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| Nikon F4 with a lovely 50mm f/1.4 manual lens |
I recently came into possession of a Nikon F4 that is in excellent condition. I really hadn't thought about all the features that it has, since the last time I shot with one was well over 15 years ago. The local Ann Arbor camera store, Big Georges (which stopped selling photographic stuff in 2008) had a used one for sale that I purchased to do some freelance work. It ended up having a problem that reinforced my "always have a backup" plan. I was shooting an event and realized that the film was being advanced through to the end of the roll while never firing an exposure! Luckily, my backup was the consumer-level Nikon N60, and I was able to get all the shots that I needed. But, for a few moments, I was in a panic. I ended up selling that F4 with its problems noted, and never bought another one. So, a few months ago, one sort of landed in my lap, and I started shooting with it. Comparing it to an F2 or F3 is a little unfair, as the technology in the F4 is far more advanced than its predecessors. It's certainly a lot heavier and beefier. But, with its grip on the right side, it feels right in the hands. The large, bright 100% viewfinder is truly great, and having the hot shoe on the prism like most cameras, is a far better solution than the F, F2, and F3 location.
The Nikon F4 was produced from 1988-1997. It was an innovative breakthrough for Nikon, parting ways with the older manual-focus F cameras, yet retaining use of any lens, including non-AI. It works with all modern Nikon AF lenses, including G lenses (but not in A and M modes). If you prefer knobs and buttons over LCD menus, this is the camera for you. In fact, every feature on the F4 is readily identifiable and does not have to dealt with via a menu. Shutter speeds are from 30 sec to 1/8000 sec, plus B and T, and ISO settings from 6 to 6400. The information in the viewfinder is easily seen, and of course, you can manually set the lens aperture in A and M modes. It's a perfect SLR to use with manual lenses, as you see focus confirmation in the viewfinder. In fact, while I often use the F4 with AF lenses, I love using it with a manual AI-modified 50mm f/1.4 Nikkor-S lens from the late 1960s.
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| Everything is easily found, and no menus or LCD screens |
Everything is so clear and bright in the viewfinder that it's a real treat to use this camera. The Nikon N90, while lighter, has many of the features of the F4, but it does contain an LCD screen and has mode buttons, and a primitive menu system. None of that's in the F4. I have used N90s quite a bit, and while excellent SLRs, they are not as rugged as the F4. All the controls are where they should be (at least to a Nikon user) and are non-ambiguous. Flash sync is at 1/250 sec., and the incredible array of Nikon Speedlights gives you so much more control over your flash photography than the F2 or F3. Matrix-balanced fill flash, center-weighted fill-flash, rear-curtain sync, standard TTL flash, and multiple flashes are all options. I'm not going to list all of the features of this camera, as they are easily findable on the Internet. However, one feature that might escape notice is where the cable release connects to the camera. - It's on the lower left rear, below the film door. It actually makes a great deal of sense having it there, rather than part of the shutter release on top right, where it's usually found on most cameras. One other feature that I appreciate -- it uses 4 AA cells, not some expensive battery. Since it doesn't have an LCD screen, those AAs last quite a while.
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| The F4 with a great travel lens - the 24-120 AF-D. |
This second go-round with the F4 has been most enjoyable, and the more I use it, the more I appreciate just how rock solid the camera is. It was Nikon's flagship professional camera for almost a decade, and it was totally a major leap forward in pro camera technology compared to the electronic F3. Don't get me wrong -- I think the F3HP is one of the greatest SLRS made, but the F4 certainly is a camera that sits well with the manual and the AF worlds, and is still an awesome SLR. It's not a lightweight camera - with the 50mm f/1.4 and neck strap, it weighs 3.5 pounds. Put on the 35-70 f/2.8 AFD lens, and that will be 4 lb 4 oz around your neck. I carry mine over my shoulder. One might be tempted to think that if the F4 is good, the F5 and F6 are better. Using those two cameras is not much different than using a DSLR, and if you have used an F100, you would immediately know the controls on a D300. So, user-interface-wise, the F4 stands out amongst any pro-level AF 35mm SLR.
So, is the Nikon F4 right for you? Only you can answer that. Find one and shoot with it for a while, and you'll quickly see how great a camera it is.
Want to know more about the Nikon F4? Here are some links that will provide more information and inspiration.
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| 35-70 f/2.8 AF-D, Ultrafine extreme 100, March, 2021 |
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| 35-70 f/2.8 AF-D, Ultrafine Extreme 100, March, 2021 |
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| 35-70 f/2.8 AF-D, Ultrafine Extreme 100, March, 2021 |
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| 35-70 f/2.8 AF-D, Ultrafine Extreme 100, March, 2021 |
Beautiful
ReplyDeleteGreat post! Love it!
ReplyDeleteGood morning, Mr O'Brien (I'm sorry, but I have no idea of your first name); and greetings from Melbourne, in Australia. Like you, I was not wholly taken with the charms of the F4 on my first experience of the model more than a decade ago. I took it back to the shop within a month of my purchase, feeling that it was too much of a fiddly beast for my ongoing usage. Likewise on my second effort only a couple of years later: Too heavy, too tricky and just not suited to my idea of an everyday body. So, again, back to where it came from. Now, however, on my third ownership of this magnificent camera, I can hardly imagine my Nikon system without it and its excellent features. Limited-mode matrix metering with my manual lenses (alongside the full-mode facility of my FA camera) and full-program potential with my now-extensive lineup of AF lenses, and there is hardly anything that I cannot photograph. And now that I also own a Df as my only DSLR I can feel confident about the dials-and-switches operation of all of my Nikon cameras, which include the F2, the F3, the FM2 and the FM3a as my older manual bodies. At fifty-five, I do not have a world of time left in which to make many more truly good photographs. So the F4 goes a long way towards making sure that I can try, and I am no longer in any way disappointed by my use of this late-classic camera. It's an elegant workhorse. - Christopher
ReplyDeleteChristopher -- That's good to read. One of the strengths of the Nikon system is that the dials and switches are always in the same spot! Aside from the funky Nikkormats, that is.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes to you,
Mark