Talking of EL-Nikkors, is there any specific reason why you guys chose the 4/75 which is a 4-element design, and not the 6-element 5.6/80? The use of this El Nikkor was brought forward in this thread http://www.photomacrography.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7415 From there trials were run (by AndrewC a...

... and now try diffusing it :) Mechanically that would be dead simple with your Actimel diffusers. \:D/ I can put one snugly on the reverse side of any El Nikkor and happily start turning my polarizer! (Andrew: Is it ok with you to put up a picture here of my little setup?) Big question though: ca...

After reading this article about cross-polarization some tme ago http://www.naturescapes.net/042004/wh0404.htm I started to think how to implement it in a macro setup. I also read that in microscopy the polarizers are often placed between the objective and the eyepiece. Putting 1 and 1 together made...

Bye the way - I think I might have a possible solution for the diffused / crossed polariser technique. I just need to find my archived envelope of polariser film and the necessary adapters to attach, or at least position a polariser in front of the reversed El-Nikkor. But why put a polarizer in fro...

Thank you for posting these comparisons. To add to your list of "interesting" lenses i have the El Nikkor 40mmF4N (arrived today) El Nikkor 50mmF2.8N El Nikkor 63mmF2.8N At this moment I'm "test driving" my new macro setup. Will see if I can come up with something compatible with your tests. Just a ...

. . . or are there 39mm lens rear caps available . . . ? Not that I know of, but have a look here: http://www.camerafilters.com/detail.aspx?ID=2735 These are M42 x 1 rear lens caps. Screw in a M39 -> M42 adapter ring (Ukrainian made). Update : Cheaper and better quality alternative here: http://cgi...

Alternatively, my 6 yr old son can now regularly be spotted in the garden with a plastic pot and a very intent expression. He's remarkably good at catching flies Now, that's an idea. I'll start training my 3-year old granddaughter shortly. She loves the small creepy bugs in the garden anyway. Now t...

Andrew, Nice picture with - for me - just the right amount of highlights. One remark: for this subject I think the background is slightly distracting. Here I would prefer a more neutral background. Maybe next week's background? :smt003 El-Nikkor 75/4 reversed at f5.6, 150mm extension => 2xmag (looks...

ChrisR wrote:I'll try some comparison shots and let you know . . .

I for one would be interested to see the results.

My shortest conventional lens is a 105mm Micro-Nikkor I guess this is a manual focus lens? I have a "Nikon AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8 G IF-ED". Modern day Nikon micro lenses shift focal length when you focus closer. Some figures for my AFS 105mm micro: At 1:1 -> magnification is 1.0, focal le...

Andrew, You might consider an El Nikkor 75mm/F4. The N-version can be get for as low as US$ 30.00. For m=0.5: FD = 34 cm, WD = 21 cm; you need 58 mm added extension, For m=1.0: FD = 30 cm, WD = 13 cm; 95 mm added extension required. Lens in "normal" mount (not reversed). I assume you have extension ...

I was just happily googling along and came across these reverser rings on ebay. I have never seen this size before. My system depends largely on Nikon-mount, 52mm and M42 threads. So these reverser rings may come in handy for a neat/thin connection. Like for el nikkor (N-version): stepup 40.5 to 52 ...

Now I just need to figure out why most lenses don't overlap/reverse . . . In one of the brochures for the older El Nikkor lenses I came across these schematics: http://www.photomacrography.net/forum/userpix/416_Overlap_1.jpg "Overlapping principal planes" probably best describes the phenomenon. :wi...

rjlittlefield wrote:On the right, I see 23.2+28.4(?)=51.6(?) and 31.4+20.6(?)=52.0(?)

The 28.4 actually reads 28.8. The 20.6 is correct.
In one of the brochures (page 3) there is a much clearer picture:

http://savazzi.homeip.net/download/El-N ... es%203.pdf

Does "you should note the source" refer to my comment about the theory? Definitely not! Your remark is very valid and I made a note to look up your reference when I find the time. Probably better would have been: "One should note his/her source . . . " I was in fact slapping myself for not having n...