gilgsn
Established
Hello,
I've owned three F3s, all of them had blue numbers.
Gil.
Timmyjoe
Veteran
Warren, mine's in the 176XXXX range.
Gil, that is bizarre. Anyone have any idea why Nikon made the numbers blue?
Best,
-Tim
Gil, that is bizarre. Anyone have any idea why Nikon made the numbers blue?
Best,
-Tim
Warren T.
Well-known
Ahah! The are blue to differentiate from the white numbers: 12, 20, 24, 36, which correspond to the number of frames available in most film cartridges.
Here's a quote from the F3 manual:
Frame counter
"To keep track of the number of exposed frames, the frame counter is graduated from two frames below 0 up to
40. Blue numerals appear every 5 frames (0, 5, 10, etc.) with dots in between. White marks at 12, 20, 24, and
36 indicate the number of frames available on most film cartridqes. When making blank shots with the shutter
speed dial set to "A," the shutter will fire at 1/80 sec. until the frame counter reaches "1." In addition, the LCD
shows 80 in the finder. Or if you set the dial manually between 1/125 and 1/2000 sec., the shutter will still fire at
1/80 sec. In the finder, an "M80" is displayed. However, if the speed is manually set to 1/80 sec. (X) or below,
the shutter will fire at the speed set and the speed will be displayed by the LCD. Therefore, to speed up film
loading, set the dial to "A" or to 1/80 sec. (X) or above. "T" should not be used when making blank shots as the
shutter will remain locked open."
--Warren
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Nikon F3/T black by Istvan Penzes, on Flickr
Shooting Speed Selection MK-1 by Istvan Penzes, on Flickr
I like the F3 and I might now it, because I have some motorized comparison.
a few motorized Nikon's by Istvan Penzes, on Flickr
WOW and WOW again.
Thanks for sharing.
Cal
nobbylon
Veteran
This just arrived, from B&H. Same price as the F3T with the broken shutter and badly worn body. No complaints.
LCD is plenty contrasty, thing is pristine, and the shutter functions. Has had film through it, but not much.
Best,
-Tim
Very nice Tim, looks new! Regards J
Ps did you manage to find a 28 2.8 AIS ? Best wide angle manual focus lens for any F camera!
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
I agree with John. I need to get another 28/2.8 AIS. I gifted mine to help a friend who was burglarized and had all his gear stolen.
Cal
mfogiel
Veteran
Istvan, the F2 is missing !
What a collection !!!
What a collection !!!
Timmyjoe
Veteran
Hi John, Yes I have the 28 f2.8 AIS and you're right, it's stellar. Just finished shooting a test with the "new to me" F3HP and the negs are drying. Exposure is spot on, just need to scan for focus once the negs are dry. Trying to rush this because if everything checks out, I may bring the F3HP on my project trip. Depart early Friday morning.
Best,
-Tim
Best,
-Tim
nobbylon
Veteran
How do they look Tim? All good? J
Timmyjoe
Veteran
Yeah, they look good. Need to find a Red Dot "B" focus screen. Not a fan of the split image rangefinder, and have an old Beattie Intenscreen, but I keep missing focus with that one. Otherwise, the camera is great, and whoever mentioned that the film advance is smoother than the old Leica M3, is spot on.
Best,
-Tim
PS: On the ironic side of things, the M3 is the only camera going out west with me tomorrow (long story).
Best,
-Tim
PS: On the ironic side of things, the M3 is the only camera going out west with me tomorrow (long story).
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Tim,
Because the F3 was specifically designed and built with the intent of maximizing the frames per second rate when used with a MD-4 motor drive friction was reduced greatly by the use of roller bearings for the film transport.
Cal
This thread has some real gear porn. Nice!
Timmyjoe
Veteran
Picked up a Nikon "B" red dot screen for the F3HP, and though it's better than the Beattie screen, still wish it were higher contrast. Focus doesn't really "pop" as well as it does on other SLR's I've had.
Otherwise, really enjoying the F3HP. It's becoming my "carry" camera that I take with me when I go out. So solid feeling.
Best,
-Tim
Otherwise, really enjoying the F3HP. It's becoming my "carry" camera that I take with me when I go out. So solid feeling.
Best,
-Tim
Tejasican
Well-known
You might find that improved a bit if you dropped an F4 screen in the F3 focusing screen frame instead. I use an F4 "B" dropped into one of my spare F3 "K" frames.
presspass
filmshooter
I don't think you need to change the frame. I think the F4 screens work in the F3 without modification - at least that's what I've been doing. If I shouldn't be doing this, please let me know.
Ljós
Well-known
Didn't Dante Stella have a writeup about that?
Ah, I think I read it here: http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?topic_id=23&msg_id=0016lg
Hope that helps! Ljós
jwicaksana
Jakarta, Indonesia
If all goes well, I will receive a 28 2.8 AIS by next week. The one lens that I think as the ideal mate to F3.
Timmyjoe
Veteran
Been using it for a few weeks now, and I'm really liking the red dot "B" focus screen on the F3HP. And although I love the 28 f2.8 AIS lens, my go to on this camera is the 50mm f1.2 AIS. I'm really a 50 shooter at heart.
Best,
-Tim
Best,
-Tim
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Tim,
I understand. The focus pops better with the longer lenses. Right now I'm using a 55/2.8 Macro as my normal lens, but I want either an 85/1.4 AIS of 105/1.8 AIS. I use a Beatie Intenscreen on my F3P, but although bright as hell it definately offers less contrast. That's where the added magnification helps to make up for any loss of contrast. I generally focus on the ground glass.
My F3HP I rigged with a black 45/2.8P AIS to make a really compact SLR that utilizes a Red-Dot F3 "K" screen.
BTW with my Leicas I shoot a lot with a 28 Cron. Likely the best tool for the job.
Cal
rhl-oregon
Cameras Guitars Wonders
Friends, I'm helping someone liquidate his film gear, including an F3, FM2, FE2, F2AS and a number of MF Nikkor lenses (20mm-135mm). It's not quite ready to go live in the RFF classifieds and elsewhere, but have a peek at gear in my Flickr here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/9540373@N06/sets
PM me or contact me at rohilong@gmail.com if you have any questions. I hope to post the RFF ad this week, once the owner OKs the prices.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/9540373@N06/sets
PM me or contact me at rohilong@gmail.com if you have any questions. I hope to post the RFF ad this week, once the owner OKs the prices.
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