So true! Liked and subscribed. Comments: Which is the best camera and lens?-I do not know and I do not need them. Which is the best film?-I do not know and I do not need it. All I need is what you said about experience and the magic of home development process. Then you close the loop, you have done it, if it is okay that's your success, if not, it's been a good learning. Strangely, the "mistakes" are the ones that stay with you the most. A missed focus, an underdeveloped negative or an ungly spot on your film. That's all okay. That's why we love analogue photography. Thank you.István
Thank you for the retro vibes. I taught photography on the high school level for 35 years. I bought 2 FEs to use in class, on the field and in my business. I also published 35 yearbooks. The FE performed flawlessly for my work. I had a motor drive for both and I just recall the absolute ease of working with those cameras wether shooting a game or a wedding. My Nikon DSLRs are on the shelf and my iPhone 14 is on my hip.
Some of the best high school memories I have are from my art class. I don't know if photography is even a thought in school nowadays. Thanks for the reminder; I'm going to dust off my year book and take a trip down memory lane. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, and thank you for watching!
Hey Bernhard, you should swap that round. I keep my mobile phone in my pocket, and I carry a battle-worn Nikkormat FTN everywhere I go. I develop minimum one black and white film per week in my bathroom, my wife is going nuts!
Thanx for the awesome video. I just purchased a Nikon FE from Ebay which you mentioned and I couldn't be happier. This was the camera I always wanted when I was in college. I had to settle for the Minolta XG-1 for my photography class. It came with a 50mm f1.8 Ai lens. Yes I do have a Nikon D3500 DSLR but I learned photography thru film and you're right it does have that nostalgic feeling to shooting great pictures. Thanx again for the awesome video.
Great video. I was learning "proper" (i.e. not point and shoot) photography about 30 years ago, before digital swept the field, with a neat Minolta Dynax 404si (which I still use). Twenty years ago I got married, and was given a second-hand Nikon FE with two Carl Zeiss lenses as one of our wedding presents. The Dynax was kind of a bridge between traditional SLRs and modern digital cameras, in that it had auto-focus and different "modes" - only the bravest would take it to full manual! The FE was totally bare-bones by comparison, and forced me to think harder about what I was doing with the camera and why. As an aside, the professional photographer had a FM3A which he shot our wedding with, but when he saw the FE, he went all goo-goo over it! He also told me the very solid home truth that 90% of the quality of a photo comes from the lens, not from the camera, and he was really impressed with the two Zeiss pieces. That camera has stayed in the family ever since - I just wish I could ween my almost grown-up kids off digital, so that I can pass my collection on to them, and know it's going to get good use. Maybe I'll have to wait until I have grand-children for that, and indoctrinate them into film photography from an early age! PS - reading the other comments, I envy you Americans for getting taught photography at High School. No such luxury in Europe, unless you go to some sort of adult education centre or creative arts college. (But then we get to photograph amazing medieval cities, Gothic cathedrals, and jaw-dropping countryside right outside our doors!)
I think I would trade my high school photography into course for your backyard. Haha! Living in Texas, I often have to drive several hours for more aesthetically pleasing countryside.
@ScottymanPhoto Wow Scotty! I know what you mean. I used to work for a Texas-based company, and I've been over to America many times. I almost took a permanent transfer to Houston in 2014, but luckily, didn't take the plunge, as my company laid off thousands of workers in 2015, myself included. We'd have lost everything. My only regret is not getting to see the Rockies while I was over there. Houston is as flat as a pancake! Now I'm not even allowed to travel to the USA because the American company I worked for sent me to Iraq, which is a blacklisted country. How do you work that one out eh? I retrained as a high school teacher now, and I get to teach American literature. I'm a big fan of Steinbeck, Melville, and Hemingway. And of course, you have world class photographers. My favourite has to be Ansel Adams. He was groundbreaking, an absolute genius. And he must have been as strong as an ox. He lugged his heavy full-frame equipment all over the place on his back, and camped out in the wilds, to get his unrepeatable shots. I have an amazing mountain range literally on my doorstep and I haven't been able to drag my sorry ass out to spend a night under the stars yet!
