Focus problem with Volna-3 on D700

[rafe]

Hi everyone,

I have a problem with a Volna-3 (80mm/f2. I bought on eBay.
I use it with a tilt/shift adapter ring (looks like an arax). I can't focus further than about 5 meters. Up to ~5 meters it's fine, I can focus normally. But further, no way, everything remains blurry.

I see there's a button on the lens but I don't know what it's for, it looks like it has no effect.

Does someone has an idea?

Thanks in advance!

Rafe

[sichko]

When the lens is mounted on a P6 camera the aperture pin on the back is normally depressed and the aperture is wide open. When the pin is released, immediately prior to shutter opening, the aperture stops down to the value to the value set on the ring. Pressing the button closes the aperture so that you can take a view of the subject - with the lens stopped down. It's sometimes called a Deptth-of-Field (DOF) lever. Nikon-P6 (and other) adapters do not depress the pin on the rear of the lens - so the aperture is already at its "stopped down" position and the DOF button has no efect.

As to you first point - have you tried the lens with a normal Nikon-P6 adapter ? Can you focus to infinity ? If so your TS adapter may be the problem. However I have no experience of TS adapters. Perhaps someone else can help.

Welcome to the forum.

[rafe]

Hi John,

Thank you for your fast answer. Actually I have no other adapter. This is my first "vintage" manual focus lens. I've bought it with the TS ring, because it's much cheaper than "genuine" nikon TS lenses.
So the switch has no link with the focus - thank you for your answer.

Regards

Rafe

[rawhead]

Sounds like a loose element, or inverted element in there somewhere. Do you hear any rattling when you shake the lens? Or maybe it's an incorrectly attached focusing helicoid. Happens a lot with old lenses that have been CLAd. The Volna-3, as I remember it, is pretty easy to take apart, so why not take a look? It's a very simple, traditional planar design, so the lenses should be, from front to back, ordered like so:

((( )))


If you find that one of the lenses (if any, I'd guess it's the second to last one) is inverted, like so:


((( )()


Then that could cause focusing problems.

[sichko]

[rafe]

rawhead > I don't have the lens with me right now but I remember I heard a small noise when I took it in my hand, yes. I'll have to check this.

sichko > It's the same as this one but for Nikon: http://cgi.ebay.com/Tilt-Adapter-Pentacon-Six-Lenses-to-Canon-EOS-Camera_W0QQitemZ350242933701QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLens_Accessories?hash=item518c1b0bc5&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

Thank you for your replies!

[rafe]

I've found the one I bought: http://cgi.ebay.ch/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200316153929&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSA:CH:1123

I could read "Will focus to infinty". Does this mean sometimes they don't?