[help] from Eos 5 to a Tank-Camera [film thread]

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gandalfk7

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hi!

i own a eos 10d and a film eos 5 that shares these lenses:
50mm f/1.8 mkII
tamron 28-200 (i use it only to have wide and tele)
and a sigma 17-70 DC that cannot be used with film cameras

so i am thinking about selling the eos 5 and the tamron to buy a "old"-steel-resistent-manual_focus camera.

i thought about these lenses:
50mm f/1.4
a wide: 28mm
a medium-tele: 135mm (f/2.8)
and a tele: 200mm (but it's not important for the moment)

i was thinking of canon A1 or F1.
i've not considered Nikon because it has lenses that could be used on digital reflexes, i want to
FD lenses are quite cheap, i thought of them because it's a "dead" system with
a lot of used on sale.

this is what i thought, now i need your opinion about my question.


thank you

Matteo
 
I am a Nikon shooter so I might be a bit disqualified but keeping the 10d and running with say a Canon F1 is a good call. I would go for the F1 as it was the equivelent of the Nikon F and F2. The lens selection is considered pretty much standard and FD glass is pretty much first rate.

Now are you sure you don't want to explore the world of Nikkor? A Nikon F with non Ai glass is pretty reasonable.
 
Uncle Bill said:
I am a Nikon shooter so I might be a bit disqualified but keeping the 10d and running with say a Canon F1 is a good call. I would go for the F1 as it was the equivelent of the Nikon F and F2. The lens selection is considered pretty much standard and FD glass is pretty much first rate.

Now are you sure you don't want to explore the world of Nikkor? A Nikon F with non Ai glass is pretty reasonable.
Click to expand...

i am open to all the suggestions you want to give me!!
i don't know the Nikkor world and i need a guide, i tried make some search but
it's still not clear.

which body do you suggest?

i am looking for a resistent body that can take the lenses i am looking for, especially a 50mm f/1.4.
i don't even know which lenses are there for a Nikon!

i am very intersted in exploring Nikon's world!!

i am looking for a reistent and sturdy (and compared to d-slr, cheap) camera, i am not trying to follow a company.
 
Isn´t an EOS 5 plenty sturdy? I don´t think it is sensible to split your slr set further into different digital and analogue systems. To me there doesn´t seem much functional difference between manual and af slrs (compared to manual rfs), all you get is a bigger brighter viewfinder.
 
I have a couple of Canon F-1s (the old mechanical ones) and they're great. I got into them because I wanted shutters I could use on Bulb, and not drain the batteries. They really are built like tanks. I've used them in heat and cold (-12C to 44C), dropped and dented them (they work with dents), and I've taken them apart and done some repairs on my own. They're still nice looking cameras-- glossy black paint with some brass showing. Canon glass is a bargain, certainly by German standards. Mine are shown with 55mm 1.2 FD and 15mm 2.8 FD. The biggest beef I have with Canon is that their DSLRs only accept autofocus lenses. Nikon DSLRs will use Nikon manual focus lenses. It bothers me that they excluded some very fine lenses from digital use. OTOH, Canon lenses have their focus and aperture adjustments oriented correctly, whereas Nikons are backwards.
 
philhirn said:
Isn´t an EOS 5 plenty sturdy? I don´t think it is sensible to split your slr set further into different digital and analogue systems. To me there doesn´t seem much functional difference between manual and af slrs (compared to manual rfs), all you get is a bigger brighter viewfinder.
Click to expand...

the eos 5 is plasticky.
i owned a pentax ME super (now broken), how it felt in the hands was nice.
cold metal.

i am thinking this because selling the eos 5 and the tamron 28-200 (that i bought to have a wide and a tele on te film camera) i can afford a nice set for film.
for a low price.

and the bigger-brighter viewfinder and the metal-body are on the pros
 
I have several systems that fit the description of "obsolete and cheap but tough as nails".

My FD bodies are a AE1p and FTb. The FTb is indestructible and all manual. The AE1p requires batteries. I'd love an F1, but they're still going for rather high prices. FD glass again is cheap.

Minolta MC/MD or SRT bodies are also another "dead end", and very cheap. The SRT's are indestructible and Rokkor glass is thought of very highly. The later X-bodies are more plastic than metal and require batteries, but the VF's are very bright.

The Olympus OM series are also highly regarded - especially here on RFF. I've picked up a kit recently for very little $.
 
