Nikon lens markings. What the numbers on your lens say

Every modern lens has inscriptions. A similar inscription is present on all lens models: SIGMA 28-80mm f3.5-5.6 Aspherical Macro. So what can she mean?

Lens manufacturers:

Let's consider everything in order. SIGMA is the name of the manufacturer. All optics manufacturers are divided into native and independent. The first are companies that produce cameras and, accordingly, optics for them. It will be easier to explain with an example. Canon's native lens will be Canon's optics, while Sigma's optics are independent. No need to think that independent devices are worse than native ones. Despite the fact that the passport of most cameras says that it is recommended to use native optics, third-party devices are of better quality and demonstrate top scores. It is also important that third-party optics most often cost less than a similar native one. The most popular independent optics manufacturers are Tamron, Sigma, Tokina, Phoenix, Vivitar, Soligor, and also Zenith. These manufacturers have good and not so good models. The best optics are produced by the first three listed companies. Vivitar, Phoenix and Soligor produce cheap optics. As for Zenith, it is an ordinary representative of the domestic market. As a rule, independent manufacturers release all models of their lenses for various bayonets Pentax K-AF, Nikon D, Canon EF , Konica-Minolta Dynax (Maxxum) and Sigma SA.

Focal length:

Designation 28-80mm is the focal length of the optics. It is worth knowing that for 35mm film cameras, the normal value is 50mm. At this value, the viewing angle of the human eye and the focal length of the lens are the same. Also distinguish short throw lenses, whose focal length is less than 50 mm, and telephoto lenses- more than 50 mm. Short throw lenses are called wide angle.

The designation 28-80 mm indicates that the focal length can be changed. Optics can work in wide-angle and telephoto lens modes. Such lenses are called zoom lenses". The fact that such lenses can replace devices with short, medium and long focal lengths has to be paid with a decrease in aperture due to the presence a large number lenses. That is why professionals prefer to use lenses that are designed for shooting in certain conditions with certain parameters. This optics allows you to get better pictures.

Aperture:

Designation on the lens f3.5-5.6 shows the level of aperture, which corresponds to the size of the aperture. A lower aperture value of the lens allows you to take better pictures in low light. If two numbers are indicated, then these are aperture values ​​​​for a focal length of 28 mm, and, accordingly, for 80 mm.

Special designations on lenses:

Designation aspherical indicates the presence of aspherical elements (lenses). This designation comes from the fact that aspherical lenses are cheap to manufacture. However, their use leads to the appearance of chromatic aberrations at the periphery of the frame. These defects show up as iridescent colored halos around contrasting image elements. Lenses with a flat rather than spherical surface relieve optics of this shortcoming.

The last notation is Macro, which indicates that with this lens you can shoot in the same mode.

All the considered designations are basic, however, additional abbreviations can be found on the lenses, for example EX, DG, APO, VR, ED-IF And IF-ED, DC and others. Each inscription indicates improved characteristics or unique properties of optics and, accordingly, significantly increases the cost of the device. Consider two examples: the notation LD(Low Dispersion) indicates that the lenses are made of low dispersion glass;, VR- vibration reduction, the presence of an optical stabilizer.

Also very important parameter illumination of the optics. It significantly affects the quality of the image, its contrast and the presence of glare.

If you are an amateur and do not want to overpay a lot and delve into the intricacies of optical photographic equipment, then just use standard lenses.

In this article, we present you with a breakdown of all the abbreviations that Canon uses in marking its lenses. Knowing these symbols will help you make an informed decision when choosing a lens.

EF (Electro-Focus)– Standard mount for Canon cameras, lenses with this marking are suitable for any Canon SLR cameras.

EF-S (Short back focus)– Lenses designed for APS-C crop sensor cameras. Canon EF-S lenses have a protruding lens and barrel on the mount side, making it impossible to use EF-S lenses with full-frame cameras.

