Nikon F80 - my new quiet P&S camera

[darkosaric]

As I sold my Contax T2, I needed to get some new good P&S camera, something quiet and cheap, but with good lens.
So I got myself nikon F80 for 19 euros, with 50/1.8 it is almost as P&S - has all requirements that I want, as I don't mind bigger size.

I was amazed how quiet F80 is. I have installed sound meter app - and it is quieter than M3 and M6 shutter for cca 1,5 dB.
In comparison to other nikon that I have F, F3 and F60 are much louder, and F801 is like AK47 .

 

[dmtnkl]

Used to have one, now thinking of getting it again as a backup body.

Yes it is very quiet. And a very capable camera with very good autofocus and superb metering. Velvia 50 on F80's matrix meter always came out great.

If only its' superb matrix metering worked with manual focus lenses.... it would have been the best value from a Nikon camera.

The shutter has a little bit of lag (not really worrisome) and the focusing screen is not interchangeable... Well you could put another one in there but it requires a lot of caution because the pin that holds it in place can break very very easily. Oh and that sticky leatherette... but that is a problem for most Nikon cameras of that time. But there are ways around it.

A *really small* combination would be the F65 + 45mm f/2.8p (manual focus but chipped, so it matrix meters properly). The F65 is dirt cheap but the 45 can be quite pricey.

 

[chip j]

N80 & NIkon 28-100mm G zoom are about all I use anymore.

 

[destroya]

for the price I think its one of the best values in auto focus 35mm. I got one a few years ago, almost unused in box with the battery pack for $20. It also uses G lenses, so I use it primarily with the 14-24. man that lens on that body looks like it has its proportions all out of whack.

 

[images39]

I used to have one, and must agree that it is very quiet, especially for a motor-driven camera. It's one weakness was poor autofocusing in low light. In low light, it would hunt focus, and you can miss shots in fast-moving situations. Because of this, I switched it for an F100 and the problem was solved (but with a heavier body). Night and day difference in autofocus performance. However, if you're mainly shooting in daylight, the F80 is fine, and it's smaller and lighter than an F100.

Dale

 

[M-88]

I've never seen any other SLR as quiet as F80. You can even set film rewind to slow mode so that even that will be almost noiseless. The only annoyance for me are the batteries, because of which I have a MB-16 attached.

Mine is a gift from a very respectable gentleman who recommended F80 to me when he learned I don't fancy auto-advance cameras.

 

[awty]

I like the f55 for point and shoot'n it is smaller lighter and easy to operate one handed, but hey lets not talk them up too much, they are already going up. Once they were cheaper than the battery.

 

[Sewin]

I like the f55 for point and shoot'n it is smaller lighter and easy to operate one handed, but hey lets not talk them up too much, they are already going up. Once they were cheaper than the battery.

F60 for me,also had an F65, but as you say keep quiet, prices are going up.

 

[BMbikerider]

I've never seen any other SLR as quiet as F80. You can even set film rewind to slow mode so that even that will be almost noiseless. The only annoyance for me are the batteries, because of which I have a MB-16 attached.

Mine is a gift from a very respectable gentleman who recommended F80 to me when he learned I don't fancy auto-advance cameras.

You should hear (if you can) the shutter on a Minolta XM (XK in the states) By far the quietest shutter on any SLR I have owned or used. Even quieter than my F6. If there is background noise, wind, etc., it is almost impossible to hear and I sometimes have to check

 

[wjlapier]

Mine is the Nikon U2 ( N75/F75 ) with AF 50/1.8. Tiny camera with the mentioned excellent meter. Mine arrived sticky but easily cleaned off and now feels nice and smooth. Tiny.

