Nikon F6?

I have a fair collection of classic 35mm cameras; something in the range of 35 with better than half being SLR's. Most shoot quite well, but some have meters that are a bit non linear due to aging CdS; and good luck finding replacements.

I am toying with the idea of purchasing a new Nikon F6 camera for us in critical applications. I already have lots of compatible lenses. I was wondering if any members have experience with the F6 that they would like to share.

Thanks

There are many 35mm SLRs with good meters, even Nikon ones that will fit your lenses. If you want an F6 bear in mind the technology is not consistent with the latest DSLR tech, and the latest lenses may not be compatible.

There was a thread about the F6 recently (maybe about one month ago), you might want to have a look at it.
It is considered by many, including myself, the pinnacle of 35mm technology (this expression is not from me!)
It is a bit like a DSLR which shoots on film, with all its advantages (mainly autofocus and metering) and disadvantages:

• The big downside in my opinion is its size and weight,
• Battery life is poor, although I don't this this as being much of a problem: a set of spares take less space than a film roll (or a DSLR battery) and can be found quite cheap.
• Who knows if it will still be repairable in 10 or 20 years from now (but the same goes for other cameras relying on electronics such as Xpan, Zeiss Ikon ZM, etc. which cost a similar chunk of cash)

If you can find one at a good price, and don't mind the size or the expense, go for it!
Side note, if you happen to be in Japan sometime in the future, have a look there: the F6 goes for a song there (around $600 used). If you want to buy new, the best price seems to be in Europe at around €1700.

I bought an F6 about 2 years ago and it is the finest 35mm SLR I have ever owned. The exposures are/have always been spot on, and even with 3rd party flash units which sometimes gave me odd exposures with a F100 I used to own. Even battery life is very good, with at least 20 x 36 exp. (2x CR123) I can safely say you will not be disappointed. The only downside I have found is the weight, but I can put up with that because it is outweighed by all the good attributes.

I would not worry too much about the claim that some lenses are not compatible with the F6, there are simply mountains of AFD type lenses out there which work 100% with that camera.

Unlike the Nikon F, F2, F3, F4, and F5, the Nikon F6 does not have an interchangeable viewfinder.

narsuitus said:

Unlike the Nikon F, F2, F3, F4, and F5, the Nikon F6 does not have an interchangeable viewfinder.

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I suspect a tiny fraction of those viewfinders were ever changed, and those were in specialist applications like medical photography and microscopy. By the time the F6 came out Nikon figured interchangeable heads were not necessary in a 35mm professional camera, as Canon had worked out a 15 years previously.

The F6 is a niche camera in 2017, as it is the most technically advanced Nikon 35mm SLR made, but is still 14 year old technology. A long time in camera tech, and one suspects on borrowed time in Nikon's marketing and servicing strategy. Without knowing exactly what the OP wants the camera for, I'd suggest many modern users are looking for the widest possible Nikon lens application. In many ways one of the later Canon EOS cameras would be a better bet as it shares a "modern" mount. For many years the F mount was held as the exemplar of interchangeability, but Nikon have abandoned that in recent times.

The only reason I'd buy an F6 is if I owned a decent collection of Nikon AF glass, and wanted the best AF and metering for that glass. For any other application I think there are better choices.

narsuitus said:

Unlike the Nikon F, F2, F3, F4, and F5, the Nikon F6 does not have an interchangeable viewfinder.

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How often did you change the viewfinder. A fixed one provides one less place to let dust into the workings? Is there a modern Digital 35mm camera that has an interchangeable viewfinder - I rest my case!

blockend said:

There are many 35mm SLRs with good meters, even Nikon ones that will fit your lenses. If you want an F6 bear in mind the technology is not consistent with the latest DSLR tech, and the latest lenses may not be compatible.

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Your post is very confusing. My research indicates the F6 is the most advanced and latest technology 35mm camera made by Nikon. All the latest film camera lenses work on that body. DSLR was not mentioned in the original post and is not relevant.

etn said:

If you want to buy new, the best price seems to be in Europe at around €1700.

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I didn't think you could still buy one new...Googling the F6 seems to show they stopped making them in 2014 or thereabouts, so presumably any new ones are all residual old stock

ic-racer said:

Your post is very confusing. My research indicates the F6 is the most advanced and latest technology 35mm camera made by Nikon. All the latest film camera lenses work on that body. DSLR was not mentioned in the original post and is not relevant.

