Newb. D5200. Old AF lens Cant get past aperture lock msg.

[Vector]

Hi all,
So much to say but so little time. Just got my D5200, just about to head off on a trip and still reading the manual

Not a total newb to SLR but this is the first one I have owned.

A friend loaned me his macro lens(off his old D200 camera) its an Nikkor AF 60mm
Great looking lens too but when I attach and turn on my D5200 it locks the camera with a "lock aperture ring to highest F number" message pretty much forces me to do this. Once there I can manually do everything (which I understand I have to as its an older style lens) except change my aperture to something useful. Taking shots at F32 limits your range a bit
I was expecting to set the camera to say F5.6 and the ring to 5.6 so they match and go from there adjusting Sspeed to get the exposure right. But as soon as I move the Aring of of F32 it locks me up with that message again ;(


I did some googling but cant quite understand whether I can or cant use this lens. Would be a shame if I cant but not a sky falling disaster.
From what I read everything has to be in manual and probably no light meter.. I can live with this,,I just need to get it to allow me to move the Aring



any thoughts?


cheers

[ricktas]

The 5200 doesnt have a motor, thus this lens may not work with this camera

[I @ M]

The aperture must be locked to the smallest value in order for the lens / camera to function correctly.

Once the aperture control is locked you select the aperture that you require in either aperture priority or manual modes by depressing the appropriate button and rotating the rear command dial until the aperture that you are seeking appears either in your viewfinder or rear screen display..

Edit -----

I should have been clearer, when the lens has the aperture locked to the smallest available aperture the opening and closing is done electronically.
In aperture priority mode the aperture is selected by rotating the rear command dial and in manual mode the aperture is selected by depressing the exposure compensation button and rotating the rear command dial.

[Vector]

Ok thanks guys, Its pretty much what I expected and sure I was doing this morning.
Yes it has no motor but Im lead to believe thats for focus. Manual is ok with me.

In the locked Aring position It just didnt seem to respond to the comp and command wheel. ie the apperture didnt change.
Im pretty sure I then put my 18-55 on and comp/command wheel changed the app as I expected. Proving I thought I new what I was doing
Of course it was a rushed play.
I shall endeavor to try again tonight.
cheers

[arthurking83]

If it's an AF version of the 60 micro lens, then as Andrew says, if you lock the aperture to the smallest setting(largest f number ... which is probably f/32) the camera should recognise the lens as a CPU type len.

As already said, AF won't work, but all you want is to use the exposure modes.

From memory, some Nikon lenses have a separate locking tab that you also need to switch into the locked position.
So not only will you need to set the aperture to the smallest setting(which may be f/32) but also look for another small switch that also needs to be operated for the lens to actually lock the aperture ring into the f/32 position too.

If this is not the case with this lens there may be other things you can try to sort it out.

Some higher end Nikon cameras have the ability to use the physical aperture ring to set aperture value, but I'm pretty sure the D5200 doesn't. The cameras that don't have this feature are limited in the way they operate. That is you can only use the command wheels to set aperture value.
This is true if the lens has a CPU. So, any CPU type lenses cannot be used with the aperture ring manually, unless the camera specifically has this option available to it.

If the locking tab thingy is not the issue, something else you can do, is to use a small strip of sticky tape over the CPU contacts to fool the camera into thinking it's not a CPU type lens.
This then allows you to operate the lens as a full manual lens in M mode only.

I realise that it's not your lens, and it's a mates lens, but this tape foolery is safe to do, and I've only every used standard sticky tape .. not duct tape or other super sticky tapes! Will not affect the lens in any way. I used to do it with some of my lenses to fool the camera into thinking my way


hope this helps.

[Vector]

Hey awesome tip thanks.

Tried it last night and it worked first time So I went back over what I did previous...

It was my mistake all along. A combination of not knowing the camera, not understanding SLRs, rushing and doing it in my lounge..ie bad light.
Because I had tried M and A modes Id confused myself with how to change Aperture. when I had taken a photo it was completley dark and this made me think the apperture was not oppening up. But because I was in M mode and the shutter speed just happend to be on fast even tho Id opened the Fstop, being in a dark room with fast shutter speed just created ...a balck photo. Even in A mode with the shutter speed auto changed to slow, it was still too dark because the ISO was still on 100.
I think thats what happend


Anyways got it sorted now, your responses was enough to convince me it should work so I kept trying and yep as always it was something simple.

Off on my trip today, see ya in afew weeks with a tonne of photos and maybe 1-2 good ones Yes Ive packed the manual. and yes that 60mm lens is magic glad I persevered.

cheers

[I @ M]

Good to see that you have it sorted.

Asking questions is never a bad idea.