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Beginner Film SLRs Anonymous
What's a good beginner film SLR? It doesn't have to be a new or recent model, just good to learn on. Any information would be greatly appreciated.
>> Anonymous
>>129400

interesting. thank you for the reply.
>> thefamilyman !!rTVzm2BgTOa
first things first, do you have a current DSLR?
This can help choosing a film SLR setup as perhaps you can use the lenses to and from that.

i.e. If you have a Nikon setup, or want to endeavor into one, a second hand FE10 is great and cheap.
>> NatureGuy !se3A3TwzdY
just pick up a canon AE-1 off of ebay

so fucking cheap
uses canon's old mount style though
>> elf_man !!DdAnyoDMfCe
>>129403
The problem I have with the ae-1 is that it's only shutter priority or full manual. And full manual is fine, but the layout in the viewfinder only gives the aperture, because it's oriented towards using shutter. As a result, I find it somewhat awkward to use, being used to having all information available in the viewfinder.

OP, you can get something like a nikon n80 or f100 for relatively cheap and they'd be great to learn on, having everything from full auto to full manual, lots of focus points, and all the info you need in the viewfinder. I only mention nikon because I don't know anything about canon's more current film bodies.
>> schaz
>>129399
pentax super me
asspirature priority
>> Anonymous
Pentax Spotmatic. Fuck all this motor-drive auto-aperture autofocus crap...what you want to learn on is something where you control every aspect of the shot and can't fall back on electronic gadgets. You will learn far faster with an old fully-manual camera than with a new DSLR or auto-SLR.

I say spotmatic because it is possibly the greatest camera Pentax ever made. Also I have two bodies and the lenses are prickly sharp and entirely metal and cost like $10 to $50 each.
>> Anonymous
>>129418
>You will learn far faster with an old fully-manual camera than with a new DSLR or auto-SLR.

While I agree that learning (and working) totally manually is best, there's no reason why that can't be done on a DSLR, as long as it's one of the ones with a decent viewfinder. But that's beside the point, OP asked about film SLRs, so, yeah.

And while the Spotmatic is great, it's a joke to say it's greater than the MX or LX. They're all great, but the latter two are more rugged professional bodies with some better features to them- bayonet vs. screw mount, more viewfinder coverage, etc.


Which sort of brings me around to advice for the OP: Get an old professional body; they're all so cheap there's no point messing around with the lower-end models. Nikon F2, Pentax MX, and Olympus OM-1 are all options. I know Canon also made one, but I forget what its name was.
>> Anonymous
Canon, Nikon, or Pentax with as few features as possible. Be sure to get a good 50mm lens that fits the mount of the camera (look for defects in the glass, mold, and separation in the adhesive in the elements of the lens as well as making sure the aperture works smoothly and reports to the camera (if it is a mount type that does)). Also, make sure that the shutter works as to the best of your guess (some older models the shutter will not work quite right after a while, and it is ok to dry fire them in the store) and make sure the light meter bobs up and down with the light (if it has one). Also, I suggest getting a UV filter to mount on the lens so that you don't scratch it and to make cleaning the lens easier.

my suggestions are: Canon Fb-1, Canon AE-1, and Pentax K1000 for starters. Canon F1 and Nikon F2 are also good choices.
>> Anonymous
>>129431
K1000 is overpriced and overrated. It was the Digital Rebel of its time and all the people whose first real camera it was are buying them back up for nostalgia, driving the price up.

I don't remember the name of this model, either, but there's a better camera from Pentax (with DoF preview, other features left off the K1000, etc.) with the exact same body that goes for less.
>> Anonymous
>>129434

Spotmatic. DoF preview is called "stop-down metering". :)

The spotmatic may not have been a professional body, but M42 lenses make up for any lack of weather sealing or etc. They're cheap cheap and very good quality, since Pentax was mostly competing with Zeiss when they built the M42 takumars. Most of the lenses were hand-built, and many used hand-ground aspherical elements as well. Not to mention that the SMC coating process was (and arguably still is) the best in the industry.
>> heavyweather !4AIf7oXcbA
SMC has pretty much been blown out of the water by nanocrystal coatings. Lens coatings are now so good that it's ludicrous.

That said, totally Spotmatic. Awesome camera.
>> Anonymous
>>129436
Don't M42 to K-mount adapters retain all the normal functionality, though? If OP could get one of the legendary 50/1.4s and an MX, he'd be absolutely set.

Don't get me wrong, the Spotmatics are great cameras. I just don't see why anyone is buying below top-of-the-line old mechanical SLRs when the top-of-the-line ones are so cheap.

Of course, he'd be absolutely set pretty much with any camera in this thread.
>> Anonymous
>>129440

Not sure. The only connections the M42 lenses ever made to the camera body were the stop-down pin and the open-aperture metering flange. Both of those were used in the K-mounts, and I'm pretty sure that even the newest Pentax bodies still support those. No idea about the M42 adapters though; I have an M42 to EOS for my d-reb, but obviously that camera doesn't support any of the mechanical lens functions.

Regardless, stop-down metering is perfectly fine for when you're not shooting a fast sequence where you have to keep changing focus, and the older cameras can't do that without a motor drive anyway.
>> Anonymous
Nikon F2 or FM2. They're both built like tanks (especially the F2).
>> Anonymous
pentax k1000 is pretty good
>> Anonymous
>>129470
also, they usually cost a ton for little reason.
>> Anonymous
>>129473
Well sadly that is true. My dad gave me his old F2 so I'm not complaining.
>> Anonymous
What are your thoughts on the canon EOS 650, /p/?
>> Anonymous
>>129513
Shit sucks. Why buy the first EOS camera, with antiquated controls and amateur build quality, when you have the wide world of pro and semi-pro bodies available? KEH has some dirt cheap EOS-1 and EOS-3s.
>> Anonymous
minolta x700!

do it!
>> Anonymous
>>129574
My Father bought it when it did first came out, lol...
>> Anonymous
I started with a minolta XD11 .. it was a winner. Still is.
>> Anonymous
OP here, thank you /p/. you are one of the few boards whos contributors are humble and polite and willing to actually discuss the topic which the board commands. Unlike the typical fa/g/got.
>> Lynx !!KY+lVSl0s2m
Just saw today Canon K2 kits are on clearence at my best buy, maybe at yours. Like 35$
>> Anonymous
>>129823
/p/ isn't normally like that, you've just been lucky.
>> Anonymous
>>129837
That's because he asked about a beginner *film* SLR. Threads about beginner digital SLRs (especially Nikon D40) get instantly saged or trolled because everyone is fucking tired of them.
>> Anonymous
SHOULD I GOT A CANON 400D OR A NIKON D40? HELP /P/