TS-E (Tilt-Shift)- Tilt-Shift lenses allow you to correct the perspective of the image by shifting or tilting the lens group relative to the optical axis. Lenses are mainly used in architectural and product photography.
In the near future we will devote a separate review article to these wonderful lenses and their capabilities.

MP-E (Macro Photography) – special options EF mount lenses but no electric focus. The second type includes only one specialized Canon MP-E 65mm 1-5x Macro lens, which is capable of giving a fivefold increase without additional devices.

L (Luxury)– A series of professional lenses with a high degree of protection against moisture and dust. The lenses of this series are only EF models, which usually have a fixed aperture over the entire range of focal lengths. For outward difference L-series lenses have a red ring on the rim.

Fisheye– Fisheye lens type. Ultra wide angle lens.

Macro- a prefix indicating that the optics belong to the macro line. First of all, it is characterized by a reduced minimum focusing distance.

IS (Image Stabilizer)– Image stabilization. The system contains a movable lens block that compensates for the movement of the camera when shooting. This allows you to shoot in low light with a shutter speed up to four stops slower than lenses without an image stabilization system.

In the new lenses, next to the stabilization system, you can see the Roman numeral two, which means that the second generation stabilization system is used in the lens.

USM (Ultrasonic Motor)– Ultrasonic motor for focusing. This motor is quiet and fast. Lenses with this motor are marked with a gold ring.

DO (Diffractive Optics)– The use of diffractive optics in the lens design, which reduces chromatic aberrations.
Lenses with this design are marked with a green ring.

IF– Lens design that moves when focusing indoor unit lenses. Due to the fact that the lens does not change its size, it focuses faster and is more convenient for working with filters for which their location is important, for example, with polarizing and gradient filters.

RF- A lens scheme in which only the rear lens group is used for focusing. This speeds up the focusing process.

24-70mm– Range of focal lengths.

f:2.8– The maximum available aperture of the lens.

f:3.5-5.6— Range of maximum available apertures for zoom lenses. The range is related to focal lengths, this range is indicated for the 18-200mm lens, for 18mm the maximum aperture is f:3.5, for 200mm, respectively, f:5.6.

soft focus- Ability to control the degree of softening of the image. Used in several Canon lenses.

S-UD- The use of lenses from ultra-low dispersion optical insole allows you to create lenses that are practically devoid of problems with chromatic aberrations.
Used in many L-series telephoto, super-telephoto and wide-angle lenses.

AL- The lens design uses aspherical lenses, which eliminates spherical aberration. Today, aspherical elements are found in almost all EF lenses.

CA Circular Aperture- Circular aperture.

FT-M Full Time Manual- Most EF lenses equipped with an ultrasonic motor (USM) allow you to adjust the sharpness immediately after autofocus operation without switching to manual focus mode.

P.S.

The instructions for the camera have a list of compatible lenses, be sure to use this list when choosing a lens.

Some things may seem simple and clear without unnecessary explanations, but, in fact, what is obvious to you is not always obvious to other people. Several times I came across situations where my students were embarrassed to ask about the meaning of all these numbers on the lenses. If you do not know what they mean, do not be shy and think that you are stupid. In this article, we will just figure out what is hidden behind the numerous combinations of numbers on lenses.

