Aperture and video on the Nikon CZK

When shooting video on Nikon digital SLR cameras, there are many features for controlling the lens aperture. In this article I will try to explain some of them.

The article is not about a ladybug, but about problems with aperture control on Nikon DSLRs

The article is not about a ladybug, but about problems with aperture control on Nikon DSLRs

The essence of the problem

The vast majority of Nikon lenses have mechanical aperture blades. Since 1957, the principle of operation and the mechanism itself have not changed a bit. Its essence lies in the fact that a special lever located in the bayonet shaft of the camera, which I call the 'pusher', controls the level of opening / closing of the diaphragm through a special lever located on the side of the lens mount, which I call the 'jumper'.

This is what the diaphragm control lever ('pusher') looks like on all the central control rooms Nikon.

Aperture jump on Nikon cameras

Aperture jump on Nikon cameras

The lever performs translational movements down and up.

Make your own observation.

  1. Remove the lens from the camera.
  2. Set your camera to 'M' mode.
  3. Set the shutter speed, for example, 1 / 125s.
  4. Turn the camera mount toward you.
  5. Press the shutter button and watch how this lever works. The lever will lower and rise back. The operation cycle of the lever is clearly shown in the video below.

The full shutter release cycle is described in my article 'Shutter noise'.

And this is how the aperture control lever on the lens looks like (the same 'jump rope', or, in scientific terms - 'linkage levers'):

Mechanical diaphragm protrusion

Nikon lens mount for mechanical iris control.

The 'Jump' also performs forward and upward movements.

Conduct your own observation - remove the lens from the camera. If it is a lens with an aperture control ring (NON-G type), use this ring to set the maximum number F (usually it is F / 16, 22 or 32). Remove the front lens cap. Point the lens with the front lens to a well-lit area (such as a computer monitor), and rotate the lens toward your eyes with the rear lens. Use your hand to push the diaphragm lever (shown in the figure above) to the extreme position. In this case, you will see how the aperture blades move in the lens. This procedure is absolutely safe, the main thing is not to get your hands on the back lens.

In this video you can see the work of the 'pusher' on the camera. Nikon D3s:

 

In the lens diaphragm mechanism, a special spring (or other similar device) constantly tries to cover the aperture blades. If nothing acts on the 'jumper' (a finger or a pusher lever), for example, with a lens removed from the camera, then it succeeds, therefore, the lens removed from the camera always has a fully closed aperture. When attaching the lens to the camera, the aperture jumper rests against the diaphragm pusher, which causes the diaphragm to open completely. Thus, when the lens is attached to the camera, the diaphragm remains always open. This allows you to sight with the maximum brightness of the image in the optical viewfinder, which simplifies focusing and provides many other benefits.

When you release the shutter, or when switching to Live View, or when using depth of field preview buttons The 'pusher' moves downward, thereby forcing the lens's internal spring to close the diaphragm.

If we use a lens with a microprocessor, then the camera knows how much to lower the 'pusher' in order for the aperture to close to the desired value (the value is set via the camera menu). If we use a manual lens (without a microprocessor), then the camera lowers the 'pusher' all the way. In this case, the aperture value is controlled by the aperture ring, which allows the aperture blades to close only to the set value (but not more).

After the desired aperture value has been set and the shutter shutters have been released, the “pusher” of the aperture fulfills its full cycle - it lowers, thereby closing the aperture blades to the set value, and then rises to the stop, fully opening the aperture, returning to its original position for the next shot. The full cycle of the 'pusher' is the main trouble, because of which it is difficult to achieve aperture control when shooting video.

There are some other features with aperture closing and opening, discussions of which have moved in a separate article.

Now we come to the heart of the problem: the camera uses Live View mode when shooting video. On most Nikon cameras (but not all), when switching to this mode, the 'pusher' sets only one selected aperture value, and due to its 'cyclic' stroke it cannot move smoothly up and down and change the aperture value ... As a result, we cannot change aperture while shooting video.

Now I want to describe rather unusual features regarding the aperture control on Nikon DSLRs, which do not know how to control the aperture with microprocessor lenses when shooting video.

Many users have read more than once in my Nikon Camera Reviews about the inability to control the iris on most cameras through the camera menu when shooting video.

