Nikon D40 with manual Lens

[Mitch45]

is there any way for the d40 to autofocus a manual lens
like is there somethinkg else i can put between d40 and lens?

[brmill26]

If I understand you correctly, you've answered your own question. A "manual" focus lens means manual focus only and always. FYI, anything put b/t a lens and the camera, if it is so equipped, would merely mimic the connections on the camera.

[Mitch45]

well i used the lens on with a d70 today and it works automatically
i know i may sound like an idiot but i dont no wut kind of attachments there are ou there so
i know why mine doesnt work because the d40 doesnt have the motor in the camera to focus it but i was just sondering if there is any way to turn my manual focus lens in to automatic

[Photo-John]

A manual focus lens is just that. Even if you have a camera with the auto focus motor in the body, you still need a lens that has a focus mechanism in it. With the D70, I believe you can get complete auto exposure. But not auto focus.

[freygr]

The D70 has the screw driver drive for some of the older AF lenses. The D40 doesn't have that motor. Check out this link: http://www.nikonians.org/nikon/slr-lens.html

[Mitch45]

is there a lens that has a motor in ir thats a 50mm /1.8

[deckcadet]

Not yet, but there have been rumors that Nikon is about to update a few primes.
Sigma has just announced a 50mm f/1.4 HSM lens (their version of AF-S) that would work properly.

A manual focus lens is just that. Even if you have a camera with the auto focus motor in the body, you still need a lens that has a focus mechanism in it. With the D70, I believe you can get complete auto exposure. But not auto focus.

To clarify,

-D40 will auto exposure with all AF lenses, but will only AF with AF-S and AF-I lenses
-D70 will auto exposure and auto focus with all AF lenses. It will not get auto exposure with manual focus lenses without a CPU.
-D200, D300, and the D1/D2/D3 series will auto exposure with MF lenses.

[Mitch45]

alright so because my lens is only AF there is nothing i can do for it to autofocus on my d40

[brmill26]

Correct. Nikon (and their 3rd party suppliers) are in a period of transition right now to accommodate the D40/D40x/D60's lack of a focus motor. In the mean time, you, the consumer, have to be vigilant about checking to make sure a particular lens will work with those bodies.

[Mitch45]

ok i have another question if u were to recommend a fast lens for my d40 wut would it be?
i would be using it for sports

[deckcadet]

What kind of sports? There are quite a few, and they have very different needs. On one hand if you're shooting basketball under the basket, a 50mm might be good, while if you're shooting other stuff from a longer distance away, you'd need at least a 70-200mm.

[open_shutters]

I think a manual lens only performs manual shooting. And also their are some lenses that when put into the d40 camera it cannot do autofocus.