@@eddyhoughton6542 Wow! Interesting career, my friend. Houston is quite the busy place. I think you're lucky you didn't end up there. Yeah, there are many locations that remain on my list. Like many photographers, I need to take more trips.
Great video Michael!!! Just like you I'm still using my 35mm SLR. I got the Nikon F2 and a Nikkormat FTN. Love loading them with Ektar 100 and Ilford HP4. Then when I have 8 rolls exposed, develop them at home and scan them with my full frame DSLR. The results are amazing, so good that I can print really large. Would like to know the name of the App you use to record your camera data. Thanks!!!
Samuel, always great to hear from someone that’s still shooting film! I’ll probably start developing my own film sometime in the future, and maybe even do a bit of darkroom printing. The app I use is PhotoExif. Glad you liked the video, and thanks for watching!
Great review and information. I just got an FE off eBay and it seems to be in good shape. Videos like yours really help to understand this older tech. I'm 55 and my memory of the good ol film days has been eclipsed by digital, which I love. Thanks!
Steve, well said! I wish I had never given up film when digital first arrived. I think many of us were quick to abandon our film cameras for digital. Indeed, I think we can have both. Thanks for watching!
I loved the film days! I remember thinking that a digital camera could never match the quality of film. Still, there's something about having an SLR in your hands. Thanks for stopping by, Buddy! Have a great day and take care!
I haven’t shot film for ages, got a similar Canon body myself. Nice video mate, you covered heaps, very informative! I especially loved those first two shots you took, great compositions! Thanks for sharing👍👍
nice! I have an FE on the way, and N90s was my last film before going DSLR. A D4 will take any shot anytime, but film makes you think and plan each shot.
Best video for someone getting back into film photography with the nikon. Modern processing info was helpful sonce the last time i shot film they used the darkroom methods 😊
Great video! I am just starting out in film photography. I just picked up a Nikon FE with the 50mm F1.4 ... do you have a recommendation on other lenses to consider? Thanks
I’m glad you liked the video! I do love the FE. I think an all around great lens would be a Nikon 35-70 f3.5 AIS Lens. You may be able to pick up one in great shape for around $150. It really depends on what you intend to do with it. Thanks for watching!
Interesting that KEH are 'working on a solution' - the one they used to have, I take it. I bought several items from them a few years ago, on the basis that the actual item was the one in the pictures, and never had a lemon. Otoh, I'm not too impressed with the lack of pics of the actual item, since they re-organised a few years ago. It turns a purchase into more of a gamble than I'm comfortable with.
Yeah, I seem to remember something about the pics not being of the actual item. I really have to see the photos when buying anything used. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, and thank you for watching.
That was printed on 8.5 x 11. These were scanned then printed. I sent them to TheDarkroom.com for development and scanning. Hope this helps. Thanks for watching, and thank you for the questions.
Great video, back in the 80's I would of never touch a 35mm camera I was strictly a medium format photographer but now I love my FE. digital made me a better photographer but film makes me enjoy it. By the way where did you get that L bracket from I need one for the FE.
Gregory, thanks for the kind comments! There's truly something exciting about shooting film over digital. I'm really enjoying my reunion with 35mm film. The L bracket is the Really Right Stuff Multi-Camera L-Plate. I don't think they make it any longer, but I'm sure you can find one on eBay. Take care, buddy!
I think that film photography is still really good, I like the color and dynamic range of the film and the experience of meeting new people and perhaps make new friends while going out to buy film or dropping off a roll of film to get developed at the photo store. Also I think that film has smoother and more natural look when it is developed. Great video.
