Topic: 35mm camera recommendations

[Mojave]

I know there are other threads along this line but I didnt find quite what I was looking for so Im going to post a new topic.

Anyway, Im looking for 35mm camera recommendations. My Pentax ME Super is sadly on its way out Im afraid. The mirror is tired and doesnt stay in place any more and Im having trouble focusing it. But more importantly, I need a camera that will auto focus, if such a thing exists with film cameras. I know thats a really ignorant statement but thats because I am ignorant of what is out there for 35mm film cams. I got my Pentax when I was 17, stopped shooting a year later and didnt start shooting until I picked up a digital camera nearly 30 years later.

I was at the Ren Faire this weekend trying to shoot belly dancers and people moving in processions and other performers and it was very difficult. I havent developed the film yet so I really have no idea how well I did but Im guessing most of my shots are going to be just off focus. I just cant focus manually fast enough to make up for movement. My eyes just arent fast enough.

So, can anybody recommend a good auto focus 35mm film camera that wont cost an arm and a leg?

Thanks all!

[sapata]

The Canon EOS series seems to be very cheap these days on ebay. I've always had the EOS5 and it's a pretty good camera, but since you have Pentax I'd go for another one as you might be able to use the lens you've already own...

[LT]

Hi Erin

there are lots of choices.  I think lenes are still quite expensive for some though as they are usual on the digi versions ...

have a look at these:

http://www.nikonlinks.com/equipment_film_af_slr.html

http://camerapedia.wikia.com/wiki/Canon - scroll down to the 35mm slr EF mount section

http://camerapedia.wikia.com/wiki/Minolta#Autofocus_SLR


I'm sure there are loads more too - pentax, etc etc.

Pick a few names and ebay search them - I'm sure there will be plenty up for grabs.  

[sapata]

Pick a few names and ebay search them - I'm sure there will be plenty up for grabs. 

True...last time I was in search of 35mm camera, the automatic were less expensive than the manual ones...

[Mojave]

Thank you Sapata and Leon!!! I have a Nikon D80 DSLR with quite a few auto focus lenses so maybe a film Nikon will be the best route. I have been reading a lot about those Canons though. I'll search them both out and see what I can find. Maybe this way I can spare my poor Pentax from doing all the work and use it for my macros only.

[LT]

In that case, it would definitely make sense to go for a nikon, I'd say.

[Late Developer]

Hi Erin.

Just to expand upon Leon's suggestion, I can strongly recommend the following models:

- F90X / N90X
- F100 / N100
- F4
- F5

The 90 and 100 series were really advanced amateur models but extremely well specified and you can get dedicated power drives for them. (Steve McCurry was an F100 user). The F4 / F4s was (and still is) one of the most popular Nikon AF bodies. The F5 is widely regarded as the best film SLR ever made by any manufacturer.

There is an F6 (current model) but it is no better than the F5 and is very expensive, even second hand.

If you want something robust, avoid N50 / N55 / N60 / N65 / N70 / N75 and the other polycarbonate bodied AF bodies out there. They are okay but they are very lightweight, will not take a hit and feel completely un-balanced with anything other than the yoghurt pot plastic bodied lenses at the bottom of the Nikon range.

I am a long, long term Nikon user and have owned a number of the cameras above. I currently have an F5 and you should be able to get hold of a really good one for around $300. The only drawback (if it is a drawback) is that the F5 has some "heft".

[greenstphotography]

While I don't have a camera recomendation for you I can suggest that you learn a bit about how to focus using manual cameras when you are following action and only have fixed focal length manual lenses.  Just use the DOF scale on your lens.  This will give you a range of focus for each aperture.  Take a good guess at how far away your sibjects are..say 10ft then pick an aperture that gives you decent coverage and in front and behind that distance.  With wide angle and normal lenses you can easy have 10ft to infity in focus with apertures in the f11 to f22 range (means you need good sunlight).  These scales are only found on fixed focal length lenses, but using that allows you to basically pre focus your camera and not worry about it.  The subjects will likely appear out of focus through your view finder, but you know the DOF will take care of focus.

If you only have zoom lenses then this doesn't work.

Another note is that autofocus is often not fast enough to really deal with fast movement so you will likely miss your foucs unless you compensate and use small apertures so DOF will cover any inability of the ca,era to quickly focus on a moving subject.

Sorry if I am telling you something you already know

[Mojave]

Thank you so much LD and Green! I have been checking out the Nikon F90/N90x on ebay and they are reasonable. I havent checked out the F5 yet but will.

Green, I totally get what you're saying and I agree about the manual focus. While I do understand the DoF calculations, I do tend to forget about it as well so thank you for the reminder. My problem with manual focus in fast moving situations is that my eyes just dont focus fast enough. A cameras AF is much quicker. I think what I might end up doing is getting a Nikon N90 and another Pentax ME Super body so I can have both. I will just miss my original Pentax. Might just have to see about getting it repaired some day, but I've seen some of those Pentax bodies for less than 50 bucks in working condition. Im guessing the repairs will be more. 

[tkmedia]

The only thing I hate about the F90/N90 X/S series is that awful auto focus whine shrill sound that it produces on AF (no motor) lenses.

I just cant find a 35mm format camera I really like. Maybe it's the small negatives? I dunno..

Do you have eyeglasses? You might want to try one of Canon later film SLR with eye focusing. works pretty well for me, except when I have eye wear.

[Mojave]

What is eye focusing? I have never heard of that.

