Nikon S3/SP for portraits

[Highway 61]

Vince, that's nice to still see her from time to time - her face represents the "golden age" of the Nikon RF forum for me. 🙂

 

[VinceC]

Many thanks. I miss the days when going out to take portraits with Nikon RFs was enough of an excuse for an outing.

 

[VinceC]

Thanks rbsinto for the inspiration.
More portraits with an S3 or SP.

 

[rbsinto]

Thanks Vince.
Here are two more taken with the S3, Nikon 105 2.5 and Fuji 100 ISO colour slide.

2.8 @ 1/500th

2.8 @ 1/250

 

[furcafe]

I like my Nikon RFs just fine, but I suggested an F body to Alberto because: (a) it's a cheaper option while being a bit ergonomically different from the FM3; & (b) it seemed he had limited experience w/RFs in general.

That said, yes, one can take portraits w/them.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/furcafe/9588829804/

I was pretty surprised by the number of folks here who told the original poster to go get an SLR for portraits. ?????? No wonder he decided to try a Leica instead.

The Nikon SP/S3 are the definitive portrait cameras. 1:1 finders and wheel focus are exceptional features.

 

[BillBingham2]

While I started with SLRs, they never gave me situational awareness that Nikon RFs give me. Leicas and Bessas were fine, but the 1:1 finders allowed me to be aware of what is going on better. With environmental portraits rather important, everything but head shots. While it good, I still like the 300/4.5 ED-IF for head shots, but other than that, it's RF.

My perfect kit is a Nikon S3 and a F2 and about four lenses to carry and two back in the car or room. Lenses focus the same direction, aperture rings too. The glass has a wonderful character if you pick the right ones.

Your mileage may vary, but the fun will still be there!

B2

BTW Vince, what did you do to that old FTN Prism?

 

[aquaman75]

Thanks you very much for all your comments.
I would also like to congratulate you for all these pictures that really are amazing.
I already have the leica in my hands but I still have not received a NOS 1982 Cron 50 type 4.
I can not wait to put a Kodak Portra film inside and go out.

Although I have decided by the Leica right now I'm sure a Nikon SP will not be long in coming to my house to keep him company but for now it's better than my wife did not hear this ......
Thank you very much and greetings!

 

[VinceC]

Your original post specifically discussed modern vs older lenses. Here are some portraits with an SP 2005 and a modern 35 1.8, 50mm 1.4 from the S3-2000, and the Cosina Voigtlaender 85/3.5.

 

[VinceC]

@BillBingham2

I've still got the F with FTN prism on my camera shelf, though I don't use it much. The meter still had life a couple years ago when I last checked it when one of my kids was taking a school photography course (she opted for a Nikkormat ... great choice). The prism and camera are darned beat up ... I used them for daily news photography in the late '80s to mid '90s.

 

[rbsinto]

While I started with SLRs, they never gave me situational awareness that Nikon RFs give me. Leicas and Bessas were fine, but the 1:1 finders allowed me to be aware of what is going on better. With environmental portraits rather important, everything but head shots. While it good, I still like the 300/4.5 ED-IF for head shots, but other than that, it's RF.

My perfect kit is a Nikon S3 and a F2 and about four lenses to carry and two back in the car or room. Lenses focus the same direction, aperture rings too. The glass has a wonderful character if you pick the right ones.

Your mileage may vary, but the fun will still be there!

B2

BTW Vince, what did you do to that old FTN Prism?

While I love using my rangefinder kit (two S3s, R2S Bessa, and motorized ,meterless F), I still prefer my SLRs for portraits.
Yes, the shots I posted in this thread were all taken with an S3 and 105, but only because it was what I had with me at the time.
If I knew in advance that I'd be doing portraits, I'd take the SLR kit and the appropriate lenses every time, without hesitation.

 

[VinceC]

Different users definitely have different preferences and different shooting styles. I find portraits are easier with an RF than a manual focus SLR because I find it easier to confirm focus on the eyes and I'm usually shooting close to wide open without much depth of field.

Our personal preferences also evolve (or at least mine do); for a couple of decades my preferred style was to do as much as possible with a 50mm lens, plus a lot of long telephoto work to isolate the subject; for the past decade, my preference is doing mainly environmental portraits with a 28mm lens, reserving the 50 or 85 for closeups and isolated details.

 

[Highway 61]

I find portraits are easier with an RF than a manual focus SLR because I find it easier to confirm focus on the eyes and I'm usually shooting close to wide open without much depth of field.

+1. The peculiar coincidence Nikon RF patch inside the 1:1 finder allows to focus very, very precisely on the subject's eye iris. I once borrowed a friend's Leica MP 0.72x but never could achieve the same accurate focusing - I found its RF patch too small and too white to see the person's eyes through it.

