most current firmware for your Tamron lens. Initially, the Tamrons did not work with the FTZ and Tamron releases firmware updates for all of their lenses (over time) to make them all compatible. The last time I looked just about all of their lenses were compatible except the 90mm Macro (by now that probably is as well), but I know the 70-200 2.8 G2 lens is now compatible because I updated mine and used it for some time before I sold it and bought the Nikon 70-200 2.8 S - which is astounding BTW.

Hope this helps :)

Bill_de Loc: US

Putting your thread title in Google comes up with a number of posts reporting issues with FTZ and Tamron lenses.

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Gilkar

Hello to all who may still be watching this thread which I posted on January 12. I came across this you tube video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MImb0S0-WLw, which reports the same problem but no solution. It seems the lens is an older Tamron model. As of this posting it appears that there is no fix. As you can see in the video the problem is intermittent. Perhaps Tamron will post a firmware fix in the future. The newer models of this same lens do not exhibit this problem. So I will either have to live with the problem or buy new glass. I will probably choose the former as the new glass is presently out of my financial reach at this time. Thanks to all who have responded.
Gilkar