Nikon PC-Nikkor 28mm f/4 User manual

NOMENCLATURE
Preset ring alignment index
Preset ring
Aperture ring knob
Distance scale index
Distance scale
Infrared
index
Shift scale index
2

Aperture scale
Aperture ring alignment index
Focusing ring
Shift knob
Oepth-of-field indicators
Shift scale
Maximum permissible shift values
Mounting index
~----------------------------------~~------------- 3

CONTENTS
Foreword . ............... 4
Mounting the lens .. ......... 5
Setting the
aperture .... ...... 6
Stop-down measurement . ..... 7
Focusing
... ....... .... ... 8
Depth
of field .......... . . 9
Shift and rotation movement . .. 10
Maximum permissible shift .. . 11
Framing .... ........ .. ... 12
Panoramas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Depth of field tables .... .... 20
Close-up table ............ . 22
Features/specifications .. ... .. 23
4
FOREWORD
The PC-Nikkor 28mm f/4 is the second retro-
focus wideangle lens from Nikon offering the
special lens-shifting feature for perspective con-
trol (PC)
of the image. With the PC-Nikkor, the
photographer can shift the lens optics up to
11 mm off-center and, at the same time, rotate
the lens barrel up to 360 ° to achieve a wide
variety
of perspective correction measures, and
special-effects photographs. And
the 28mm
focal length
of this lens offers a wide picture
angle
of 74° which, when used with a horizontal
shift, provides a covering power
of 92 °, or
almost equal to that of a 20mm lens.
The PC-Nikkor is ideally suited to architectural
and commercial photography, enabling the
photographer to duplicate rising, falling and
shifting features generally available only with
large view
cameras-and the photographer has
the added feature of thru-the'-Iens viewing and
metering for greater ease
of operation. To ensure
minimum
ghost and flare, with maximum image
contrast , Nikon Integrated Coating (NIC) is
applied to all ai r- to-glass lens surfaces.

MOUNTING THE LENS
The PC-Nikkor 28mm f/4 mounts on all Nikon F/F2
and Nikkormat series cameras. To mount the lens,
position it in the camera's bayonet mount so that the
mounting index
dots on the lens and the camera are
aligned. Then, grasp the milled surface
of the mount-
ing ring and twist the lens counterclockwise until it
.clicks and locks into place. (See "Stop-Down Measure-
ment" on page 7 for metering procedures.)
To remove the lens from the camera body, press the
lens release button on the camera and, keeping the
button depressed, twist the lens clockwise.
To use the PC-Nikkor as a normal 28mm lens without
using the perspective control feature, rotate the lens
barrel so that the shift scale faces up. Then, if neces-
sary, turn the milled shift knob until the lens optics
are centered (i.e., the distance scale index line is
aligned with the shift scale index dot).
5

SETTING THE APERTURE
6
The PC-Nikkor is provided with a manual diaphragm
operable from
f/4 to f/22 and a spring-loaded preset
ring to aid in setting the diaphragm quickly to the
shooting
aperture; a total of eleven cli .ck-stop posi-
tions,
at 1/2-stop intervals, make for precise place-
ment of the preset ring. Also, identical sets of f/
numbers are engraved on opposite sides of the front
rim of the lens to facilitate operation when the lens
is used inverted.
To set the aperture, the following procedure is recom-
mended: Press
the preset ring inward (i.e., toward the
camera body) and
turn it until the f/number setting
corresponding
to the desired shooting aperture is
aligned with the ring·'s alignment index dot; then
release
the ring and it will spring outward and lock
in place. Note that the preset ring, once set, limits the
travel of the aperture ring so that the diaphragm can
be set easily and quickly
to the .shooting aperture
without the need for checking the scale during stop-
down operation.

