I’ll recommend picking up the 50/1.8 AIS “pancake” (the one with 0.6m close focus) lens if you’re constantly shooting in 50mm, it’s lighter and performs better than the 50/1.4
I shot with the F in the mid-late 70's, then F3 & FM2N in the 80's and onward until I got lost in the migration to digital and cast about for a while until settling on D850's and a Zed 7 among others. However, the F3 remains the pinnacle of Nikon 35mm film cameras and the pinnacle among all others. I'm dusting off the F3 now for a shoot early next year!
There is no such thing as the perfect camera but the Nikon F3 is as close to perfect as I've ever used. Love mine. The cameras I will always keep in my collection/arsenal are the Nikon F3 and my Hasselblad 500C.
Great review! I used the Nikon F3hp in high school & college... wonderful camera all around and a joy to work with. The one major CON, and the reason I sold mine, is if you frequently use flash or OCF. It was very annoying to have to use the AS-4 adapter off-center over the rewind crank and also be limited by the 1/80th flash sync speed.
I agree with everything you said! I don’t use a flash that often, but when I do, it’s really nice to have and not being able to use one with the F3 was a bit annoying. I never bought the adapter so I wasn’t able to use it with a flash ever.
Really nice video man!!!, Totally agree with you!, the F3 is really something!, In my case I started with analog photography with an FM2N because of the all-mechanical feel, but I was able to get an F3 in really nice condition and since then, the F3 has been my favorite, coming from the FM2, It took time for me to get used to the metering, but after that, I started to really trust in the F3. As yourself, I basically shoot with it in Aperture Priority.
I started with an F2A I bought for myself in college in 1977, then added an F4 and F5. I don’t shoot the 5 much because it feels so digital and with my vision worsening with age, my F4 has become my favorite Nikon to shoot with though the split micros in my F2A helps a lot.
Great video , Great photos. NIKON cameras are simply the best . Bar none . I have F2 and F5 perfect photography Tools used by professionals for a reason.
Ohhhh I would love to shoot with an F2 someday. I think they're one of the most beautiful cameras ever made. I've had an F4 and now an F3 and I they're such good cameras.
@@michaelbennettphoto yeah had an F4. But I got a bad copy so it went back. Would love an F3 . (But do I need it ? ) The F2 my friend is just a mechanical work of art .my copy hand assembled in 1974 ,times I just take it out and look at it. And think wow the old timers they got some things just perfect,this camera is a photographic tool that will still be working when I am gone. The F5 well all the Same with electronics for an easy or lazy day out. just a joy to use and it certainly inspires confidence. So for me NIKON is king The F F2 F3 F4 F5 All pro cameras that speak for themselves. Best wishes from the Irish Republic
I actually use the first two frames consistently (the frames before the counter reads "1"). The first frame will have half portion blank (exposed), I often use this to shoot a "sea of fire" type scene. But the second frame is perfectly fine, provided it's exposed properly at 1/80s.
Yeah you can get 39 and a bit shots out of the F3. Other Nikons like the FE are always metering properly so those are easier if you want to squeeze out the most frames per roll
I'm afraid to reorder this nikon F3 camera because I had ordered it 2 times with the same issues happening to both of them. The shutter button locked twice. So when I decided to order another film camera, I got the Nikon FM2N and the Nikon F100 so far. I had no problems. But thank you so much for your videos. I do truly enjoy them
Always better to check em out in person if you can. Have to be more patient but I've seen F3 in my area pip up once every couple months. Or spring for a mint F3 with a late serial number starting with 199xxxx or 200xxx as those are very new built after the year 2000
I'm sorry to hear that Angel. The FM2N and the F100 look like amazing cameras and I'm glad to hear they haven't given you any issues. But I do appreciate the kind words! Thank you!
I found an F3T with the HP finder from an estate sale. It’s a pleasure to shoot with. My only gripe is coming from medium format cameras, 35mm feels a bit ‘Lomo’, but that’s not fault of the camera of course.
@@michaelbennettphoto apparently the guy traveled to Japan for work in the 90s my jaw dropped at all the gear. He had a ton of hasselblads/lenses, linhof gear, Nikon lenses, and a Fuji g617 (which I bought the Fuji). I definitely got a deal, but didn’t rip them off I still paid couple thousand
@@michaelbennettphoto I assume you're at aperture priority and you compensate +1 with the compensation dial. How does that differ to setting your iso 1 stop over expose compare to just using the exposure compensation. Apologize me on this very newbie question. I think you're very knowledgeable.
Really you trust the metering systems? I have bad luck with it honestly especially in high contrast settings. Is there anything you are doing differently?
I typically set my exposure compensation to +1 when using negative film stocks and I’ve always got great results. I trust the meter so much I stopped brining around my handheld meter.
