Nikon F3 or FE2 -- which would you choose?

wotalegend · Jan 24, 2010

How good are your eyes, Michael? I have both an F3HP and an FE2 and I would pick up the FE2 every time unless I needed one of the F3 features such as interchangeable viewfinders or true mirror lock-up. Why? Firstly because my eyesight is not 20/20 any more, and secondly because I find the match-needle system on the FE2 much easier to see than the unlit LCD characters in the F3 viewfinder.

Cheers, Peter.

RMP-NikonPro · Jan 24, 2010

Nikon Collector said:
Don't you guys get it? With Nikon you cain't get just one. I have 12 and it's not enough!!!!!

This is so true!!
Buy Both, while your at it Don't forget the FA, FM2n & FM3a!!!
:munch:

Russ - SVP · Jan 24, 2010

RMP-NikonPro said:
This is so true!!
Buy Both, while your at it Don't forget the FA, FM2n & FM3a!!!
:munch:

Forget the FA. When the main board goes bad (and it will) next to impossible to find new one and more expensive than getting another entire FA rig.

Russ - SVP · Jan 24, 2010

I often need flash or fill-flash capabilities outdoors, and I would be severly handicapped without the 1/250'th flash sync on the FE-2. The F3's flash capabilities would kill me.

Paul Goutiere · Jan 24, 2010

It was only +23F (-5C) today. The wife and I went for a little hike up a nice rocky canyon we have nearby. I took my Nikon F3HP. In the warmth of the house the battery looked fine but just the little bit of cold brought the battery down below a threshold and the F3 was dead as a hammer. Of course I hadn't the common sense to bring another battery. (Yes I know it works at a 90 sec. without a battery)

I'm more and more inclined to take my F2 nowadays when I want reliability, battery independence and a good solid working camera. Continually depending on batteries is becoming an irritant. Even the Wife's Canon G10 was showing it needed a recharge. So I have another idea.

Forget the F3, forget the Fe-2. Get a nice F2, or FM2 and find a good hand held light meter just in case.

Russ - SVP · Jan 24, 2010

Paul Goutiere said:
It was only +23F (-5C) today. The wife and I went for a little hike up a nice rocky canyon we have nearby. I took my Nikon F3HP. In the warmth of the house the battery looked fine but just the little bit of cold brought the battery down below a threshold and the F3 was dead as a hammer. Of course I hadn't the common sense to bring another battery. (Yes I know it works at a 90 sec. without a battery)

I'm more and more inclined to take my F2 nowadays when I want reliability, battery independence and a good solid working camera. Continually depending on batteries is becoming an irritant. Even the Wife's Canon G10 was showing it needed a recharge. So I have another idea.

Forget the F3, forget the Fe-2. Get a nice F2, or FM2 and find a good hand held light meter just in case.

Paul

I'd never part with my all manual FM. But, in all of my years of moutaineering, I've found the FE and FE-2 to work very well in sub-freezing weather if they have lithium batteries in them. Lithiums are all that I use for my Nikon bodies. They last very long and are impervious to the extreme cold.

Kiron Kid

Paul Goutiere · Jan 24, 2010

Kiron Kid said:
Paul

I'd never part with my all manual FM. But, in all of my years of moutaineering, I've found the FE and FE-2 to work very well in sub-freezing weather if they have lithium batteries in them. Lithiums are all that I use for my Nikon bodies. They last very long and are impervious to the extreme cold.

Kiron Kid

You are quite correct, and My F3 will as well. But not today !&*%%$!

nolanr66 · Jan 24, 2010

I would choose the FE2 because of the 1/250th flash sync speed. I use fill flash quite frequently.

frank · Jan 24, 2010

The FE2 is lighter, has faster flash sync speed, has faster top speed, and has easier to see metering readout.

The F3 has a silky smooth film advance and a sweet sounding shutter.

cooltouch · Jan 25, 2010

Back when I owned an F3HP, I also owned my current F2. I too was not all that fond of the F3's meter readout -- which is one reason why I'm so tempted to get an FE2 cuz I'm a big fan of match needle metering -- but what I came to really like about the F3 was its performance in aperture-priority auto. Having that 80/20 metering pattern worked very well when shooting slides, with their narrow exposure latitude. So I ended up almost always using the F3 in auto mode, and relying on my F2's meter for manual exposure. Looking through my archives, I can see that many of my best slides were taken with the F3 in auto mode. This is my main reason for leaning toward the F3. My main reason for leaning toward the FE2 is because of its match-needle metering method. The fact that it has an auto mode, 1/250 flash sync, and a 1/4000 top shutter speed are big pluses for sure.

John, I like your suggestion. I've never bought a BGN item from KEH, but from what I've repeatedly read, they're very conservative in their ratings and that BGN items are still pretty decent. So this would allow me to pick up the pair and thus dilemma solved.

Russ - SVP · Jan 25, 2010

The FE & FE-2 work beautifully in aperture priority mode. And we've already discussed the flash advantages it has over the F3. Go for the FE-2. Awesome rig.

