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Nikon film body?
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I’m off on a trip in March into the mountains of Iran :D Access to power maybe limited, so in addition to my dSLR and spare batteries, I’m thinking about bringing along a film body too, both as a backup but also to give this film lark another go. So, I need to go buy a film body :shock: I’m looking for recommendations for good Nikon film bodies at reasonable prices. I don’t want to spend the earth on this, but would like a reasonably high quality body. The only reason for sticking to Nikon is that I can use my existing lenses.
Has anyone got any recommendations (was thinking the F80 as I believe it’s pretty close to the D70?) or better still, anyone looking to sell or rent one? :)
Ciaran,
You lucky b*t$%d”.
Have no advice on Nikon film cameras but you can borrow my Canon EOS 50E with 50mm f1.8 if you like.
I have a couple of single use spare batteries for it.
Carl.
jb7 good ideas ;)
carl Thanks for the generous offer carl. If I don’t pick one up before then.. I may just take you up on that. Thanks
Pop into a shop and see if you can try out a used F100 in good condition, its an outstanding camera
http://www.bythom.com/F100.htm
F100 is a quality camera, should be plenty on ebay also.
I assume you want AF ?
Get an old mechanical camera like a Spotmatic and the battery is only used for the meter. In my experience one battery lasts for a couple of years. I am fairly sure that Nikon must have made this sort of camera too.
I have a Nikon FE. There is of course the fully manual Nikon FM series also
As a lover of old Nikon cameras, I’d suggest that you buy along the following lines:
EITHER buy a camera that is cheap and you lose little if you damage it, lose it or give up on film photography,
OR buy a model that is highly regarded and that you could resell at much the same price in a few month’s time.Among the cheapies don’t touch Nikkormats, Nikkorexes, etc. The F301, F401, F501, F601, F801, and the F50, F55, F60, F65 and F80 can be picked up in good condition on ebay for ?35-?70 body only. They’re nearly all near the bottom of their value curve at the moment, but most of them can take good photos if they have a reasonable lens on them.
Among the more valuable cameras, a good F3, F4 or F5 would represent a good investment, but the F4 and F5 will, as leading professional cameras in their day, have something of a learning curve, and the F3, like the F and F2 may be getting a bit too old now for regular use. As a rough guideline, expect to pay ?100, ?150 and ?200 respectively for a good body. The FE, FM, FG and FA are also good cameras but you need to know what you’re buying among those cameras, and may be best avoided unless you seek advice on a specific model. (BTW, I have two books of Amateur Photographer reviews on just about every Nikon film camera and can email you a scanned copy of a report if you need info on something exotic.)
Possibly the best compromise will be what others have already recommended – an F90 or an F100. Good bodies will cost roughly around ?100- ?130. They are really pro-sumer level cameras, can deliver excellent results and would resell well still if you want to trade up in the next six months.
BertieWooster wrote:
Possibly the best compromise will be what others have already recommended – an F90 or an F100. Good bodies will cost roughly around ?100- ?130. They are really pro-sumer level cameras, can deliver excellent results and would resell well still if you want to trade up in the next six months.
I hadn’t really considered that option Nigel, but it’s definitely food for thought. Thanks also to the people that have offered to loan me bodies, both here in the thread and in private – it’s much appreciated.
ciaran wrote:
Thanks also to the people that have offered to loan me bodies
Oi! Is there something illegal going on here :lol:
I’m already looking forward to the results of this. You’ll be in a super position to look into a publication of some sort.
I wish someone would loan me a body, this one is falling apart :)
The F80 is a liitle smaller than the F100/90, has half-stop increments (no big deal unless you intend to shoot slides), has built in flash. I used to have it as my walkabout camera (It’s in the cupboard somewhere). WIll need batteries, but a set should last you a long time.
For manual cameras, the FM2n is fantastic. The FM3A is better but very pricey. (no AF).
Si
In my opinion I would even shoot back farther and look around for a F 3……….jeez I love mine both of them. With the md4 drive it runs off of aa batteries and it is a solid camera. I bought one of mine off a photojournalist friend of mine and she traveled the world with him……….it is a bit heavy but that is what I like…bulk……….if you travel this road and are loading the film I have found with the f3 to load the leader side first and then put the canister in the holder……leader has slipped off on me a couple of times…..safe travels
Allinthemind wrote:
I wish someone would loan me a body, this one is falling apart :)
Yeah.. I know the feeling :?
I’m swaying towards an F90 at the moment with a vertical grip. Thanks to Nigels suggestion, my thinking now is that I can buy it and depending on how disastrous the results are, I can either keep it or sell it on after the trip.
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