Nikon F3 or FE2 -- which would you choose?

Chan Tran · Feb 8, 2013

sbattert said:
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.

At lower power level modern flashes can have very short duration but at full power I think the trend is to make the duration longer rather than shorter. Typical full power flash duration of the 70's is around 1/1000 while new flashes is around 1/300 or so. I think that's because old flashes used higher voltage and less capacitance while new flashes use lower voltage and higher capacitance.

fotch · Feb 8, 2013

sbattert said:
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.

AFAIK, electronic flash has always been faster than most, if not all shutters.

skahde · Feb 25, 2013

fotch said:
AFAIK, electronic flash has always been faster than most, if not all shutters.

This is correct only for compact, camera mounted flashes. Large, studio-strobes may be cutoff by fast leaf-shutters which can be compensated for by a larger aperture or longer exposure.

TheToadMen · Feb 25, 2013

First of all: invest in glass, not black boxes ....

I still have my Nikon EL2 and it works like a charm. Back to your original question: I would go for a nice F3.
Although, I would also consider the F4s. I love this camera, the way it lays in my hand, it's heavy (for me a plus)
and I just like the looks. I also have a F5 which I love also, but if I had to choose, I would take the F4s.
Both the F4s and F5 can be get cheap nowadays....

And remember Ansel Adams:
" ... avoid the common illusion that creativity depends on equipment alone ... "
(quote from his book: The Camera)

Russ - SVP · Apr 5, 2018

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’m a lefty, and never has an issue with the FE, FE-2, FM, etc.

Theo Sulphate · Apr 5, 2018

< 8 year old thread! >

So, Michael, what did you eventually do?

Having two F3/T's, an FE2, and an FM3a, I vote for the FM3a or the FE2 for just plain fun.

Why? Yes, the F3 is better built (especially the T), has a great HP prism, and is smooth, but for me at least, I can't stand the viewfinder display.

The FE2 / FM3a viewfinder with its analog shutter display, blue and black needles, works for me.

chip j · Apr 5, 2018

Crappy, crappy, crappy F3 readout makes it nearly useless for me (I only got one to shoot close-ups).

Jeff Bradford · Apr 5, 2018

I sold my FE2 and F3 when I got my F4. Then I got another FE2 because I missed it.

macfred · Apr 5, 2018

Traded the F3 against the F4 -felt like a slippery cake of soap- sold it and bought the F2 - happy now ...

flavio81 · Apr 5, 2018

chip j said:
Crappy, crappy, crappy F3 readout makes it nearly useless for me (I only got one to shoot close-ups).

My opinion too. F3 display is crap for manual metering and ok for auto shooting.

I've owned F3, FE and used FE2, also own EL.

I'd take a FE2 over an F3 any day. MUCH better display (and thus, usability) and then it has a substantially faster shutter. However, the main defect of FE2&FM2 are that they can't mount pre-AI lenses. Thus, I got a FE.

But the FE is of inferior build quality to a Nikkormat EL, and the EL can mount pre-AI lenses and do AE with them too, so in the end i sold the FE and kept the EL.

Joel_L · Apr 6, 2018

OK, old thread revived. I have an F3HP and FE2. I like both but I have an affinity to the meter system of the FE2. I enjoy shooting with it more.

Sirius Glass · Apr 6, 2018

Nikon F100.

cooltouch · Apr 6, 2018

Hah! It's a hoot seeing that a thread I started eight years ago gets revived and still has legs!

Okay, that was back in 2010 when I started this thread. At the time, I think I owned only a single Nikon -- my venerable old F2. Lots of things have happened since then. For starters, I put the F3 vs FE2 controversy to bed by eventually buying both. But I should also mention that, in addition to these, I've also bought an original F with the first, non-TTL Photomic finder (64xxxx), another F2 (actually an F2S), an FE, a Nikon EL2, a Nikkormat FT3, an N80, and an F4. One of these days I'll get an FM --- or maybe an FM2. But I own a Pentax MX, which takes care of any FM itch pretty well. So anyway, by my count, I now own 10 Nikons, all great examples of the marque. But I'll probably add a few more Nikon 35s before everything's all said and done.

etn · Apr 7, 2018

cooltouch said:
Hah! It's a hoot seeing that a thread I started eight years ago gets revived and still has legs!

The question is still very pertinent even today!

mshchem · Apr 7, 2018

Sirius Glass said:
Nikon F100.

Enthusiastic plus 1. I still prefer a F5 because of my huge hands.. I it's got to be manual, F3HP hands down. Get a mint example, and the lovely leather case, then just use te bottom half. F100 is actually able to auto expose slides, F3 you need to be careful with a very center weighted meter .
I remember the first time I trusted my F5 to expose slide film, I was so used to using an incident light meter. I was shocked with how well it works.

darkroommike · Apr 7, 2018

It's an old thread but it depends on what you shoot, where you shoot, and how you shoot. Overall, at the same price point my choice would be an FE2 (or FM2) for the higher flash sync speed but more than either I would like (and have used for many years) a Nikon 8008S which is more like the F4. High sync speed, TTL flash, AF (and focus confirmation for non-AF lenses), spot metering, etc.

Ai Print · Apr 8, 2018

cooltouch said:
Hah! It's a hoot seeing that a thread I started eight years ago gets revived and still has legs!

