Too late to buy a Nikon F6?

[snaggs]

Ok, its been a few days now.. if anyone thinks about film as being old and out of date, they should try a F6. Makes any of the digital camera's I've used feel clunky and obsolete! It is just so responsive, the mirror blackout time is a mere flicker, and the film is wound to the next shot in milliseconds. I didn't guess that a camera could be so much more responsive than the FM3a.

Daniel.

 

[Sirius Glass]

My F-100 arrived a couple of days ago and I am as happy as a pig in sh*t!

Steve

 

[Film Enthusiast]

To support the continued manufacture of film based cameras, we should, whenever possible purchase a brand new factory fresh camera, as otherwise there won't be any new cameras to buy. The manufacturer will look at current sales to determine the way forward.

You are absolutely right! If all of us are only buying on the used market, even the last manufacturers of film cameras will stop their production.
Therefore it is absolutely necessary to buy new cameras to keep the production alive.

I have bought a brand new F6 and I can highly recommend it.
The best AF-SLR ever made.
And furthermore the best manual focus SLR ever made if you use one of the interchangeable screens for manual focus! It is a real dream to use this camera with the old manual Nikkor AI and AI-S lenses, and especially with the new Zeiss ZF lenses.

Regards,
Michael

 

[BobbyR]

You are absolutely right! If all of us are only buying on the used market, even the last manufacturers of film cameras will stop their production.
Therefore it is absolutely necessary to buy new cameras to keep the production alive.

I have bought a brand new F6 and I can highly recommend it.
The best AF-SLR ever made.
And furthermore the best manual focus SLR ever made if you use one of the interchangeable screens for manual focus! It is a real dream to use this camera with the old manual Nikkor AI and AI-S lenses, and especially with the new Zeiss ZF lenses.
Regards,
Michael

Could you give a bit of detail about the high-lighted above. I know of them and that is all and that is just from a few lines in a magazine.

I HAD said I will never buy an F-6 because of the lack of manual rewind, but then I also considered the Canon EOS system to be the DEVILS darling but now as prices on some lenses and 1n/1v bodies are a bargain compared to recent F2 or even F-1 prices, I have seriously considered getting an EOS.

The F6 is looking better every day, even if my bank account looks rather pathetic and waaay overspent.

 

[Craig]

I HAD said I will never buy an F-6 because of the lack of manual rewind

The F6 does have manual rewind, I use it over the power rewind.

 

[Vilk]

And furthermore the best manual focus SLR ever made if you use one of the interchangeable screens for manual focus!

is there a quality (and i mean B3 quality) screen for it anywhere that wouldn't have the AF markers? it may be the last thing keeping me from getting it--i can't see the subject behind all those fancy patterns

 

[k_jupiter]

OMG! How can I live with myself. I have only bought two new cameras in my life, none since 1987.

How can I live??? In 35mm I only shoot with a Nikon FM2 and a Zorki 1. I am doomed. I only own two Nikon lens, the 35/2.0 and the 105/2.5.

Me have GAS? Nah, Every one of those 47 cameras has a purpose.

Y'alll keep buying new cameras. It's still like buying cars... I don't need that expensive New Camera Smell. I'll use your rejects.

You guys crack me up.

tim in san jose

 

[Film Enthusiast]

Could you give a bit of detail about the high-lighted above. I know of them and that is all and that is just from a few lines in a magazine.

Bobby, I have the ZF 1,4/85 and 2/50. Both are stellar performers, better than the excellent Nikkors 1,4/85 and 1,8/50. Tack sharp from one corner to the other, beautiful bokeh. Excellent performance even at max. aperture. Superb build quality.
Perhaps these reviews may be helpful for you:
http://www.photozone.de/Reviews/46-nikon--nikkor-aps-c

I HAD said I will never buy an F-6 because of the lack of manual rewind,....

The F6 has a manuel rewind. Very nice feature if you need silence.

Regards,
Michael

 

[Film Enthusiast]

is there a quality (and i mean B3 quality) screen for it anywhere that wouldn't have the AF markers? it may be the last thing keeping me from getting it--i can't see the subject behind all those fancy patterns

So far I have used the standard screen B for AF, and the screens A and L for manual focus. All three screens are excellent, you can see the subject through the AF markers very clear and without problems. The markers are very discreet and not distracting at all.

Regards,
Michael

 

[snaggs]

Could you give a bit of detail about the high-lighted above. I know of them and that is all and that is just from a few lines in a magazine.

I HAD said I will never buy an F-6 because of the lack of manual rewind, but then I also considered the Canon EOS system to be the DEVILS darling but now as prices on some lenses and 1n/1v bodies are a bargain compared to recent F2 or even F-1 prices, I have seriously considered getting an EOS.

The F6 is looking better every day, even if my bank account looks rather pathetic and waaay overspent.

The F6 has manual rewind.. it also has auto-rewind, configurable in a bunch of different ways to how you like it.. you can also have it auto-rewind and leave leader out.

Just got back my first set of chromes. The metering is pretty amazing compared to my FM3a. Even with my best efforts to use my brain, the F6 has way more keepers. When used with a flash in balanced FF mode, every photo is perfectly exposed. No washed out skies, and the flash is very subtle on the foreground. Seriously, you guys need to borrow a Canon for a couple of months to appreciate that the 3D Matrix Metering II stuff is not marketing.

Buy an F6 from Hong Kong.. they're cheaper. Any other questions I can answer for you?

Daniel.

PS. 1/8000 flash sync is pretty useful.