Standard settings seen on new digital lenses

FOCAL LENGTH

MAXIMUM APERTURE

FOCUS RANGE AND FOCUS SCALE

FILTER SIZE OR LENS DIAMETER

Less common settings seen on older manual focus lenses

DIAPHRAGM RING

HYPERFOCAL DISTANCE SCALE

The rows of numbers on this lens correspond to (in order from top to bottom):
- focus scale;
- scale of hyperfocal distances;
- a ring for setting the aperture, with which the degree of opening of the aperture of the lens is adjusted.
The hyperfocal distance scale is there to let you know which parts of your photo will be in focus when using different aperture settings. Note that the lens in the photo above is set to f16 and is focused at 5 meters. Now take a look at the scale in the middle and look at the f16 value to the left of its center orange line - this indicates the closest point that will be in focus when you focus at the specified distance at the specified aperture ratio (in this case it will be about 2, 75 m.). Now look at the f16 value to the right of the center orange line. You will see an infinity sign. Based on the foregoing, we can say that with the aperture value of f16, everything that is in the range from 2.75 meters to infinity will be in focus, the main thing is to aim the lens at an object located at the right distance.
In the situation described, it turns out that the infinity symbol and the f16 symbol on the hyperfocal distance scale were combined to the right of the orange line, which resulted in the largest possible depth of field with the aperture set to f16 (note that you are not actually focusing on a specific object, you set the focus distance on the lens using numbers). Note: if you set the focus to infinity, then only objects located at a distance of about 4.5 meters to infinity will be in focus, and if you set the focus to 2 meters, infinity in the picture will not be sharp. This topic has not been fully covered, so if you happen to have a lens with a similar scale, look for information on how to use it, and you can achieve much more interesting results using a small aperture.
In case you're wondering what the little red dot means, it's the designation for focusing when shooting in infrared. When you photograph with infrared film, you need to focus in a different place than you would normally focus on, because the infrared region of the spectrum is different from the region of the spectrum that we see with our eyes. Before the time From time to time I photographed with infrared film. A funny thing, but not so easy to deal with - you need to know how to focus correctly and understand how to get the desired result. Today there are quite convincing digital ways imitation of shooting on infrared film. Despite this, sometimes I still think about taking pictures on film.

If you're wondering what all those letters on your Canon lens mean, then you've come to the right place.

FD these are ancient lenses from Canon, which were produced in the 70s-80s. They are not suitable for modern cameras, so you can put such a lens on a modern camera with an EF mount only through a special adapter. Unlike Nikon, Canon has changed the mount, and therefore the old FD lenses have lost any value, forget about them. After a relatively short service life of the FD (about 15 years), Canon released new type EF mounts, but don't worry, the EF line has about 60 lenses, this should last you a lifetime, so there is plenty to choose from.

EF (Electro-Focus) means that your lens has electronic autofocus, i.e. a motor is built into the lens, and the camera only sends commands through the contacts on the lens. Actually, all Canon lenses made after 1987 by EF, so this marking is on your lens, unless of course you inherited it. EF lenses are compatible with all Canon digital cameras.

EF-S (Electro Focus S short back focus ) this is the same EF only designed for canon 1.6x SLR cameras, and is not compatible with full-format cameras such as 5D, 1D.

USM (Ultrasonic Motor) – ultra sonic drive. Lenses with this drive focus faster and produce much less noise. It is put in rather expensive lenses.

DC (micro motor)- this motor is put on budget lenses from canon. This does not mean that it is bad, just focusing is slower.

L (Luxury) if you have a lens marked L, then you are either a cool photographer, or you have a lot of money, well, it’s still possible to have both in one person, but this is rare :) Actually, these lenses are distinguished by super-quality optics, they are sharp, reliable and often huge and heavy. All "luxury" lenses are easy to identify by the red border, for example :

DO (Diffractive Optics) lenses with this mark are distinguished by optics, which practically eliminates all optical flaws, as well as noticeably smaller dimensions. Canon has released a few such lenses - only two: EF 400 mm f/4 DO IS USM And EF 70-300 mm f/4.5-5.6 DO IS USM.

II, III- so canon designates the version of the lens. If II is written on your lens, then there is already a younger version with the same focal length. For example :

AF/MF a switch that allows you to take pictures either in manual or automatic mode. Manual mode is useful when the camera cannot focus in the auto mode, such as when you are .

1.8m - /6m - you can only find this switch on telephoto lenses, and although the numbers may be different, it means the limit of the focus mode, in this case, if the switch is on 1.

