Chris T Loc: from England across the pond to New England

Seem to've managed to get a new Avatar up, so - I will try them, again here …
Gonna try this, just one more time, Therwol ...
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Front, top and side of 105 f2.5 Micro Nikkor on D7000, plus top shot off-camera. All taken w/ the D7100 w/ 16-85 VR.

Nope!!! Not going to work ….
Therwol - it seems I can't upload pics to the site, anymore. Something must have changed ….

therwol Loc: USA

I was going to suggest that, however since the lens is turned around from what I would need to see to be sure, I passed on the thought. I think you may be right.

therwol Loc: USA

I was wondering about the 20 megabyte limit for uploading, but if you're shooting jpegs with a 24 megapixel camera, I don't think they'd be too large. Are you shooting tifs?

Chris T Loc: from England across the pond to New England

Therwol - I reduce everything - to either 20% or 25% .. as I have a Dial-Up connection, and full-size images will take forever to upload, plus - if someone calls whilst I'm doing it - it'll all be wasted. So, I always shrink them, first, but I got a message earlier, indicating UHH has some new protocols, so that may be preventing the pics from uploading. Tell you what - after I drop this in, I'll try to update it with those four pics.

Hereyago, Therwol - front, top and side of 105 f2.5 Micro Nikkor on D7000, plus top shot off camera. All taken w/ the D7100 w/ 16-85 VR.

Nope!!! … It's NOT going - anywhere!!!! ... They're all JPEGS …

BUT - I was able to update my Avatar, earlier - so ALL is NOT lost!!!

Just don't know why I can't upload pics here …. that's all!!

therwol Loc: USA

Try uploading from someone else's better internet connection. See if that works. Just an idea.

Chris T Loc: from England across the pond to New England

Oh, right … let's see! … I must have a list somewhere of a hundred folks w/ better Internet Connections than I … trouble is - I don't actually KNOW any of 'em …

You know, Therwol - I've uploaded hundreds of pics to UHH in the past and never had any problems.

I really think they've changed some protocols ….

I'll try once more - upgrading this post - okay?

BebuLamar

Because your D40 and D5100 do not have the AI meter coupling. Mount a Pre AI lens on a DSLR with the AI coupling then you can damage the coupling.

Dick B

I'm a bit confused are you saying that because my D40 and D5100 don't have the AI coupling feature in Body it's non damaging to mount an old pre AI lens. BUT if my camera did have the AI coupling then I would damage something by mounting a pre AI lens? Don't all the pre AI lens have that mechanism to couple to bodies AI coupling? Sorry I'm just not up on the details and history of the Nikon family.

therwol Loc: USA

The original meter coupling on Nikon SLRs involved a prong on the aperture ring engaging a pin on the prism or the body (in the case of the early Nikkormat cameras). In 1977, a feeler on the body was introduced that slipped into a groove on the aperture ring when you mounted the lens. Since the early lenses don't have the groove in the aperture ring, there is conflict if you mount them on a camera with the feeler. Not all Nikon cameras have the feeler, and a few have one that flips out of the way to mount an old lens.

When Nikon introduced the feeler and corresponding AI lenses with the groove, they offered factory replacement rings with grooves for the older lenses still in use. Those are long gone. These days, if you want to modify an old lens to have the groove and not damage your newer camera, there are services that will do it for you. These modified lenses will tend to work properly in some metering modes.

BebuLamar

Pre AI lenses couple with the meter via the prong. This prong is still present on the AI lens to make them compatible with Pre AI cameras. The aperture ring on a Pre AI lens could be too wide and interfere with the AI coupling (the feeler) as the AI lenses only have a ridge.
The Nikon F2A, F2AS, FM, FE, F3, and F4 this feeler can be retract out of the way to mount Pre AI lens. The F5 would need to be modified by Nikon to make this feeler retractable.
Among Nikon DSLR the D40, D60, D3xxx and D5xxx and also the D7500 don't have this feeler (and thus they don't meter with AI lenses). Other Nikon DSLR's do have this feeler. Among them only the Df can be retracted out of the way.

therwol Loc: USA

I'll just add one camera with the retractable feeler. Nikkormat FT3. I had one, so I know.

BebuLamar

Forgot about the FT3. Perhaps the Nikon EL2 as well. It's the same as the Nikkormat ELW but with AI.

therwol Loc: USA

I wasn't recommending that anyone buy one. I was just adding it to a list. I thought it was a decent camera in its day. I replaced it with an FA, while still using my older FTn. I went all digital after 2007.