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The F6 is not compatible with the new E lenses (E stands for electronic diaphragm and not the old series E). It works only at maximum aperture.

blockend said:

I suspect a tiny fraction of those viewfinders were ever changed, and those were in specialist applications like medical photography and microscopy. By the time the F6 came out Nikon figured interchangeable heads were not necessary in a 35mm professional camera, as Canon had worked out a 15 years previously.

The F6 is a niche camera in 2017, as it is the most technically advanced Nikon 35mm SLR made, but is still 14 year old technology. A long time in camera tech, and one suspects on borrowed time in Nikon's marketing and servicing strategy. Without knowing exactly what the OP wants the camera for, I'd suggest many modern users are looking for the widest possible Nikon lens application. In many ways one of the later Canon EOS cameras would be a better bet as it shares a "modern" mount. For many years the F mount was held as the exemplar of interchangeability, but Nikon have abandoned that in recent times.

The only reason I'd buy an F6 is if I owned a decent collection of Nikon AF glass, and wanted the best AF and metering for that glass. For any other application I think there are better choices.

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One advantage of interchangeable viewfinder even if you never swap it for another one is that it's very easy to change the focusing screen and to remove the focusing screen for cleaning.

BMbikerider said:

How often did you change the viewfinder. A fixed one provides one less place to let dust into the workings? Is there a modern Digital 35mm camera that has an interchangeable viewfinder - I rest my case!

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All my Nikon Digitals have replaceable focusing screens. I am fond of Nikon manual focus lenses and my F5 standard focusing screen is dodgy in some situations with them. I'm looking for a type l screen to replace it. They have their uses.

Chan Tran said:

One advantage of interchangeable viewfinder even if you never swap it for another one is that it's very easy to change the focusing screen and to remove the focusing screen for cleaning.

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But they only need cleaning to start with because the removable viewfinder lets dust in


*lights fuse and stands well back*

I have a large collection of classic SLR's (Olympus, Nikon, Pentax) but I have bought a new F6 this year to have a reliable camera that can be used for the next 10 or 20 years. It is actually one of the finest camera's I have, together with the FM3A.

The F6 is a very matured camera with all the bits and pieces in the right place, with a number of handy features, and with an excellent ergonomics also for manual focus lenses.

The top four features I like best are the matrix measurement, film transport, the feel of the shutter button, and ergonomics.

Film is transported extremely regular and consistent with a spacing exactly the distance between two perforations, and the position of the spacing is always exactly between two perforations too, which is handy for cutting strips.

Also, the number of frames shot can be set to exactly 36, which allows you to cut 6 strips of 6 frames consistently to store them in a standard sheet with 7 rows (I use row 1 for a paper strip with basic shooting info).

The shutter button tactile is one of the best of all the camera's I have. It has a light first part of the tract and then a clear point of pressure for tripping the shutter. This seems obvious but it is implemented extremely well in the F6. This shutter button gives you an exact mechanical feel.

Ergonomics is excellent, also for manual lenses. The bottom left part of the body has a bevel which makes the camera sneak into your hand.

Battery life of course depends on how much you shoot, but also if auto- or manual focus lenses are used, and if you are rewinding the film automatically (it can be done manual). A possibility is to use the optional battery grip MB-40 for AA batteries. See the manual for actual numbers on battery life.

A less favorable attribute is its size and weight; with battery grip it is actually bigger than the F5. My total weight without battery grip and with a small 28mm f/2.8 AIs lens is 1300 gr. So when I go out shooting for the sake of it I take the F6 with me, and when I go out shopping but still want to take a camera with me it's the FM3A.

My impression is that accessories are increasingly difficult to get. I still got a ground glass with split prism (I mostly shoot manual), a diopter, and the battery grip, but I had to do some searching and had to wait several weeks to get them. Officially the battery grip is out of production but you can still get it (I guess there is still new old stock).

I think it is a good time now to purchase an F6 before Nikon officially announces it is out of production and prices are going up. It is also still possible to get the most important accessories.
I can recommend this camera without any reservations.

MartinCrabtree said:

All my Nikon Digitals have replaceable focusing screens. I am fond of Nikon manual focus lenses and my F5 standard focusing screen is dodgy in some situations with them. I'm looking for a type l screen to replace it. They have their uses.

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I am not talking about screens! I am talking about replacing the actual prism head which were interchangeable on all Pro Nikons the F, F2, F3, F4 and the last one was the F5. Yes even with my F6 you can change the screens but not the head.

BMbikerider said:

How often did you change the viewfinder.

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I changed it as often as I needed when I was shooting through a telescope, on a copy stand, on a microscope, or when I was wearing protective eyewear.