Stop-Down Measurement
The PC-Nikkor lens does not couple with the Nikon
F/F2 Photomic or Nikkormat series thru-the-Iens
meters. However, .these meters can still
be used to
measure exposure
by the stop-down method. Before
mounting the PC-Nikkor
lens on the camera, set the
camera coupling
pin as follows: For Nikon F/F2
Photomic series cameras, push the
pin up into the
finder with a coin or similar object; when set, 5.6
will
appear in the maximum aperture indicator. For
Nikkormat series cameras, push the
pin to the right
as far as it will go.
Once the coupling pin has been properly set, mount
the PC-Nikkor on the camera
{see page 5}, switch the
meter
on in the usual way, select the desired camera
shutter speed, and manually set the lens aperture ring
for proper metering
{for Nikkormat EL automatic
operation,
see instruction manual}.

FOCUSING
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The aperture and preset rings of the PC-Nikkor enabl€
focusing
at full aperture for the brightest viewfinder
image, with rapid setting
of the diaphragm to th€
preset shooting aperture. Having set the preset rin~
to the desired aperture setting, focus as follows:
Turn the aperture ring fully counterclockwise (i.e.
to the f/4 setting) to open the qiaphragm fully fOI
focusing (photo 1); then turn the focusing ring unti
the image on the focusing screen is in sharp focu:
(photo 2). Before releasing the shutter, turn the
aperture ring clockwise until it contacts the prese'
ring
and can no longer be turned - the diaphragm i:
now at the preset shooting aperture (photo 3).
Note : The Type E focusing screen is highly recommended fo
use with Nikon F /F2 cameras. The vertical and horizonta
lines etched on the screen help
you to properly align thl
camera and lens
for proper perspective correction of thl
image.
Q)

Depth of Field
Depth
of field refers to the zone of acceptable focus
extending
in front of and behind the plane of sharpest
focus. Within
thi~ zone, image blur is negligible and
everything can be considered as being
in sharp focus.
To observe the
depth of field with the PC-Nikkor lens,
it
is necessary to manually set the diaphragm to the
required shooting aperture; for procedures, refer to
"Setting the Aperture" on page 6.
Depth
of field can also be determined by reading the
color-coded depth-of-field indicators engraved on the
lens barrel opposite the distance scale. Each pair of
colored lines corresponds to an f/number of the same
color engr-aved on the lens
front rim. To find the
depth of field at a particular aperture, focus the lens
on the subject and then check
the numbers on the
distance scale opposite the colored lines that match
the color
of the preset shooting aperture setting.
When in doubt about depth of field for a critical
shooting situation, refer
to the tables on pages 20 and
21 of this instruction manual.
9

SHIFT AND ROTATION MOVEMENT
10
The front part of the PC-Nikkor shifts up to 11 mm
from the center in a plane parallel to the film, and
the whole
lens mount rotates through a full 3600.
By combining the parallel shift with the rotation
movement of the lens, an infinite variety of adjust-
ments can be made.
To shift the lens, turn the knurled shift knob. The
knob shou Id always be turned so that it is facing away
from the direction in which the lens is to be shifted.
The shift scale shows the degree
of shift in millimeters.
When the shift scale is facing upward, the lens can be
shifted 11 mm to the right of center. In order to shift
the lens in other directions, simply rotate the whole
lens mount, stopping
at one of the 12 click-stop
settings provided at 30
0 intervals, or choosing a
desired intermediate position.
By combining these two
movements, the lens can be sh ifted up to 11 mm from
the center
in any direction.

Maximum Permissible Shift m
00 5 2 15 I 08 OJ
Depending on the direction of shift, however, ,there is
a ma x imum permissible shift, beyond which distortion
may occ ur in the picture corners, because the film
format
is rectangular while image area produced by the
I • '_ I I I I I
----- 1 •• ,. 1 .•• ,1 .
.- . :
Di agram 1
len s is circular. The amount of shift permissible
without distortion
is indicated in millimeters at each
click-stop
on the lens barrel. Shifting beyond these
limits is poss
ibl e, none th eles s, if you take ca re to ~~
compose so that any distortion will occur in unim- ~t
portant parts of the picture. The diagrams at right
show the limits based
on the direction of shift. 'H
tttITtttt n
ABCOEF G H IJ KLA
Diagram 2
Azimuth
A
t
-f-- ...... ~-.:--+-.- Ma x.adequate
91ift
G
P ic ture area
when the lens
is not shifted
11