28-300mm– Range of possible focal lengths for a zoom lens. The first number is the minimum focal length, the second is the maximum that will be available to you with this lens (specifically, in this case, the minimum is 28mm, the maximum is 300mm). If the number is one, then this is a lens with a fixed focal length, that is, a fix, not a zoom.

f:3.5-5.6– This is the maximum possible for your lens. If this is a zoom, then the number will be two (for example, 3.5-5.6). The first is the maximum aperture at close focal length. That is, if you have an 18-200mm lens, then at 18mm the maximum will be f / 3.5. The second number is the maximum aperture at the far focal length, i.e. f / 5.6 at 200mm, for example. If the number is one on the zoom, then the maximum aperture will be the same at all focal lengths. Well, there is also one number on the fixes, because it has one single focal length, in fact, that's why it is a fix. The maximum aperture also determines .

Fisheye- this type of lens can not be confused with anything. If your lens says Fisheye (“Fisheye” in Russian), then you can take photos like this:

Many novice photographers, over time, after buying their first reflex camera, there is a need to improve the quality of their pictures. After all, everyone wants their photos to be beautiful bokeh, sharp, bright And colorful. Of course, you can do all this yourself using , but you won’t process every photo you take, will you?

Most come to the erroneous opinion that in order to improve your pictures you need to change the camera itself. I want to disappoint such people: the quality of your pictures directly depends on your lens. Depending on which lens you put on your device, you will receive such pictures. The camera only takes the image on itself, and draws a picture - the lens. And it makes absolutely no sense to change, for example, Nikon D5100 kit on Nikon D7000 kit, if you are not satisfied only with the quality of the picture. After all, I can assure you that it will be exactly the same with whale (standard) lenses.

In this regard, I propose to look into lens marking for the two most popular manufacturers digital cameras — Nikon And Canon so that everyone can find the right lens for their camera that fully meets the requirements of the owner.

Nikon lens markings

Consider the most popular markings on lenses For SLR cameras Nikon:

AF

A uto f ocus - means that the lens will work with auto focus on cameras that are equipped with mechanical motor autofocus, for example Nikon D90, Nikon D300s, Nikon D7000, D700 and so on. Attention! On lower models, such as: Nikon D3000, Nikon D3100, Nikon D5000, Nikon D5100 autofocus will not work, so you will have to focus manually.

AF-S

A uto f ocus- s ilent - means that the lens is equipped with a quiet focus drive, in other words, it is already built into it mechanical focus motor, which allows you to use it on younger models, such as: Nikon D3000, Nikon D3100, Nikon D5000, Nikon D5100. The lens will work with the same success on older models, for example Nikon D90, Nikon D300s, Nikon D7000. Lenses with this marking AUTOFOCUS will be on ALL modern cameras!

Ai/Ai-s/Ai-D

This is a family of fully manual focus lenses. If you are a beginner and only understand the basics of photography, I do not recommend that you purchase such lenses until you gain enough experience.

D

Lenses with this marking are able to transmit information about the focusing distance to the camera. This is necessary for correct operation modern flashes with an algorithm i-TTL

G

This letter can be seen on many modern lenses. It means electronic control. Those. you do not have to, as in old lenses, turn the aperture ring to set its value.

VR

V vibration R eduction - suppression (compensation) of vibrations, i.e. present in the lens image stabilizer. This is an indispensable thing if you shoot static scenes at slow shutter speeds, because it suppresses hand shake» when shooting.

IF

I internal F ocusing - internal focusing. That is, when focusing, nothing will move out / leave the lens, respectively, the whole process takes place inside the lens. This is important when using filters, such as gradient, polarizing and so on.

DC

D efocus C control - allows you to control the degree of blur, i.e. bokeh.

PC

P prospective C ontrol - a family of special lenses that help adjust perspective by shifting the optical angle (also known as)

Micro

Lenses for shooting macro

ED

E xtra- L ow D ispersion - means the presence of ED-glass elements in the lens, which provide a high-quality, sharp, clean picture without chromatic aberrations at the widest aperture

N (or NCC)

N ano C crystal C oating means a nanocrystalline coating that eliminates internal reflections in the lens. In other words, it saves you from glare of light, such as from the sun, that enters the frame. This coating is available on Nikon's gold-series lenses, which start at around $1,000.

