The price to performance of used cameras is absurd. My view is that digital photography tech hit maturity in 2008 with the release of the Canon 5D Mark II and Nikon D700.
There is an overwhelming amount of professional gear out there at rock bottom prices. Consumer gear can be a blast when it’s cheap enough. The right camera for a style of shooting is going to be better than whatever the newest camera happens to be. (Unless you’re doing sports/action/wildlife. AF tech is getting absurd.)
Third Party Battery Paranoia
I have had batteries fall apart, fail within months, and with a capacity far below what’s on the label. It’s difficult to find good quality third party batteries.
There is an easy way ANYONE can inexpensively capacity test camera batteries. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to capacity test camera batteries. It is a simple DIY project that only requires, ~$30, a screwdriver, and pair of wire strippers.
Picking Out Vintage Lens Winners
All lenses aren’t equal, especially when it comes to vintage and early digital camera lenses. Modern lenses will give you images that are razor sharp corner to corner. Vintage lenses can set themselves apart by how they render, the color you can get with them, interesting bokeh, or other characteristics not valued by current photographers.
On the other hand, many vintage lenses are not good. Their performance may not be good enough to set them apart from other lenses. Worse, as time has gone on some lenses have defects such as haze, fungus, balsam separation, or degraded grease, that will render them worthless because of the difficulty in repair.
I’m somewhat indiscriminate in my purchasing of gear, so I get a mix of good, bad, and average. The lens reviews will help you find a lens worth owning. These are popular film cameras that recieve frequent lens questions.
The Asahi Pentax Digital Spotmeter has remained a popular choice since Ansel Adams popularized them with his zone system. He also used the previous analog meter that was replaced by the Digital Spotmeter, the Pentax Spotmeter V.
For a long time the meter has been popular with medium and large format photographers, especially for landscapes. It becomes a requirement for film photography with medium and large format cameras as they often don’t have any form of built-in metering.
The first Nikon F-mount 35mm SLR was the Nikon F, released in 1959.
Over time, autofocus and electrical contacts have been added to the mount. These features can affect forward and backward lens compatibility. Generally, lenses can be used across a wide variety of camera bodies, but all features are not guaranteed to work.
A notable exception are Non-Ai lenses, as they can cause damage to cameras not specifically designed to use them.
The best film to use in your Olympus OM-2 is going to be based on your lens, lighting conditions, and type of film you want to use.
Choosing an ISO 400 35mm or faster will allow you to skip being burdened with a flash or tripod.
If you would like to take images in low light, such as indoors, ensure you have a fast lens. See my list on the 5 Best Lenses for the Olympus OM-2 for lens recommendations.
The best film to use in your Fujica ST701 is going to be based on the lens, lighting conditions, and if you want to use color or black & white.
Getting an ISO 400 35mm or higher speed will enable you to avoid having to carry around a tripod or flash.
If you want to take images in low light, such as indoors, make sure that you have a fast lens.
The best film to use in the Fujica STX-1 is going to be based on your lens, available light, and type of film you want to use.
Getting an ISO 400 35mm or faster will let you eliminate needing to lug around a tripod or flash.
If you have a need to capture pictures inside or anytime there is low light, make sure that you have a fast lens. Have a look at my article on the 5 Best Lenses for the Fujica STX-1 for lens suggestions.
The best film to use in your Olympus OM-1 will have to be based on your lens, available light, and type of film you want to shoot.
To avoid having to carry around a flash or tripod, purchase a 35mm film that has an ISO of 400 or faster.
Make sure that you have a fast lens if you want to take photos in low light, conditions that are often found indoors.