Agnetha, thank you for the comments! Indeed, there is something about shooting film that seems unmatched by digital. It feels nostalgic to me, but it may be more than that??? You're right; the film experience has me interacting with more people. I find myself in the local camera shops scooping out their film stock and chatting about the lost art of film. 😀
I bought my Fe in Black in 1983,, it served me without fault until i succumbed to digital on a D70 in 2003. I then sold off my FE and its lens and motordrive, yeah the MD12 motordrive what a beast,,beat myself so bad i immediately bought an immaculate F5 so that i could shoot Film as and when. now in 2024 i am looking to sell my F5. beating myself up once again cos i wanna keep it 😢
I agree! Having fewer images compared to digital makes one focus more on each frame. Also, it's more expensive, and you can't see the results on the back of your camera. Thanks for the comments! Have a great day!
I have my own dark room, and my Nikon F80 although has everything I need, it just doesn't have the look, it looks like a modern digital, so I bought an FE because it's old school but still has apature priority, and it looks just like my Nikon ZFc.
Yeah, the FE can be fun to shoot. I immensely enjoy my Nikon F2, but it's full manual. With aperture priority, the FE is delightful when shooting handheld. Thanks for watching, and thank you for sharing your thoughts!
Thank you for sharing that! I have a new one coming out on Friday that you may like: "7 Reasons Why Shooting 35MM Film Is So Much Fun." Hope to see you there 😀
Film, in my opinion, captures life a bit better than digital does. My collection of cameras includes 25 vintage 35mm and medium format cameras and 2 Nikon digital (D700 and D5300). Shooting film makes one a better photographer.
Hey, David! Thanks for the comments! You have quite the collection of cameras. I agree, shooting film does help improve our skills, especially with understanding exposure.
I bought a 2nd hand Nikon FE circa 2002 to replace the Nikon EM I'd had before. The plan was to subsequently upgrade from the FE to an F2 or F3 when I could afford to do so. It's now 2023, and I'm still using the Nikon FE having only ever had to replace the batteries when required. The FE has proven to be the most reliable camera I've ever owned, and experience taught me that I had no need to upgrade. The fact that it can comfortably accommodate the pre Ai and Ais lenses is a huge bonus, as these lenses are invariably better value than the Ai and Ais examples. My particular favourite is a 35mm f2.8 with shift control. Should my beloved FE ever die, I'd buy another in a heartbeat.
I do love the FE! It's built like a tank and just keeps working. Of all the film cameras I've ever owned, the FE is the most fun to shoot. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and thank you for watching!
I had an FE back in 1981. I then got an FE2 and later on I sold the FE. I wish I had kept it. It is one of Nikon Gems. The FE was not designed for News or war photography nor was a system camera, but it lacked nothing when it came to other types of photography. They have got very pricy, in recent years.
Jason, thanks for watching! I did post a few images from the FE at the end of the video. Also, I plan to get out with my F2AS soon. Look for that video in the coming weeks. Thanks, buddy!
So true! Liked and subscribed.
Comments: Which is the best camera and lens?-I do not know and I do not need them.
Which is the best film?-I do not know and I do not need it.
All I need is what you said about experience and the magic of home development process. Then you close the loop, you have done it, if it is okay that's your success, if not, it's been a good learning. Strangely, the "mistakes" are the ones that stay with you the most. A missed focus, an underdeveloped negative or an ungly spot on your film. That's all okay. That's why we love analogue photography.
Thank you.István
Welcome, my friend! Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts!
Thank you for the retro vibes. I taught photography on the high school level for 35 years. I bought 2 FEs to use in class, on the field and in my business. I also published 35 yearbooks. The FE performed flawlessly for my work. I had a motor drive for both and I just recall the absolute ease of working with those cameras wether shooting a game or a wedding. My Nikon DSLRs are on the shelf and my iPhone 14 is on my hip.
Some of the best high school memories I have are from my art class. I don't know if photography is even a thought in school nowadays. Thanks for the reminder; I'm going to dust off my year book and take a trip down memory lane. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, and thank you for watching!
Hey Bernhard, you should swap that round. I keep my mobile phone in my pocket, and I carry a battle-worn Nikkormat FTN everywhere I go. I develop minimum one black and white film per week in my bathroom, my wife is going nuts!
