Top 10 classic 35mm film cameras

[frank]

Let's not go by sales. If we use that as a criteria, then the Big Mac would win an award for food.

 

[fotch]

Top sales figures, certainly. It means what most people picked, for what ever reason, and invested their hard earned cash. Cameras that also started trends, that other mfg. followed, such as in 35mm, (Leica?) or first SLR that had any impact in the market, or cameras associated with an event, like the Vietnam war, or most used in the making of news photos. JMHO

 

[fotch]

Maybe set up a poll for some of these and see what is voted on?

 

[fotch]

Regarding polls, I don't know how and am to lazy to learn.

 

[cliveh]

Regarding polls, I don't know how and am to lazy to learn.

I don't know how either, but if someone wants to do it, as long as we can agree on what constitutes a classic. For instance I would say the Werra is a classic, as with lens hood inverted, probably the most minimal design ever manufactured. But does just design make it classic? I don't know. Perhaps I should have started this thread with what makes a classic camera.

 

[snapguy]

Silly

Of course it is a silly piece of business naming the top "classic" cameras but Laurel and Hardy were silly, but fun. For classic looks it is hard to beat the Kodak art deco Bantam Special folder. And it came with an f2 German lens in the 1930s. For classic ugly there's the Brick and the 1940s Kodak Ektra; for dominating an era there are several Leicas and the Nikon F. The early Asahi and Honeywell Pentaxes were classics just before the Nikon F. The Exacta SLR was a fine camera system before most cameras had extensive systems. The Rolleiflex was a world-beater in is day. Fine, portable and easy-to-use. The Canon AE-1 put Canon back into the big leagues. The Hasselblad was the Rolls Royce of cameras for a while. I guess that is ten and I have not gotten started yet.

 

[NJH]

I will just name these two which I would like to own and use myself:
- Nikon FM3A
- Leica M6

I own the second but if I was buying a film Nikon again today I think I would look for a minty FM3A.

 

[Tom1956]

The AE-1 put Canon in the big leagues? Actually the AE-1 ushered in the era of plastic consumer-grade SLR's. That's when they gave up on being in the big leagues and went for the big sales. Canon never had a chance to run with the big boys, although the F1 was a darn good effort. Too late though. Minolta tried to jump in the Nikon F2/Canon F1 class with their XK, but was a failed effort and way too late to bite off their piece of "professional respect". Even the Contax RTS didn't cut into the kingdom. The electronic age of cameras was at hand. And the 80's was a pitiful time, unless you're an autofocus fan of cameras doomed to quit working and be unrepairable. At the same time as the previously mentioned cameras, Pentax held its own, even through the transition to bayonet. Although the KM/KX/K2's were flops. The ME and MX pulled the fat out of the fire for them.

 

[benjiboy]

The question remains what makes a camera "classic". Sales figures, being a milestone technically or by market intrusion?

Exactly, what defines a classic camera, before you can attach a label you need to know what the criteria is.

 

[Chan Tran]

Top sales figures, certainly. It means what most people picked, for what ever reason, and invested their hard earned cash. Cameras that also started trends, that other mfg. followed, such as in 35mm, (Leica?) or first SLR that had any impact in the market, or cameras associated with an event, like the Vietnam war, or most used in the making of news photos. JMHO

If you use sales figure you must factor the price. An item that is selling for very low price would certainly sell a lot more than one with relatively high price.
But is someone asks me for the top 10 it must be subjectively my own top 10 by my own standard otherwise why ask me?

 

[miha]

SNIP: I nominate the new Canon F1 the first professional film SLR with a hybrid electro-mechanical shutter that works at most of the shutter speeds except the slow ones without a battery if it becomes flat...

That was Pentax LX, a year later came the new F1 from Canon.

 

[removed account4]

any of the argus cameras
they were ALL inventive.

 

[elekm]

The AE-1 showed that the consumer really didn't care if a camera had a plastic top. They just wanted an SLR that would give them good photos and was easy to use. Canon made a bet that paid off. And other camera makers followed suit to the point that nearly all consumer cameras used plastic in their construction. If you look at the entry level cameras of nearly every camera maker, they used plastic bodies, plastic lens barrels and sometimes plastic lens elements. And the average consumer didn't care - and still doesn't care.

 

[frank]

The AE-1 showed that the consumer really didn't care if a camera had a plastic top. They just wanted an SLR that would give them good photos and was easy to use. Canon made a bet that paid off. And other camera makers followed suit to the point that nearly all consumer cameras used plastic in their construction. If you look at the entry level cameras of nearly every camera maker, they used plastic bodies, plastic lens barrels and sometimes plastic lens elements. And the average consumer didn't care - and still doesn't care.