Some users have pointed out to me that in 'A' (Aperture Priority) mode while shooting video, you can change the F number when shooting video with Nikon amateur cameras. Attention: the F-number you see on your cameras in 'A' mode (excluding cameras with Power Aperture) is the F-number that will only be used to capture the photo. The lens blades remain in place during movie recording. This feature is misleading to many.

Conduct your own observation - on a 'G' type lens, or on a 'NON-G' type lens with a fixed aperture ring using the dedicated button, start video recording in 'A' (aperture priority) mode, turn the lens towards you and try change the aperture value using the camera selector. You will not succeed, the shooting will always take place at the same aperture value :(.

It's important: only in 'M' mode, the camera on its display shows the real F-number at which the video is being filmed.

Important: in order to force some Nikon cameras to allow controlling the shutter speed when shooting video, it is imperative to activate the 'Manual video settings' item in the 'Video settings' menu. If this is not done, then in the 'M' mode the camera will record video at the settings it considers necessary and will not show real values excerpts and the aperture on which the video is being recorded (the number F and excerpt on which the subsequent photograph will be taken). Also, if this is not done, then there will be no way to change the ISO value during video recording.

Very important: There is one trick to start video recording at a certain aperture value. You need to go to 'M' or 'A' mode, exit Live View mode, set the desired F-number, and re-enable Live View mode. Aperture in Live View will close to the set value. After that, if you click on the video recording button, video recording will start at the selected aperture value.

Due to the outdated aperture control mechanism, we have one more problem. Its essence is easiest to explain with an example:

I want to shoot a video using a camera Nikon D5300 and lens Nikon DX AF-S Nikkor 18-200mm 1: 3.5-5.6GII ED SWM VR IF Aspherical... I already know that I won't be able to control the aperture when shooting video, so I choose one value at which I will shoot video. Let it be F / 8. I put the camera in 'M' mode, turn off Live View, set F / 8, 18mm focal length and turn Live View back on and press the video recording button. But suddenly I want to shoot a video not at an 18 mm focal length, but a little closer. I start zooming to 200mm and suddenly find myself shooting at F / 13.

The spontaneous increase in the number F is explained by the fact that I used a lens with a variable aperture... The 'pusher' closed the aperture to f / 8, but when zooming, the focal length of the lens changed, but the effective aperture did not. F-number is the ratio of the focal length of the lens to the effective aperture. We increased the focal length, but the actual aperture remained fixed with the help of a 'jump rope', thus we got a 'spontaneous' increase in the F number.

When shooting a video on the TsZK Nikon, a bug sits on a bug and drives a bug. Sad but true.

But it is not all that bad. With different lenses and cameras, there may be different solutions.

'E' type lenses can be used.

An easy solution is to use lenses like 'Nikon E'. No, no, this is not the same old line of manual lenses with a lightweight body type. Nikon 100mm F2.8 SERIES E or Nikon Lens Series E 28mm 1: 2.8. ‘Nikon E'Are new, very expensive, electronically controlled aperture lenses. These lenses do not have a 'jump rope' and can be used to change the aperture while shooting video. Find the exact list of such lenses here (as many as 5 pieces). Attention: it is possible that some cameras do not know how to work with these lenses and it will be impossible to control the aperture during movie shooting. I don’t have an exact list of cameras. In the instructions for the cameras, nothing intelligible about this can be found.

Can be used manual lenses Ai AI-S, non-AI, pre-AI, Ai-converted (lenses without a microprocessor), as well as any manual lenses without a 'jumper', but with a diaphragm control ring.

Manual lenses have an aperture control ring. During video shooting, no one will forbid you to rotate the aperture control ring, thereby changing the value of F. At the same time, on all Nikon cameras that can record video, you can change the aperture value using the aperture control ring on the lens. A slight limitation of this method is due to the fact that cameras D3100, D3200, D3300, D5000, D5100, D5200, D5300, D5500, D5600, D90 (exact list) will only work in 'M' mode. Any cameras that support video recording with these lenses will only have manual focus.

You can use autofocus NON-G lenses (lenses with a microprocessor and aperture ring).

