Nikon F Film SLR Camera: A Hands-on Review

June 22, 2023

The Nikon F is perhaps the most significant film SLR camera of all time. Several features made it an important milestone in the history of photography:

Fully automatic lens aperture diaphragms that remained open for the brightest through-the-lens finder view during focusing, closed down to the set aperture immediately before exposure, and opened back up again after making the exposure. This was a significant improvement over cumbersome pre-set lens apertures, ungainly external linkages such as those found on Exakta lenses, and the Praktina’s semi-automatic diaphragm which required the user to cock a separate lens stop-down mechanism before taking a photograph.
An instant-return reflex mirror, which the Asahiflex IIb of 1954 offered first but without other key modern SLR features.
A single non-rotating shutter speed dial as opposed to, for instance, the Pentax’s twin-dial shutter-speed dial or the rotating dial on Nikon’s earlier S2 rangefinder.
A modular “system” construction, which the Praktina offered but not to the same scale that Nikon would.

All of these features appeared earlier on other cameras. But the Nikon F brought them together in a single SLR camera for the first time.

Nikon advertisement in the June-July 1961 issue of Natural History. Nikon Corporation

SLRs had already begun to come of age by the time the Nikon F was introduced in 1959. But it was the Nikon F that truly marked the beginning of the end for the old-style rangefinder camera. It also signaled the rise of the Japanese camera industry over that in Germany.

When I began to think about what I had to say about the Nikon F, I did a quick internet search. The first page of results underscored how very much had already been written about it. What more could I add?

My goal here is not to regurgitate all that’s been said but rather to offer my own hands-on experience with the Nikon F and why it’s so much fun to use.

The Nikon F was the pinnacle of that relatively narrow band of time after the SLR had arrived on the scene around the mid- to late 1950s but before cameras began to have built-in metering that required a battery to operate beginning around the mid-1960s. If one seeks the best all-mechanical SLR, one need not look further than the Nikon F.

A test report on the Nikon F appeared in the August 1959 issue of Modern Photography magazine. Via archive.org

Since it is all-mechanical, there is nothing electrical to fail (nothing, that is, if one doesn’t consider the Photomic light meter viewfinder to be a part of the camera). Having lost countless hours of my life reading back-issues of Modern Photography magazine, I’ve looked high and low for other models of comparable quality and feature sets, and I’ve never found anything that matches what the Nikon F offers. Everything before it seems crude, and everything after it has batteries. All of its contemporaries feel second rate.

Construction

The Nikon F’s mostly metal construction is solid, dependable, and beautifully simple. It’s built like a tank. This is not a camera that leaves doubt in one’s mind about how long it’ll last or whether it’s on the verge of failure. It delivers each time, every time.

The Nikon F features durable titanium foil shutter curtains.

Many cameras of the 1950s and 60s feature cloth shutter curtains that tend to become brittle or develop pinholes over time. But the Nikon F was built properly from the beginning. It features titanium foil shutter curtains that are not nearly as prone to deterioration as those made of cloth. If a Nikon F requires service, the shutter curtains, if they were not abused, are two parts that probably don’t need much attention.

But overall, take the advice John Wade offered in his book Retro Cameras: The Collector's Guide to Vintage Film Photography: beware those examples that saw a lot of action in the hands of a professional. Nikon designed the F as a professional camera, after all, and many photographers worked them hard on a daily basis.

Handling

In a nutshell, the experience of handling and using the Nikon F is a joy.

Film Loading and Transport

It’s easy to load film into the camera. The procedure is simple: take the back cover off, drop a 35mm film cartridge into the left-hand chamber, pull the film leader across the camera body, and insert it into the take-up spool on the right. Make sure the film sprocket holes line up with the teeth on the film transport post. I often don’t even need to burn through an exposure by advancing the film with the back cover off and watching the action to make sure the film is loaded correctly. Instead, I can get away with popping the back cover on without such a check. Film loads predictably and unambiguously every time.

The film advance lever has firm yet smooth action. Hearing and feeling the “tick-tick-tick” sound of the film advance lever ratchet action is a joy in itself. Other older cameras don’t have the same smoothness that the Nikon F offers.

Camera Body Skin

Rather than having a leather or leatherette body covering, the Nikon F features one made of a plastic material with an easy-to-grip texture. Although true leather may feel nice, I have actually come to prefer plastic. With it, there are no worries about scratching or gouging a softer, more easily damaged material. The plastic body skin has a very durable feel, and it’s able to withstand the hold of my sweaty hands when I’m out and about on a warm day.