 

[Bob Carnie]

Funny.. I have just got my very first digital camera and it is a Nikon D80 - I plan to use it on a copy stand to do decent quality copys of my alternative prints as I finish them... Here is a noobie question. can a Nikon D80 be tethered to Capture One software?, I am hoping to set up my copystand within feet of my computer station

 

[Paul Manuell]

I remember buying one of those brand new; in fact, my last 35mm purchase before going down the MF route. I sold it a couple years ago after not having used it for years, and was amazed at how light and quiet it was when checking it was all in working order before selling. It made my Pentax 645NII (which itself is very quiet compared to the first MF camera I owned, a Bronica ETRSi) sound like a clunking great lump.

 

[M-88]

You should hear (if you can) the shutter on a Minolta XM (XK in the states) By far the quietest shutter on any SLR I have owned or used. Even quieter than my F6. If there is background noise, wind, etc., it is almost impossible to hear and I sometimes have to check

That's hardly an option considering its rarity and price tag. And I would never have guessed that behemoth has a quiet shutter.

F80 would be close to perfect if it could meter with manual lenses. But the camera shows up regularly for 20$ or so, what else can I expect at that price? And contrary to popular belief, AF is adequate, unlike real first generation AF of F501. After all, it's a child of year 2000, not the eighties.

 

[BMbikerider]

That's hardly an option considering its rarity and price tag. And I would never have guessed that behemoth has a quiet shutter..

The XM/XK can hardly be called a behemoth. It about the same size as a Nikon F2AS and the weight is about the same. Yes it is very very quiet. My other Minolta, an XE1 is as noisy as they come, but has a silky smooth wind on, where the XM hasn't.

The shutter on the XM is a horizontal running titanium foil design and they can be quieter than a vertical one Swings and roundabouts I suppose. Heavy it may be, but I like it very much.

 

[dmtnkl]

the shutter may be quiet, but what about the mirror slap on the XM? Just curious.

 

[ic-racer]

Another fan of the F100, N75 and N55. One nice thing about that pair is that if you can find the AA battery adapter, it will fit both cameras.

The Nikon numbering does not seem to make sense to me, so I like to consult this chart. For example the N55 has more in common with the N75 and is newer than the N65.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

As I sold my Contax T2, I needed to get some new good P&S camera, something quiet and cheap, but with good lens.
So I got myself nikon F80 for 19 euros, with 50/1.8 it is almost as P&S - has all requirements that I want, as I don't mind bigger size.

I was amazed how quiet F80 is. I have installed sound meter app - and it is quieter than M3 and M6 shutter for cca 1,5 dB.
In comparison to other nikon that I have F, F3 and F60 are much louder, and F801 is like AK47 .

good idea; got to dig mine out and start it up again!

 

[John Earley]

I liked the N80 so much that I bought 3 of them, all like new (except for one that was sticky) and all for less than $20. Since the F80/N80 came out just at the beginning of the digital era, many of them were used very little and then set aside for a D camera.

 

[BMbikerider]

the shutter may be quiet, but what about the mirror slap on the XM? Just curious.

The mirror, like the shutter is extremely quiet with no vibration either going up or dropping down. I will admit that I have had all the rubber seals changed a couple of years ago including the ones that dampen any noise or vibration. Whilst the Nikon F2 was it's rival in the professional stakes, in a lot of ways the XM/XK was better. It was more technically advanced having a stepless automatic exposure which the F2 didn't have. That came along years later with the F3.

The Achilles Heel for professional use, was the lack of motor-drive until they brought out the model with the permanently attached motor, (Like the F4s and probably as heavy) but by then they had missed the boat and it just faded away. It had a tremendous lens and accessory back up including interchangeable prisms, backs, screens and a lot more besides, easily as good as Nikon or Canon. The glass in Minolta lenses was on par with anything else sold by the other major manufacturers. Some the lenses are now very hard to find, possibly because the current owners realise how good they are. Personally I would dearly love to find a 20mm/F2,8

 

[flatulent1]

Over the years I've had (and sold) three N80. Lovely camera, I just never used them enough to justify owning them.

My current favorite P&S is the Canon EOS RT coupled with the EF 40mm STM. The RT is a pellicle mirror camera with instantaneous shutter response and no mirror slap.

