So ... Just how good is the Nikon F6?

Dammit Keith...now you have me looking at Nikon bodies again. I'm leaning heavily towards an F100. There seems to be several availble here locally ranging from $225 -$300 USD.

I'll send you the bill...lol

Best regards,

Bob
 
Bob,

Make sure you get a USA version or Nikon won't repair it (even if you want to pay).

There are so many F100s upon *bay it's incredible, some great deals for a really nice camera.

Kent


rpsawin said:
Dammit Keith...now you have me looking at Nikon bodies again. I'm leaning heavily towards an F100. There seems to be several availble here locally ranging from $225 -$300 USD.

I'll send you the bill...lol

Best regards,

Bob
Click to expand...
 
I just received a mint F6 from KEH. It was rated (only?) "Ex+" but the darned thing looks and smells new. No body cap, box, manual or strap, though. Those are the only 'flaws.'

I love KEH....

Anyway, this comes a week after i got an F100. I had owned an F100 two or so years ago, and really liked it, but sold it when i acquired an F4, because i wanted to try the waistlevel finder with AF lenses for 'sneaky' travel/street shooting. That experiment never went anywhere....

So, i get the F100, and i'm happy again. But, on the way out of the store, i see an F6 on the shelf, and like an idiot, asked to take a look at it. Well, that was it. I took the F100 home, but immediately started looking for an F6 at a decent price.

The thing is, the F100 is magnificent. But, the F6 is still a (big) notch above. The 6's viewfinder is nicer, and that's probably the most important thing for me. I have an FE2 that i love because the view is just so glorious. The F100 is a step down from that. The F6 isn't as large, but it's better than the F100 and it seems a bit more 'forward' than the F100's while still being larger. I can't explain that kind of thing, but those are my thoughts.

I'm not going to compare AF speeds because i only have one AF lens, and at a certain point, they're all fast enough. The F4's AF was fast enough for me. I don't shoot in servo/tracking modes. I shoot stationary people/things. And i plan to use this primarily with an old manual 50mm lens, so....

The shutter and motor are the second significant upgrade with the F6. When i was playing with the F100 over the last week, i was impressed. It's a beautiful thing. Not quite as beautiful as the F80 or a Contax, but it's up there. When i received the F6 today, and then compared the two, i was struck by how refined the F6 sounds. It's not a drastic difference, and it certainly makes no difference in the results or use, but the F6 just feels like it's a bit more elegant. Comparing the construction of the two: The F100 is rated "A" and the F6 is an A+.

Is it "worth" an $800+ price difference. I can't say that it is. It's a smaller difference than between an M7 and an Ikon, design and build-wise. But, sometimes it's the little differences that make the most impact. For me, it's the viewfinder, primarily. If the F100 had the F6's viewfinder, i'd keep the F100. I really don't need/use any special 'features.' It's just about how it feels to use the thing and the confidence and inspiration that the F6 provides. At least, those are my thoughts today....
 
Ciao Dexter
if you like keeping track of your shots, the F6 will record for you for free. No need to get the optional card reader or other things, unless you use it heavily. If you want to stick a beautiful photograph on your album, just look at the info button, locate the roll and the picture and you will be rewarded with lots of info. I agree with you for the viewfinder, I even got a DK-17m and an L screen with split prisms and images, collar and which limits somehow the side view but enlarges significantly the central part where you usually focus. I found the loading mechanism of the F6 much simpler than the F100, which, even compared to the F80, looks a bit awkward with that double step to open the back and load the roll reversed. My personal opinion, though.
I agree with you that the F6 looks "classier" while the F100, littler sister of F5, is more for sheer performance ( I was more impressed by its screw driven motor than the F6, which is way more silent ). Of course, shooting a few frames / rolls along a year probably don't worth the expense, otherwise you might think of it seriously
As I wrote somewhere else, aside the versatility (for paid things) of D700, imo is much funnier, challenging and intriguing the F6 when shooting. And AF is STILL better (faster and a tad more silent) than D700 (at least my sample)
 
Ciao, Dino.
Could you tell me more about the DK-17m?

It magnifies the central area, so you only use it for critical focusing and remove it for composing? Or, do you leave it on all the time, but it makes it difficult to see the edges of the frame?