While I find my A2E (aka EOS 5) well enough made, I'll agree that it's not the same as my FD cameras. I've got a FTbN, an AE-1 & a T90. Frankly of the three I'd recommend the T90. It's a tough camera, with a beautiful viewfinder & the meter is astonishing in it's abilities. It is battery dependant but it uses AA batteries so finding more is easier than finding film much of the time. They do need to be used regularly.

Honestly, I often think it's the best SLR Canon ever made - before or since. Even the F1, a great camera in it's own right, isn't as good to my mind.

More information is here: http://www.cameraquest.com/t90.htm

If you want tough & not battery dependant then the first or second version of the F1 is to be far prefered over the FTbN or A series cameras in my book. They're nice but not in the same league with the F1 or T90 which really are pro level cameras that can be had for a song & a dance.

For lenses look for the older breech lock mount lenses. The SSC lenses are just as good but tend to go cheaper than the newer lenses. The downside is they are heavier. Ones I've liked that you can look for are:

28/2.8 SSC
35/2 SSC
50/1.4 SSC
100/2.8 SSC

Hope this helps.

William
 
I've used a New F-1 since I bought it new around 1983, and it's been a great camera. F-1's though, have always been "a la carte," so if you want features like spot metering, you might be better off with a T-90, which has lots of options built in. To get spot metering on a New F-1 (the last version), you need a spot metering focusing screen, which is hard to find, and likely to run about $125 or more.

There's lots of good FD glass cheap. Even the high-end L glass is cheap compared to what it used to cost and what the EOS versions cost.
 
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I owned a New F-1 for a couple years before selling it off earlier this year and it was a great camera. Very well built and a blast to work with. If you decide to go for one, I'm sure you won't regret it.

Maybe as another idea, since you are buying into a new lens mount system anyways, why not look into Nikon as well? With the proper adapter, you can put F-mount lenses onto your Canon EOS mounts and use them in manual.
 
i found a used canon A1 + 50mm f/1.4 ssc ( + flash canon 155a) at 180€

but there is a problem:
the seller told me that while trying to disassemble the lens-mount on the camera he lost
that part: :bang::bang:

mapfrontview.jpg


it seems that it's the "stopped-down coupling lever"

tomorrow i'll phone to the repair store to hear what they could do about it..

th seller says that the camera functions correctly but not in A mode that needs the coupler and without it i cannot be shure wich diaphgram is used during the shot.
but i think that also in Aperture-priority this could a problem, the diaphgram during the focusing&metering is always all opened, when you shoot it goes to the selected diaphgram..
am i wrong?

uff.. this could be good for me.. but there seems to be a problem..
 
Hey gandalfk7, the A-1 model is a good one, in general. Somewhat similar in design to the AE-1, and not quite as rugged as the F-1. It doesn't offer as many features, or options-- it's not a "system" camera like the F-1. Those options would be things like interchangeable focusing screens and finders, backs, motor drives, etc. You might not care about many of those things. For my own use, I don't care about motor drives, and I've never thought I needed a different back (polaroid, data, or bulk film). I do use different finders and focusing screens however. The A-1 looks similar to the F-1, with the glossy black paint.

So I generally like the A-1, but it sounds like this one has problems. I would not recommend purchasing it unless it's about half the normal price on ebay. It may turn out to be a fine user, but it's a gamble.

I've seen F-1s going for about $150 on ebay recently, I think. Even less if they're worn or dented. I think you said 180 Euros, but it includes a lens and flash. (We don't have the Euro symbol on our keyboards.) I'm not sure what they go for as body only, with all their parts.

One thing I'm not sure about is whether the A-1 shutter is controlled mechanically or via the battery. That may not be a big thing to you. It was to me. I like time exposures, and the battery drains very quickly with a long exposure, especially if the temperature is cool. That's a problem I ran into with the AE-1 Program. It's not an issue on the F-1, because all shutter speeds are mechanical.
 
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mapfrontview.jpg


ok, the seller told me that the missing part is the "alignment hole for the EE switch pin" in which is missing a "little clilindric metal part that was IN the hole"...

mmh.. in 30 minutes i'll phone the camera-repair-man and i'll hear from him..

anyone knows what appens without the piece that is missing?

thank you.


Matteo
 
I would return the body for a refund. Keep the Canon BL 50/1.4 S.S.C. lens. I bought one last year for $50. Best $50 I ever spent on a lens. Best Lens I own!

I have owned a Canon EF since new way back in 1975 or 1976. A really really nice camera. Stout as a Leica. It's the ONLY camera body ever made that will operate with the new alkaline battery that "replaced" the old mercury cell batteries. If you find a working Canon EF buy it! The black paint alone is worth the price!
 
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