Katzeye screens

[ray*j*gun]

Does anyone have experience using a Katzeye screen on a DSLR? I have a D90 and I find it VERY difficult manually focusing my Nikon glass. I read that these screens can help....any advice would be appreciated.

Oh, and how difficult are they to install?

Thanks!!

Ray

 

[punkromance]

Why not use the rangefinder dot? When it's in focus a little green dot will appear in the bottom left of your viewfinder. It will probably be more reliable than MF'ing with a VF as small as the D90s.

 

[DamenS]

The electronic rangefinder dot ? There are many lenses which aren't "chipped" so this facility is unavailable to them, the "leeway" offered may be significant at large aperture and it is possibly more subject to calibration errors than Ye Olde mechanical linkage. Alternate screens are easy to install and Katzeyes have a good reputation, though I have not used one.

 

[ray*j*gun]

Thanks Damen and Punk.......the dot doesn't work with my older lenses. I would love to hear from anyone who installed one of these and how they felt about the performance.

 

[gerikson]

I have a Katzeye for my Nikon D200, and love it.

It's made using my wider lenses (I have a 18mm f/3.5) *much* easier. Part of it is the split-screen in the middle, but mostly it's the microprism collar - my favourite focusing aid - and partly because the matte screen is much better than the stock screen.

Installation is different for each camera model. That said, I was able to change mine without trouble, following the instructions on the Katzeye site.

Highly recommended if you shoot manual focus on Nikon DSLRs

 

[ray*j*gun]

I have a Katzeye for my Nikon D200, and love it.

It's made using my wider lenses (I have a 18mm f/3.5) *much* easier. Part of it is the split-screen in the middle, but mostly it's the microprism collar - my favourite focusing aid - and partly because the matte screen is much better than the stock screen.

Installation is different for each camera model. That said, I was able to change mine without trouble, following the instructions on the Katzeye site.

Highly recommended if you shoot manual focus on Nikon DSLRs

Thanks!!! The installation on the D90 looks pretty straight forward. I would be using it to help with my fast 50's wide open. I have had real trouble with soft results using them in the past on the DSLR. I think I'll get one.

 

[rjbuzzclick]

I put one in my Pentax K110D several years ago and really like it. I have the split-image screen with the microprism collar. Installation was very easy to do. The prism darkens a bit with longer lenses with smaller apertures (f/5.6 or so), but it hasn't really been a problem for me as I usually use 50mm or wider.

 

[pobe]

I have one in my Pentax K200D and it's great. It was expensive but worth every penny!

 

[Photon42]

Thanks!!! The installation on the D90 looks pretty straight forward. I would be using it to help with my fast 50's wide open. I have had real trouble with soft results using them in the past on the DSLR. I think I'll get one.

I used the Katzeye on my D200 and was very satisfied. Very critical work still remained tricky at times, but that's probably just the nature of focussing.

 

[Jamie Pillers]

I used the Katzeye screens on a D90, D200, and D7000. They work perfectly and they're easy to install. If you use manual focus lenses on your D90, the Katzeye screen is a real treat; makes the camera feel more like an older film body (my preference). 🙂

 

[ray*j*gun]

Thank you all for the feedback. I will order one tomorrow.

 

[rumbliegeos]

I have a Katzeye for my Nikon D200, and love it.

It's made using my wider lenses (I have a 18mm f/3.5) *much* easier. Part of it is the split-screen in the middle, but mostly it's the microprism collar - my favourite focusing aid - and partly because the matte screen is much better than the stock screen.

Installation is different for each camera model. That said, I was able to change mine without trouble, following the instructions on the Katzeye site.

Highly recommended if you shoot manual focus on Nikon DSLRs

I agree with all of these points: the Katzeye screen made my D200 way more functional with both old AI/AIS and modern lenses.

 

[yossarian123]

Can't stress this enough: be VERY CAREFUL with tweezers when handling the screen. I put a scratch in mine within 5 minutes of opening the package. It was a tiny scratch - barely noticeable - but damned if my eye wasn't drawn to it like a freaking magnet.

I don't really need one on my D700, but I did get one for my D300. It helped quite a bit - took my keeper rate up from abysmal (w/ a 50mm 1.2) to merely bad.

 

[ray*j*gun]

Can't stress this enough: be VERY CAREFUL with tweezers when handling the screen. I put a scratch in mine within 5 minutes of opening the package. It was a tiny scratch - barely noticeable - but damned if my eye wasn't drawn to it like a freaking magnet.

I don't really need one on my D700, but I did get one for my D300. It helped quite a bit - took my keeper rate up from abysmal (w/ a 50mm 1.2) to merely bad.

Lol abysmal describes my wide open 1,4 images perfectly! Thanks for the heads up on the screen scratching......I am on the clumsy side but for-warned.......

 

[kshapero]

I tried to install it myself and just couldn't, so I send to her to install. Yes it costs but it really works.

 

[grainhound]

I got one for my D90, and found it more ho-hum than other posters. It's not cheap, either. There are a couple of vendors in HK, I think, that sell screens for $20 or so, but I have no idea if they're worth $20 or anything close to what Katzeye charges.

As for performance, it's not equal to a K screen on an F3, but at least there is the split image and the micro prism donut. OK, I just compared the D90 with my non HP F3, both with zooms allowing a more or less equivalent 50mm fov. The F3 has higher magnification than the D90, so the easier viewing is not the screen; it's the camera.

Tip: Make sure that when you use the screen for manual focusing, that you move the active focus area out of the central circle. If you don't, it'll be difficult to see the focusing aids you paid for.

I got my screen just before I had to visit Gerry Smith about a Leica lens, so I took the D90, the installation instructions, and the screen with me. He very obligingly installed it for me, and didn't charge me anything. I was sure I'd take hours to do it, and would scratch the screen. I am a Gerry Smith fan, both for the work he does and for his work ethic. Oh yeah, he took about three minutes to install the screen.

 

[jonmanjiro]

I had a Katzeye screen in my now sold D200 and currently have one in my D700. They're fantastic! Maybe not quite as good as a F/F2/F3/F4 for manual focusing, but they a huuuuuge improvement over the standard focusing screens in these cameras. Highly recommended.

The hardest thing about the installation is closing the retainer clip after the new screen is in place. Just be careful to use the minimum force necessary and you'll be fine.

 

[Paolo Bonello]

Can someone confirm if it is still fine for use with AF lenses and does not affect anything like the meter or AF speed?
Is it brighter than the standard screen?

 

[yossarian123]

Can someone confirm if it is still fine for use with AF lenses and does not affect anything like the meter or AF speed?
Is it brighter than the standard screen?

From my experience I didn't have any problems with autofocus. They should also be OK with the meter except in some limited situations (I vaguely remember the katzeye website saying that spot metering with slower lenses could be affected). But I don't have any slow lenses so I couldn't put that statement to the test.

 

[hans voralberg]

Yep still fine for AF, no problem there.