Low-light shutter issue with Nikon F3P

[David R Munson]

My F3P has had this problem for a long time, but it seems to be happening a lot more of late. When photographing in low light in aperture-priority, sometimes the camera will open the shutter and it will just stay open like it's defaulting to its longest shutter speed when the correct speed should still be less than one second. This usually happens when the shutter speed gets down in the range of 1/15 sec or slower, most often in the 1/4 sec range or slower. The display in the viewfinder will cease to display the shutter speed at this time as well. It is perfectly capable of metering properly in these circumstances (it still does it fine sometimes), but craps out on me fairly regularly. It's reeeeeeally irritating. I'll probably end up having it serviced if I can, but has anyone here ever run into this problem with any version of the F3?

 

[David H. Bebbington]

My F3P has had this problem for a long time, but it seems to be happening a lot more of late. When photographing in low light in aperture-priority, sometimes the camera will open the shutter and it will just stay open like it's defaulting to its longest shutter speed when the correct speed should still be less than one second. This usually happens when the shutter speed gets down in the range of 1/15 sec or slower, most often in the 1/4 sec range or slower. The display in the viewfinder will cease to display the shutter speed at this time as well. It is perfectly capable of metering properly in these circumstances (it still does it fine sometimes), but craps out on me fairly regularly. It's reeeeeeally irritating. I'll probably end up having it serviced if I can, but has anyone here ever run into this problem with any version of the F3?

Oddly enough I was shooting some macro just yesterday with my F3, the exposure was about 2 sec. at f16 using a 55 mm Micro Nikkor and 2 PK12 extension tubes, and the same thing happened. Shutter worked fine when I set 2 sec manually. At the time I thought there was some problem with the extension tubes relaying the aperture info, but maybe it's a shutter electronics problem. Will read any further responses with interest!

Also yesterday I shot 4 rolls of film with the F3 on a microscope with exposures ranging from 1/2 sec to 8 sec - it never missed a beat!

Regards,

David

 

[Mick Fagan]

I had a similar problem about 20 years ago, I was using the single larger lithium (I think) battery.

I went back to the two battery set-up, it hasn't missed a beat since.

Mick.

 

[Mick Fagan]

I just realised you have the F3P, there could be a difference, mine are F3HP bodies.

Mick.

 

[David R Munson]

The F3P is a further variant of the F3HP, which is itself a variant of the standard F3. Click here for some info on the F3P.

I'm wondering if it isn't a battery thing, too, but it has happened both with the proper silver-type button batteries as well as just using the MD4 motor drive and no actual batteries in the camera.

 

[John Koehrer]

First, last & always. Check the battery(ies). Learned that years ago searching for non-existant problems. Electronically controlled shutters do mysterious things with weak 'uns.

 

[David R Munson]

I'll throw some fresh AAs in the MD-4 to see if that makes any difference.

 

[Chan Tran]

Is it possible that the aperture coupling resitor developed some dead spot? I would try to move the aperture ring back and forth a few times when the problem happens.

 

[David R Munson]

I'll try that tonight.

 

[John_Nikon_F]

Did you ever find out what caused your F3P's problems? One of my previous F3's did something similar while I was taking photos during a nighttime thunderstorm that we had on Labor Day 2007. Fired it mechanically, using the mechanical shutter release, and the shutter speed dial on T. Locked up, and wouldn't close the shutter when I turned the shutter speed dial to B. Wound up turning on the MD-4 and advancing the film that way, to clear the error. IIRC, it did it twice, but never did it again. Other than that problem, I've only had a couple other bodies with issues. One was an F3 that should've been a parts body - would sometimes fire as soon as you advanced the film. The other was an F3HP that had a short circuit. Would kill off batteries while sitting for two weeks. A friend of mine wound up with that body, eventually. Told him to leave it attached to his MD-4 and just remove the battery pack when he wasn't using the body.

-John

 

[John_Nikon_F]

Another thread bump... Sunday night, we had another thunderstorm that I took pictures of. My F3P (yes, I finally got another one) did exactly what the other F3 did. Locked up. No idea as to why, but, it did the same thing that the body in my previous post did.

-J

 

[Curt]

I thought it was getting cloudy but thunderstorms, I didn't see any up here. I have a Nikon F3hp and have experienced the same situation with my 55 Micro Nikkor lens in low light. I'm not sure it was a great problem but I do remember being shocked by the long exposure at times. I haven't used it for quite a while now. I has always had two batteries in it. Maybe it's unique to the camera in a particular setting? I wonder what Nikon Inc. has to say about it since several have experienced it here and no telling how many others have had it happen. I bought my camera and lens new in he early 80's when I was in a Bio Medical Photography program.

Curt

 

[Christiaan Phleger]

The one and only time this exact thing happened was also the one and only time I've ever been set up with a camera when I've seen something 'odd' in the air. Late at night, something very very strange in the sky, F3P on a tripod, doing long exposures of the moonlight, go to trigger shutter, nothing. I figured whatever it was, it probably put out enough of an electromagnetic fart that caused the release magnet to stall. Very Very weird.

 

[John_Nikon_F]

The odd thing in my case is that it seemed to be a mechanical fart, due to my not using the electromagnetic shutter release, except to unlock the body after it jammed up with both the P and the regular eyelevel bodies...

-J

Edit: here's one of the pics from the 29th. Post mechanical fart...