Thanx for the awesome video. I just purchased a Nikon FE from Ebay which you mentioned and I couldn't be happier. This was the camera I always wanted when I was in college. I had to settle for the Minolta XG-1 for my photography class. It came with a 50mm f1.8 Ai lens. Yes I do have a Nikon D3500 DSLR but I learned photography thru film and you're right it does have that nostalgic feeling to shooting great pictures. Thanx again for the awesome video.
I do love the FE. Hope you enjoy it! Thank you for watching, and thank you for sharing your thoughts!
Reminds me of shooting with my old Pentax ME Super, back in the day. I liked that little camera.
Nice! I was out with my Nikon F2AS today. Something special about those old cameras 😀
Great video. I was learning "proper" (i.e. not point and shoot) photography about 30 years ago, before digital swept the field, with a neat Minolta Dynax 404si (which I still use). Twenty years ago I got married, and was given a second-hand Nikon FE with two Carl Zeiss lenses as one of our wedding presents. The Dynax was kind of a bridge between traditional SLRs and modern digital cameras, in that it had auto-focus and different "modes" - only the bravest would take it to full manual! The FE was totally bare-bones by comparison, and forced me to think harder about what I was doing with the camera and why. As an aside, the professional photographer had a FM3A which he shot our wedding with, but when he saw the FE, he went all goo-goo over it! He also told me the very solid home truth that 90% of the quality of a photo comes from the lens, not from the camera, and he was really impressed with the two Zeiss pieces. That camera has stayed in the family ever since - I just wish I could ween my almost grown-up kids off digital, so that I can pass my collection on to them, and know it's going to get good use. Maybe I'll have to wait until I have grand-children for that, and indoctrinate them into film photography from an early age!
PS - reading the other comments, I envy you Americans for getting taught photography at High School. No such luxury in Europe, unless you go to some sort of adult education centre or creative arts college. (But then we get to photograph amazing medieval cities, Gothic cathedrals, and jaw-dropping countryside right outside our doors!)
I think I would trade my high school photography into course for your backyard. Haha! Living in Texas, I often have to drive several hours for more aesthetically pleasing countryside.
@ScottymanPhoto Wow Scotty! I know what you mean. I used to work for a Texas-based company, and I've been over to America many times. I almost took a permanent transfer to Houston in 2014, but luckily, didn't take the plunge, as my company laid off thousands of workers in 2015, myself included. We'd have lost everything. My only regret is not getting to see the Rockies while I was over there. Houston is as flat as a pancake! Now I'm not even allowed to travel to the USA because the American company I worked for sent me to Iraq, which is a blacklisted country. How do you work that one out eh? I retrained as a high school teacher now, and I get to teach American literature. I'm a big fan of Steinbeck, Melville, and Hemingway. And of course, you have world class photographers. My favourite has to be Ansel Adams. He was groundbreaking, an absolute genius. And he must have been as strong as an ox. He lugged his heavy full-frame equipment all over the place on his back, and camped out in the wilds, to get his unrepeatable shots. I have an amazing mountain range literally on my doorstep and I haven't been able to drag my sorry ass out to spend a night under the stars yet!
@@eddyhoughton6542 Wow! Interesting career, my friend. Houston is quite the busy place. I think you're lucky you didn't end up there. Yeah, there are many locations that remain on my list. Like many photographers, I need to take more trips.
I too, used to shoot a Nikon FE, Great Video, and this makes me want to buy one again.
Such a great camera! I was considering shooting mine a bit this weekend. Thanks for the kind comment, and thank you for sharing your thoughts!
Thank You . Great review .
Thank you very much! Thanks for watching!
Great video Michael!!! Just like you I'm still using my 35mm SLR. I got the Nikon F2 and a Nikkormat FTN. Love loading them with Ektar 100 and Ilford HP4. Then when I have 8 rolls exposed, develop them at home and scan them with my full frame DSLR. The results are amazing, so good that I can print really large. Would like to know the name of the App you use to record your camera data. Thanks!!!