 

[snaggs]

OMG! How can I live with myself. I have only bought two new cameras in my life, none since 1987.

How can I live??? In 35mm I only shoot with a Nikon FM2 and a Zorki 1. I am doomed. I only own two Nikon lens, the 35/2.0 and the 105/2.5.

Me have GAS? Nah, Every one of those 47 cameras has a purpose.

Y'alll keep buying new cameras. It's still like buying cars... I don't need that expensive New Camera Smell. I'll use your rejects.

You guys crack me up.

tim in san jose

Ok, well I bought my F6 new from Hong Kong for less than the going 2nd hand price. Not that I don't think your FM2 is an awesome camera!

However, what the F6 does do, is show you that 90% of the features available in the latest digital cameras can be delivered in a film camera. So maybe even though you don't want one, its still a good thing for film.

Daniel.

 

[BobbyR]

Ok, well I bought my F6 new from Hong Kong for less than the going 2nd hand price. Not that I don't think your FM2 is an awesome camera!

However, what the F6 does do, is show you that 90% of the features available in the latest digital cameras can be delivered in a film camera. So maybe even though you don't want one, its still a good thing for film.

Daniel.

Do you have a link to a Hong Kong site; unlike Singapore, most Hong Kong sites are in Chinese.

 

[BobbyR]

Bobby, I have the ZF 1,4/85 and 2/50. Both are stellar performers, better than the excellent Nikkors 1,4/85 and 1,8/50. Tack sharp from one corner to the other, beautiful bokeh. Excellent performance even at max. aperture. Superb build quality.
Perhaps these reviews may be helpful for you:
Michael

So it seems then that Zeiss with the, I assume from the article, death of the Contax cameras is simply putting their lenses into other mounts.
If more lens makes do this people with Nikons could really have an amazing variety to choose from.

I am really sad I quit pop. photo now, even if the digi stuff was not of much interest to me, I have missed all the goings on in the photo industry.
Bobby

 

[pentaxuser]

Do you have a link to a Hong Kong site; unlike Singapore, most Hong Kong sites are in Chinese.

There's a Hong Kong supplier( may be the same one) offering new F6s in English, on the UK e-bay site at £799 which is way below normal UK prices, even allowing for about 20% for customs duties.

If I recall, the seller says that in certain countries and I think the U.S. is an example there is no duty to pay. As he speaks about the U.S on the UK e-bay site this might mean that his U.S. price is the U.K. price converted to $ but I don't know. Allowing for the fact that most photo equipment seems to sell for less in the U.S. the HK supplier price might be even less than the equivalent £799.

The same supplier sells films etc so should be easy to find. Worth a look possibly? Only drawback may be warranty issues.

pentaxuser

 

[snaggs]

Do you have a link to a Hong Kong site; unlike Singapore, most Hong Kong sites are in Chinese.

www.hksupplies.com

I've bought my fm3a, f6 and 85mm f/1.4 from them.

Daniel.

 

[Film Enthusiast]

So it seems then that Zeiss with the, I assume from the article, death of the Contax cameras is simply putting their lenses into other mounts.

No Bobby, that is not the case. The Zeiss ZF lenses are new designs.

Regards,
Michael

 

[Film Enthusiast]

There's a Hong Kong supplier( may be the same one) offering new F6s in English, on the UK e-bay site at £799 which is way below normal UK prices, even allowing for about 20% for customs duties.

.....
The same supplier sells films etc so should be easy to find. Worth a look possibly? Only drawback may be warranty issues.

pentaxuser

For those in europe who want the european warranty buying in Germany may be an option. Films and cameras are often significantly cheaper in Germany compared to other european countries.
Example: F6 for 1818€, F6 with MB40 for 2099€ at AC-Foto www.ac-foto.com .

Regards,
Michael

 

[BobbyR]

No Bobby, that is not the case. The Zeiss ZF lenses are new designs.

Regards,
Michael

Wellll--then someone is not telling the truth:The Zeiss Planar ZF T* 85mm f/1.4 is one of the few all-time lens classics. It has seen many incarnations over time from the ancient Contax C/Y era over the also gone Contax N-system and now in Sony ZA and Nikon F mounts - each with slight optical variations due to the different lens mount characteristics and/or the requirements regarding the focus group. It is based on a symmetrical Planar design originally invented in 1896(!). "Planar" originates in the German word plan ("plane" in English) and refers to the flat reproduction characteristic (minimal field curvature).

This is straight out of the photozone article.
Bobby

 

[Film Enthusiast]

Wellll--then someone is not telling the truth:The Zeiss Planar ZF T* 85mm f/1.4 is one of the few all-time lens classics. It has seen many incarnations over time from the ancient Contax C/Y era over the also gone Contax N-system and now in Sony ZA and Nikon F mounts - each with slight optical variations due to the different lens mount characteristics and/or the requirements regarding the focus group. It is based on a symmetrical Planar design originally invented in 1896(!). "Planar" originates in the German word plan ("plane" in English) and refers to the flat reproduction characteristic (minimal field curvature).

This is straight out of the photozone article.
Bobby

Hi Bobby,

the photozone article is not quite right, and probably my first answer was too short and not detailed enough.

The new ZF 1,4/50 and 1,4/85 are similar to the old ones for Contax, but not completely identical. They have the new improved Zeiss coating technology, which was at first introduced by Zeiss for their cine lens programme.
Please look at the Zeiss homepage for further details concerning the new coating.
All other Zeiss ZF lenses are completely new designs. This information is directly from Zeiss.

Regards,
Michael