Which Nikon manual focus SLR body?

[dbarnes]

I'm partly with alpacaman: The littlest Nikons (FG especially) are way more capable than they get credit for. I've put a lot of film through EMs that wore top notch glass. But for my money today, if you want automatic exposure, only matrix metering makes sense. Which to fit your budget would put you in an FA. (Or an F4, as suggested by Frank, although without the specific nod to metering, and busting your $200 ceiling.)

 

[froyd]

Another nod to the F4...but only if weight is no issue. Wonderful viewfinder, well laid-out controls, and the ability to double as an anvil, if needed.

 

[dbarnes]

The FA will only double as a hammer. ;-)

 

[Fenwick]

FE all the way cheap and will last forever

 

[f16sunshine]

Lots of smartypants comments here. Here is mine. If you have the dough go for the fm3a for sure. Less dough fm2. Forget about the rest. These two are small, sleek, have great vf's and, don't require batteries for the shutter.

 

[alan davus]

I have an FA, FM and a FE2. My favourite is the FE2. Just love the match needle metering. Never liked the matrix metering in the FA (bought new in 1985). I used to turn it off and use the centre weighted option. The matrix metering always seem to slightly over expose with slide film.

 

[paulfish4570]

i sure like my fe2. probably going to get an fm2n to have an all manual version just in case.

 

[kxl]

Lots of smartypants comments here.

Sadly, RFF is slowly turning into photo net.

Also, quite a lot of people recommend the FM series - I do recognize the merits of the FM bodies, but I prefer to shoot using aperture-priority.

 

[BillBingham2]

FT3

Simple, available batteries, workhorse, get her in black.

B2 (;->

 

[Brian Legge]

My Nikon path was D70s (getting back into photography) -> F4s -> FG.

The FG purchase was a direct result of loving the F4s but not loving the size. I wanted the smallest Nikon aperture priority body I could find and it fit the bill. I don't like how it feels in my hands, though maybe I've gotten too accustom to rangefinders. I need to hold an FE2 at some point to see if it feels better.

 

[lxmike]

Nikon FA or a F2AS

 

[Roger Vadim]

FM - FM2 - I love the red LEDs, super for nightshooting
small and lightweight
F3 solid (but stupid -+ LCD which fades and is hard to read, I tend to leave my F3 on AE therefore... not the idea of a mechanical camera).

Its mostly the humble FM which gets picked for a ride lately... funny indeed.

 

[James24]

I think I've owned pretty well all of them over the years. To my mind the best manual camera Nikon ever made was the F2 - it is more refined than the F, and better built than the FM, FE range. Examples of F2 Photomics (DP-1 Photomic finder) can be found in the OPs $200 budget. A non metered F2 (with DE-1 eye level finder) might also just be within reach....., I like the F2Sb best of the lot, with its superb meter and full compatibility with every lens (pre-AI to AIS) with rabbit ears.

 

[nobbylon]

The original post asked which manual FOCUS Nikon slr. I use the F, F2(all the different meters) F3 and F4 and out of them all I'd say the F3 is near perfect. Just leave it on A and pick an aperture you want to use for effect and let the camera do the rest. The F4 would be in 1st place if fitted with a K screen ie split prism. Out of the F2's I prefer my F2AS because of the LED meter but using the F3 nd 4 takes less effort.

 

[Timmyjoe]

Bought an FM2n in 1995 brand new. Used it with the motor drive as my back up to my F4s. Put it away five years ago when I was shooting more digital. Got it back out a couple weeks ago. Forgot how good it feels in my hands, much better than the F4s or D700. Making it into my Walkabout camera. Not auto-exposure, but with that dead accurate meter, and fast AIS lenses, who needs it.

Best,
-Tim

 

[Tompas]

If you really want to use it in AE-mode, then get an F4. It's metering is far superior to all alternatives (except probably the FA). It also has superior flash control.

If you usually set your exposure manually, then get an FE2 or, if you can spend a little more, an FM3a. Both have center-weighted metering, which is good if you know how to use it but not to be trusted in AE-mode in a lot of circumstances. YMMV, of course.

I have one of all those three, but I only use the F4 and the FM3a -- flash and large lenses on the F4, for smaller lenses and carry-around the FM3a -- when I'm not using one of my Bessas or Pentaxen or my Mamiya. (I just can't bring myself to selling one of those 'systems', although I probably should.)

 

[former member]

I have most of the manual focus Nikons from the M unsync through to the F3HP.

Go with a F3HP for the viewfinder. My oldest F3AF is from 1983, the LCD is just fine. BGN condition F3's go for ~$100 these days.

I am going to suggest putting in a "Want to Buy" ad here, they are free.

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost-classifieds/showcat.php/cat/7

With that, I bought a BGN condition F3HP with motor drive -a real user- here for ~100, and one at KEH w/o Motor for $90. I also bought 2 new right before they were discontinued. They will outlast me.

PS: The Nikkormat EL is also aperture preferred auto, and is a "full-sized" body, same size as an F2. The F2S, F2Sb, and F2AS can be used as shutter-preferred auto with a DS servo-motor. I rarely use mine, go for the F3HP instead.

 

[former member]

Time for some pictures of gear.

(The F3AF does not have the DX-1 on it, has the DE-3)

 

[former member]

From a 1971 Pop Photo ad.

Converting this camera to Shutter-Preferred Auto makes it the ugliest Nikon ever made. Even uglier than an Auto-Focus F3.

But Chuck Norris would like it with the DP-3+DS-1, MD-2+MB-1 combo.

 

[Nikon Bob]

Brian

Not only is it ugly as sin but that DS-1 is slow as molasses. Kinda neat when it is all together though.

Bob