BMbikerider said:

Is there a modern Digital 35mm camera that has an interchangeable viewfinder - I rest my case!

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No, but I wish there were because I need one.

Even my first 35mm film SLR (Miranda Sensorex) had an interchangeable viewfinder.

If the digital SLR has an articulated LCD, I would not need an interchangeable viewfinder.

Chan Tran said:

The F6 is not compatible with the new E lenses (E stands for electronic diaphragm and not the old series E). It works only at maximum aperture.

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That is also my understanding, but as I don't own any I can't confirm. The F6 doesn't accept pre-AI lenses, either, which removes the newest and oldest Nikkors from the equation. Which is why I said an F6 would suit someone with a collection of previous generation AF Nikon lenses, but not someone looking for the widest mount compatibility. That would be the F4 which is an exemplary SLR, but whose focussing lagged behind its Canon contemporaries. The digital "version" of the F6 was the Nikon D2x, a camera many would view as semi-obsolete. It's like the saying, a man of the same age can be an old footballer but a young writer, it depends on your perspective.

I bought an F4 a couple years ago, and I really like the feel of it and some of its performance aspects. I mean, despite its weight, it fits my hand like a glove and I find it a pleasure to use. Sometimes. Cuz its AF sucks pretty bad. My N80, admittedly a much newer camera, has much better AF. But it's lightweight and on the fragile side. So, I've been thinking about picking up an F5, now that prices for clean used examples are trending just a bit higher than what I paid for my F4. Used prices for the F6 are trending $500-600 more than the F5, and I have been wondering if the F6 is really worth the extra cash.

So I got a question for you folks who are familiar with both the F5 and F6 -- is there really that big of a difference between the two? I mean, the F5 was a watershed camera when it was released, with metering and AF capabilities that were so advanced, it is still unlikely that normal human activities (and even some not so normal) cannot be captured by this camera. I used to freelance as a motorsports photographer, and I still make it to the racetrack on occasion. What impressed me the most when I was reading about the F5's AF capabilities way back in the mid-90s was that it should be able to trap and capture just about any sort of race vehicle imaginable. And one could bear down on the motor drive if one wanted, and the result would be that all shots would be in focus and accurately exposed.

I just scanned through Ken Rockwell's review of the F5. When he compares it to the F6, he likens the F6 as a lightweight, not-quite-pro camera most likely intended for the prosumer market (my paraphrasing of what he wrote). I was a bit surprised by this, thinking the F6 would have been basically an improved F5, albeit with a fixed pentaprism finder. But apparently they are two entirely different cameras. Rockwell mentioned the weight of the F5 several times in his review. So I looked up the weight of the F4 with MB21 (F4S) and found it weighs 1280g, whereas the F5 weighs 1210g. And the F6 weighs a measly 965g, It's worth mentioning, just for comparison's sake, that an F3HP with MD4 weighs 1240g, and an F2AS with MD2/MB1 weighs in at a hefty 1310g. So, the F5 is in the ballpark with all the other pro model Nikons, whereas the F6 is indeed a relative lightweight. But does it really deserve the "not really a pro camera" moniker that Rockwell gives it? I suspect not. He obviously prefers the F5 over the F6. So I guess I'm wondering if there are others out there in Nikondom who also prefer the F5 over the F6 and to heck with the 250-odd gram difference. Thinking in Imperial units, 250 grams (well, 245 to be precise) is almost 9 ounces, over a half of a pound, so the weight reduction is fairly significant. But is that enough for one to want an F6 over an F5? I suspect not. So what is it about an F6 that makes it so much more desirable than an F5?

I just now finished reading a comparison between the F5 and F6, written by John Crane over at nikonf6.net. He likes the F5 a lot for certain aspects of its makeup, but argues that the F6 is considerably more advanced in other important ways. For example, apparently the F6's AF capabilities are quite a bit better than the F5's. More sensor areas in the viewfinder and they illuminate, whereas they are just black and gray in the F5's finder. So it's easier to track your subjects with the F6, but the F5 focuses faster than the F6, according to Crane. Crane repeatedly comments on the weight advantage of the F6, but then outlines how he has his F6 loaded up with extras such that it weighs about the same as the F5 (and F4 and F3 and sorta even the F2). According to his analysis, the F6 is indeed the superior camera, and well worth the money.

I dunno, though. Knowing me, I'll want both (I own one F, two F2s, an F3HP, and an F4s). So I guess I'll pick up an F5 while it's plentiful and cheap and just wait for the F6's prices to drop some more. Sound like a plan?

cooltouch said:

But does it really deserve the "not really a pro camera" moniker that Rockwell gives it?