Thanks for your other comments....
 
Ciao Dexter
The second, even because when I removed the standard eyepiece the first time, its little glass decided to "take a tour" and literally vanished I-don't-know-where. However, I have to say that it's not a great problem having lost part of the side/bottom view. If you don't wear glasses probably you won't notice it that much.
 
I've been using an F5 for a couple of months. I've concluded that there is no camera on earth that is more obsolete for its intended purposes, pro-level sports, news and other action photography, than the F5. There is simply nothing in that range of applications that isn't handled FAR better by DSLRs.

On the other hand...what an utterly cool piece of machinery. When you pick it up, you really feel like you're holding The Best Camera. If you're going to shoot 35mm (and I'm probably giving it up permanently for a combination of digital and MF film), you just can't wield a better-feeling axe.
 
I can't speak to the F6 although I'm sure it is awesome. However, I have an F100 and it is an incredible machine. Coupled with a small, fast prime, it is superbly balanced and responsive.

2186182699_dc74c6854a.jpg
 
Keith,

Just found this thread. I have never been a Nikon person, always Canon instead. Still, I think I can give a few thoughts.

The real question is this - how much do you want the camera to do for you? Do you want, essentially, a digi-cam that just happens to use film or do you want an old school SLR? Or is it some hard to define place in between?

I have owned the Canon FD mount FTbN & T90 & the EOS A2E. I still have (and was using this morning :) ) the FTbN. Both of the newer cameras were sold. Why that one and not the others? Mainly it was due to the fact that, in the end, I enjoy the process so I find myself wanting to have the full control over deciding what to do with what the meter tells me rather than having the camera decide. The T90 is, really, the single finest film SLR ever made - by anyone. None of the F's or the EOS cameras can touch it when it comes to a full automagic camera. The metering is incredible - no other camera can match the spot meter capability of the T90 as just one example. But in the end, that wasn't enough to keep it. No, I picked up a FTbN with the meter adjusted for silver oxide batteries and found the door to heaven for me. That old girl and a handfull of equally old breech lock lenses makes me quite happy on those days when an SLR is the appropriate choice.

I'd say get an F6, but, based on what I've seen in your work and your discussions, it may or may not be the silver bullet you're looking for...

Hope this is of some help,

William
 
wlewisiii said:
I have never been a Nikon person, always Canon instead. Still, I think I can give a few thoughts.

The real question is this - how much do you want the camera to do for you?
I'd say get an F6, but, based on what I've seen in your work and your discussions, it may or may not be the silver bullet you're looking for...

Hope this is of some help,

William
Click to expand...

I've been a Canon user, too. But, i've always been envious of Nikon bodies. And, recently, i've come to appreciate that Nikon has a bunch of solid, small, manual focus bodies that use the same lenses.

I just got my F6 two days ago. But, i didn't get it for what it could do for me. I use it the same way i use my FE2, Ikon, 203FE....

It's not a silver bullet. It won't make the pictures any better. I don't need superfast AF or 8 frames per second. The camera, though, just feels so good to use. And, that's important. I have the FE2 because it feels so good. There are 'more capable' cameras than the FE2 that i've rejected, never considered, or sold, just because they didn't have that 'feel.'

The F6: Yeah, it's a crazy amount of money to spend, just to have a 5% tactile/sensual improvement above an F100. Sometimes 5% is just the right push over the top. It's not unlike some people's preference for a Leica over an Ikon over a Bessa. They all do exactly the same thing(s). But, feel and confidence can be important to some people.

William, i'm going to try very hard not to google or camerapedia the T90. That effort is going to last about as long as it takes to finish and submit this post. If i find myself on Ebay or KEH in the next few minutes and then waiting for a package next week, it'll be on your head....
 
Dexter,
If you listen carefully, shutter noise will be one of the things you will notice first against the F100. Each camera has its own, in the sample I have, the F6 sounds like a metallic lash, the F100 I had it was a completely different sound, like a silenced machine gun "thump thump thump", and in D3 ( I heard it several times ) it's no longer a clIck, it's a clOck , even a bit funny to hear. My D700 is (definitely) less noisier, half way between D3 and F6.
 
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