In spite of owning, like any respectable Nikonian, the absolute portrait lens of the 24x36 universe (aka the Nikkor Ai-S 105/2.5 marvel), my Nikon RF bodies fitted with the humble Nikkor-H-C 50/2 have become my second-to-none portrait tools these years.

Nikon S2 with Nikkor-H-C 50/2, wide open, focus done on the closest eye iris, Tri-X.

 

[VinceC]

Originally posted by Highway61:
Nikon RF bodies fitted with the humble Nikkor-H-C 50/2 have become my second-to-none portrait tools these years.

Wonderful portrait.

 

[kanzlr]

I prefer SLRs for that simply because I can preview depth of field. Other than that, the assured focus on the eyes an RF affords is a good argument for the latter, of course.

Also, I love to use medium format Tri-X and Portra for portraiture, and my MF setup is a Mamiya 645, thus, SLR.

 

[furcafe]

Another advantage of an SLR is that you can easily focus off-center, as opposed to focusing & then recomposing w/an RF. When shooting an RF when the depth of field is very shallow, you have to learn how to slide the camera when recomposing so as to not change the focus distance. If you shoot w/a Noctilux, etc., this becomes 2nd nature, but it's tricky & there's definitely a learning curve involved. The main advantage of an RF for me when taking portraits is the lack of mirror blackout so I know when people blink or move.

I've never had a problem focusing on eyes w/a good manual focus SLR (or TLR) using a plain groundglass-type screen (& I don't have particularly good eyesight), but as Vince wrote, different users have different preferences.

I prefer SLRs for that simply because I can preview depth of field. Other than that, the assured focus on the eyes an RF affords is a good argument for the latter, of course.

Also, I love to use medium format Tri-X and Portra for portraiture, and my MF setup is a Mamiya 645, thus, SLR.

 

[VinceC]

I always find that, with a plain ground-glass SLR screen, I rock the focus back and forth repeatedly to confirm the sharpest focal point. With an RF, it's a quick adjustment with no uncertainty. For that reason, I find RFs faster.

In addition, I think a lot of SLR photographers use a center split prism, which is more precise but not much different from a rangefinder in that you focus then recompose. The same with many autofocus alignments ... the newer face recognition focus and multiple-point focus are game changers (if you can be assured the camera is focusing where intended), but most legacy SLR systems used a center focus point, requiring you to focus then recompose.

There's no arguing with depth-of-field preview on an SLR.

 

[micromontenegro]

Portraiture with the S3? In a pinch, I guess it can be done.


Isa by Santiago Montenegro, on Flickr




Paris2009001 by Santiago Montenegro, on Flickr


NikonS3004 by Santiago Montenegro, on Flickr

 

[furcafe]

I agree re: the racking focus back & forth. I do the same &, in general, find RF focusing faster & more precise, but for slower, more deliberate work (which is usually the case for me when I shoot portraits), groundglass works fine for me.

In many ways, I think using the center split-focus aid on an SLR is the worst of both worlds, because it's usually less precise than an RF & you're still stuck w/the center focus point. On modern DSLRs, I've found moving the AF points to be a PITA, like playing a bad 1980s electronic or video game, & most are pretty bad for manual focus. Maybe the latest facial recognition technology is up to the job (they already have cat & dog face recognition in point & shoots), but it seems to be a lot of computational power to throw at a problem that has a pretty simple low-tech solution IMHO (better manual focus implementation).

I always find that, with a plain ground-glass SLR screen, I rock the focus back and forth repeatedly to confirm the sharpest focal point. With an RF, it's a quick adjustment with no uncertainty. For that reason, I find RFs faster.

In addition, I think a lot of SLR photographers use a center split prism, which is more precise but not much different from a rangefinder in that you focus then recompose. The same with many autofocus alignments ... the newer face recognition focus and multiple-point focus are game changers (if you can be assured the camera is focusing where intended), but most legacy SLR systems used a center focus point, requiring you to focus then recompose.

There's no arguing with depth-of-field preview on an SLR.

 

[Highway 61]

The other - maybe the main - advantage of a 50mm fitted on a RF camera is that it's inobtrusive, small, and (relatively) silent. Contraringly to 85mm/105mm lenses fitted on an SLR you can use it in some very narrow bathrooms to take vivid/candid portraits of your girlfriend (well, in this case this is now an ex-girlfriend 😀) when she doesn't expect you to do so (and the result often pleases her more than any conventional portrait job).

Nikon SP with Nikkor-H-C 50/2, wide open, at the closest focusing distance (although in a mirror), focus done on the mascara brush reflection, Tri-X.

Shot in Toronto four years ago (but this is another story 😉).

 

[jondotkom]

Wow! To Vince, Highway and Santiago, great shots!