AS

As pherical - this marking indicates aspherical lenses that correct various aberrations and improve image quality. Also, they have reduced weight and size, due to the small number of components of the optical circuit (lenses).

SWM

S ilent W ave M otor - availability ultrasonic motor autofocus for fast, accurate and quiet focusing. Used in series lenses AF-S.

FX

Fully compatible with full frame cameras (35mm sensor, or film), for example d700, D3x, D3S, D4 and so on. Such lenses can also be placed on sprinkled cameras ( D3000,D7000, D300s etc.), but your viewing angle will be changed.

DX

These lenses are compatible only with sprinkles cameras ( D90, D7000, D5100 and so on.). When set to a full frame camera, you will have strong vignetting (darkening) around the corners of the frame.

Canon lens markings

Now, let's move on to considering the notation on Canon lenses:

EF

means compatible with full frame cameras(35mm sensor). Has a red mark on the mount. Nikon's analogue - FX.

EF-S

Compatible only with cropped cameras, which have a format sensor APS-C. There is a white mark on the mount. Nikon's analogue - DX.

L

L uxury - luxury class, which indicates that the lens belongs to a series of professional lenses that have a much better and improved picture. They have a red stripe on the lens. Nikon's analogue - golden series(yellow stripe on the lens)

USM

U ltra s onic M otor - means the presence of an ultrasonic motor for automatic focusing. It is characterized by super accurate, fast and silent focusing. Nikon's analogue - SWM.

IS

I age S tabilizer - the presence of an image stabilizer in the lens, which gives a significant advantage when shooting stationary objects with a long exposure handheld. Compensates for hand shaking. Nikon's analogue - VR

DO

D iffractive O ptical Elements - means the presence of diffractive optical elements, due to which the mass and dimensions of the lens are significantly reduced

TS-E

Special lenses that help adjust perspective by shifting the optical angle (also known as tilt-shift). Nikon's analogue - PC

I/R

Lenses with this marking have internal focusing or focusing by the rear lens group. At the same time, the front part of the lenses remains motionless, which is essential for various kinds filters.

float

They have a floating lens system that corrects aberrations when focusing at close distances

AL

A spherical L ens - aspherical lenses, which are used in the optical design of the lens, significantly correct aberrations and increase image quality. Nikon's analogue - aspherical.

UD

Using superfine glass in the lens

Focal length and aperture

Also, in addition to the designations that were mentioned above, there are also numbers on the lenses. They mean the following

24-70mm

These numbers mean focal length range lens. In other words, it refers to the possibilities zoom(zoom) of the lens. The first number means the minimum focal length, the second - the maximum. There are also lenses with only one number, for example 50mm, 85mm etc., this means that the lens does not have the ability to zoom in (zoom), i.e. its focal length is fixed at 50mm / 80mm, etc., they are called prime lenses, or simply " fixes«.

f:3.5-5.6

These numbers represent the maximum open aperture on zoom lenses. That is, if you have a lens with focal lengths 18-55mm, this means that at 18mm the maximum aperture you will have f/3.5, and at 55mm you will have a maximum open aperture f/5.6. Also, there are zoom lenses with a fixed aperture, today the maximum open is f / 2.8, which means that if, for example, you purchase a lens 70-200mm with diaphragm f/2.8, you will have the opportunity to set it across the entire range of focal lengths. With fixes, things are easier, you can easily purchase a fixed lens with a fixed aperture, for example, f/1.8 or f/1.4, but as mentioned above, you will not be able to zoom in, i.e. zoom.

Conclusion

I hope this article lens marking helped many to find answers to many questions, for example " What is the difference between AF-S and AF", or " EF-S by EF«,» What is VR", or " IS". In the near future we will release detailed overview on the topic full frame(sensor 35mm) cameras, i.e. you will find out what their advantage is over cheaper cropped (APS-C sensor) cameras.