Becky |
What size filter? What kind are good for B&W Hi-I'm newer at this hobby, so excuse my lack of proper vocab. I'm interested in buying some filters for my Canon AE-1 50mm SLR camera but I don't know what size to buy. What do all the nubers on the outrim of my lens mean? Can I Buy adapters for other lenses I may buy? Any answers would be great! Thanks so much. Becky
|
|
|
||
John A. Lind |
Becky, The Canon AE-1 is "35mm small format" which refers to the film size. "50mm" is likely the focal length of the lens you have on it. If it's one of the common "standard" lenses these were often sold with (50mm fixed focal length) it most likely takes a 52mm filter diameter. Thread pitch is standardized among camera manufacturers. You don't need to worry about that on cameras from its era or newer ones (just the diameter). Take the camera to a camera store and verify that it's 52mm. Common lens markings: If these don't match what's on lens ring around the front element (element = piece of lens glass), post exactly what is marked on it and I, or someone else, will translate what it means for you. Some lenses are marked with filter diameter and some are not. I don't recall if the Canon FD lenses have filter size markings on them; been a while since I've looked at a Canon FD lens. BTW, the Canon AE-1 and its successor, the AE-1P was one of the most popular 35mm SLR's of its era. Canon made millions of them over quite a few years. They're among the "workhorses" that will run nearly forever if they're reasonably stored and not abused. Canon's "FD" lens system for them was also excellent. -- John
|
|
|
||
doug Nelson |
If the 50-mm lens on your Canon AE-1 has a gray metal ring to attach it to the camera, get 55-mm filters. If not, it'll take 52-mm filters. Lenses made by people other than Canon must be for the Canon FD system. Canon EOS lenses and those made for EOS are of no use to you. Other than maybe Tamron lenses using their Adaptall system, you won't need any adapters. You made a very good choice of a camera. The lenses for it, especially your 50, are of extremely good optical quality. Don't worry about filters and other lenses right now. You have everything you need to turn out sharp, properly exposed photos. The numbers on the movable click-stop ring are your f-numbers. That ring adjusts your aperture (hole inside the lens). The numbers on the focusing ring tell you, in feet or in meters, how much depth of focus you have in your picture, from near to far, for any aperture setting you use. Look at the classes offered on this site. They're a bargain. The articles on my web page may also be of help to you.
|
|
|
||
Becky |
Thank you so much for the info. John and Doug. My lens does have a grey metal ring and also I recieved the tip that the size on the inside of my lens cap will be the same. It is 55mm. Any other info on good filters would be great. I have my own darkroom so I'd like to expirament a little. I did take a beginners class on B&W photography about a year ago so now I'd like to move onto using some filters. Thanks- Becky
|
|
|
||
This old forum is now archived. Use improved Forum here
Report this Thread |