BebuLamar

I certainly would love an FT3. I think it still demands good money on the used market. I actually wouldn't want an FA. I had it for a few weeks and got rid of it fast.

LMurray Loc: North Orange County, CA

From Nikonians:

THE PROFESSIONAL'S SECOND CHOICE

This was the latest and greatest of all the Nikkormat models, aimed at those serious amateurs and professionals not wanting to spend the money on a second F2.

It's 1977. Nikon's flagship is still the F2A, not long ago the new generation of AI-Nikkor lenses made the previous claw-type obsolete but still useable. If you were looking for a second Nikon body, you had a choice between two cameras - an expensive F2, or the Nikkormat. That was it! The FM, FE, FG, EM and company were still on the drawing board, and why change a winning design? They sold like hot pancakes, and there are plenty of good ones around today.

What do you get with this back-to-basics SLR? Assuming you're a fan of heavy metal shooting irons - and I guess if you weren't, you wouldn't be here - the Nikkormat FT3 offers a pleasant mixture of professional features in a rock-solid and beautifully finished body, with just a few, forgivable quirks!

You get a simple matched needle meter that, oddly, works upside down... more light sends the needle down, not up! The shutter speed is visible in your clear and uncluttered viewfinder, and a split-image K screen does a handy job of helping you focus on sharp lines. Nikon, for reasons better known to themselves, retained their strange shutter speed ring around the lens throat from the previous Nikkormats - a mixed blessing. Unlike the Olympus OM models of the era, the Nikkormat's shutter ring is an awkward affair with only a single lever to operate it. With the ring over the 1/15th position, you won't be able to remove the lens because the lever blocks the lens release button. Changing the ASA setting is a bit of a fiddle, involving pulling up on the speed ring lever and sliding a scale around. Check for broken fingernails when you're done...

On the plus side, the Nikkormat FT3 gives you that built-for-ever feeling when you use it. Unlike its pricier stablemate, the F2, the shutter travels vertically, giving you a flash synch speed of a full 1/125th - a boon for outdoor fill situations. As you squeeze the shot off slowly, you actually feel two little clicks before the shutter releases. In spite of the satisfying clunk, there's very little vibration. If you're working on a tripod, you'll appreciate the extra meter readout on the top panel. For close up work, and other technical applications, the mirror can be locked up to eliminate vibration.

The quality of finish - mine is a chrome model - is exemplary. The Nikkormat goes back to the days - long gone - before robots took over camera production, and counts in my book as a hand built camera. About twenty skilled technicians assembled each Nikkormat a stage at a time, and the quality control people actually held the finished cameras in their hands and fired off test shots as well as fitting lenses and manually checking focus, shutter speeds and so on. Nothing left the Nikon factory unless it was truly worthy of the name. This fanatical attention to detail, and the superb construction quality explains why so many Nikkormats are still in regular use today. The bayonet is stainless steel, and you'll find a tiny button at the top which will let you disengage the AI-metering key, letting you use your older Nikon lenses in stopped-down mode.

As a learner's camera, this final version of the FT-series Nikkormat is unbeatable. The meter is center-weighted, about 60-40 towards the middle, and very accurate and easy to work with. Moving the wind lever to its stand-off position turns the meter on. With practice, you can operate the Nikkormat by feel alone, two fingers on your left hand driving the shutter speed, aperture and focusing rings leaving your right hand free to wind film and shoot. The depth of field preview - an immensely valuable feature disappearing rapidly on modern cameras - is right next to the shutter button in a position that's painless to operate without inducing carpal tunnel syndrome.

In spite of its odd ergonomics, the Nikkormat FT3 is a very enjoyable camera to use. Virtually unbreakable even under heavy use, it'll last you forever unless you actually throw it around or use it to drive tent pegs in. A bonus - the meter takes a 1.5volt button battery, available everywhere, unlike the previous models that needed the outlawed 1.3 volt mercury cells. As with all older cameras, keep an eye on the foam rubber mirror pad and the light seals on the back - if you see any signs of deterioration replace them sooner rather than later.

Bottom line? This is a classic, hand built Nikon mechanical camera. Phrases like "planned obsolescence" hadn't reached the dictionaries back then, this camera was planned to last a lifetime. If you buy one, don't keep it in a glass cabinet - it was meant to be used!