I have recently got my F3 out again after a very long hiatus, with the intention of putting some film through it. I have become increasingly disaffected with the whole digital photography experience, not least because I am completely sick of post processing on a screen compared to playing with smelly chemicals in a darkened room! Obviously the UA-cam algorithm threw up this video among a slew of other film photography content My F4 has not survived its long hibernation unscathed since the MS-21 battery holder has broken rendering the camera useless until I can effect a repair. The F4 is not "superior in almost every way" being far bigger and heavier, and lacking the elegant simplicity of the F3. No matter how familiar you are with the plethora of controls on the F4, there are times when they get in the way of the shot. The F3 is in fine fettle. A couple more pros and cons for the F3: Pros: The feel and sound of the film advance lever and shutter. The noise that the MD-4 makes. The battery life, and the mechanical shutter speed to be used every 5 years when the. batteries finally die. The exposure lock button, adding even more flexibility to the excellent meter, and the DoF preview facility. The High Eyepoint viewfinder which is a real blessing for those of us who wear spectacles. Cons: The almost useless viewfinder illuminator (although it can be used as a battery check button). The non standard flash mounting system which makes it a total pain when you want to use flash triggers, and blocks the exposure compensation dial, and the film rewind whenever you mount anything on it. It's a truism that there is no perfect camera, but for me the F3 is as close as I am likely to find.
The F3 is an amazing camera, but I meant that the F4 is superior due to it being more technically advanced. I personally prefer the F3, but the F4 is the "superior" camera on paper.
If you close your eyes it sounds like Michael Cera talking about the Nikon F3
hahahaha this is the best comment someone's left on a video on mine
I just bought an F3 and I'm so excited to use my first roll of film today 😊thanks for this video!
I'm happy to hear it! You’re going to love shooting film with it.
Speaking from personal experience, the F3 is stupendous, and with the MD-4 it is on another level
The F3 is an absolute beast of a camera! I've never tried it with the MD-4 but I'm sure it's amazing!
You just sold me on getting one of these. Thanks for that!
Nice! You’re going to love the F3. It’s such an amazing camera
I’ll recommend picking up the 50/1.8 AIS “pancake” (the one with 0.6m close focus) lens if you’re constantly shooting in 50mm, it’s lighter and performs better than the 50/1.4
Thanks for the recommendation, I'll keep it in mind.
I shot with the F in the mid-late 70's, then F3 & FM2N in the 80's and onward until I got lost in the migration to digital and cast about for a while until settling on D850's and a Zed 7 among others. However, the F3 remains the pinnacle of Nikon 35mm film cameras and the pinnacle among all others. I'm dusting off the F3 now for a shoot early next year!
I fully agree! The F3 is such an amazing camera.
Nice photos!!
The 1/80 speed until frame 1 also freaked me out at first lol
Haha yeah I really thought it was broken at first
You can of course use manual focus on the F4 as well....
I know that but it doesn’t have the same focusing system as the previous Nikon F cameras so it made manual focusing harder for me
There is no such thing as the perfect camera but the Nikon F3 is as close to perfect as I've ever used. Love mine. The cameras I will always keep in my collection/arsenal are the Nikon F3 and my Hasselblad 500C.
Agreed. It’s an absolutely fantastic camera.
Nikon f5
Great review! I used the Nikon F3hp in high school & college... wonderful camera all around and a joy to work with. The one major CON, and the reason I sold mine, is if you frequently use flash or OCF. It was very annoying to have to use the AS-4 adapter off-center over the rewind crank and also be limited by the 1/80th flash sync speed.
I agree with everything you said! I don’t use a flash that often, but when I do, it’s really nice to have and not being able to use one with the F3 was a bit annoying. I never bought the adapter so I wasn’t able to use it with a flash ever.
Really nice video man!!!, Totally agree with you!, the F3 is really something!, In my case I started with analog photography with an FM2N because of the all-mechanical feel, but I was able to get an F3 in really nice condition and since then, the F3 has been my favorite, coming from the FM2, It took time for me to get used to the metering, but after that, I started to really trust in the F3. As yourself, I basically shoot with it in Aperture Priority.
Thank you Alex! The F3 is amazing! The Aperture Priority mode is such a nice feature to have.
I started with an F2A I bought for myself in college in 1977, then added an F4 and F5. I don’t shoot the 5 much because it feels so digital and with my vision worsening with age, my F4 has become my favorite Nikon to shoot with though the split micros in my F2A helps a lot.
The F2A looks like an amazing camera! I really enjoyed my time with the F4, but the F3 has a special place in my heart.
Great video , Great photos. NIKON cameras are simply the best . Bar none . I have F2 and F5 perfect photography Tools used by professionals for a reason.
Ohhhh I would love to shoot with an F2 someday. I think they're one of the most beautiful cameras ever made. I've had an F4 and now an F3 and I they're such good cameras.