Samuel, always great to hear from someone that’s still shooting film! I’ll probably start developing my own film sometime in the future, and maybe even do a bit of darkroom printing. The app I use is PhotoExif. Glad you liked the video, and thanks for watching!
I've tried a few field notes apps, which one (minute 16:41) are you using?
Hello, Meteu! It's the PhotoExif app. It's not bad, very basic, but it gets the job done.
Great review and information. I just got an FE off eBay and it seems to be in good shape. Videos like yours really help to understand this older tech. I'm 55 and my memory of the good ol film days has been eclipsed by digital, which I love. Thanks!
Steve, well said! I wish I had never given up film when digital first arrived. I think many of us were quick to abandon our film cameras for digital. Indeed, I think we can have both. Thanks for watching!
Really cool, Michael. I kinda miss my old Nikons. I'd love a mint FE2 and F3 with drives. Take care, mate.
I loved the film days! I remember thinking that a digital camera could never match the quality of film. Still, there's something about having an SLR in your hands. Thanks for stopping by, Buddy! Have a great day and take care!
Great video
Very kind of you to say! Thank you!
Good stuff! Thanks!
Hey Randy! Glad you liked it! Thanks for commenting. Have a great day!
I haven’t shot film for ages, got a similar Canon body myself. Nice video mate, you covered heaps, very informative! I especially loved those first two shots you took, great compositions! Thanks for sharing👍👍
Thanks for the kind comments, Peter! Much appreciated!
@@ScottymanPhoto very welcome
nice! I have an FE on the way, and N90s was my last film before going DSLR. A D4 will take any shot anytime, but film makes you think and plan each shot.
Congrats on the FE. I do love mine. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and thanks for watching.
Best video for someone getting back into film photography with the nikon. Modern processing info was helpful sonce the last time i shot film they used the darkroom methods 😊
Thanks for watching, and thank you for sharing your thoughts!
Nice
Thank you, and thank you for watching!
Great video! I am just starting out in film photography. I just picked up a Nikon FE with the 50mm F1.4 ... do you have a recommendation on other lenses to consider? Thanks
I’m glad you liked the video! I do love the FE. I think an all around great lens would be a Nikon 35-70 f3.5 AIS Lens. You may be able to pick up one in great shape for around $150. It really depends on what you intend to do with it. Thanks for watching!
Interesting that KEH are 'working on a solution' - the one they used to have, I take it. I bought several items from them a few years ago, on the basis that the actual item was the one in the pictures, and never had a lemon.
Otoh, I'm not too impressed with the lack of pics of the actual item, since they re-organised a few years ago. It turns a purchase into more of a gamble than I'm comfortable with.
Yeah, I seem to remember something about the pics not being of the actual item. I really have to see the photos when buying anything used. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, and thank you for watching.
Were those 8x10 prints? Were they darkroom printed or scanned and printed?
That was printed on 8.5 x 11. These were scanned then printed. I sent them to TheDarkroom.com for development and scanning. Hope this helps. Thanks for watching, and thank you for the questions.
Great video, back in the 80's I would of never touch a 35mm camera I was strictly a medium format photographer but now I love my FE. digital made me a better photographer but film makes me enjoy it. By the way where did you get that L bracket from I need one for the FE.
Gregory, thanks for the kind comments! There's truly something exciting about shooting film over digital. I'm really enjoying my reunion with 35mm film. The L bracket is the Really Right Stuff Multi-Camera L-Plate. I don't think they make it any longer, but I'm sure you can find one on eBay. Take care, buddy!
I think that film photography is still really good, I like the color and dynamic range of the film and the experience of meeting new people and perhaps make new friends while going out to buy film or dropping off a roll of film to get developed at the photo store. Also I think that film has smoother and more natural look when it is developed. Great video.
