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Author Topic: cameras Scott Norwood Film God Posts: 8146 From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 03-03-2003 10:10 AM                        It appears that I am now in the market for a new 35mm camera. I had been using a Minolta X-700 (which I liked very much and had recently had serviced) for about twelve years until some bastard broke into my car last night and stole the bag that contained it. Since Minolta seems to have discontinued this model and I was thinking of upgrading anyway, I'm looking at other options for a good manual-focus SLR for general purpose use. I'm mostly interested in 35mm, although I might consider a used medium format (120/220 size) model if the price is right. Budget is under $1000 for body and 50mm lens, though I'd consider going higher for something that is built to last. If possible, I'd like something that would be at least minimally functional if the batteries die (which was one of the few flaws of the X-700). I'm interested in quality and durability (and repairability), not whiz-bang features. My immediate thought is to look into used Nikon F3s, which I have lusted over for a while and which seem to be well supported with a wide range of good-quality lenses and accessories. They are also apparently built like tanks and will last forever if properly cared for. Is there anything else which is in my price range and readily available (either new or used and in good condition) that would also be worth considering? What used-equipment dealers are reputable? Is medium-format even worth considering for a hobbyist who shoots a couple of rolls per month?  |  IP: Logged Claude S. Ayakawa Film God Posts: 2738 From: Waipahu, Hawaii, USA Registered: Aug 2002 posted 03-03-2003 11:52 AM                        Scott, As a professional photographer for almost forty years, Nikon is my brand of choice in addition to Hassleblad and RB-67 medium format cameras. Since going to digital photography, I have stopped using medium format but still use 35mm, Although medium format would be nice, I am afraid you might have difficulty finding a good used camera with a 80mm lens at the $1000.00 budget you had set. I would like to suggest that you stay with 35mm cameras and Nikon has two "Built To Last" cameras. One is the N-90s which you can easily buy with a 50mm lens at your budget. Another camera to consider is the F100. I bought a second brand new F100 body several months ago for about a thousand dollars. The f100's I have is in addition to a N-90 I have been using since it was introduced on the market many years ago. I originall had two N-90s but sold one when I bought my first F100. The F100 is Nikon's "next to the top of the line" camera which is the Nikon F5. In addition to photography, I love airplanes especially commercial types and the F100 camera and the Nikon F5, is like comparing the difference between a Boieng 747-400 jet to a 777. While the F5 has more features, the F100 has almost all of it and perhaps some additional things that the F5 does not have. The reason for this is the F5 like the 747-400 is much older and the F100 and the Boeing 777 are newer models and features new technology that was not available when the older camera and plane was designed. The store I will reccomend does sell used equipment and you might be able to buy a pre owned F100 and a lens at the minimum budget you had set. They also have used mediom format cameras. This is the store I buy my equipment and it is in New York City. B&H Cameras 420 Ninth Avenue New York City, NY 10001 Phone (800) 947-9954 (Photo Deparment Web address http://www.bhphotovideo.com Good luch in finding a 35mm cameras or a midium form -Claude  |  IP: Logged Mark Ogden Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 943 From: Little Falls, N.J. Registered: Jun 99 posted 03-03-2003 02:30 PM                     Claude recommends B&H Photo, right down Ninth Avenue from where I work in NYC, and they are very good but somewhat expensive (but they do seem to have everything). Out of all the NYC dealers that typically advertise in photo magazines, I would only advise dealing with them and Adorama. I would also steer you towards KEH Photo of Atlanta for your new/used needs, I've delt with them for years and they are very reliable, and offer generous payment for your used equipment, if any. www.keh.com  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 03-03-2003 02:42 PM                     I agree with the Nikon idea. Best 35mm lenses out there that are avilable off the shelf. I prefer the older F series bodies....heavy, and built like a tank! They last and last. For medium format the Mamiya 645, or RB67 is the most economical route. I've recently abandoned 35mm completely and use only digital for day to day pics. I use two view cameras...a 6X9 Galvin view, and a 4X5 Cambo view for everything else. Both systems can interchange the others lenses which are all Rodenstock. This area of the U.S. has too much to photograph to not use at least large format!! The bigger the better out here:). Also, I rarely buy anything photographic new, except for what ever digital camera I might be using. I only buy used....there's way too much nice clean stuff available at huge savings. I reccomend that you look around locally where you live. You should be able to find anything you need at a fair price. Mark @ CLACO  |  IP: Logged Scott Norwood Film God Posts: 8146 From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 03-03-2003 06:11 PM                        After doing some more research, the Nikon line definitely does seem to be the way to go, as they have the best selection of lenses and (it seems) very good manufacturer support of their products. I'm sure that Canon is good, too, but they seem to have mostly abandoned their manual-focus line. The F100 looks interesting, but is a bit out of my price range and probably more "whiz-bangy" than what I'm looking for right now. The N90 doesn't seem to be a current model (though I will check out used ones). The FM3A seems to come pretty close to what I am looking for, as it can operate completely mechanically at all shutter speeds, but also has aperture-priority mode and TTL flash operation (the latter of which is semi-important, since I don't have a flash meter). On the other hand, it goes for $500-600, which is roughly the same as used F3s (which appear to have better-quality construction, but lack the capability for full mechanical operation, except at one shutter speed). Thoughts? I think that medium-format is out at this point. The cheapeast Mamiyas seem to be in the $1500 range (used) and I'm not sure I like the idea of the higher film and processing costs. Thanks for the suggestions so far and please keep them coming!  |  IP: Logged Greg Mueller Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1687 From: Port Gamble, WA Registered: Jun 99 posted 03-03-2003 06:33 PM                        I use a Nikon F3 and a Pentax 6x7. The Pentax medium formats are the cheapest out there and can be had used for as little as $550 (used body) lenses are a different story. They have mirror lock up and virtually everything is changeable (focusing screens, view finder etc) Pentax makes some killer lenses too, if you can afford them. Nothin like a 6x7 shot on E100 or 200. You can also get slide projectors that will project the 6x7 transparency. And should you ever do long exposure stuff, their rail system will hold the film flat and keep it from curling even in relatively high humidity.  |  IP: Logged William Hooper Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1879 From: Mobile, AL USA Registered: Jun 99 posted 03-04-2003 01:59 AM                        It seems like the N90 had an alien remote shutter cable, & the timer was only 10 seconds or so. There was some reason I didn't like it. Whatever you get, make sure it's got a Program mode that will take exposures of 6+ seconds for cave photography in theaters. I like the F3 a lot, but somehow it never gets out any more. I've got a Ricoh KR30sp which uses Pentax lenses, & it's in a small insulated vinyl lunch bag which I grab & go. It's obsolete, & maybe it knows its days are numbered. It would probably be an eBay bargain. Before the Ricoh got in the lunch bag with a wide & tele zoom & tabletop tripod, my Nikon FG was the running wild camera. It's light & fun; I replaced the strap with a belt/gate hook from a keyring & it would hang on & be out of the way up ladders, in tiny holes, etc. It really does like to get out & go places. The Polaroid Spectra is fun, but not even as good as it once was. I had one of the original black body versions that took really decent photos, but a friend broke it; Polaroid instead of repair just replaced it with one of the cheap mediocre new Spectras.  |  IP: Logged Hillary Charles Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 748 From: York, PA, USA Registered: Feb 2001 posted 03-04-2003 05:37 PM                     Like Greg, I use an F3 and a Pentax 67 (technically a different model than the 6x7, but for all intents, the same). I love the handling of the Pentax, like a 35mm SLR on steroids. It takes as large an image as I need with relative ease. A used one with a 90mm or 105mm lens possibly could be had for under $1000. The F3 is my favorite 35mm, and features such as mirror lockup and depth of field preview (also on the Pentax) are invaluable. If you want to stick with 35mm, you won't regret getting the Nikon.  |  IP: Logged Will Kutler Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1506 From: Tucson, AZ, USA Registered: Feb 2001 posted 03-04-2003 06:10 PM                     I have a pair of Nikon F-2A's... Excellent, excellent camera. The only thing that I do not like about them is that the light meter is through the top of the prism and not through the lense, which makes it almost useless... But, when I first started in photgraphy, a friend and mentor, who was a professional photographer, had me write down a simple chart of what f-stops to use with what shutter speed. After some experience, knowing what shutter speed to use with what f-stop for a given setting will become natural...and you can varry from there. A very inexpensive camera...but still a simple, rugged and dependable workhorse is the old Pentax K1000. Another excellent camera that has been out of production for many years is the old Cannon QL-17. It is a non-interchangeable 50mm lense with a match-point viewfinder. These can be found in pawn-shops and camera shows for around $35.00 or so...the last time I checked. Anyhow, Cannon had put an excellent 50mm lense on this inexpensive and simple camera. People just cannot believe the quality of som photos (enlarged and framed) that I took with this baby...and the ole Pentax...prior to my purchase of my Nikons. People wonder about what type of hi-tech equipment I have. One note about photography...much can be done via the skill and knowledge of the photograper using minimal equipment.  |  IP: Logged Claude S. Ayakawa Film God Posts: 2738 From: Waipahu, Hawaii, USA Registered: Aug 2002 posted 03-04-2003 06:53 PM                        Will wrote "----much can be done via the skill and knowledge of photographers using minimal equipment." Very true indeed. I do not know homw many of you had visited by website at http://www.claudesphoto.com/ but if you do, you will see all of my environmental portraits done only with the camera and natual light. The shot of the couple on my home page as well as the next page showing a close up of a woman was photographed only with a Fiji S1 professional digital camera with a f 2.8 28-105mm Tamron zoom lens let to 105mm at f.2.8. All of my outdoor stuff was shot that way either with my digital camera or my Nikon N90 or F100 film cameras. All of the square pictures on ly site were earlier work that was photographed with a Hassleblad medium format camera. -Clude  |  IP: Logged Scott Norwood Film God Posts: 8146 From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 03-04-2003 07:07 PM                        Right now, it still seems to be down to either an FM3A or used F3, but I'm also toying with Will's suggestion just to get something old and obsolete (like an F2) and put the rest of my cash into lenses now and maybe upgrading the body later. The only problem is that I'm afraid of getting a used camera which will either a) fail at an inopportune time and/or b) turn out to be expensive to repair. If I can find something like an F2 in top-notch condition, though, I'd have to think about going that route. The most important thing to me is to get something that has a simple design and is well built (i.e. not made of plastic), which is somewhat difficult to find in the current market (with the exception of the $1000+ professional-grade bodies). Medium format is definitely something that I want to consider later, but not now. Aside from the cost, the biggest turn-off about medium format is that my favorite 35mm films (Kodachrome 64 and Tmax 3200) are only available in 35mm. And I'd still probably want a 35mm camera for 35mm slides and general snapshots. In any case, I'll be hitting the local camera stores this weekend....  |  IP: Logged Paul Mayer Oh get out of it Melvin, before it pulls you under! Posts: 3836 From: Albuquerque, NM Registered: Feb 2000 posted 03-04-2003 08:36 PM                        I'd be leery of going with used stuff that is getting close to "obsolete." I am a former Canon guy now stuck with mechanical bodies (FTb, AT-1, F1n) that cannot be repaired (no parts anymore) and a slew of lenses (FD series manual focus) that cannot mount to anything newer. Nikon has been better about continuing to support compatibility with their older lenses. I suppose I'll eventually go digital to replace my old 35mm capability. In medium-format, my Mamiya 645 is still hanging in there.  |  IP: Logged Don Bruechert Mmmmmmmmm, bird! Posts: 340 From: Manitowoc, WI, USA Registered: Jan 2003 posted 03-04-2003 10:13 PM                        I have been using Olympus gear for maybe 15 years. I started with an OM-PC which is not available anymore, and eventually upgraded to an OM-4T which is still available but has appreciated in value a few hundred bucks since I bought mine. I have had excellent luck with this camera for over 12 years, and I like the selection of lenses and gadgets avaialble for it. I also use several Tamron Lenses in addition to my Olympus ones. This thing has full manual capability, plus a 1/60 sec shutter speed if the batteries fail. It also has an aperature priority and shutter priority auto exposure mode, and an 8 degree spot meter, which I really like. With the dedicated flash F280 the camera will sync at shutter speeds up to 1/2000th of a sec, and it also has an X contact if you want to use professional flash equipment. I was into it big time for a while, and rolled, processed and printed my own film. I have since gotten a bit less gung ho and backed off on the film processing/darkroom work, and he who swore he would never leave film has been known to spend more time with a recently acquired Olympus E-20N digital camera. I know it's a bit off topic, but if you would like to see some of my work I invite you to visit www.donsworld.org  |  IP: Logged Harry Robinson Expert Film Handler Posts: 155 From: Franklin Tennessee Registered: Dec 1999 posted 03-04-2003 10:38 PM                     Hi Scott, Just to jump in for a bit...I bought my 1973 Nikon twenty five years ago. It's never given me a problem. I had it "re-foamed" last year, but that's just routine maintenance. There are all sorts of lenses out there for it. One interesting store I sometimes check out is King Street Photo in Charleston SC. They have a great web site.  |  IP: Logged Sean Weitzel Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 619 From: Vacaville, CA (1790 miles west of Rockwall) Registered: Dec 1999 posted 03-05-2003 12:26 AM                     Hey Scott, I've always been partial to the old Minolta SRT series cameras. Right now I've got an SRT-101 and a 201 that I just love. I've literally beat the tar out of them and they still take the most lovely pictures. The beauty of it is, if they ever suffer an accident or theft, a replacement body is only a $50 ebay auction away. For what it's worth, My fiancee absolutly swears by the Canon AE-1 Program. If I wasn't so vested in Minolta manual focus gear, I'd switch to the Canon line and use her lenses  |  IP: Logged

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