Best Nikon F-3 screen for dodgy vision

[presspass]

I want to get back to my Nikon F-3s but am having trouble focusing. I realize it gets better with practice, but my question is for those whose eyes are aging and not as sharp as they once were - what screen do you find makes focusing easiest? Lenses range from 20 f 2.8 to 300 f 4.5, so I'd rather not get into the H series if I can help it. Thanks for your help.

 

[sevo]

It really depends on your vision. Usually it is no matter of the screen, but you need the proper glasses/contacts for you or the proper dioptre (perhaps astigmatism corrected) on the camera. It is either/or, not both, you'll have to figure out whether you prefer to compromise on the finder image or abandon all off camera vision - glasses usually don't allow for seeing the entire finder and may get scratched, a dioptre disables your vision off camera until you have located and put on your glasses again.

Where glasses don't help, a plain matte or matte/grid screen will usually be better than any screen with focus aids - and these days it would be rather irrational not to switch to AF.

 

[Dwig]

...my question is for those whose eyes are aging and not as sharp as they once were...

Step one, see a good eye doctor. I well trained optometrist or an ophthalmologist that specialized in prescribing eye glasses. If your eyes have developed the usual aging problem, presbyopia, the cure is either an eyepiece diopter or proper glasses. The F3 eyepiece system presents the focusing screen at an apparent 2m (~6') distance. If your eyes have become more "fixed focused" due to presbyopia then you will likely have difficulty focusing close enough to see the screen well. Either proper "middle distance" glasses so that you can focus accurately at 6' or a diopter to refocus the eyepiece system to a distance at which you can focus is the only cure.

If you've lost acuity rather than focusing ability then you really really need to see a good ophthalmologist soon. You may have some more serious problem beginning to raise its ugly head.

With mild acuity loss, you may find that one of the "split rangefinder" screens (e.g. A, K, R, ...) will be of some help. They can also help when you can't quite focus you eye on the screen, but only if you can almost see the screen well.

 

[Tejasican]

Between hyperopia which I have always had and the effects of aging I had trouble focusing my F3HP. I would always seem to miss the shots one way or the other because to my eyes a wide range still looked in focus. I had already seen the eye doctor and gotten the proper glasses.

I found I could focus a Leicaflex SL properly without fail. The distinctions between the two were brightness (point to the SL) and magnification in the viewfinder (75% vs 90 some percent).

I bought an F4 screen and put it in an extra F3 frame which aided just a bit, though admittedly not hugely, with brightness. Then I bought a DK-17M eyepiece. The magnification bumped the F3HP eyepiece up to over 90% magnification with 100% coverage. After that I was hitting the focus all of the time. I can see the exposure data as well as I can on an OM at this point as well ad this is with glasses on.

 

[Keith]

The F6 screen is the best choice IMO ... and it comes with a nifty auto focus device attached to it!

 

[nikon_sam]

I've changed the screens in my F and F5 to the "J" screen...even though the F5 has autofocus I still use manual focus lenses on it...I find I like the Micro-Prism type screens better...don't really care for or use the Split-Screen and most other cameras have both so I tend to use the micro-prism ring that's around the split...unless that's all I got...