Can I put any Nikon Lens on any Nikon Body?
I'm trying to find a good Digital SLR camera and I can't find any cheaper kind. I was wondering if I bought a Nikon Lens is it able to go on any Nikon body? Please help me! And please don't answer unless you know for a fact because I don't want to spend $200 on a lens that can't go on the body I buy!
As long as their both Nikon it will work.
This page has some explanations and compatibility charts:
http://www.kenrockwell.com/...y-lens.htm
Anything lower than a D7000 needs a nikon AF lens to have the meter and the A and S modes to function. Anything entry level, D40, D60, D3000, D3100, D5000 needs an AF-S or HSM lens to autofocus. D7000 and up will also work just fine with most manual focus lenses made since 1976
Any Nikon SLR lens will physically fit on any Nikon SLR body (Digital or film) BUT (and it's a big one) you may not be able to adjust the aperture if you fit a new lens on an old body, and you will not be able to use the camera metering system is you fit an old lens on a new body.
As you could see on the page at kenrockwell.com linked to by another answerer, the possible combinations are so varied that it is not possible to meet your last requirement ("don't answer unless you know for a fact.") because you haven't told us which body and which lens you are considering. So please don't ask unless you know for a fact which body and which lens you are asking about!
The Nikon D40/D40X/D60/D3000/D3100/D5000 do not have an auto-focus motor. So although all Nikon lenses will physically fit, many (the majority) will not auto-focus.
If you bought a Canon, then all EOS lenses from the mid-1980s will work. If you bought a Sony, then all Sony/Minolta lenses from the mid-1980s will work (and every one will be stabilised too).
Many, many people have been caught out buying a cheap Nikon without realising that they have a limited number of lenses that work on them. It's the secret that Nikon fan-boys don't tell you.
No. Kogaku rangefinder lenses will not fit. Also any unmodified pre-AI nikon lenses will not fit.
Also non-CPU (i.e.AI, AI-S and modified pre-AI) lenses may not meter properly on some Nikon DSLRs. You really need a D200, 300, 700, or D2 or D3 to be sure.
Also the D40, 60, 3000, 3100, and 5000 don't have an in-body AF motor, so only AF-S and AF-I lenses will autofocus on these bodies.
Finally obscure intrusive fisheye lenses don't work. Plus off brand lenses may have compatibility issues.