The Nikon F3

[richardHaw]

https://www.casualphotophile.com/2016/03/14/exploded-views-nikon-f3/

for me is the best manual film camera ever made by everyone. i have always envied my friends who had them back in the days. now they can be had for cheap!

[RonVol]

Sure is a great photo.
The attention to detail is astounding.
It would have taken many, many hours to put all that together.

I too think that the F3 is one of the greatest film cameras................forgetting the stupid back-light button and the ever so silly flash mount 

[Matthew Currie]

But it's kind of sad to think they probably did not put that one back together.   

[richardHaw]

But it's kind of sad to think they probably did not put that one back together.   

it's probably scrapped and sold for parts

[richardHaw]

I too think that the F3 is one of the greatest film cameras................forgetting the stupid back-light button and the ever so silly flash mount 

Ron, I got another one
will send you the chassis number after I have depleted the roll

[RonVol]

Ron, I got another one
will send you the chassis number after I have depleted the roll

Nice one Ric, she looks to be in nice condition.
That back, the MF-14, is what I am thinking of hacking................for you-know-what. It's more sturdy than the standard back, so less chance of it twisting.

[richardHaw]

Nice one Ric, she looks to be in nice condition.
That back, the MF-14, is what I am thinking of hacking................for you-know-what. It's more sturdy than the standard back, so less chance of it twisting.

Hello, Ron!
don't worry, it will be reinforced with a strip is stainless steel. as soon as I know how much room I need, I can start making the back with CAD

i got this for $150~ with strap. not super cheap but pretty good as a similar one would cost me $330~ here in Tokyo.

I just do not know until when this camera is going to last. for sure it is going to last for many more decades and maybe even outlast me!

[David H. Hartman]

I believe the Nikon F3HP (DE-3 Prism) gets far more attention than the Nikon F3 (DE-2 Prism). I wonder how many shooters truly need the higher eyepoint. The DE-3 prism offers a 0.75x image with a 50mm focused at infinity while the DE-2 prism offers 0.8x with a 50mm lens focused to infinity. This is a small difference but the 0.8x, DE-2 finder image is one I welcome as it makes focusing on the matte surface of the viewing screen easier. I find I can easily see the complete finder with my glasses on. Glasses and facial structures vary so I'm sure some find the DE-3 HP finder a blessing but if one does not need the extra eyepoint a DE-2 prism might serve them better. The Nikon F3 (DE-2 Prism) provides for me the most comfortable viewfinder experience of an Nikon film camera I've owned.

As a comparison the FM2n and FE2 offer a 0.86x finder while if my memory serves me the FM3a offers a 0.83x finder. These cameras have their advantages but low vibrations and sound level aren't among them. I can see the whole frame with the FM2n and FE2 if I do not rotate my eye to see the corners. There is some vignetting of the corners when wearing my glasses so the finder isn't a comfortable to use and the F3.

I need bifocals these days to see the camera controls. I've long shot through my glasses for astigmatism correction.

Dave

[Bjørn Rørslett]

In my film days, the HP version of the finder was my preferred F3. The high eye point made the focusing so much easier with my glasses on.

[Ilkka Nissilä]

I by far prefer the HP viewfinder of the F3 and think it is the best viewfinder in any camera that I've used. I regret that Nikon no longer offer viewfinders with similar eyepoint. They could offer interchangeable viewfinders for the D5 (ok too late now, maybe the D6?) for example and it would make working from difficult angles and at lower elevation easier. With current viewfinders my glasses constantly get pressure and my nose dents from the glasses, and it tickles my skin and irritates. I have another pair of glasses which are very rectangular (wide but not tall) and they make use of the present viewfinders easier but significantly refuce my field of sharp viewing and they're a bit worn out by now.
 
The HP viewfinder was one of the key reasons I built a Nikon system. Alas this aspect has been going downhill. I stopped using the F3HP eventually as I needed a spot meter and preferred an integrated one. Also the flash sync is poor.

[Eddie Draaisma]

I bought mine in 1980 just after it came out. I clearly remember all the worries in the press about the longlivity of the small LCD display in the finder, and the fact that it was the first F with an electronic shutter so in normal use it had to rely on a battery. About times have changed... My F3 and MD4 motordrive still work properly, only the rechargeable MN2's for the MD4 broke down after all those years.

[pluton]

I was happy with my F2 (non-metered) and FM2 finders until I had to start wearing glasses.  I switched to F3HP's right before digital arrived.

[David H. Hartman]

I was happy with my F2 (non-metered) and FM2 finders until I had to start wearing glasses.  I switched to F3HP's right before digital arrived.

I also bought my F3 just before my first dSLR. I bought a second Nikon DE-2 prism because I thought I would buy a second F3 or F3HP. I bought a Nikon D2H instead.

Nikon clearly did not make a mistake by making the DE-3 HP finder. We haven't seen this again as the F3 is the only single digit film camera with all of it's metering in the body.

Dave

[the solitaire]

DE-2 user here. I like the slightly bigger magnification of the DE-2, the lower profile and lower weight.

All these combined, and the fact that I do not wear glasses and hike a lot with the F3 as film camera in my bag make the choice easy on me. Often the F3 with DE-3 just does not fit in the bag anymore where the F3 with DE-2 just fits.

Since my DE-2 is slightly beaten up (even lower profile for less space in the bag) I usually mount the DE-3 when I take pictures OF the F3. But in all honesty, it's a camera to take photos with.

On my F and F2 I use the eye level/DE-1 finders, again to save space and weight when out in the field.

[Akira]

F3 used to be my beloved camera, too, but I ended up preferring the normal eyelevel finder even though I wore glasses.  To me, the magnification of 0.8x made a significant difference from 0.75x of HP finder.