[Francois]

For years, I've been using the same camera: Nikon F601/N6006 and just love it.
Autofocus, it uses the screwdriver type motor in the camera (you can see a small slotted screw on the lenses on the left side that rotates when you turn the focusing knob by hand). So, it works best with the earlier AF lenses.

Since it was an amateur model, price has always been reasonable. Last time I checked a local camera shop was selling them at around 125$ with a lens...
The camera is fairly low maintenance. The only thing I've had break on it is the door hook on the back. The techs at nikon made me a news one in a week for something around 25$.

As always, it's compatible with anything that has an AI mount (except lenses that stick in the camera).

[sapata]

It's been so long I don't use my EOS5 that I completly forgot about the eyefocusing stuff!

I think it's brilliant... the camera recognizes your eyes through calibration, several spots can be seen on the viewfinder, pick one of them and the camera auto focus on the chosen spot! Magical...

[Mojave]

Thank you Francois! I just checked the compatibility of my existing lenses with the F6 models and most dont work. Maybe the list I found is wrong? Not sure.

The Nikon N80 works with all my lenses and is for some odd reason more expensive than the N90 but it has the plastic body. The N90 works with all my existing lenses except for my 75-300 for the AF but if I were to ever use that lens on the film cam, I wouldnt need AF anyway.

That eye focus thing sounds awesome. Now I have to decide between the eye focus thing with the Canon and whether or not I want all those lenses to work with a film cam. Most likely I will go with the N90. The 100 and 5 are a bit too pricey when compared to the N90, though certainly affordable.

Thank you all so much for your insight. I really, really appreciate it!

[Pete_R]

Hi Erin,

A long time ago I was faced with the same decision. I used to photograph horses a lot and trying to keep focus on a loose horse bombing around a field was impossible with manual focus. I researched the options just as you are doing now. At the time, a colleague of mine was a dedicated Nikon user and I asked him about the Nikon options, explaining my main priority was focus tracking. "Buy a Canon" he said. Apparantly, of the cameras of that time, Canon had the edge with auto focus. I bought a Canon EOS50 to ty out. It did the job and I swapped it for a more up to date EOS 30 which, at the time was supposed to be one the best for focus tracking. I later swapped it again for an EOS 30V (ELAN 7NE in the USA) which was an updated version with improvements to the focus. The EOS 30V is not common on the second hand market but if you can find one I'd highly recommend it. It also had the eye control feature which may, or may not, be helpful to you but you can turn it off if you don't like it. The only thing to be aware of is the Canon lenses have the focus motors built in to the lens so the speed of focus will depend on the lens. But if you buy the USM version lenses you shouldn't have any complaints. The USM lenses are also very quiet.

[astrobeck]

my short answer is the NIkon F100 if you want a good, reliable auto focus 35mm.

It's quite sturdy,  and a bit "tankish" compared to the lightweight ME Super you are used to carrying.

I like mine a lot, and bought it second hand and have never regretted it.  It's like carrying a brick, but it's got a nice feel in the hand and if you are familiar with the D80, then the F100 will feel very familiar in your hands.

The F4 is another winner in my book.  I like it too, but it's like carrying a cinder block compared to the "bricky" F100.
Canon may indeed have the edge on auto focus compared to Nikon, but I've always felt the Canon/Nikon argument was like the Ford/Chevrolet debate.  Since you already have a Nikon lens, then it would save you some money to stay with that family.
Hope this helps.

there's a nice review of the F100 by Thom Hogan at http://www.bythom.com/f100.htm
btw- and Ken Rockwell has reviews on the Nikons at http://www.kenrockwell.com/

ooops, one more note, the N80 is plastic, but it is a trooper in it's own right.  My husband has one and bought a spare as backup.  He takes it everywhere and loves it, and it is durable.  The plastic is tough!

[tkmedia]

The Canons are just much better with AF, imo. I don't _currently_ own any Canons btw. If you want the best lens compatibility go for a Nikon F4.  If you were to go with a Nikon 90 i'd go with the later versions N90S and F90X, slightly faster fps, 1/3? stop in S/M mode, compatibility with vert grip. Also a lot of 90's have sticky peeling backs. I have not used them in a while, but I've owned a N90, F90X and N90s before. So I'm quite familiar with them.  You can find 90's for $20 to $50 usd.

[Late Developer]

Hi Erin,

I've owned a Canon EOS 50E and I found the eye focusing next to useless. Maybe it's because I have spectacles with a strong prescription, maybe I just couldn't get used to it, I just don't know. All I can say is that I have never been let down by Nikon AF. The F100 and F5 are the favourites of all the Nikon AF film bodies I've owned. Quite a few of my friends (sports and wildlife shooters) have owned F90X and F4s and I never heard any complaints.

For a simple, sturdy and well-specified camera, my choice would be an F100 every time. I have nothing against Canons (I have 4 manual focus Canon bodies and a dozen or so lenses) but I would go Nikon all the way for AF capability. I've owned a 50E and a 300V and had the loan of an EOS5 and EOS3. I couldn't get on with any of them.

[gregor]

Konica Hexar AF.  worth every penny - despite the fact there are two kazillion 35mm Af cameras available.

[DaveO]

     I second the Nikon F100 since it can use the AI, AIS, and newer lenses. Also, the Nikon FM2n works with these and is cheaper, smaller and lighter and can be used if the battery dies. The FM2n cannot use the G lenses ( what a dumb idea from Nikon to save a few bucks ).

DaveO

[Mojave]

Thank you all so much for all of your comments and information. I ended up getting an N90 for 50 bucks, body only since I have the lenses already. It looks to be in good condition so lets hope it works.

[Francois]

Good deal!