FRAMING
As long as the camera is held in a position parallel to
the' subject when shooting, it reproduces scenes more
or less as the eye sees them, with no unpleasant per- t
spective distortion. However, shooting from this
position often produces unbalanced composition,
since
the camera is usually used close to ground level.
Much unwanted foreground
is included in the lower
half
of the frame, while part of the main subject, for
instance
the top of a building, is excluded (Fig. 1).
Fig.1
12
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::::::::;::::::
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I:: ::: :: : ::: : ::
::: ::::!: :: :: ::
:
::: :::::: : ::: :
: ~: =: :.:: ::: :: :
:: . :::.::;::.: ~
•• ,. 1' 1 •• • •• ~
•• • • Ii ••••••
I ••••••••••
I I ••••••
... .. ... ..
.. . ... ....
....... ..
.- ....
...... . ..
I I Il l " I I
II I •
. .. .
• r '" T • ~"' ..

Inevitably, the camera must be tilted in order to
include the top of the building and minimize the
foreground (Fig.
2) . But with the camera tilted, the
plane of the film is no longer parallel to the subject,
and because the i'mage size varies aCCQrding to subject
distance, the nearer parts of the subject are repro-
duced on a scale larger than those farther away.
The sides of the building appear to converge, as if the
building were leaning back or falling. Similar distor-
tion occurs
in horizontal lines when photographing a
long line of buildings at an angle.
Fig.2

FRAMING-continued
The PC-Nikkor's shift and rotation movements enable
you
to create balanced composition without tilting
the camera, so that the film remains parallel to the
plane of the subject (Fig. 3).
To photograph a tall building, hold the camera
parallel
to the plane of the building. Rotate the lens
mount until the milled knob points downward, and
sight
the subject on the focusing screen. Now turn the
milled knob until all of the building is visible and
unwanted foreground area
is trimmed away, checking .'
to be sure that the adjustment is within the permissi-
ble
shift area (see page 11).
If you must exceed the permissible shift adjustment ,
in order ,to include all of the desired subject, try to
compose the picture so that any peripheral distortion
will occur in unimportant areas, such as sea, sky or
earth. Use the same technique to
make adjustments for horizontal
and diagonal
su bjects.
Fig.3
14

PANORAMAS
The shift movement of the PC-Nikkor
can also be used for making panoramic
pictures by joining exposures. Its advan-
tage over
the normal lens mounted on
panoramic
equipment is that it enables
you
to maintain exactly the same film
plane
in both exposures so that the fin-
ished photographs will match exactly.
With
the ordinary lens, the camera must
be moved after the first exposure in order
to take in a new arc of the horizon. This
movement changes the film plane, so that "
vertical and horizontal lines
in the subject
make new and different angles with the
film. As a result, no two photographs will
ever match perfectly when joined.

To take panoramic shots, place the lens
in normal position, shift scale facing
upward, and operate the milled shift
knob to shift the lens as far to the left as
possible. Compose, focus, and shoot . With-
out moving the camera, wind the film
advance lever
to advance the film one
frame, and rotate the lens mount through
180
0 so
that the shift scale faces straight
down. Now make the second exposure.
17

