Camera Labs

Hello,

Is it possible to put one of the nikkor extention tubes between a Nikkor AF-S 50mm F1.8G prime lens and my D7000 body.

Also I have a nikkor 70-300mm F4.5-F5.6 ED IF VR lens can i use extention tubes on that one for the purpose of macro photography or at least get a better magnification.

I know they have a couple of exention tubes:

Nikon PK-12 Automatic ring
Nikon PK-11A Automatic ring
Nikon PK-13 Automatic ring

I don't really know what the difference is except some are longer then others but which one does what. I can't find any information on it.

I hope somebody knows.

Unfortunately your lenses will not be compatible with extension tubes as your lenses are "G" lenses, which means they dont have an aperture ring.

If you interested in paying what Nikon charge for their own extension tubes, you could probably pick up a used 60mm AF-D macro lens for about the same price, which is what Id do. You'd get infinitely better quality and handling this way. Macro needs precise manual focus, which would be a pain in the whotsits with the lenses you mention.

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Nikon D5000 and D300 with 12-24mm, 35mm f1.8, 50mm f1.4, 60mm f2.8 Macro, 18-200mm, 17-55mm f2.8 (all Nikon)

Ironic that this was posted, I was about to create a thread about which extension tube to buy.

Currently, I own a PK-13, which works fine with my 55mm f/3.5 AI-S Micro, however that's because it's an old AI-S lens with an aperture ring. The newer "G" lenses (such as your 70-300) which lack an aperture ring and the aperture is controlled digitally, need to be coupled with the camera body, so you'd need an extension tube that can transmit that data.

Personally, I'd love to see Nikon produce an extension tube that would be able to do that, but believe it or not, the latest Nikon extension tubes are the ones that you mentioned, and they're from the '70s so they're not designed to work with Nikon's new, digital bodies.
There is one brand that makes extension tubes that will meter and autofocus with the newer bodies and lenses, that brand is Kenko (sub brand of Tokina), and they make extension tubes such as their Kenko DG Teleplus Extension Tube Set, that will maintain your autofocus and metering. It costs around $180 or so here in Canada, so it's pretty cheap for the effect that it produces.

You may alternatively want to consider a dedicated Nikon micro lens, such as the 60mm AF micro that Jeremy recommended. As a dedicated macro lens, you're getting a much easier to use and versatile lens. If you go ahead and couple a dedicated macro with a few extension tubes, you can get some stunning effects, magnifying the subject up to 5 times or more, so you can get some beautiful, unreal shots of insects.

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-Evan

Gear: 7 Nikon Nikkor AI-S and AF-S lenses, SB-700 flash, Nikon D7000, Nikon FM, variety of accessories

"There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs."
- Ansel Adams

I was think of buying a 50mm lens. (Don't have it yet). But maybe a 60mm Macro lens will do oke. But I thought maybe I will miss the F1.8-F2.8 range on the 50mm. Because a F1.8 lens stopped down to F2.5 or F2.8 is razor sharp. Not sure how much stop down a f2.8 lens will need to get the best out of it (because my 35mm F1.8 need to be stopped down to F3.5 to get the best out of it).

But a Nikkor 50mm with extention tubes is about the same price as a 60mm Macro. So do you think it would be better for me to get a 60mm macro lens? then I can have 1:1 magnification.

I am planning to sell my 35mm F1.8 prime lens.
And I want to work with Nikkor 12-24mm F4G ED DX lens, 70-300mm F4.5-F5.6G ED IF VR lens and the 50mm or 60 mm in between.

I am not to worried about the focal length gap because most of the time I need more or less then 35mm. If I buy both 50mm and 60mm I am afraid one of the two will stay in the bag.

I want to use it mostly for flowers or objects, nor for people or portraits (not yet anyway).

Ah sorry forgot that Kenko tubes would work with G lenses.

Also, to answer Evan, If somebody has one of the newer, G, macro lenses (the 60mm or 105mm), they could always use a teleconverter for more magnification and retaining aperture control.

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Nikon D5000 and D300 with 12-24mm, 35mm f1.8, 50mm f1.4, 60mm f2.8 Macro, 18-200mm, 17-55mm f2.8 (all Nikon)

A teleconverter is 400 or 500 euro...... A bit steep. You can buy a lens for that.

Yes sorry I was replying to Evan with the teleconverter comment.

I think you should buy a 60mm macro if you can find one at a good price

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Nikon D5000 and D300 with 12-24mm, 35mm f1.8, 50mm f1.4, 60mm f2.8 Macro, 18-200mm, 17-55mm f2.8 (all Nikon)

I decided to buy the Nikkor 60mm Macro today. very nice lens with very nice contrast, bokeh and sharpness.

It has a bit of a learning curve though because of aperture has to change at different magnifications to keep the image sharp.

1:1 Magnification is a bit difficult to achieve because you have to be 2cm or something from the subject. But if you can achieve 1:2 or 1:3 magnification its already more then normal lenses. Even 1:4 or 1:5 magnification is better then normal lenses I think so you can catch more detail.

Forget about bugs and stuff with this lens. They have to sit about "ON" the glass of the lens to get 1:1 Magnification.

Yeah, "working-distance" is something that drives people to get the longer macro-lenses as those normally have a proportionally longer distance from the front-lens to the subject. This has two benefits:
- the critters are less likely to scuttle away.
- it's easier to get light on the subject and not have it in the shadow of the lens.
As to extension tubes: their usefulness depends on the focal length of your lens. As a rule of thumb you need an extension tube equal to the focal length of the lens you're mounting to achieve 1:1 magnification. So a 50mm tube plus a 50mm lens get's you down to 1:1.

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Thomas (beware: Nikon-fanboy and moderator!) My Lens Reviews, My Pictures, My Photography Blog
D800+assorted lenses

But you do lose quite a bit of light when using extension tubes, right? (at least that is my experience)

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I take pictures so quickly, my highschool was "Continuous High".

Loosing light? Rightly so!
50mm extension tube on a say 50/1.8mm lens makes for an effective aperture of f/3.5.
But that helps you get a decent dof, btw.

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Thomas (beware: Nikon-fanboy and moderator!) My Lens Reviews, My Pictures, My Photography Blog
D800+assorted lenses