Viewfinder

The first Nikon F I came to own, a Questar-modified example that was built around 1971, included a Photomic FTn metered viewfinder. When I returned to film photography by means of that camera, I appreciated having the ability to meter light straight through the lens.

But as time went on, I sought the ability to shoot without a light meter or, at the very least, become less reliant on one. My regular user Nikon F, one built around 1965, has a plain prism eyelevel viewfinder. Its smaller size makes the camera not only simpler to use but also lighter to carry. I also think it just looks better, too.

I’m not the only one who feels this way. Nikon Fs with plain prism viewfinders command significantly higher prices than those equipped with Photomic light meter viewfinders. Purchased on their own, plain prisms in good shape are increasingly expensive and can be hard to find. Even those with clear signs of deterioration or abuse are listed for ridiculously high prices.

My Nikon F is very comfortable to use with my glasses on.

Whether one considers the plain prism viewfinder or the Photomic light meter viewfinder, all of them—and Nikon repeatedly pointed this out in its marketing literature—have long enough eye relief to accommodate those who wear eyeglasses. This is a really big deal for me. One of the first things I do when I encounter a camera that I’ve never handled is to bring it up to my eye and see how the viewfinder feels. Do I have to press the camera into my eyeglasses in order to see everything? I have to with some cameras. With the Nikon F, however, I have no problem seeing the entire frame even with my glasses on.

The viewfinder focusing screen shows the entire frame as it will appear on the negative. Many other SLRs have viewing screens that offer less than 100% coverage. Not the Nikon F. What you see is what you will get on your negative.

Exposure Time and Aperture Settings

Everything on the Nikon F is clearly marked and easy to read.

Many cameras from the mid-1950s and before use the old shutter speed system: 1/5 sec., 1/10, 1/25, 1/50, 1/100, etc. The Nikon F was introduced late enough to feature modern shutter speed markings, which other manufacturers had also started to adopt by the late 1950s. Along with bulb and time, it includes settings from 1 second to 1/2 sec., 1/4, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, etc. up to 1/1000 sec.

The shutter speed dial clicks nicely into place for each setting, and it’s easy to read. The same goes for the aperture ring on each lens.

Shutter Operation

It’s hard to believe that, upon pressing the shutter button, a chain of actions ensues in the blink of an eye: the lens aperture closes down, the reflex mirror flips up, the shutter curtains open and close to make the exposure on film, the reflex mirror returns to its downward position, and the lens aperture opens back up for bright viewfinder focusing.

When the camera’s shutter fires, it gives off that classic mechanical “clack-clack” sound that smartphone cameras can only mimic. But with the Nikon F, it’s the real thing. The sound is rather audible, and it will often draw attention from passers-by on the street, but it’s very smooth and satisfying to hear.

The position of the black dot in the middle of the shutter speed dial indicates whether the shutter is cocked. On the left, the dot is directly across from the dot demarcating set shutter speed, thus indicating that the shutter is cocked. On the right, the black dot has moved to the lower left, thus indicating that the shutter has already fired and is now uncocked.

I also like the little black dot that sits in the middle of the shutter speed dial. When it is directly across from the black dot that demarcates the selected shutter speed to the left of the dial, it indicates that the shutter is cocked and ready to fire. After releasing the shutter, it moves to a downward left position. Cocking the shutter by working the film advance lever spins that little black dot around again, thus indicating that the shutter is ready to fire again.

Another reason why I prefer using a plain prism viewfinder: it doesn’t obscure that little black dot. The shutter speed dial extension on Photomic viewfinder, on the other hand, does.

Exposure Counter

As you’re going through a roll of film, the frame counter accurately displays what exposure you’re on. This might not sound like much, and one might assume this should always be the case on all cameras. But some older cameras like my Questar-modified Praktina FX have dreadful frame counters that lose their accuracy as you advance through a roll. My Nikon F, on the other hand, points squarely at each frame counter number all the way to 36. There’s no ambiguity about what film roll exposure I’m on. The counter also resets itself when the camera body back is removed.