PANORAMAS -continued
These two exposures together cover a horizontal
angle
of 92° without turning the camera, 8° 30 ' more
than
the range of a 20mm wideangle lens, and with
the added advantage
of larger image size. The table
below gives a comparison
of the angles of various
wideangle lenses and
the PC-Nikkor panorama range.
In making a vertical panorama, a 79° vertical angle
can be covered using the
extreme rise and fall shifts,
with
the camera still in the horizontal position. The
overlapping area
is least when two pictures are
matched vertically.
Caution: Extreme care is necessary when taking panoramic
shots to avoid camera movement , since even a slight movement
between exposures will result in some distortion and photo·
graphs will not join exactly. For best results mount the camera
on a tripod.
Nikkor lens Hori
zo ntal Vertical
oi c ture an21 e oicture an21e
20mm f/4 83°30'
61 30'
24mm f/2.8 74° 53°
28mm f/2
64° 45°
35mm f/1.4 53° 37°
28mm
PC I Ver~ical c onnection . 64u 79°
IHOrizontal connection 92° 45°
111
When making enlargements, be sure
that the negative is absolutely parallel
to the easel to prevent distortions.
All of the focusing adjustments on
the enlarger should
be maintained
constant from one exposure to the
next. When
the prints are removed
from the washer, insert them
in a
rotary dryer facing
the same direction.
Overlapped area for verti ca l shifting
1
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r.-----------------------,
I PC- kor I
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I

DEPTH-O F-FIELD TABLES
~
Reproduction
4 5.6 8 11 16 22
ft
ratio
1
11 - 11/16 "- 11·9/16" - 11-3/8"- 11·3/16" - 10·15/16"- 10·9/16" -1/7.12
1'5/16" 1'7/16" 1 '5/8" 1'7/8" 1'1·3/8"
1'2·1/16"
1.2
1'1 ·7/8" - 1'1·11/16" -1'1 - 7/16" - 1'1·1/8"- 1'11/16" - 1'3/16" -1/9.28
1'2·7/8" 1'3-1/8" 1'3- 1/2 " 1'3·15/16" 1 '4 ·7/8" 1'6 ·1/8"
1.5 1'5·
1/8" -1'4
·13/16" -1'4-3/8 "- 1'3·7/8" - 1'3· 1/8"- 1'2·3/8"-
1/12 .5
1'6·15/16"
1'7-5/16" 1'8" 1'8·15/16" 1' 10·11/16" 2'1-3/8"
2
1'10·3/8"- 1'9-3/4"-
1' 9" -
1'8·1/16 "-
1' 6-3 /4" - 1'5-7/16"-
1/17.8
2'1-7/8" 2'2·3/4" 2'4-1/4" 2'6·3/8" 2'10·13/16"
3'6-5/8"
2.5
2'3·5/16"- 2'2·7/16" - 2'1·3/16"-
1'11·13/16"- 1'9- 7/8"-
1' 8"-
1/23.2
2'9-1/4" 2'10·13/16" 3'1·9/16"
3'5·5/8" 4'3-1/4" 6'1/8"
3
2'8-1/8"- 2'6-13/16"- 2'5-1/16"- 2'3·3/16"- 2'9/16"- 1'10· 1/8"-
1/28.5
3'5-1/16" 3'7·5/8" 4'1/8" 4'7·3/8"
6'2-15/16" 11'2"
4
3'5"-
3'2·13/16"- 3'0"-
2'9" - 2'5-1/8"- 2'1·5/8"-
1/39.1
4'10-1/16"
5'3-9/16" 6'2·3/16"
7'10-3/8"
14'9 "
00
5
4'1·1/4"- 3'10"-
3'6"-
3'1·7/8"-
2'8-11/16"- 2'4·1/4"-
1/49.7
6'5·5/16" 7'3-5/8" 9'2·1/16"
13'7" 82'1"
00
7
5'3·7/8"-
4'10·3/8"- 4'3·13/16"- 3'9·9/16"-
3'2-1/16"- 2'8"-
1/71.0
10
'4" 12' 11" 20'6"
83'6"
00
00
15
8'9·11/16"-
7'6-15/16"- 6'3-7/16"- 5'2·3/8"- 4'3/4"- 3'2·15/16"-
1/156
54'7"
00 00 00 00
00
00
20'7"-
14'9"- 10'5"-
7'8·3/16"-
5'4-9/16"-
4'0"- ,
1/
00
00 00 00 00
00 00
·20