@@michaelbennettphoto yeah had an F4. But I got a bad copy so it went back. Would love an F3 . (But do I need it ? ) The F2 my friend is just a mechanical work of art .my copy hand assembled in 1974 ,times I just take it out and look at it. And think wow the old timers they got some things just perfect,this camera is a photographic tool that will still be working when I am gone. The F5 well all the Same with electronics for an easy or lazy day out. just a joy to use and it certainly inspires confidence. So for me NIKON is king The F F2 F3 F4 F5 All pro cameras that speak for themselves. Best wishes from the Irish Republic
I actually use the first two frames consistently (the frames before the counter reads "1"). The first frame will have half portion blank (exposed), I often use this to shoot a "sea of fire" type scene. But the second frame is perfectly fine, provided it's exposed properly at 1/80s.
Maybe I’ll try that the next time I use the camera!
Yeah you can get 39 and a bit shots out of the F3. Other Nikons like the FE are always metering properly so those are easier if you want to squeeze out the most frames per roll
great video! loving that long weekend bag, i have the same one, it’s sick.
Nice! I really like mine. It’s super dirty because I’ve been using it for a long time now and have taken all over.
I'm afraid to reorder this nikon F3 camera because I had ordered it 2 times with the same issues happening to both of them. The shutter button locked twice. So when I decided to order another film camera, I got the Nikon FM2N and the Nikon F100 so far. I had no problems. But thank you so much for your videos. I do truly enjoy them
Always better to check em out in person if you can. Have to be more patient but I've seen F3 in my area pip up once every couple months. Or spring for a mint F3 with a late serial number starting with 199xxxx or 200xxx as those are very new built after the year 2000
I'm sorry to hear that Angel. The FM2N and the F100 look like amazing cameras and I'm glad to hear they haven't given you any issues. But I do appreciate the kind words! Thank you!
I found an F3T with the HP finder from an estate sale. It’s a pleasure to shoot with. My only gripe is coming from medium format cameras, 35mm feels a bit ‘Lomo’, but that’s not fault of the camera of course.
That's an insane estate sale find. I've only ever seen crappy point and shoots.
@@michaelbennettphoto apparently the guy traveled to Japan for work in the 90s my jaw dropped at all the gear. He had a ton of hasselblads/lenses, linhof gear, Nikon lenses, and a Fuji g617 (which I bought the Fuji). I definitely got a deal, but didn’t rip them off I still paid couple thousand
Do you over expose when shooting?
When shooting negative film stocks, yes. I usually shoot at +1
@@michaelbennettphoto I assume you're at aperture priority and you compensate +1 with the compensation dial.
How does that differ to setting your iso 1 stop over expose compare to just using the exposure compensation.
Apologize me on this very newbie question. I think you're very knowledgeable.
Really you trust the metering systems? I have bad luck with it honestly especially in high contrast settings. Is there anything you are doing differently?
I typically set my exposure compensation to +1 when using negative film stocks and I’ve always got great results. I trust the meter so much I stopped brining around my handheld meter.
I have recently got my F3 out again after a very long hiatus, with the intention of putting some film through it. I have become increasingly disaffected with the whole digital photography experience, not least because I am completely sick of post processing on a screen compared to playing with smelly chemicals in a darkened room! Obviously the UA-cam algorithm threw up this video among a slew of other film photography content
My F4 has not survived its long hibernation unscathed since the MS-21 battery holder has broken rendering the camera useless until I can effect a repair. The F4 is not "superior in almost every way" being far bigger and heavier, and lacking the elegant simplicity of the F3. No matter how familiar you are with the plethora of controls on the F4, there are times when they get in the way of the shot.
The F3 is in fine fettle.
A couple more pros and cons for the F3:
Pros: The feel and sound of the film advance lever and shutter. The noise that the MD-4 makes. The battery life, and the mechanical shutter speed to be used every 5 years when the. batteries finally die. The exposure lock button, adding even more flexibility to the excellent meter, and the DoF preview facility. The High Eyepoint viewfinder which is a real blessing for those of us who wear spectacles.
Cons: The almost useless viewfinder illuminator (although it can be used as a battery check button). The non standard flash mounting system which makes it a total pain when you want to use flash triggers, and blocks the exposure compensation dial, and the film rewind whenever you mount anything on it.
It's a truism that there is no perfect camera, but for me the F3 is as close as I am likely to find.
The F3 is an amazing camera, but I meant that the F4 is superior due to it being more technically advanced. I personally prefer the F3, but the F4 is the "superior" camera on paper.
The AF 28mm 2.8 is widely regarded as inferior to the older AI-S and AI versions...but you make awesome photos using the lens. Good job!
Thank you! I actually would love to try out the older versions as I haven’t had the experience regarding the optical quality of the AF version I own.
what camera bag is that?
It's the Long Weekend Gear crossbody bag.
i prefer the F2 without electronics
The F2 looks like an amazing camera
My con is just too heavy
That’s a very fair con!