 

[BMbikerider]

I liked the N80 so much that I bought 3 of them, all like new (except for one that was sticky) and all for less than $20. Since the F80/N80 came out just at the beginning of the digital era, many of them were used very little and then set aside for a D camera.

Which in Nikon's case, the F80 morphed into the D100

 

[Down Under]

Also the Nikon F65 (N65), an ideal P&S in its own right, as good and certainly as quiet as all the other'baby Nikons' made in the late 1990s / early 2000s.

Our at home point and shoot is an F65 I bought new at a discount sale in Melbourne in 2006 for (IRRC) about A$270. It came with a so-so 28-80G zoom which I didn't give results I liked and I soon parted company with it in a part trade for four Nikon E lenses (28, 35, the superb 50 1.8 and the amazing 100 which does stellar work on the F65, my partner's D90 and now and then my D700 when I need a short tele and my 85 1.8 D isn't to hand), a 35-70 AF in its original box, an impressive stash of B&W film and an MB-17 battery pack/grip. This pack takes four AA batteries and doesn't add much to either the weight or noise level of the camera, which is very quiet.

In 13 years of (admittedly irregular) use, my F65 has never malfunctioned and still works like new. It's satisfyingly fast and responsive to use and produces quite excellent images on FP4+ or HP5+. Like all the other small non-metal (it's made of polycarbonate, whatever that is) Nikons of its time, Even with the winder it's light and easily carried in a backpack or a small camera bag along with film and one or two lenses. It has a satisfying array of exposure modes - I use it almost entirely on 'M' or the 'A' setting which lets me select the f/stops I prefer to shoot at. Metering is spot on and there is an override to set the camera to under/overexpose. My camera also has a quartz date back which I have to admit I've never used, but it would be handy for someone wanting data imprinted on their negatives or slides.

I believe the late Galen Rowen used the F65/N65 as one of his preferred cameras for his mountain photography.

Out of curiosity, I've just checked Ebay Australia and found six at auction prices from A$50 to (a classic case of hope versus common sense) A$800 for clean-looking models without lenses. F55s are cheaper with Ebay prices starting at a whopping A$15. There is also an F60, but as I've never seen or used one I will leave it to others to sing its praises. Overseas F65 prices (again, Ebay) are somewhat higher, but the point here is that these cameras are still available at bargain prices, aso Series E or older AF lenses. For travel, an F55-F60-F65 with kit zoom, a 35-70 AF or a 28 or 25 E lens is, I reckon, an ideal minimalist kit for backpackers.

Many good but now forgotten cameras can be found on Ebay, in charity shops or small camera stores. As someone has commented, prices are quite likely to go up soon, so if you want a good camera for street work or P&S, grab one or even two of these small Nikons and maybe an E lens. They are worth investing in.

 

[M-88]

Many good but now forgotten cameras can be found on Ebay, in charity shops or small camera stores. As someone has commented, prices are quite likely to go up soon, so if you want a good camera for street work or P&S, grab one or even two of these small Nikons and maybe an E lens. They are worth investing in.

It's all about "trend" and stuff like that, AF cameras look like their digital counterparts, while MF cameras look more "vintage". So I think that's why AF cameras are still cheap by now. But like you said, it's only a matter of time for relatively cheap autofocus cameras to get a price increase.

Back to the subject of this thread - there are a few unnerving things on F80 and one of them is film door release with single lever (same goes for F65 IIRC). I'm always paranoid about opening the back inadvertently so I tape it over every time. F90 had two levers which had to be pushed at a same time and that version looks more sound in my opinion.

 

[darkosaric]

film door release with single lever

I also use a piece of black tape as additional security

 

[M-88]

I also use a piece of black tape as additional security

Same here with F80 (other cameras have door release coupled with rewind crank and it proved adequate even after a few falls). Besides, flash lock pin is half broken on my F80 and I have the flash taped too, so it won't open in the least convenient moment.