Availability

Over the course of its long production run from 1959 to 1973, Nikon manufactured well over three-quarters of a million Nikon F camera bodies. They were made in large enough numbers that there are several good examples on the used camera market at any one time. That ubiquity also translates into a greater likelihood that you’ll find a qualified repair technician to do a CLA (i.e., cleaning, lubrication, and adjustment) if one is necessary. Many used camera dealers even offer examples that have already been serviced and are ready to shoot.

Nikkor lenses adapt readily to modern digital cameras, as I have done here with my 35mm f/2.8 Nikkor lens and Canon EOS M50 mirrorless camera.

A huge universe of quality, durable Nikkor lenses exists. Judging from my casual survey of the second-hand market, many if not most seem to have stood up well to the test of time. Although many suffer from hazy or fungus-covered optics and well-worn housings, many others remain crystal clear with good glass, optical coatings in excellent condition, and lens housings in great cosmetic condition.

Like the camera bodies they attach to, these lenses were also manufactured by Nikon in large numbers. They are plentiful on the market with lots of good examples to choose from at prices that are a fraction of what lenses for modern digital cameras cost. And since Nikon made them at the highest standard, they make great lenses to use with an adaptor on modern DSLRs and mirrorless cameras.

True to its nature as a system camera, the Nikon F enjoys a vast number of available accessories. Indeed, there are too many accessories out there if one is trying to keep the ever-present temptation to buy and collect in check.

Image Quality

In the end, cameras exist primarily to make photographs, and the Nikon F excels at this. Here is a small sample of the work I’ve accomplished with my Nikon F:

Last Burger on Land, Santa Monica Pier. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, CineStill 800T Color film, 1/60 sec., f/4.

Storefront in late afternoon sunlight. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Rollei RPX 100 film, 1/125 sec., f/16.

Picnic tables. Nikon F with Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 lens, Rollei RPX 100 film, 1/125 sec., f/2.

Weaknesses

In spite of the preponderance of benefits the Nikon F brings to the film photographer, nothing is perfect. I’ve found it to have a handful of flaws:

The foam mirror shock pad and light seals are prone to deterioration. It’s not uncommon to find an example with foam pads that are turning to dust. But replacements are readily available.
The camera back fully detaches from camera instead of being hinged like the back of the Nikon F2. Especially when I’m out in the field, changing film rolls can be a bit awkward especially when I don’t have a convenient place to set the back of the camera body.
Since shutter speed only goes up to 1/1000 sec., sometimes I feel a little cornered when I’m choosing exposure settings. With ASA 400 film loaded into my camera on a bright sunny day, I’m often forced to keep my aperture stopped down and my shutter speed on the fast side when I’m shooting subjects bathed in bright sunlight. My workaround is simply to use slower but finer-grained ASA 100 or 200 film, which I generally prefer using anyway.
On the vast majority of Nikon Fs, neck strap lug eyelets are apparently made of soft brass and are prone to wear. This often makes me a bit paranoid. When I carry my camera around, I tend to hold it in my hand more than let it hang from the strap around my neck out of fear that the continual metal-on-metal grinding between neck strap lugs and eyelets will further advance the wear that the eyelets already have.

My Nikon F “Apollo” with eye-level prism viewfinder and 50mm f/1.4 lens. Along with toughened neck strap eyelets, this modified late version of the Nikon F also featured plastic tips on both the film advance lever and the self timer lever.

On that last point: Nikon itself apparently realized, albeit belatedly, that using soft brass for the neck strap eyelet was not the best choice of material. Around 1971, the year that the company released the F2, Nikon incorporated a handful of features from that newer model into the Nikon F, which became known as the Nikon F “Apollo.” The company actually produced both the F and the F2 concurrently for two years, perhaps a sign of the unparalleled successfulness of its original SLR. One of those features was a steel insert around the inner part of the neck strap eyelet.

For me at least, the change was so compelling that, when I learned a friend was selling a recently-serviced example that included an eye-level viewfinder prism, it didn’t take me long to make him an offer. When I’m out and about with it, I feel a bit more comfortable with allowing the camera to hang around my neck or shoulder. Indeed, I wonder why it took Nikon so long to add that change.

Conclusion

My 1965 Nikon F with plain prism viewfinder, 50mm f/1.4 Nikkor lens, and a very comfortable neck strap.

There is nothing quite like the Nikon F. Its quality construction, sure handling, wide availability, and limited number of minor drawbacks make the Nikon F’s reputation as the “it” camera of its era well deserved. I highly recommend it to anyone who has any interest in film photography with a classic camera.