Damn Canon!

 

[fstop]

Let's not go by sales. If we use that as a criteria, then the Big Mac would win an award for food.

I'm sure it has won an award, just not a good one.

 

[Ricardo Miranda]

One thing is for sure: one man's "classic" is another man's "dog". It is that much subjective.
I've seen many "top 10" and the all mention many different cameras and in many different order. There are, though, some common traits, but it is hard to agree.

So, here is my subjective list with my reasons and in no particular order:

Leica I - the first practical 35mm camera
Contax S - first eye level pentaprism
Asahi Pentax - first successful SLR
Pentax Spotmatic - first SLR with TTL metering using cells in the viewfinder. Became the standard for all SLR.
Olympus OM-1 - first compact SLR where reduction in dimensions and weight were part of the design
Pentax ES - first automatic exposure SLR
Pentax ME (ex aequo with Canon AE-1 and Nikon EM) - Compact SLR "auto-only" for the masses. It rushed a new era of miniature and light weight cameras
Nikon FA - first multi pattern metering.
Minolta 7000 - first practical Auto-focus SLR
Canon EOS650 - first successful SLR with AF motors in the lens. The success of the EOS range was so great that by 2000 all major AF SLR manufactures had follow Canon's example and had models with the same "modus operandi" of command dials and push buttons.

 

[Alan Gales]

Ricardo, you left off the Miranda!

 

[Randy Moe]

In 30-100 years, classic cameras will be the ones still working. No electronic anything or meters. Leica most likely wins the game.

I like my Pentax MX.

I started with Honeywell (Pentax) H3 sans meter.

 

[rubyfalls]

Maybe someone should start a top 10 underrated 35mm companion thread. I'd put my lovely and oft-overlooked leicaflex sl on that one.

 

[Tom1956]

The problem with Leica is that some things in this world are just not worth that much money. It's beyond ridiculous. The prices are not just obscene, they're absurd. Some things I just wouldn't buy if I had Warren Buffet's money, and Leica stuff tops the list. And that loading film from the bottom is just dumb. But I'm sure their great cameras, though. I remember the days when Jaguar was this really premium car--so fine and well made, it spent half it's life in the shop.

 

[Ricardo Miranda]

Ricardo, you left off the Miranda!

Yes, I did!

 

[rubyfalls]

The problem with Leica is that some things in this world are just not worth that much money. It's beyond ridiculous. The prices are not just obscene, they're absurd. Some things I just wouldn't buy if I had Warren Buffet's money, and Leica stuff tops the list. And that loading film from the bottom is just dumb. But I'm sure their great cameras, though. I remember the days when Jaguar was this really premium car--so fine and well made, it spent half it's life in the shop.

Hence my bid for the leicaflex sl. Loads in the back, still works perfectly down to the meter. And it cost me a grand total of $250 - including the summicron 50 f/2.

 

[Tom1956]

Hence my bid for the leicaflex sl. Loads in the back, still works perfectly down to the meter. And it cost me a grand total of $250 - including the summicron 50 f/2.

Sound like a goodie. I misspelled "they're". I spelled it "their", making me look like an inbred redneck.

 

[frank]

Used Leica, even M bodies, can be a bargain. (Fast leitz lenses, not so much) Buying new is way beyond my pay scale, I'll agree with Tom on that.

 

[benjiboy]

One thing is for sure: one man's "classic" is another man's "dog". It is that much subjective.
I've seen many "top 10" and the all mention many different cameras and in many different order. There are, though, some common traits, but it is hard to agree.

So, here is my subjective list with my reasons and in no particular order:

Leica I - the first practical 35mm camera
Contax S - first eye level pentaprism
Asahi Pentax - first successful SLR
Pentax Spotmatic - first SLR with TTL metering using cells in the viewfinder. Became the standard for all SLR.
Olympus OM-1 - first compact SLR where reduction in dimensions and weight were part of the design
Pentax ES - first automatic exposure SLR
Pentax ME (ex aequo with Canon AE-1 and Nikon EM) - Compact SLR "auto-only" for the masses. It rushed a new era of miniature and light weight cameras
Nikon FA - first multi pattern metering.
Minolta 7000 - first practical Auto-focus SLR
Canon EOS650 - first successful SLR with AF motors in the lens. The success of the EOS range was so great that by 2000 all major AF SLR manufactures had follow Canon's example and had models with the same "modus operandi" of command dials and push buttons.

No Nikon F?