You can also control the iris on autofocus lenses with an aperture ring (NON-G type lens). With these lenses, you can manually change the aperture value during movie recording using the lens aperture ring. To do this, in the camera menu, find the item 'Adjust command dials' -> 'Set aperture' and set the value 'Aperture ring'. This function has D600, D610, D750, D800,D800E, D810, D850, D810a, D7000, D7100, D7200, D4, D4s, D5, D500 (exact list). But on the cameras D3100, D3200, D3300, D5000, D5100, D5200, D5300, D5500D5600 и D90 (exact list) such a trick will not work, since they do not have diaphragm rheostat... When attempting to use the aperture ring on these cameras, the error message 'Lock the lowest aperture ring on the lens (maximum f-number)' will be displayed.

Attention: the method described above with lenses having a microprocessor and a diaphragm ring will not work on cameras D3sD300s (verified). These two cameras do not want to enable Live View if the aperture ring is used to control the iris with the specified lens type. In the same time Nikon D3s can change the value of the number F when recording video using the selector responsible for the number F.

The disadvantage of this solution is the need to use lenses with an aperture control ring (usually these are old Nikon lenses).

There is the simplest solution to the problem for all lenses that support auto focus.

Hurrah! Cameras Nikon D800,D800E, D810, D810a, D850, D3s, D4,D4s, D750, D5, D500 (the exact list) finally learned how to control the aperture while shooting video. Aperture can be controlled using the F-number dial with any CPU lens (virtually all autofocus lenses). The easiest way to change the F number is in the 'A' and 'M' modes. For these cameras, an upgraded aperture control mechanism has been specially created that can smoothly adjust the aperture 'pusher'. I want to note that despite all the exclamations that Nikon cannot automatically change the aperture value during video recording, such a function has been and has been present since October 2009 in the camera Nikon D3s. And since September 2010, the function of changing the aperture during video recording is available when using lenses with a microprocessor and aperture ring on the camera Nikon D7000. A serious drawback of the Nikon system is that the younger cameras have no function for changing the aperture on lenses with a microprocessor during video recording.

'Power Aperture' function.

For cameras Nikon D800,D800E, D810, D810a, D850, D4, D4s, D5, D750, D500, D7500 (exact list) a function has been specially developed Power aperture... These cameras have two Live View modes - Live View for still photography and Live View for video. With such cameras, video recording can only be performed by switching to the appropriate Live View mode for video shooting. The essence of the function is that in Live View for video shooting, you can change the aperture by means of the function keys, while the aperture closes and opens very smoothly, and on the display you can observe the change in depth of field and exposure pair.

To configure these cameras:

In the 'g: Video' menu select the 'g1: Function of the' Fn 'button and set the' Aperture. with electr. (open) '. In this case, pressing the 'Fn' button will open the aperture automatically during Live View, which is for movie shooting.

In the menu 'g: Video' you can select the function 'g2: Function book. pre view. ' and set the 'Aperture. with electr. (closed) '. In this case, pressing the preview button will close the aperture automatically during Live View, which is intended for movie shooting.

Now with these two buttons you can open and close the iris in Live View, which is used for video recording. Such a focus in Live View mode for photography will not work.

Attention: When recording video, the 'Power Aperture' function for some cameras works only in Live View, which is intended for video shooting and only until the moment the video starts recording. The function does not work when recording video to a memory card, but can work when recording video to an external device using HDMI. I do not have an exact list of cameras for this feature.

Results

It is possible to control the aperture automatically when shooting video using lenses with a microprocessor (any autofocus lenses) only on cameras Nikon D800,D800E, D810, D810a, D850, D4,D4s, D750, D3s, D5, D500, D7500 (exact list). When changing the diaphragm, the controls located on the camera are used.

You can control the aperture when shooting video on NON-G type autofocus lenses (with microprocessor and aperture ring) using the aperture control ring located on the lens body, but this function is only available for cameras Nikon D800,D800E, D810, D810a, D850, D4, D4s, D5, D500, D750, D600, D610, D7000, D7100, D7200 (exact list).

On cameras D3100, D3200, D3300, D5000, D5100, D5200, D5300, D90, D5500, D5600, D300s (exact list) When using CPU lenses (any 'NON-E' type autofocus lens) aperture cannot be controlled during movie recording or requires the use of manual opticsor expensive and highly specialized optics 'E' type.