Okay, that was back in 2010 when I started this thread. At the time, I think I owned only a single Nikon -- my venerable old F2. Lots of things have happened since then. For starters, I put the F3 vs FE2 controversy to bed by eventually buying both. But I should also mention that, in addition to these, I've also bought an original F with the first, non-TTL Photomic finder (64xxxx), another F2 (actually an F2S), an FE, a Nikon EL2, a Nikkormat FT3, an N80, and an F4. One of these days I'll get an FM --- or maybe an FM2. But I own a Pentax MX, which takes care of any FM itch pretty well. So anyway, by my count, I now own 10 Nikons, all great examples of the marque. But I'll probably add a few more Nikon 35s before everything's all said and done.

Wow, all those cameras and you just flat out skipped one of the best 35mm SLR’s ever made, the FM3A.

I use a FM3A, F3HP and F100 in Nikon film and the FM3A is by far my favorite, bought it brand new from B&H in 2002. I don’t collect cameras though, I use them for work and the FM3A just amazes me in how it handles, how well it’s auto metering works and then the camera keeps on cranking if the batteries die and I don’t happen to have spares.

A lot of people are put off by and therefore greatly misunderstand the FM3A because it goes for a paltry few hundred more than other Nikon camera bodies.

Theo Sulphate · Apr 8, 2018

Ai Print said:
... one of the best 35mm SLR’s ever made, the FM3A.
...

Yes, it is.

Erik D. Herrmann Sr. · Apr 8, 2018

Chip j mentioned the crappy meter display in the F3. And wile I have to agree with him on that, I still love shooting with it. However, the match needle in my FE has got to be my favorite of all my Nikons.

cooltouch · Apr 9, 2018

Ai Print said:
Wow, all those cameras and you just flat out skipped one of the best 35mm SLR’s ever made, the FM3A.

Oh, believe me, skipping the FM3A was intentional. You see, I'm basically a cheap bastid. The most expensive Nikon I own is my F4, which cost me almost $200. All my other Nikons, including my F2s and F3, I paid much less for. Maybe someday I'll get an FM3A, but the way I see it right now, there's not enough difference between it and my FE2 to justify the added expense.

Russ - SVP · Apr 11, 2018

Theo Sulphate said:
< 8 year old thread! >

So, Michael, what did you eventually do?

Having two F3/T's, an FE2, and an FM3a, I vote for the FM3a or the FE2 for just plain fun.

Why? Yes, the F3 is better built (especially the T), has a great HP prism, and is smooth, but for me at least, I can't stand the viewfinder display.

The FE2 / FM3a viewfinder with its analog shutter display, blue and black needles, works for me.

Theo

What do you dislike about the F3 viewfinder display? I really like my FE, FE-2 bodies.

Thanks

dnk512 · Apr 11, 2018

Had both, sold both, want both back.

Thinks that matter to me:
FE2 has a higher finder magnification. I use glasses and still prefer it to the F3 finder which has more eye relief (with the HP having even more).
F3 feels better in the hand, more solid, slicker, 'sounds' better, but hard to find a good one without a high price tag.

Both equally reliable, though the mechanical speed on the F3 is more usable than the one on the FE2
FE2 has better flash synch for outdoor fill-in (250 vs 90)

you will not regret either,
--d

Theo Sulphate · Apr 11, 2018

Kiron Kid said:
...What do you dislike about the F3 viewfinder display? I really like my FE, FE-2 bodies.

The digital shutter speed display in the upper left of the viewfinder is, for me, a poor way of presenting information. I also think it's too small.

A scale display with a needle, such as on the FE, FE2, FM3a, provides me with a more intuitive indication of the selected speed - much the same as an "analog" watch dial vs. a digital display.

My favorite might just might be the Canon EF's viewfinder, although I'm growing very fond of that on the F-1N.

Also, the Minolta XD-11 presents its information very well in all modes.

Russ - SVP · Apr 11, 2018

Theo Sulphate said:
The digital shutter speed display in the upper left of the viewfinder is, for me, a poor way of presenting information. I also think it's too small.

A scale display with a needle, such as on the FE, FE2, FM3a, provides me with a more intuitive indication of the selected speed - much the same as an "analog" watch dial vs. a digital display.

My favorite might just might be the Canon EF's viewfinder, although I'm growing very fond of that on the F-1N.

Also, the Minolta XD-11 presents its information very well in all modes.

. Thanks

cooltouch · Apr 11, 2018

Theo Sulphate said:
The digital shutter speed display in the upper left of the viewfinder is, for me, a poor way of presenting information. I also think it's too small.

A scale display with a needle, such as on the FE, FE2, FM3a, provides me with a more intuitive indication of the selected speed - much the same as an "analog" watch dial vs. a digital display.

My favorite might just might be the Canon EF's viewfinder, although I'm growing very fond of that on the F-1N.

Also, the Minolta XD-11 presents its information very well in all modes.

I agree with you about the rather poor placement of the F3's meter readout. Not only that but because of the way it is positioned in the finder, it is often poorly illuminated. It just seems like it was a rather crude afterthought and wasn't really in keeping with an otherwise excellent first class machine.

Ever since I bought my first Canon FTb, I've been a big fan of match needle metering. Thus, I've always liked the meter display in the original Canon F-1, and later, the F-1N. My fondness for this metering method has resulted in liking other camera makes, as a result. I like the match-needle display found in the Nikon FE and FE2 and also the EL2, which appears to be just about the same as that found in the FE/FE2. I also like the Pentax KX for the same reason. Other higher tech cameras that basically do the same thing but with LEDs, like the Pentax LX and the Minolta X-570 (but not the X-700) are fun to use. I also owned a Canon EOS Rebel that actually had a decent manual mode and used a method very similar to match needle metering. Adjusting the aperture or shutter speed moves a cursor above an exposure scale, the object being to center it. I've noticed this same sort of system on other makes as well. Not really matching needles, but it is quick and intuitive.

Nikon F3 or FE2 -- which would you choose?

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