Agnetha, thank you for the comments! Indeed, there is something about shooting film that seems unmatched by digital. It feels nostalgic to me, but it may be more than that??? You're right; the film experience has me interacting with more people. I find myself in the local camera shops scooping out their film stock and chatting about the lost art of film. 😀
@@ScottymanPhoto Yes, Film photos can't be duplicated by a digital camera and it definitely has it's place in the history of art. It is wonderful.
@@agnethaladuff8559 It’s truly all about the experience.
What is the app you use?
It’s called PhotoExif. Let me know if you have any other questions. Thanks for watching!
I bought my Fe in Black in 1983,, it served me without fault until i succumbed to digital on a D70 in 2003. I then sold off my FE and its lens and motordrive, yeah the MD12 motordrive what a beast,,beat myself so bad i immediately bought an immaculate F5 so that i could shoot Film as and when. now in 2024 i am looking to sell my F5. beating myself up once again cos i wanna keep it 😢
I wish I had my original FE and a few other cameras I had in the 80s-90s. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and thanks for watching!
视频很好，非常有幸能刷到这个视频。恰好我也有1个胶片机身，胶片摄影有3次曝光，所以它让摄影师更专注、更谨慎、更多乐趣。但同时它也需要更多的经验和技术。现在的数码相机正在向着高像素、高速度、智能化方向发展。对于学习摄影来说，我想这并不是一件好事。但对于普通用户的拍摄需求来讲，它是好的。对于摄影艺术来讲，不管哪种相机，只要能记录影像，它就非常好了。
I agree! Having fewer images compared to digital makes one focus more on each frame. Also, it's more expensive, and you can't see the results on the back of your camera. Thanks for the comments! Have a great day!
I have my own dark room, and my Nikon F80 although has everything I need, it just doesn't have the look, it looks like a modern digital, so I bought an FE because it's old school but still has apature priority, and it looks just like my Nikon ZFc.
Yeah, the FE can be fun to shoot. I immensely enjoy my Nikon F2, but it's full manual. With aperture priority, the FE is delightful when shooting handheld. Thanks for watching, and thank you for sharing your thoughts!
@@ScottymanPhoto your video was excellent I really enjoyed watching
Thank you for sharing that! I have a new one coming out on Friday that you may like: "7 Reasons Why Shooting 35MM Film Is So Much Fun." Hope to see you there 😀
Film, in my opinion, captures life a bit better than digital does. My collection of cameras includes 25 vintage 35mm and medium format cameras and 2 Nikon digital (D700 and D5300). Shooting film makes one a better photographer.
Hey, David! Thanks for the comments! You have quite the collection of cameras. I agree, shooting film does help improve our skills, especially with understanding exposure.
I bought a 2nd hand Nikon FE circa 2002 to replace the Nikon EM I'd had before. The plan was to subsequently upgrade from the FE to an F2 or F3 when I could afford to do so. It's now 2023, and I'm still using the Nikon FE having only ever had to replace the batteries when required. The FE has proven to be the most reliable camera I've ever owned, and experience taught me that I had no need to upgrade. The fact that it can comfortably accommodate the pre Ai and Ais lenses is a huge bonus, as these lenses are invariably better value than the Ai and Ais examples. My particular favourite is a 35mm f2.8 with shift control. Should my beloved FE ever die, I'd buy another in a heartbeat.
I do love the FE! It's built like a tank and just keeps working. Of all the film cameras I've ever owned, the FE is the most fun to shoot. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and thank you for watching!
I had an FE back in 1981. I then got an FE2 and later on I sold the FE. I wish I had kept it. It is one of Nikon Gems. The FE was not designed for News or war photography nor was a system camera, but it lacked nothing when it came to other types of photography. They have got very pricy, in recent years.
Yeah, the market for film appears to be gaining momentum. The do love my FE and it's built like a tank. Thanks for watching!
Used by many Pros, in questionable, history making times! Steve McCurry for one! Coplal shutter a big Plus!
Let's see actual images!
Jason, thanks for watching! I did post a few images from the FE at the end of the video. Also, I plan to get out with my F2AS soon. Look for that video in the coming weeks. Thanks, buddy!