Rediscovering Nikon SLRs

dreilly

dreilly

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It's as inevitable as the water cycle, we come back to where we began. Recently got the bug to check back into the Nikon SLR system, and quickly obtained a minty FE. My first SLR was a Topcon tank, then I had an FM-2 which I loved. I sold that a few years ago to begin my jaunt through RF land and havne't looked back...until the FE caught my eye. Hmmm. Aperture priority, I like that. Nice metal body. Check. Possibility of a grid matte screen. Check. Ability to use all Nikon lenses. Check. Wopping good deal. Check. $70 off ebay!

I then started reading about the F3. Hmmm, how much do those cost? Found one "as-is"--maybe it works, maybe not, but looks all right, and the person never mentioned trying it with fresh batteries or not. Place a bid, win it for $60. Turns out she just needed a new battery. Terrible the lives of some of these cameras! So this is my entry for deal of the week. Funny how low these "pro" cameras have gone. I like it thus far, though I think the even lowlier FE is a bit more graceful of a design.

Looking through the slr viewfinder after life with my Oly LC is different. But I like it still, homey. Body is a little bulky feeling, but I don't mind the shutter noise, I'm not a stealth photographer anyway.

Well, I still love my Oly LC, but it is nice to go home for a visit!

Anyone else rediscover your SLRs after time served with an RF? What draws you back?
 
I still have my original 1960s vintage Nikomat FTN. Works great. The meter went out but unlike a lot of these, it was easily repaired.

Bought one of the CV 40mm f/2 AI lenses awhile back from Mr. Gandy.

Sometimes I just grab this combo for the day. Ah, memories...
 
This is certainly a good time to buy old SLRs. Everyone is selling them. I use my F2 when I need a long lens, usually for my kids' sports photos.
 
>How's that 40/2? I hear about harsh bokeh...

To be honest, I don't know. Frankly I haven't used it all that much and I have never been on the lookout for bokeh...

I do like its fit/finish quite a lot.
 
In my case, I came back to a Nikon SLR after a couple years of trying to make digital work for me, without much success.

The Canon G3 was clunky, slow and a nightmare to use. The Nikon D70s was much better but large and the pictures look, well, just digital. On top of that, the viewfinder is way too dim for manual-focus lenses.

In January someone here posted an F3 w/ motor drive for sale. I almost didn't get it as I was leaving within a day or two on a 3-week roadtrip to South Fla but I had him mailed it to my parents' and then had a chance to use it in South Beach, Key West and Dry Tortugas. Guess what, the camera was a joy to use and the pictures were great (color-balanced, in focus and sharp without having to do any post-processing in Photoshop )

Soon after that I went crazy; I picked up an excellent Hasselblad system and I'm now looking for a Leica.
 
As usual, you guys are killing me. I've been trying to keep myself from buying a user Nikon F for some time now...they're just about the sexiest SLR bodies I've ever seen.

As if my obsession with rangefinders wasn't bad enough, right?


Cheers,
--joe.
 
From about 1970 until it was stolen in the early 1990s, I had a black F w/ the big ol' lightmeter housing, and a gorgeous 50/1.4 Nikkor lens. It went w/ me to Alaska for four summers of work at a salmon cannery, and then overseas for a few years. I used it a lot, and appreciated its tank-like qualities when knocking about the English countryside and on vagabonding trips to the Continent. In time, though, its weight and bulk wore on me, and as the 1980s wore on I didn't use it much. After it was stolen, I didn't immediately buy a replacement slr, but relied instead on my Oly XA. A few years ago, I picked up a Minolta X700 in great condition. It's a much smaller, lighter slr, not as rugged as the F, but then I'm not a PJ and am not that hard on my cameras. The Rokkor lenses are good and cheap. Think I'll stick w/ that system for my slr needs.
 
I have two Nikon F/FTN's from 1970. That's 37 years I've used these cameras! I hope they outlast me, because there is no replacement. Unlike today's generation (painting with the broad brush - not meaning anyone on this forum) I can set shutter and apature, and focus.

I carry my RF's every day, but for serious work, out come the F's! I know it's cliche, but "they don't build 'em like that any more". 😎
 
A while back my father gave me the Nikkormat FTn he bought in 1967, just before I was born. What a camera! It's so solid and well made. Heck, everything works 40 years down the road. I mostly use my rangefinders, but that is one "right" camera. I love the 50mm 1.4 that came with it. I've also picked up an old 43 -86 mm zoom. That's one thing I can't do with the rangefinders, zoom.

I'm constantly surprised by how many people still use and love these old Nikkormats.
 
I think the F4S is the bargain NIkon SLR. Finest 35mm body for tripod use IMHO. I ran F4S bodies shooting stock slides for years and they are bulletproof, have incredible meters, and nice simple, traditional controls. Plus they'll drive an autofocus lens- and some of the AF Nikon glass is really, really good. What I dislike about most newer SLR bodies is the reliance on the 'button AND wheel' method of making adjustments. The F4 has these same adjustments but each on a dedicated actual dial with actual numbers written on it that you can see without having to wake the camera up to read a LCD screen. Plus the F4 has about the best backward compatibility you could ask for. I shot lenses as old as me on them alongside the latest DC lens without any worries. Still have three of them and my 'micros' for any close-up stuff I might be doing someday. When I sold off the equipment they were worth so little and I loved them so much that I figured I'd keep them.
 
CorreCaminos said:
In my case, I came back to a Nikon SLR after a couple years of trying to make digital work for me, without much success.

The Canon G3 was clunky, slow and a nightmare to use. The Nikon D70s was much better but large and the pictures look, well, just digital. On top of that, the viewfinder is way too dim for manual-focus lenses.

In January someone here posted an F3 w/ motor drive for sale. I almost didn't get it as I was leaving within a day or two on a 3-week roadtrip to South Fla but I had him mailed it to my parents' and then had a chance to use it in South Beach, Key West and Dry Tortugas. Guess what, the camera was a joy to use and the pictures were great (color-balanced, in focus and sharp without having to do any post-processing in Photoshop )

Soon after that I went crazy; I picked up an excellent Hasselblad system and I'm now looking for a Leica.
Click to expand...

Glad you are enjoying it Miguel. I miss it!
Gerry
 
Anyone else rediscover your SLRs after time served with an RF? What draws you back?[/QUOTE said:
Nikon F3HP & Fm3A. The draw: amazing Nikon glass and there are somethings an slr does best (telephoto lenses come to mind...).

Best Regards,

Bob
Click to expand...
 
RF vs SLR?

RF vs SLR?

I have never understood the compulsion to choose one and forsake the other.
But then again, I'm not religious. 😉

Chris
 
Last edited:
We are all in different places in the journey. I still have my Nikon F3hp + MD4 and lenses, untouched since my first RF camera almost 4 years ago.
 
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