Nikon FM3a: The Dream Is Over

[dtcls100]

Being left eyed, I really dislike the Nikon FM, FE, FM3a series meter switch design that involves pulling out the wind lever so that it pokes into one's right eye! Really mars the design of otherwise quite nice cameras. Although the Nikons' viewfinders can't hold a candle to the OM-4 viewfinder -- ESPECIALLY if you have a 2-series focusing screen installed! You really have to look through one of those to believe it.

 

[Frank Petronio]

Not to hurt your sale but all those FM-FE series are clacky POS, used them for years and don't miss them.

Maybe an OM-3 would be perfect for you? Or one of the sleepers, like a Pentax LX or a Contax?

 

[Juan Valdenebro]

Are OMs really that brighter? I use my FE2 with a 50 1.4 and find it very bright for focusing even with a deep yellow filter... If the difference is huge... I held an OM (don't know which one) many many years ago, and I felt nothing special... Maybe I'm missing something and I could treat my FE2 very well and have "just another friend"... 🙂

Cheers,

Juan

 

[Keith]

Regarding pricing: I bought mine from ebay for around $350.00 owned it for a year and sold it here for the same price. Cosmetically it was probabaly an eight out of ten.

For what you're getting I don't think that's expensive because it is a very well made camera ... but like the OP, just not for me. I buggered around with diopters on mine until I got the viewfinder as sharp as was possible but compared to an OM it still seemed like a tunnel in the final analysis!

My occasional Nikon duties are now handled by an N90s that cost me sixty dollars ... that was a bargain for what it offers.

 

[maclaine]

Not to hurt your sale but all those FM-FE series are clacky POS, used them for years and don't miss them.

Maybe an OM-3 would be perfect for you? Or one of the sleepers, like a Pentax LX or a Contax?

If I could find an OM-3 that didn't cost just as much or more than the FM3a, I'd go for it in a heartbeat. It's hard to justify spending that much money on one when the identical except for the non-mechanical shutter OM-4 is a quarter of the price or less.

I've looked at the Pentax and Contax as well, and the only thing holding me back is that I already have the OM-10 and some good glass for it, so adding another higher quality body versus starting over with a new body plus lenses seems smarter to me after doing it with the Nikon and being disappointed. LX's are also pretty expensive.

 

[Keith]

Are OMs really that brighter? I use my FE2 with a 50 1.4 and find it very bright for focusing even with a deep yellow filter... If the difference is huge... I held an OM (don't know which one) many many years ago, and I felt nothing special... Maybe I'm missing something and I could treat my FE2 very well and have "just another friend"... 🙂

Cheers,

Juan

No ... they are just a lot, lot bigger. I didn't find the actual brightness an issue Juan.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Not to hurt your sale but all those FM-FE series are clacky POS, used them for years and don't miss them.

Maybe an OM-3 would be perfect for you? Or one of the sleepers, like a Pentax LX or a Contax?

I agree with you Frank. I've always thought the FM/FE SLRs sucked too. As far as Nikons go, the F2/F3/F4 were MUCH nicer to work with. More ergonomically designed, I could work much faster with them than the FM/FE type bodies.

I'm more of an OM fan though. He'd probably have the battery drain issue with the OM-3 too, though of course the shutter doesn't need power, only the meter. The OM-4T and OM-3Ti solved the battery problems on the top-level OM bodies; one of those would be the best choice.

 

[Juan Valdenebro]

I just checked OMs' specifications and they're very slightly smaller than my FE2: 6 millimeters... That's almost nothing! Basically they fit or not in the same places... And their weight is similar too: 520 and 550 grams... I guess if OMs had my Nikon's 1/4000 I'd buy one... It may sound silly to some people, but that's a huge, really huge difference to me, as I like to shoot at f/2 on direct sun with Tri-X, and I do it a lot and enjoy doing it without NDs... We're all different, I guess... For sure all of them are great cameras!

Cheers,

Juan

 

[underbyte]

FA or FG!

FA or FG!

If the FM3a is too big, try an FA or FG. They are the same size as an OM. The F cameras you mentioned are the big boys of Nikon-land. Well, until you get to the F5, and digital D* series. Now those are some big honking cameras!

As an owner and user of the FA, FG and D1x series cameras, I heartily agree with Chris101. An FG with a 50mm 1.8 E series is about the smallest SLR you can carry and it's an incredibly functional tool. I love my FA, and it has traveled a lot. But, when I want a camera that I paid less than $100 for, has TTL flash ability, a useful but never used manual shutter speed of 1/90, with an easy to read and accurate meter, I reach for the FG. The FA is getting very annoyed by this given her silky shutter. The FG is a little rougher but gets the job done admirably.

But the D1x, now there's a camera... Just wait a few weeks until I convert that worthless battery to lithium ion (camera junkie laughs maniacally!) 😀

 

[dtcls100]

All this obsession with the FM3a's (or OM-3's) ability to use all shutter speeds without a battery is overdone. At the end of the day, each of those cameras -- without a battery -- is nothing more than a meterless manual exposure camera. You can save alot of money -- and have a backup body to boot -- by simply using a FE2 with a FM2 body backup (or OM-4 with an OM-1 body backup) and carrying a spare set of batteries.
I've resisted getting an OM-3 myself because at the end of the day, the whole point of an OM-3 is the multi-spot metering. Without a battery, an OM-3 is basically an overpriced OM-1 with the 1/2000 shutter speed. Not exactly worth the $500 to $700 price difference IMHO.

