On Tue, 17 Jun 2003 22:14:08 GMT, "jriegle" <jriegle@att.net> wrote:

>The Nikon 50mm f/1.8 is an ideal copy lens. It has virtually no linear

>distortion and is very sharp a what I consider working copy apertures

>(f/4-11 range). It is pretty good wide open. The ones I'm talking about is

>the older manual focus AIS lens. The new ones are probably plastified.

>Get a 28 or 24mm lens and perhaps a 85, 100 or 135. The choice is yours.

The older AI/AIS 50mm f1.8 has noticeable barrel distortion;

the "E", newer (plastic) AIS and AF do not. BTW, the VF of

the FE/FM/FA has very noticeable pincushion distortion

(and often rotation) making it less than ideal for copy work,

though its excellent central sharpness makes it easy to

use for manual focus with a plain-center viewing screen

(B or E). For more on lenses, see:

www.David-Ruether-Photography.com/slemn.html.