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This camera is a classic! Dependable and such a fine instrument. The design was so advanced for its time! I particularly love to be creative with the depth of field freedom you get with these older cameras. Some of these Nikons had auto features with manual overrides.... I am attracted to the looks of the Nikkormat. It's black, looks professional, and takes incredibly sharp,clear, photos. With the 50mm lens, one has a huge volume of options! You can take landscapes and groups of family pictures, all with this lens! Nikon is a dependable name. Looks, precision, creativity, clarity, are some of the reasons you might take into consideration!
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
The Nikkormat FTN in a word? Timeless. The clean lines and excellent mechanical quality of the Nikkormat put it up there with the best classic cameras of the 20th century. It has a bit of heft, but teamed with a Nippon Kogaku lens it is a classic camera that functions as well today as it did in the hands of semi-professionals and photojournalists of the 60s and 70s. The glass magnifier above the frame counter is a shining example of the level of detail and build quality that the designers at Nikon put into this, a "consumer level" camera, that played second fiddle to the Nikon F and F2. I far prefer the elegant lines of the Nikkormat, with its built-in meter, to the clunky photomic finders on the flagship cameras. From a design perspective they shout "AFTERTHOUGHT!" The Nikkormat will function perfectly well without batteries on all shutter speeds. The mercury cells that power the meter are no longer manufactured, but a $30 adapter is available that allows you to use standard LR44 cells and still preserve accurate voltages and metering. And if you, like me, are a vintage camera enthusiast, you can use that battery replacement setup in other cameras that also take the 625 mercury cells, like the similarly bulletproof Minolta SRT series, and share the cost around. I find setting the shutter speed on the ring around the bayonet mount is quicker and simpler than those messy dials that sit on the top plate of more "modern" SLRs and dSLRS. My hand is already around the lens to set aperture and focus, the shutter speed is right there and changes are clearly visible in the viewfinder. Like the shutter itself, the shutter dial has a pleasing mechanical feel and sound to it. The whole setup has a feeling of perpetuity about it, like a good mechanical watch. The match-needle meter is intuitive to use, and you don't need to be a walking calculator to figure out your exposure in a contrasty scene. Just pan the camera around and the analog meter gives you an immediately sensible readout of those shades of grey. I use the lighter FE for night photography, the Voigtländer Bessa L for street and landscape work (coupled with a 15mm superwide lens) the Rolleiflex 6x6 for serious portraits (it's a people-sized lens and film combo) and digital pieces of Canon and Nikon plastic junk in my work as a photojournalist. But the all-metal Nikkormat more than holds its own in any of these situations - and gets a more interesting response from people than you'll ever get from hanging a 5D around your neck. Digital SLRs are like a hole in your backside - everybody's got one. There are plenty of these out there on eBay going for a song. They will only go up in value so buy one sooner rather than later. Make sure you grab some good Nikkor glass while you're at it!Read full review
If you still shoot film and want to get into the vast array of the superb Nikkor lenses, Nikkormats are not a bad way to go. I'm sure many may disagree, but here are my findings: Nikkormats: Pros: -Pretty inexpensive -Good operating models plentiful -Good features with shutter speed indicator, secondary meter on the top cover for metered models, DOF preview button, awkward mirror lock up -Earlier models (FT, FTN, FT2) will meter with the Non-AI lenses which are not as popular (read not as expensive as later AI, AIS & AF lenses) Cons: -IF the Meters work, they use the unavailable 1.35V mercury batteries (FT2 and later models use readily available 1.5V batteries) -No Motor Drive capability -Flash Accessory Shoe not built in until the later Nikkormats (FT2, FT3 etc) so you need a bracket or a funky screw on accessory shoe -Setting the Film ASA is difficult -Shutter speed is adjusted via a large collar around the lens mount is unusual -Shutter unit made by Copal and not as sturdy as the Nikon pro-line F or F2 parts. If abused, self timers get destroyed and hang up, often rendering the whole camera inoperable -Non-internchangeable viewfinder / screens Overall, it will take some abuse but not the same level of sturdiness as you would expect from an F or F2. If you want Non-AI metering, go with the FT2 model. For coupling with the AI & later AF lenses, the FT3 is the way to go Alternative suggestions: Top of the line (Nikon F, F2) Pros: -Good condition units are still plentiful, but certain models are very strongly sought after by collectors -A dizzying array of attachments for every imaginable photographing circumstances -Sturdy. Shutter mechanism never failed on me in the last 20 years. It survived the press corp wars in the Vietnam war, adventurers and in specially modified form in the outer space with NASA! -It's accessory system allows you to buy a relatively inexpensive decent body, and as your needs / available funds change, you can sell accessories and upgrade to buy nicer accessories. Cons: -IF the meters still work, F still uses the unavailable 1.35V batteries for metered models, but F2 will use the currently available 1.5V batteries. -F has funky back cover removal for film loading, difficult to use mirror lock up (both resolved in the F2). -Funky hot shoe requires inexpensive hot shoe adapter. Overall, F & F2 are great cameras. A lot of the world class frontline photographers used these to take excellent photos in the 60's and 70's and now you can have them from approximately $150 or more!! If I had to pick, F2s are better with improved ergonomics, faster shutter speed and finders with improved metering mechanisms. Newer alternaticves (Nikon FM/FE Series) Pros: -A spiritual successor to the Nikkormat series, they resolved many of the Nikkormat shortcomings (Motordrive capability, built in accessory shoe, conventional film speed and shutter speed -Shutter speeds up to 1/4000 second! -AE on FE, FE2 models Cons: -Depwnding on earlier FM/FE v.s. later FM2/FE2, you lose he ability to use the oldest Nikon Non-AI lenses. Mirror Lock up got disused! Overall, in the long life of the FM / FE sries, there were many subtle yet substantial changes. Better features than F or F2 in many ways because they are a newer development but not as many system accessories. Know what your needs are, do your reasearch up fron and you will have a good camera that will last for decades!!Read full review
Very solid mechanical camera made at the very end of the all metal film camera run. Works fine with the Nikon AFD auto focus lenses in stop down metering mode. I am not a fan of old CDS meters so I use a hand held meter for all my old cameras. More solid than the FM which replaced it.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Built with all-metal construction of approx. 700 mechanical gears, springs and levers, the FT2 is an SLR camera built by Nikon from 1975-1977. It will last for centuries if well cared for, and represents a quality of build that(due to market and technology forces)will never be achieved again. Nikon designed the FT2 for knowledgeable amateurs or those who could not afford the top of the line F2. In fact, the only feature lt lacks from the F2 is interchangable finders and focus screens. It features fully manual shutter speeds from 1 second to 1/1000, large mirror for bright viewfinder, self timer, mirror lock-up, depth of field preview, and a copal square shutter that allowed a 1/125 flash sync. This was extremely fast for the era in which it was made--even better than the F2. It also has a built in light meter which couples with any Nikon lens of the day. I believe this camera is one of the best SLR's ever made. It is very tough and reliable, and this makes it heavier than today's cameras. This review is written from the point of a view of someone who knows how to shoot film--it will certainly NOT be easy to use if you don't know how to do that. However, one doesn't rate a high end sports car or other fine piece of equipment based on unknowledgeable users.Read full review
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