I've been itching to play with film for awhile. I'm looking around and I see a lot of options and I am going to be honest, I have no idea what to look for in a film camera. Advice? I'll admit I'm partial to my canons, they've always been good to me.
@grizzlysghost@angelamarie1437 Totally agree with Aaron. It is an excellent 35mm camera. I used one exclusively through art school and was never disappointed.
There are lots of great cameras around but I mostly use an Olympus OM-1 and think the XA series of Olympus Point and shoot cameras are hard to go past. @grizzlysghost
I have been watching ebay for A-1's but they are still commanding reasonably high prices compared to other brands / models of the same vintage. If you see one at a good price, grab it :-)
ask around if anyone has a film camera you can borrow. Hopefully you will have a few choices and can play other them all and decide what you want in a camera.
There are plenty of classic manual focus 35mm film cameras about. I would be happy with any of the following:
- Nikon FM2
- Minolta X700
- Olympus OM-1
- Fujica ST801 (M42 lenses!)
If you want autofocus 35mm film get a Minolta Dynax (Maxxum) 7 or 9 (or even a 5) - you won't regret it.
Or just visit some local charity and junk shops and see what they have. I bet you could pick up an old Zenit E with a 50(ish) mm lens in decent condition for next to nothing.
If you are looking to broaden your photographic experience further why not look at medium format film cameras. They are a lot of fun. Something like my Mamiya C220 TLR:
@angelamarie1437 !!!! Warning!!!
These guys will inspire you so much you may never pick up your dslr again.
I picked up a canon on ebay so I could us my lenses with it. It has been amazing to use my lensbaby with film. The camera was about $30.00.
I was a big fan of Olympus before Canon came along with their auto focus. Having a camera like an Olympus as it is fully manual makes you think about the photograph a lot more and allows you to develop your photographic skills. I am amazed at how cheap these cameras are now. Buy and enjoy!!
I love my canon a-1, which was handed down to me from my dad. I just picked up two new-to-me lenses off eBay for less than $80 combined. You can't beat that!
@angelamarie1437
I would recommend you Nikon FM2 and EL2. Both are professional grade cameras. But it doesn't matter if you want to go pro with shooting films as any of the film cameras will cost about the same.
A few things about the Nikons; the FM2 gives you great range of shutter speeds.
While the EL2 has a mode for automatic shutter speed, even though it is a mechanical camera.
You can find out more at mir.com. (I don't know why I'm unable to post links)
I had a Canon AE-1 but the problems I encountered with the Canon were:
- Availability of lenses.
- Lens mount of Canon film cameras was Canon FD mount. While the DSLRs have EF mounts. So, those awesome old lenses won't fit on your Canon DSLR (if you have one).
- No service centres. And even the 3rd party repair shops did not help.
But I don't know how difficult or easy it would be to find service and accessories where you reside.
Hope this helps (:
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- Nikon FM2
- Minolta X700
- Olympus OM-1
- Fujica ST801 (M42 lenses!)
If you want autofocus 35mm film get a Minolta Dynax (Maxxum) 7 or 9 (or even a 5) - you won't regret it.
Or just visit some local charity and junk shops and see what they have. I bet you could pick up an old Zenit E with a 50(ish) mm lens in decent condition for next to nothing.
If you are looking to broaden your photographic experience further why not look at medium format film cameras. They are a lot of fun. Something like my Mamiya C220 TLR:
These guys will inspire you so much you may never pick up your dslr again.
I picked up a canon on ebay so I could us my lenses with it. It has been amazing to use my lensbaby with film. The camera was about $30.00.
I would recommend you Nikon FM2 and EL2. Both are professional grade cameras. But it doesn't matter if you want to go pro with shooting films as any of the film cameras will cost about the same.
A few things about the Nikons; the FM2 gives you great range of shutter speeds.
While the EL2 has a mode for automatic shutter speed, even though it is a mechanical camera.
You can find out more at mir.com. (I don't know why I'm unable to post links)
I had a Canon AE-1 but the problems I encountered with the Canon were:
- Availability of lenses.
- Lens mount of Canon film cameras was Canon FD mount. While the DSLRs have EF mounts. So, those awesome old lenses won't fit on your Canon DSLR (if you have one).
- No service centres. And even the 3rd party repair shops did not help.
But I don't know how difficult or easy it would be to find service and accessories where you reside.
Hope this helps (: