Your Favourite 35mm Cameras?

[Dallas]

What were your favourite 35mm cameras to use?

 

I think mine were the Nikon F5, simply because of the beastly nature of the thing, then the FM2n for its classic looks, as with the Canon A-1 (I had two of these), and of course my Leica M3. Shooting with the Leica was a wonderful experience. 

 

I probably won’t shoot 35mm film again, but if I had to choose one camera to do it with I think the M3 would be it. But then I’d have to get one of those 35mm Summicrons with the goggles to provide the right framelines (35mm is my preferred focal length for general photography). 

[PFrank]

Mine was the original Canon F1.  I used one for 15+ years and only changed when Canon abandoned the FD mount and mine was beginning to require repair more frequently (although I found it very robust, only requiring repair 2 or 3 times). 

 

The Canon was replaced by a Nikon FM2, a good camera but I could not see the entire viewfinder with my glasses.  I replaced it with a Nikon F3HP and that is probably my second favourite.

 

I also had a Leica M3 (DS) but I preferred the M2, mostly because it had frame lines that matched my lenses (35mm, 50mm, 90mm).

[atpaula]

I don't have a favourite because I simply love the ones I've used.

In chronological order:

Nikomat Ftn

Nikon F2s

Nikon FM2

Nikon F4s

[Dallas]

5 hours ago, PFrank said:

Mine was the original Canon F1.  I used one for 15+ years and only changed when Canon abandoned the FD mount and mine was beginning to require repair more frequently (although I found it very robust, only requiring repair 2 or 3 times). 

 

The Canon was replaced by a Nikon FM2, a good camera but I could not see the entire viewfinder with my glasses.  I replaced it with a Nikon F3HP and that is probably my second favourite.

 

I also had a Leica M3 (DS) but I preferred the M2, mostly because it had frame lines that matched my lenses (35mm, 50mm, 90mm).

 

I also obtained a Canon F-1 but by that time I was fully entrenched in digital so never really got a chance to use it properly. It is a pretty rare camera to find around these parts. 

 

4 hours ago, atpaula said:

Nikomat Ftn

Nikon F2s

Nikon FM2

Nikon F4s

 

Great cameras. The only one I never had experience with was the Nikomat. I also loved the F2 Photomic that I got while I was still shooting with Canon EOS (a system I never really loved much). That F2 was the camera that drew me back to Nikon and I suppose was ultimately the catalyst for the creation of the original Nikongear website. 

[blurmagic]

I only shot 35mm briefly.   I used the very inexpensive and basic Nikon EM.   Served to teach me the basics, but in short order moved on to TLR , and finally to mediium format  Bronica and Hassy

Edited 25 July, 2020 by blurmagic

[Alan7140]

I used Nikon F4 for work 1993-2006, never failed me and never needed a service, and is still going strong in the hands of a friend. I never really loved the camera itself, though - it was just an efficient tool for the work I put it to at the time (which is something I cannot say about the several digital Nikons that passed through my bag from 2006-2013).

 

Returning to film in 2017 saw a bevy of cheap M42 Soviet cameras purchased as teaching aids, but I still had a huge soft spot for Olympus OM1 that I had used briefly in the early 1980's, so I set about getting a small kit together for nostalgic reasons, which in turn reawakened my attraction to both the camera and its excellent lenses. I now have two bodies (one is a bit dodgy but it was a throw-away which cost next to nothing) as well as several lenses.

 

Having rediscovered that little love affair I thought maybe stepping back even earlier to the Minolta SRT 101 that carried me through my tertiary photography course 1971-73 and further served me in my job until part of a trade on a new Mamiya M645 outfit in 1977 might have a similar effect. To that end I duplicated my original kit as closely as possible (body, 28/3.5, 58/1.4, 135/2.8), but although still as familiar as breathing to me, it demonstrated conclusively how much better in all respects the Olympus OM-1 system was and how much of an advancement in design compactness and weight it had been at the time.

 

So for reliability and longevity the F4 served me best, but my favourite 35mm camera would still have to be the Olympus OM-1 for its ground-breaking compactness, ease of use and superb Zuiko lenses.

[crowecg]

I had often wanted an Nikon FM2 but never got one.  I did think I might have got my hands on the old Zenith that I learned on, but other events have interfered.  
 

I still have some old film gear in the cupboard that I occasionally think of getting out for a play, but I’m not sure there will be any benefit to me from shooting film.  One of the kids is doing a photography unit at school this term, so perhaps that might be a reason to try.

[Dallas]

The problem with 35mm film is that digital has surpassed it so long ago that the image quality one gets from it isn't comparable to a modern digital camera, so it really is only a nostalgia trip. Unless you're shooting real B&W that gets printed traditionally or slide films that get projected. 

[ed]

On 26/07/2020 at 06:23, Dallas said:

The problem with 35mm film is that digital has surpassed it so long ago that the image quality one gets from it isn't comparable to a modern digital camera, so it really is only a nostalgia trip. Unless you're shooting real B&W that gets printed traditionally or slide films that get projected. 

 

Agree, to an extent. There's an unmistakable look to film, even 35mm, that is remains viable notwithstanding the arrival of very high MP FF sensors. May not be to everyone's taste, but it is desirable beyond the nostalgia. Also agree, low speed B&W remains viable still and the visual impact of slide film, whether projected or scanned, is something not easily replicated in digital.

[Brunik]

If I had to choose one camera it would definitely be a Leica M6 (and a 35 mm lens). Slick, compact, unobtrusive, the epitome of craft, design and efficiency in photography, just a joy to use.

I have used one since 1989 and only moved to a digital equivalent when Leica decided to match it with its M10 series. 

My second favorite film camera in 35 mm would be a Nikon F3 (smaller (without motor-drive) than the later F4 and F5, and lighter too) and the smoothest film advance ever. 

[Dallas]

15 hours ago, Brunik said:

If I had to choose one camera it would definitely be a Leica M6 (and a 35 mm lens). Slick, compact, unobtrusive, the epitome of craft, design and efficiency in photography, just a joy to use.

I have used one since 1989 and only moved to a digital equivalent when Leica decided to match it with its M10 series. 

My second favorite film camera in 35 mm would be a Nikon F3 (smaller (without motor-drive) than the later F4 and F5, and lighter too) and the smoothest film advance ever. 

 

I also owned an M6 at the same time as owning the M3. It is a beautiful camera, but… the M3 had a much nicer view finder, especially the focusing patch. It was a lot brighter than the M6’s. 

[Brunik]

I have never found the M3 rangefinder patch any brighter than the M6’s. Advance in technology may justify the opposite in fact 

[ed]

My favorites are the ones that remained with me....

 

Leica M6 Classic 0.85 x

Nikon FM2-T

Leica R9

[Alan7140]

As a bit of an aside luck would have it, and in response to a friend's Facebook post on his visiting the Tate Modern in London last week, I dug up a shot that I'd taken in January 1972 from halfway up St Pauls Cathedral's dome with my trusty Minolta SRT-101 and 28/3.5 lens (a camera I'd mentioned in my initial response to this thread) using Ilford HP4 film, which just so happened to have the Bankside Power Station centre-stage in the shot, which is the same building that now houses the Tate Modern art gallery.



I mention this mainly in evidence that B&W film in particular, no matter what "simulation" is applied to a digital photograph, simply has a unique look, and it's probably for that reason that film is enjoying a bit of a resurgence (Ilford in particular seems to be doing quite well with that at the moment), with rumours also now common regarding the likelihood of a Pentax 35mm film camera being built again by Ricoh. 

Which also beggars the  question - how many photographers these days reckon that a digital file today will be able to be found or recovered at all 51 years from now, let alone in the minute or two that it took me to be holding this negative in my hand? In fact it was probably the series of photos I took in London back in 1971 that prompted me to recreate the exact same outfit for myself through eBay a few years ago. The SRT-101 immediately felt familiar and still seems to fit my hand like a glove, a feeling I am yet to get from any digital camera I've owned. For what it's worth, and brilliant as my latest Fuji X-T5 camera is, it has to be just about the least user-friendly camera I've yet owned, and that's saying something. The race to achieve greater complexity with each successive "upgrade" that manufacturers seem hell-bent on pursuing has really dealt a mongrel piece of equipment in terms of usability with this camera IMO.

That said, using my new copy setup with the Fuji X-T5 and 30mm macro lens in pixel-shift mode, I had a 150MP/304MB 16-bit greyscale file (which resolves the negative at grain-level) completed in around five minutes from start to finish.😊

[Dallas]

Yep, I have lost most of the digital photographs I took between 2002 and 2009. it was around that time in 2009 that I started to take archiving seriously and while not perfect, the system I use now has been helpful in letting me find shots (but the biggest challenge is me remembering what I did in any one year). I am also making sure to use keywords in Lightroom, but of course that system is entirely dependent on my continuing to pay their subscription fee. 🙄 

[Brunik]

On 07/06/2023 at 23:47, Dallas said:

 

I also owned an M6 at the same time as owning the M3. It is a beautiful camera, but… the M3 had a much nicer view finder, especially the focusing patch. It was a lot brighter than the M6’s. 

Hmmm not quite sure of that. The glass on viewfinder is better treated on M6 so less problem with flare. No LightMeter in M3 and limited number of frames in the viewfinder problematic when favorite lenses are 35 or 28 mm. Reason when I had an M3 I only used it as a secondary camera not a first choice. 

[anabasis]

I have a considerable collection of film cameras, including the entire Nikon F-series, a Leica RF and SLR, and small Minolta and Pentax systems.

 

My favorite film camera is the Nikon F6 by a significant margin.  

 

My favorite manual camera is my FM2n.

 

My favorite Leica is my R8.

 

My least favorite film camera is my F3.

 

I still shoot silver B&W film which I develop it at home, as well as slide film for projection, although I tend to scan my best shots as well on a LS-5000 scanner.

 

Here on my ship I have a Nikomat FTn with a nifty-fifty and a few rolls of TMax400.

 

Jeremy

[Dallas]

1 hour ago, anabasis said:

My favorite film camera is the Nikon F6 by a significant margin.

 

I’m interested to hear why this one, Jeremy. I have unfortunately never seen one in the flesh, so to speak. It, along with the original F are the only 2 I didn’t own. 

[anabasis]

17 hours ago, Dallas said:

 

I’m interested to hear why this one, Jeremy. I have unfortunately never seen one in the flesh, so to speak. It, along with the original F are the only 2 I didn’t own. 

Hi Dallas,

 

Since you're familiar with the F5, I'll start there.  Basically for the F6 they improved on the annoyances of the F5 and incorporated much of the hardware for the D2 series.  So to begin with you have a much better AF system, with LED focus point indication.  They also added iTTL flash control.  The menu system UI is much more intuitive and easy to use.  The matrix metering was improved.  The annoying lock for nearly every control was removed, and the ergonomics are nearly flawless.  The camera just handles so well and fits in the hand perfectly.  It is also very quiet for an SLR and the mirror is well dampened against vibration as well.

 

There are 2 configurations: the small configuration lacks the high frame rate and vertical controls, harkening back to the F4, but is much lighter and more compact than anything since the F3.  With the grip and Li-ion batteries, you get the vertical controls and a very smooth 8 fps.  It also allows you to use AA/LR6 batteries.  I like to use the grip especially with longer lenses.

 

About the only thing, other than price of course, people seem to complain about is the lack of interchangeable finders.  I guess if you really need an action and 6x finder on a film camera, you're going to have to revert to an F4 or F5.

 

To be honest, the only improvements I'd make to a theoretical F7 would be to add the D6 focusing system and support for modern "E" lenses.

 

Jeremy

[ed]

In SLRs, my favorites are the FM-2T (bought new 30 years ago)--never fails and an unobtrusive size with a variety of lens choices 2nd to none. The biggest surprise isn't the smallest 35mm, but most impressive to me, nonetheless. Leica R9. While it looks formidable, it is ergonomically spot-on in your hands and a superb camera. Bright, large viewfinder, all the info you need clearly displayed and an advanced metering system that makes it the perfect platform for slide film--36 perfectly exposed frames every time. The M6 on the other hand, just becomes part of you.