cheap nikon film body recommendations?

fontmoss

fontmoss

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Ok short of selling a kidney i dont think i can afford a d700 but as someone pointed out to me, a good way of achieving that film quality in photos might be to buy a film camera. (smart guy)

budget would be v tight, ive seen the camera alexisonfire is selling but id rather one without any probs. light meter would be nice, thats really the only criteria, got an old 50mm, 28mm and newer 35mm lenses so needs to be nikon.

thanks
 
How much is a "tight budget"

OK so manual cameras
FE2 has light meter and aperature prority pick a body up for £100-£200

FM is a mechanical camera has light meter but no automation can be had for less than £100 (FM2 & FM2n between £150-£250)

F3 depending on condition anything from £150 upwards is battery dependant like the FE2 and has aperature priorty. Has 100% view finder which is useful only real down side is that if you use flash it has a unique flash connector, but you can get an adaptor to convert it to a normal type hot shoe

AF bodies

Nikon F90x (go for the 'x' version) these can be picked up sometimes with MB10 battery pack for less than £200

Older again is the 801s (go for the "s" version) these can be got for anything upto £150

F100 is a better buy but think it will be over the £200 mark.

F401 was a cheapish camera works ok but I never liked the ergonimics of the cameram cheap new so should be cheap used as well.

F601 can be had in AF and manual versions, built in flash and not a bad machine again should be fairly inexpensive to pick up used.

F80 is worth a look as well as it is a newer body than all of the ones listed above, seen them with lens go for less than £150 on flea bay.

Have a hunt around and look at the 'mir' site which can give you lots of info on various Nikon machines.
 
whats the f50 like? been offered one for 45 notes, which is probably the figure id be looking to spend as its all new to me :(
 
fontmoss said:
whats the f50 like? been offered one for 45 notes, which is probably the figure id be looking to spend as its all new to me :(
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Don't know that one, but the F55 I think was the one after it and it is nice little camera. It is a fairly simple camera but works ok. One of the chaps here at work got one (as a second body) and he likes it, the only thing I think you can't do is over ride the Auto ISO setting on the camera.

:shrug: don't know if that is an issue for you.

But check out flea bay and the shops mentioned in the "cheap nikon lens" thread. Also I think on this forum somewhere is a list of shops specalising in used gear, so worth a gander as well :D
 
fontmoss said:
whats the f50 like? been offered one for 45 notes, which is probably the figure id be looking to spend as its all new to me :(
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When brought out it was a very simple auto focus body with four buttons (if i remember) to control most things. If you've manual focus lenses I'd opt for the FM as they'll feel better to use on that than on an autofocus F50 just personal though.
 
yeah be manual lenses or auto lenses used manually, hmm ill swing by local camera shop and have a swatch at some. keep the comments coming though
 
You can still pick up an FE (replaced by FE2) for around £80-£120 depending on condition. Like the FE2, it's aperture priority and manual and goes up to 1/1000 sec. shutter speed. FE2 goes to 1/4000.

Personally, I agree with 'chivers67'. I'd go for a manual focus camera. Better build quality.
 
The FG is often overlooked and can be found quite cheaply.

It is a small body, similar to the Olympus OM series in size and offers manual, aperture priority and program modes and also can support TTL flash metering.

It was quite well specified in its day.


Steve.
 
any thoughts on the F65? they seem to go for pretty reasonable prices on ebay, I keep getting tempted to pick one up to play with film for once...

I assume that the old AF bodies will focus on new f mount lenses, provided they're not DX format? Would be rather nice to be able to use my 2.8 glass on it :p
 
Used two FMs professionally until last year...They had a bit of a hard life, but never let me down.. FMs are Brill!:)
 
itsdavedotnet said:
any thoughts on the F65?
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Just done a quick Google on it.

A review rekons they are ok BUT will not meter with Ai or AIs lens plus if you have one of the new 'G series' then i think you can use the lens in Program and Shutter Priorty modes only.

G series lacking the aperature ring so I think it stops you using manual or aperature prority modes.
 
cough-cough *hint-hint* cough-cough!

Me has a F2(with working meter) and F3HP (bit battered but all works well!) I have a "for sale" thread somewhere with all the details!

anyway, to be helpful, I do really like nikon film cameras, but they do vary in style. it would be a good idea to go to a shop and play about with a few models to see which you like!
 
Knikki said:
Just done a quick Google on it.

A review rekons they are ok BUT will not meter with Ai or AIs lens plus if you have one of the new 'G series' then i think you can use the lens in Program and Shutter Priorty modes only.

G series lacking the aperature ring so I think it stops you using manual or aperature prority modes.
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sorry but none of the above is true ..they will meter with ai/ais lenses( but not manual focus ) ,and will work in manual with g series lenses and do s and a priority as well ,,,,:)
 
donutagain said:
sorry but none of the above is true ..they will meter with ai/ais lenses( but not manual focus ) ,and will work in manual with g series lenses and do s and a priority as well ,,,,:)
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HMM!!!! I will have to respectively disagree with you

I read the same review as the link you had and noticed in the Drawbacks section

Manual lenses. If you've got AI or AIS lenses, you won't be using them very often on the F65/N65, as the body can't meter with them.

As for the G Series of lens, yes it will AF and work with Shutter Priorty + Program modes, BUT the lens lacks an aperature ring, so you the user can't set an aperature if using the camera in Manual or Aperature Prorty modes.

