Introduced in 1980, the F3 is the third professional camera from Nikon, the first with auto exposure and fully electronic camera. It is a 35mm SLR. I have no idea when the camera production ended, nor what year my camera was made. Frankly, I’m not sure what this information would tell me, as the camera is a tank. Whether the camera was the first run or the last really does not matter to me.

Slightly larger than the Nikon F and F2, interchangeable finder, optional motor pack, and a subtle but great grip, the F3 is ergonomic and fits my larger than average hands really well. Equally, the highpoint viewfinder was really good when I was a glasses wearer, and one could argue, it is the best 35mm SLR for a glasses-wearing photographer; I think it is the best Nikon camera. It is a workhorse camera, time and field-tested by professionals and puds like me for the last 40 or so years.

It has an electronically controlled horizontal shutter, speeds ranging from 8 seconds to 1/2000th, with Time, Bulb, Automatic, and X (which is flash, which will sync at 1/80th). The shutter, being all electronic, is almost entirely useless with a dead battery, but will shoot at 1/60th. If the battery is dead, the shutter release no longer works and you have to use the lever on the front. This has never been an issue with me, as the batteries seem to last for ages in this camera.

The film is loaded in the back the same as any modern film camera, not some weird nonsense like Leica or Nikon rangefinders; just swing the back open and plonk your roll right in. ISO is set on the dial to the left, which is also where the film rewind is. The operation of this camera follows the same methods as almost any SLR. The only thing that can be slightly frustrating about this camera in use is the locks on every knob. The ISO dial has to be lifted to change the ISO, a small lever has to be held aside to release the film back, to adjust for exposure compensation a lock has to be held down. These are all features that my F5 had as well, and I guess is a mark of a professional camera. If I were dropping a big honest bomb, I really like this as I tend to knock my cameras around while using them and it is nice knowing nothing is gonna get knocked loose.







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