The right Film SLR next to Leica M6ttl. R6 or FM2/FM3a

aizan said:
if you want the focus and aperture rings to turn the same direction as a leica m, the only options are leica r, minolta, and topcon.
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Also Canon.
If it was me with all that Nikon glass I would just pick up F2, Fm(fm2) or F3.
Mind you the f100 you have will take exactly the same pics.
 
Hmmm, well, I'll go along with the others about the Nikon if you have the lenses.

Or the 50 euro OM-1 and lens sounds a great bargain and they are easy and cheap to completely refurbish, well, mine was... Or the OM10 which will work even if you've forgotten to switch it on or the power button is dodgy. The OM10 etc are often over looked and grossly underpriced for what they will do with the manual adapter fitted. And usually a more than decent lens comes free with one. Many of us have Olympus OM's...

Even nicer would be some sort of SLR with a Tokina zoom; in real life as good as a lot of primes.

My opinion of the R5 was hit hard when I got the estimate from Leica for a repair but no one else would touch it and in the end it went on ebay as "spares or repair" and I was very upset as it was a pleasant camera but there's lots like that; meaning Minolta, Pentax, Olympus and so on.

Regards, David
 
Well yesterday i handled a Leica R-E and Leicaflex sl2. The R-E was also very laggy in my opinion and certainly compared to te SL2. Great camera the SL2 but (too) heavy for me if it is not the primary camera system.

So i decided that i won't be going the Leica R6 route. Smarter is the Nikon route since i have the glass.
Thinking between the Nikon FM3a and the F3. FM3a is newer and has a brighter viewfinder that also does not black-out with slow lenses. F3 is heavier, feels sturdier, has 100% view and is not mechanical but supposed to be less prone to need service anyway. It does not have the copal shutter (of the FE, Fe2, FM, FM2 and ? FM3a) that seem to give problems after time according to my repair guy. Something with the springs loosing tension and 2nd curtain not closing and being expensive to repair. (sound familiar FE/FM owners?)

From what i read i should be able to have a better and clearer view for wide-open focussing with the FM3a.
 
So If it will be the Nikon route i now have a couple of options:

- The FM3a which ticks all the boxes but feels and sounds a bit 'tinny' compared to my M6ttl and the Nikon F3. I have found a black one in nice condition for appr 450 euro)

- The F3 that feels great but needs a battery to work and is heavier (1 mechanical back up time). Not so simple flash option. If i go this route i would prefer the De-2 prism. Seen a nice condition F3 for 260 euro.

I have also seen a black F3T for appr 450 euro. It has the HP prism. so should get/find an extra de-2 prism. Not sure if this is a good price for the Titanium version and if it is worth the extra cash. Anyone? It is not lighter.

Also seen a Press version (well used) with winder and extra original back for app 275 euro. It has the HP prism with hotshoe.

Any F3/fm3a/Fm2 users care to shine their light on these choices?
 
I'd vote for the FM3A. I bought one recently and like that it is not much different in size than my M6TTL and my M4.

If you already have several Nikkors then that's a no-brainer to me. I would go for that over the older FM2 models.

In deciding for the FM3A I checked out the F3 in particular and was attracted to it because of all that talk online of it being a tank, a pro body etc.

But that flash synch is simply pitiful and it is an electronic body. I don't mind that per se and normally shoot with EOS 1N, Canon A-1 and a Hasselblad 203FE to name a few. But when I can get a camera that is fully operational across very wide shutterspeed scale with and without batteries (mechanical 1/4000 is pretty awesome) plus has 1/250 flash sync, a simply fantastic finder and a reliable meter, then an F3 seems like a compromise I am not willing to accept even if it has a 100% viewfinder.

Unless you're sitting on heaps of money or really can't stand what Nikon might offer camera-wise (for instance regarding shutter lag, which seems to be very important to you), then it seems investing in an R system is foolish given all the Nikkors you have. As we all know there are many 'dogs' among the lenses made by all brands, Nikon and Leica included.

As for shutterlag, I accept that everyone is different and that using a camera is a very tactile experience, but I have never felt that there is any lag worth mentioning in any of my cameras. I certainly don't notice any lag at all with FM3A.

Philip


Roel said:
Well yesterday i handled a Leica R-E and Leicaflex sl2. The R-E was also very laggy in my opinion and certainly compared to te SL2. Great camera the SL2 but (too) heavy for me if it is not the primary camera system.

So i decided that i won't be going the Leica R6 route. Smarter is the Nikon route since i have the glass.
Thinking between the Nikon FM3a and the F3. FM3a is newer and has a brighter viewfinder that also does not black-out with slow lenses. F3 is heavier, feels sturdier, has 100% view and is not mechanical but supposed to be less prone to need service anyway. It does not have the copal shutter (of the FE, Fe2, FM, FM2 and ? FM3a) that seem to give problems after time according to my repair guy. Something with the springs loosing tension and 2nd curtain not closing and being expensive to repair. (sound familiar FE/FM owners?)

From what i read i should be able to have a better and clearer view for wide-open focussing with the FM3a.
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I have never used an FM3a, so cannot comment. The FM2n is very well built, durable enough for pro work, and small. It's not especially quiet, but I have not had a shutter failure despite nearly 20 years of use as a news photographer. The MD12 motor drive, however, is somewhat fragile - I had one come completely apart at a barn fire one day, leaving me with a handful of springs and gears. The F3 is an entirely different matter. It's heavy, durable, and will take a pounding. Mine all have MD4 motors; they do the film advance and power the camera. That, however, adds considerable bulk and weight to the camera. If you are willing to look around, a nice F2 with the original Photomic head isn't too expensive and is very durable. Since your Leica is a metered manual exposure camera, either the FM2n or the F2 would seem to be a good match.
 
Having used both the F3 and the FM3a my preference is for the first of the two, primarily for the dedicated MLU (allows slower speeds) but also the viewfinder, the better grip and slightly less annoying shutter/mirror noise. It's true, the sync speed is somewhat slow and the added accessory hotshoe a hustle. If you are going to use flash, the FM3a is perhaps better suited. If not, not.

.
 
giganova said:
The shutter of the R bodies is much more quiet and pleasant than that of the FM2. Here is my experience:

Medium Format: people duck when you hit the shutter, others laugh
Nikon FM2: people turn around to you
Leica R: most people won't notice
Leica M: after you exposed a roll of film, people will ask "When are you gonna take a picture?"
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Cute. Thanks for the laugh.

You might want to add over the MF, a Yashica TL Super with the back open: half the people reach for their own concealed carry, the other half reach for their cell phones to alert 911. A great photo taker the TL Super, just noisy.
 
Fraser said:
The problem with getting into Olympus slrs is you may never go back to Leica as they are practically the same size as a rf, have amazing viewfinders and are great value.:)
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It's true, I picked up an OM-1 MD about a month ago and have since fallen madly in love with it. What originally had piqued my interest was the small size and that the control layout with the shutter speed around the lens mount was very similar to my Retina IIIS rangefinder. Yeah I'm one of those weirdos ;)
 
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