I have the same problem with the F4, no secondary command dial, so no way to set the lens aperature.

This is from the Ken Rockwall site, ok some of his stuff way not be to everyones liking but this sums up the G Series lens

G lenses are lenses which have been crippled by removing their aperture rings to save cost. This is a classic example of taking away features while making customers think they are getting something new. G eliminates many features with older cameras.

These newest AF lenses have no aperture ring. This means that they will not work on manual focus cameras since there is no way to set the aperture. You can mount them, however every shot will be made at the smallest aperture and your metering will be way off (probably about SIX stops underexposed) since the camera has no way to know what the aperture will be.

This is silly, but you may get them to work on closed-loop auto exposure cameras like the FA in A mode. Good luck if you want to waste your time on this.

The G series work fine on all current AF Nikon cameras on which the manual aperture rings were a pain. On legacy AF cameras like the 8008 and 6006 you may lose the A and M modes, you'll have to see. I forget if for those modes if one sets the aperture on the camera or on the lens aperture rings.

All the G series are also D. They are not AI-s.

This removal of the aperture ring is typical migration for Nikon: Nikon tends to make new lenses work on all cameras for about 15-20 years after they discontinue the camera. AF cameras have not needed aperture rings for most modes since they were created about 20 years ago! Of course collectors growl about this and the brilliant new G lenses won't work at all on the brilliant FM-3a, but so what; all the other manual and AF lenses made today still work great on every camera they've made since 1977, and with a small modification to add an aperture prong will work great (with all meter coupling) even on the original Nikon F from 1959. This is good, although G lenses are still useless on manual focus cameras.

For an AF camera to control the aperture on any non-G lens with an aperture ring you just turn the aperture ring to the minimum setting in orange (usually f/22) and flick the lock so it stays there, and then everything is done on the camera body. If for some reason the lens is set otherwise the camera will flash something like " F - - " to let you know to set the lens back to the minimum setting.

All fun and games :D but the Nikon range is now begining to get confusing.
 
Knikki said:
HMM!!!! I will have to respectively disagree with you

I read the same review as the link you had and noticed in the Drawbacks section

Manual lenses. If you've got AI or AIS lenses, you won't be using them very often on the F65/N65, as the body can't meter with them.

As for the G Series of lens, yes it will AF and work with Shutter Priorty + Program modes, BUT the lens lacks an aperature ring, so you the user can't set an aperature if using the camera in Manual or Aperature Prorty modes.

I have the same problem with the F4, no secondary command dial, so no way to set the lens aperature.

All fun and games :D but the Nikon range is now begining to get confusing.
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i did say that you cant meter with manual lenses ,on the f65 the aperture is set with a button not a wheel ( that does the shutter speed )so yes you can set the f stop in manual on a g lens
 
donutagain said:
i did say that you cant meter with manual lenses ,on the f65 the aperture is set with a button not a wheel ( that does the shutter speed )so yes you can set the f stop in manual on a g lens
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OOPSSS!!! Sorry my bad :bonk:

Just had another mooch around and yes it appears you can use the G Series lens.

Sorry
 
donutagain said:
..they will meter with ai/ais lenses( but not manual focus )
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I can't tell if you're confused or not.

I think you've either:
Confused AI/AI-S with AF/AF-S.
or:
Correctly identified that all non-G AF lenses are technically AI-S lenses and you're being a bit pedantic.

Even though all non-G AF lenses have the AI-S feature when people refer to an AI/AI-S lens they are almost always talking about a manual focus lens.
 
most ( all ?) lenses after 1977 are ai'd ,you can get manual focus and autofocus ai lenses ,,,but the manual focus lenses wont meter on the f65 ,,,
 
Yes, I know that. Saying "they will meter with ai/ais lenses( but not manual focus )" is factually correct, but misleading unless you also tell people that AF lenses are AI-S lenses. Most people don't know that.

Also, not all. G lenses are not AI/AIS.
 
Blapto said:
Yes, I know that. Saying "they will meter with ai/ais lenses( but not manual focus )" is factually correct, but misleading unless you also tell people that AF lenses are AI-S lenses. Most people don't know that.

Also, not all. G lenses are not AI/AIS.
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thats good enough for me then
 
As someone has eventually pointed out, on the F65 (N65 in USA) AF-G lenses need to have the aperture set by pressing the diaphragm button while turning the single control wheel (just as on the D50) while in M mode.

A 2nd hand F65 (from a dealer) should be about £50 and will have a warranty - e-bay will probably be cheaper but caveat emptor. IMO, an F80 is probably a better buy and is certainly a better handling camera. Expect to pay around £90 from a dealer. I have both an F65 and an F80 so may be qualified to make the handling comparison!
 
ah, cool, thanks for the input. I've just borrowed a F80 from a friend, I'll see how I get on before I decide to spend any cash....
 
cheers for all the advice folk, i shall have a swatch at dif options
 
I already tried almost all professional Nikon film cameras.
My favourite are:

Nikon F2
Nikon F3
Nikon FM2/FM2n

The FM2/FM2n is, in my opinion, the better deal, although i still prefer the F3.
F2's command very high prices today in the used market so, it's very hard to get a bargain.
 
i think ill prob try out a FM variant, manual focus, poss with a 50 or 85mm lens. still trying to decide whether to bite the bullet-ill stick up another post with my concerns


EDIT: ffordes have a few F3s but cheaper ones poss a bit suspect
 
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