£300 for camera and lens

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AlexBG

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Just sent my M3 off for a CLA that may take a while and on the same day have been given back £300 from a cancelled holiday. Looking for a SLR and lens to keep me film shooting and wanted opinions on what to get.

Mostly family pictures,
I shoot a 50mm lens, faster the better, sharper and the more contrast the better, mostly colour film
Prefer aperture priority
Smaller the camera the better
When I buy cameras or lenses I tend to buy higher priced ebay items in mint condition and so far have always had good luck so will do this again, £300 is max and I would rather buy one asap rather than hunt on ebay for weeks for a bargain of this or that.
 
Pretty much all makers made good 50 1.4s and bodies. You're asking for something that all makers made, and made well. If you want manual focus, I'd go with something that focuses the same direction as Leica, my muscle memory is easily confused. That excludes Nikon and Pentax.

My personal preference is for Minolta, wonderful lenses especially for color. XD-7 and X-500 are nice, compact bodies that offer aperture priority and manual, X-700 only aperture priority IIRC. The XD is the more solidly made, metal body, but lacks AE lock. The MD 50 1.4 is a brilliant modern lens, the older "Rokkor"-labelled ones have a little more character. They're all plentiful. Look for a late XD with green 1/125 and exposure compensation tab pointing toward the prism, not outward.

Just a thought, you have an M3 which doesn't have frame lines wider than 50, why not try something wider for your SLR adventure?
 
retinax said:
Just a thought, you have an M3 which doesn't have frame lines wider than 50, why not try something wider for your SLR adventure?
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I have a goggled summaron that I very rarely use. 50mm lens is definitely what I like, I have tried going longer/wider many times and it never suits me.
 
I‘ll throw in the Canon A1 with the 1.4 50mm.
The lens renders similar to the C/Y Planar and the camera is really well build plus it has all possible exposure modes.
 
You really have your choice with that budget. My first thought was an Olympus OM (small and wonderful lenses) but it would also be 'backward' along with Nikon and Pentax. OM4 is my favorite SLR when I put down my Leica.

Minolta line is also excellent, and I'd add the XE to models retinax mentioned.
 
You could source mint EOS and new EF 50 1.8 lens.

BTW, I have big and heavy Nikon F2 and Nikkormat. I'm big fan of compact and mint gear, but those old big Nikons with worn out exterior and all working insides are charming and doesn't feel bulky.
 
A Nikon F3 with a fast 50mm would be a great kit. If you are sensitive to the whole "focusing backwards" thing, then go with some other manufacturer. I've never had this issue though, even when shooting a Nikon SLR alongside a Leica M4. Looking through and focusing the SLR is completely different than looking through the RF of the Leica, so I just adapted. It has never gotten in my way and I'm confused why it would get in anyone else's. Anyway, an F3 with 50mm f/1.4 or f/1.2 would be optimal, in my opinion. But that's just what it is, MY opinion, and the way I would shoot. My preferences are mine and mine alone, not anyone else's.
Phil Forrest
 
I should have said at the start that an EOS would be too new, looking for a classic manual focus SLR.

OM4 looks good, is it that much better than an OM2? Backwards focusing doesn't bother me.

Greyscale my section of the fridge is already filled with film
 
Compact and aperture priority?

Olympus OM2
Pentax ME Super
Contax 139Q
Nikon FG (FE and FE2 slightly larger)
 
AlexBG said:
I should have said at the start that an EOS would be too new, looking for a classic manual focus SLR.

OM4 looks good, is it that much better than an OM2? Backwards focusing doesn't bother me.

Greyscale my section of the fridge is already filled with film
Click to expand...

I prefer the OM4 just for the metering, but the OM2 is a great camera. I think Olympus would check your boxes, especially if you don't mind the aperture direction.
 
Philip Whiteman said:
Nikon FE with the 1.4 AIS lens - or a Pentax Spotmatic and a couple of lovely lenses (greatly under-rated quality camera!)
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My thoughts exactly.

If the OP is used to shooting with meterless cameras like the M3, a Pentax SL or SV would also be a great choice. M42 lenses are much less expensive than bayonet mount lenses so you could get a full kit for less than £300. (Over the last year and a half I've built up a nice M42 kit with a Pentax Spotmatic, an SL, and four good Pentax lenses for about $300 total.)

If you're looking for something to eventually complement the M3 when it returns, you might want to forgo a fast 50mm and get a 50–55mm macro lens instead (or in addition to a fast 50). Slower aperture but an SLR with a macro lens can do things an M3 can't.
 
The only two I have had experience with are the Fujica ST 901 and the Contax 167mt. I don't know how you define classic so these may not fit your criteria. Both cameras have 50mm f/1.4 and f/1.8 lenses that are very, very good, assuming they haven't been treated badly in their life. Of course, that will apply no matter what brand you end up choosing.

The Fujica has a lot of nice features including silicon blue cells (less memory from extreme light intensity changes) for aperture priority exposures, EV -3 to 18. It has LEDs showing the shutter speed in numbers, not lights next to a shutter speed, and a window for the selected aperture. Mine has never let me down. And again, the lenses are superb if they haven't been mistreated.

The Contax 167mt also has excellent lenses you have to use to believe. It has a motor winder with no manual film advance. That was displeasing to me but I got over it for the lenses and rest of the features. It provides aperture and shutter priority, and exposure lock. It rewinds by motor as well.

I am guessing any that have been mentioned here that you don't have any prior experience with are ones you will look up at the orphan camera site. If so, be sure you look at the two I have mentioned. I think each will be good for you (in good condition). But the Fujica is older, and the lenses seem to have become classics. That means they will probably cost more than one would expect from lenses that old.

I know some of they other brands mentioned, but by reputation of users only. But I am sure they would be good also.

Good luck in your search.
 
Any of these seem tempting?

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x-700.jpg



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IMG_1007.JPG
 
I think Leica slr's and lenses are out of my budget.

Nikon FE is a camera I have researched a bit, never shot a Nikon before, FE2 would be out of my price range. Read a bit about FE v OM4 and the OM comes out on top for nearly everyone.

Contax 167mt is interesting, I'm a huge contax/zeiss fan, I think a good 50mm 1.4 zeiss and nice contax body would be out of my price range also. With regards to my definition of classic, I would say any of the contax slr's would be good, where as N1 wouldn't be.
 
Given your stated requirements and budget, I would have thought the Pentax ME Super or one of the Minolta cameras suggested by retinax (post #2) would fit the bill. Plenty of good lenses at reasonable prices, too. :)
 
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