Kiron Kid

fotch · Jan 25, 2010

Kiron Kid said:
I often need flash or fill-flash capabilities outdoors, and I would be severly handicapped without the 1/250'th flash sync on the FE-2. The F3's flash capabilities would kill me.

I wonder what photographers did before the higher speeds were available on SLR's, shoot with between lens cameras like a TLR? I ask this just for educational purposes, not to find fault with your need of the higher speed.

fotch · Jan 25, 2010

Paul Goutiere said:
It was only +23F (-5C) today. The wife and I went for a little hike up a nice rocky canyon we have nearby. I took my Nikon F3HP. In the warmth of the house the battery looked fine but just the little bit of cold brought the battery down below a threshold and the F3 was dead as a hammer. Of course I hadn't the common sense to bring another battery. (Yes I know it works at a 90 sec. without a battery)

I'm more and more inclined to take my F2 nowadays when I want reliability, battery independence and a good solid working camera. Continually depending on batteries is becoming an irritant. Even the Wife's Canon G10 was showing it needed a recharge. So I have another idea.

Forget the F3, forget the Fe-2. Get a nice F2, or FM2 and find a good hand held light meter just in case.

Since I use a hand held meter most of the time, and not fond of depending on a battery just to make the shutter work, find myself leaning back to the time when the cameras had mechanical shutters, ala F2, M2, TLR, etc.

cooltouch · Jan 25, 2010

Welp, as I've mentioned before, I already own an F2 and it isn't going anywhere. I also own a Canon F-1 (the old mechanical one) and a Pentax KX, which is also mechanical, so I have my mechanical 35mm bases fairly well covered. And if I were to be heading into the hinterlands on a cold day I would be much more inclined to take one of these cameras than a battery dependent one. But there are occasions when I'd just as soon not have to fiddle around with exposure, and that's where cameras like the F3 and FE2 become attractive.

RMP-NikonPro · Jan 25, 2010

You posted this 9 days ago! surely you've made your mind up by now??

?

?

Get a FM3a!!!!!!

:munch:

cooltouch · Jan 26, 2010

I can't afford an FM3a. And funds for the purchase won't be available until after the first of the month anyway.

resummerfield · Jan 26, 2010

Mick Fagan said:
I have both the F3HP (two bodies) and an FE2, all bought new and all worked quite hard.

In a nutshell, the F3 is so smooth to use that when I do use the FE2, it's like driving a very old car............

I've also owned and used both cameras. The F3 was so much nicer that I sold the FE2.

GraemeMitchell · Jan 27, 2010

Own 2 F3HPs and 1 FE2. I'd take the FE2 any day over the F3HP.

It is so far my favorite 35mm camera I've ever shot for what it is. And I've shot a few. I like that it's smaller, lighter, and I like the sensitivity of the shutter release compared to the F3, lighter and tinnier. Even prefer the lighter feeling film advance.

In a word, I like that the FE2 feels cheaper, it then becomes less camera btwn the shot and I. Good.

Major disadvantage is the non-%100 viewfinder, which can be a big deal for me. But if it is that kind of shoot, I'd probably just use an F5 or F6.

frank · Jan 27, 2010

Left-eyed shooters sometimes have a problem with the FE/2 and FM/2 film advance lever (wihich has to be in the stand-off position to unlock the shutter button), poking us in the eye.

John_Nikon_F · Jan 28, 2010

frank said:
Left-eyed shooters sometimes have a problem with the FE/2 and FM/2 film advance lever (wihich has to be in the stand-off position to unlock the shutter button), poking us in the eye.

MD-12 works well for fixing that. At least, in the case of the older mechanical Nikon bodies (except for late model FM's), you can meter with them, then turn off the meter and still take a photo.

In any case, definitely consider the BGN bodies. Maybe also pick up a couple BGN grade 50mm lenses to work as "body caps" that can be used to take photos with.

-J

Russ - SVP · Jan 28, 2010

frank said:
Left-eyed shooters sometimes have a problem with the FE/2 and FM/2 film advance lever (wihich has to be in the stand-off position to unlock the shutter button), poking us in the eye.

I've heard that before, but being a lefty,it's never bothered or hindered me.

KK

frank · Jan 28, 2010

I have put up with it, with the FM2 and FE2 I used to have, but it's nice not to have to do so with my F3's.

mohawk51 · Feb 8, 2013

The F3! For one simple reason. 100% viewfinder....

Russ - SVP · Feb 8, 2013

FE-2. 1/250 flash sync.

sbattert · Feb 8, 2013

fotch said:
I wonder what photographers did before the higher speeds were available on SLR's, shoot with between lens cameras like a TLR? I ask this just for educational purposes, not to find fault with your need of the higher speed.

I think the duration of the old flashes were much longer, so it didn't matter as much. You didn't have to synchronize the shutter being open all the way with the burst of flash. The flash lasted much longer than the shutter speed.

Nikon F3 or FE2 -- which would you choose?

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