How do I find out which Nikon film cameras will work with my newer G F-mount lens?

Question

I want to pick up a film camera but I have a nice G lens (Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 with VC) and I'd really like to be able to use it.

I'm having a hard time understanding which cameras will be able to work either fully or partially. For example, if I put it on a Nikon FM3A it would work but without any aperture control or autofocus right? Most of the backwards compatibility charts I've seen are extremely confusing.

Answer

The two lens compatibility resources that I know of are nikonians.org and Ken Rockwell. A caveat is that they only deal with Nikon lenses; it's a harder question to answer with your Tamron.

If it really is like a Nikon G VR lens, then with the FM3A it won't work at all, but it won't damage your camera to attach it. On the other hand, everything including metering, focus, and VR would work on an F100.

Edit

Of course, as danio says, the lens needs to have a sufficient image circle to cover the film. This lens doesn't, so it won't work on any 35mm film camera unfortunately.

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