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I doubt it. Pro Nikon users were a conservative bunch, who viewed new innovations and lighter weight suspiciously - which is why you could buy a new F after the F2 came out, and an F2 when the F3 emerged, etc. Remember the game was pretty much up for 35mm as a professional format by 2004, and the F6 would have been in development for a few years when it came to market. Nikon were trying to second guess a technology that was changing virtually overnight. The F6 was an attempt to add some of digital's early innovations to a film camera. It could have been a springboard to the future, but other developments condemned it to being a swansong.

I bought an F6 recently, and it shares my lens kit with my D810 (no E lenses). My recommendation? Go for it! The F6 is like no other SLR, in many very good ways.

Ironically, I also have a Df, which shares lenses with my FM. It’s wonderful to have all this flexibility in old/new, film/digital!

Reed

One point to consider is the matrix metering on the F6 (officially called '3D Color Matrix metering') in combination with B&W film and filters. The F6 user manual says:

"Effect of Matrix metering may not be obtained with filters that require compensation other than 1; use of Center-Weighted metering is recommended. For details, see the instruction manual of the filter."

So this indirectly means that filters with a strong color (other than UV and Skylight) may influence the reliability of the matrix metering. However, I did several rolls of HP5+ with a medium yellow filter (Y48) and none of my frames was under- or overexposed (which sometimes happens on my FM3A), but with stronger filters this may have subtle effects.

Other users have reported their matrix metering was working as expected even with strong filters but I don't know how careful they have compared the result without them.

Edit - Paragraph with comment about table with filters removed.

the way I use 35mm cameras, i tend to view them as light boxes with built in meters. i use manual focus lenses 95% of the time, so for me auto focus is not a big deal. that being said...

I have lots of nikon cameras, many i got when my dad died. he bought them all new. so I have and use an F4, F5. F100 N90 and N80. I would say it all depends on what type of lenses you plan on using. you say you have lenses already, but not if they are AF or MF. also, what type of film will you be using, B&W, color neg or slide film.

if using slide film, I feel the F5 meter is king of the hill. I have never missed a shot using the matrix meter and the just project perfectly. I believe the meter in the F6 is the same or very similar to the F5, both are color meters. All the other nikon matrix meters are not color. that being said, I can count on one hand the number of slide film shots I have missed because the meter made a mistake. if there was an issue, it was user error, not camera, meter error. the N80 seems to give me the second best exposures behind the F5, ahead of the F100 and F4

if you plan on using mostly MF lenses, then I prefer the F4 as I can get matrix metering with it and MF lenses, only center weighted with all my other nikons except my FA. just dont use the F4 much as the cost of a split prism focus screen costs more than a camera body. the F6 does give you matrix metering with MF lenses as well as the F4 and FA.

also with metering, there are many that dont like to shoot B&W film or color neg film using a matrix meter, saying that it under exposes, i just add a little more exposure. you could experiment a little do get it to work. if you plan on using the F6 with cemter weighted, you can obviously.

in my mind, the cost of an F6 pays for a lot of film, especially if you buy it new. I dont see the benefits of it over the other cameras there, unless you place a high value on buying new. before they closed, my local camera shop rented f6 cameras, so maybe you can try it before buying it. I find it hard to believe that the F6 f=will get you shots that an F5 or even an F100 would not get.

michael_r said:

Can you elaborate on this. I have an 85mm tilt/shift PC-E lens (which has an aperture ring) and it worked fine on my F4. I thought anything electronic that worked on an F4 would work on an F6 but I could easily be wrong. I'm considering an F6 to replace the F4.

Thanks

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With the exception of the PC lens that you have all E lenses are not compatible with any film cameras and not any DSLR made before the D3.
You can check it out in the manual for the 105mm f/1.4 E. http://download.nikonimglib.com/archive2/VAuGG00lfNUD02WU3KV52ySsqd94/AFS105_1.4EED_(7C_DL)01.pdf
Or you can check it here
https://www.nikonimgsupport.com/ni/NI_article?articleNo=000004725&configured=1&lang=en_US

OlyMan said:

But they only need cleaning to start with because the removable viewfinder lets dust in


*lights fuse and stands well back*

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Dust and dirt gets in when you change lenses. Many do have interchangeable focusing screen which you can remove but not as easy as one with interchangeable viewfinder. As far as the finder itself it's much easier to clean.