 

[semilog]

If the FM3a is too big, try an FA or FG.

The FA is bigger than the FM3 and has a worse finder. And its matrix metering is 1st generation and not actually that good (e.g., it doesn't know the diff. between landscape and portrait). I sold my FA and stayed with FE/FM2.

 

[semilog]

I just checked OMs' specifications and they're very slightly smaller than my FE2: 6 millimeters... That's almost nothing! Basically they fit or not in the same places... And their weight is similar too: 520 and 550 grams... I guess if OMs had my Nikon's 1/4000 I'd buy one... It may sound silly to some people, but that's a huge, really huge difference to me, as I like to shoot at f/2 on direct sun with Tri-X, and I do it a lot and enjoy doing it without NDs... We're all different, I guess... For sure all of them are great cameras!

Cheers,

Juan

Yes. The shutter on the FE/M2 rocks. This is a major reason why I prefer to shoot fast teles on my Nikon vs. my M.

 

[Chris101]

The FA is bigger than the FM3 and has a worse finder. And its matrix metering is 1st generation and not actually that good (e.g., it doesn't know the diff. between landscape and portrait). I sold my FA and stayed with FE/FM2.

Yeah, sorry, I said FA... The EM and FG are the tiny Nikons. I don't think either one does Matrix metering though.

 

[mugent]

thats just about similar basic your M6 meter works ? 😕

The M6 is more primitive, an M6 is a couple of LEDs saying less or more, it's only one step up from binary RIGHT/WRONG.

MT

 

[Paul Luscher]

Well, know you know why I consider the OMs the perfect SLRs. Or, as I like to call them, the "rangefinder SLR." And re the exposure system--always amazed me that Olympus was able to get such a sophisticated exposure system into such a compact body...

If you are worried about battery drain, You might want to consider something like the OM-2n. They run on 1.5 volt button batteries, and they run on and on and on,etc., on those things. True, no spot metering, and you're back to a meter needle, But they are refreshingly simple, easy and FUN to use.....

I'll stop raving now.....

 

[hellomikmik]

For me the greatest advantage of FM3A is that it mounts the same ZF lenses as D700. On the other hand I won't pay 400e for it if I can have FE for 50e. It (FE) even takes the same batteries as ZI and there is some really nice smoothness in its shutter release.

 

[Harry Lime]

I agree with you Frank. I've always thought the FM/FE SLRs sucked too. As far as Nikons go, the F2/F3/F4 were MUCH nicer to work with. More ergonomically designed, I could work much faster with them than the FM/FE type bodies.

I don't know. I always thought of the FM as an F with a fixed prism, better meter and faster film loading. It's also smaller and lighter. The build quality is not as high as an F, but they are very tough cameras. And that's coming from someone who considers the original F his favorite camera.

 

[Harry Lime]

I like the FM3a, but found that the needle to react too slow. I much prefer diodes.

 

[Juan Valdenebro]

Me too. I owned one years ago and recently bought a mint one for $35. What a great camera. Meter is very accurate and it can take a beating.

Another totally satisfied N90s user here. It was the first serious camera I bought with my own (work earned) money when it was new. A brilliant camera. When I'm in small towns, and even in big cities, its AA batteries have been salvation so many times... And its controls: no matter how many cameras I use, when I go back to it, everything is fast to work with... Very well thought design. I use it a lot with my 85 1.8 AF wide open, and they're a great reliable fast set. The camera is 15 years old now, and works like new... It's amazing that such a powerful tool is so cheap today...

Cheers,

Juan

 

[italy74]

Ciao
although it might sound a bit odd if not silly, I'm displeased about your experience. Actually, while FM3a has effectively some of the issues you listed, I've never thought they were enough to part from it, even if I can still shoot with other film cameras depending on my mood.

After 1 yr and half I use it, this is what I found. FM3a, if anyone could ever do it, might be improved only in three salient points.

1) Spot-meter. Would be truly great and the only thing turning it into the ultimate MF camera ever. Maybe next FM3D (Thom Hogan is hoping for that just as I do) will have that, as well as a batteryless operating mode (exposure meter and electronic for every shot recharged by the cocking lever thumb motion... would be smart, isn't it? - actually a stiffer motion might be even nicer to deal with)
Yes, in case of strong contrasts between the center part and the sides of the frame you may pay more attention than elsewhere but in the end I never got results that bad....

2) The analog light meter should be placed on the RIGHT side, not the left. When camera is in portrait mode, it necessarily falls in the bottom ( = darker ) part of the frame and you may not see the time at all.

3) Focusing collar with prisms and hair split line: actually the best I saw so far is Leica's R8/9 but overall isn't that bad. It could just be improved a bit.

On the other hand you have a very versatile camera with also a fill-flash button and a quite nice set of features while having less buttons than other cameras - a cleaner design. Besides, a well-kept silver FM3A has much more appeal than many other cameras and equal reliability.

Where I do not agree is size. I have a picture where Zeiss Ikon and FM3A are side by side and the only difference between them are lenses, both 35mm from Zeiss. Look for yourself.

>>> Note that it's NOT a picture of mine, it's by Mfogiel (another member here) and I have always kept it just for comparison purposes. <<<