I had to dig through a bunch of information in search of some answers to the questions posed in this article. I will be grateful to the readers for the likes, the buttons for which are located just below this text. Thanks for attention. Arkady Shapoval.

Add a comment: Maksim

 

 

Comments: 102, on the subject: Aperture and video on the Nikon CZK

  • Maksim

    Thank you, Arkady, for your efforts!

  • Dmitriy

    I really liked the content of the article, thanks! it is not clear why “Nikon” didn’t make “E” lenses for so long, and why now they stand like “an airplane wing”? And this is against the background of competitors, where the electromagnetic diaphragm is available and has been used for 30 years! how in general is it possible to ensure the stability and precision of aperture control, such a "short-stroke"?
    I noticed a couple of spelling errors in phrases in the article: (The disadvantage of this solution is the need to use lenses with an aperture ring (usually these are old Nikon lenses).

    • Arkady Shapoval

      Fixed

  • anonym

    Hello! Tell me, will it be possible to change the aperture during video shooting on the d600 with a Nikon 35-70mm f / 2.8D AF lens?

    • Vasya

      How stupid you are, the article gives a list of cameras with which you can do this.

  • Serg

    that is, choosing a diaphragm by jumping during video, even on younger devices, is this more a software limitation? (in theory, you can make the jumper move (albeit abruptly) during the video)

    • Michael

      On the contrary, mechanical, related to the kinematics of the mirror and shutter.

      • Serg

        But what about this:

        "Hooray! Nikon D800, D800E, D810, D810a, D850, D3s, D4, D4s, D750, D5, D500 cameras (exact list) have finally learned how to control aperture during video shooting. Aperture can be controlled using the F-number dial with any CPU lens (virtually all autofocus lenses). The easiest way to change the F number is in the 'A' and 'M' modes. For these cameras, an upgraded aperture control mechanism has been specially created that can smoothly adjust the aperture 'pusher'. I want to note that despite all the exclamations that Nikon cannot automatically change the aperture value during video recording, such a function has been and has been present since October 2009 in the Nikon D3s camera. And since September 2010, the function of changing the aperture during video recording is available when using lenses with a microprocessor and aperture ring on the Nikon D7000 camera. A serious drawback of the Nikon system is that the younger cameras are completely devoid of the function of changing the aperture on the lenses with a microprocessor during video recording. ”

        • Michael

          In these chambers, the work of the pusher and the mirror is decoupled. The mechanics are different. “Learned” is used here in a different context, not software update was meant.

  • Sergei

    please tell me, can the manual lens transmit the aperture value to the camera through the jumper?

    • Sergei

      or only through the rheostat and its lever?

      • B. R. P.

        "Jump" is on the lens, the rest is on the camera.

    • B. R. P.

      To quote from this review: “Manual lenses have an aperture control ring. During video recording, no one will forbid you to rotate the aperture control ring, thereby changing the value of the F number. At the same time, on all Nikon cameras that can record video, you can change the aperture value using the aperture control ring on the lens. A slight limitation of this method is due to the fact that cameras D3100, D3200, D3300, D5000, D5100, D5200, D5300, D5500, D5600, D90 (exact list) will only work in 'M' mode. Any cameras that support video recording with these lenses will only have manual focus. ”

      • Sergei

        I meant the lever on the lens that covers the diaphragm and is connected to the lever inside the camera mount shaft (I know about the diaphragm ring)
        I am interested in whether the data will be transmitted to the camera with exif not only with the help of a rheostat or lever EE

    • Arkady Shapoval

      Only through a rheostat on Nikon cameras

      • Sergei

        Thank you!

  • Daria

    Good afternoon! Forgive me if the question seems stupid, and even if not, then it is not entirely relevant. So, to the question. D750, in live view on photo, very noisy aperture adjustment - is this normal?

    • Arkady Shapoval

      Yes, it is normal

  • Paul

    Hello. Great stuff, thanks.
    The question is not exactly about aperture, but about video.
    1. How does the mechanical shutter on the Nikon CZK behave when shooting a video?
    2. How is the frame rate of 30 or 60 frames per second achieved in videos, if the maximum number of frames that the same camera can produce per second is no more than 10?
    Thanks in advance,

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