Adam Trahan: Nikon FE

Nikon FE

s/n 3971982 Black

As I oriented myself back into photography, learning about lenses, focal lengths, aperture and camera modes, I realized the F3 was not the camera I needed. Neither was the F6 but the F6 was a far better camera regarding capturing the photograph on auto mode. The FE2 that I owned was a much better choice than the F3. As I got deeper into photography, the cost of film became a factor.

I decided to buy a DSLR.

The D780 was a good fit for the lens collector that I had become. I bought lenses to explore focal lengths. I bought a couple of lenses that were used to take iconic pictures. I wanted to see what these famous photographers like Steve Curry and Galen Rowell used to create their images. I had a bunch of AI-S lenses when I bought the D780. But not one auto focus lens.

Who does that?

Apparently I do.

I had rhyme and reason to my madness, that’s what I thought then but as I look back now, I was not efficient in my journey. I was on the path without a well defined goal. I knew I wanted to take good pictures and my keeper count was slowly increasing as I understood more and more about the exposure triangle but the camera mode I was using did not utilize manual control over my images. I was primarily stuck in P mode (program mode) where the camera did nearly everything for me.

I was advancing toward my goal but the destination continued to keep pace just ahead of me. I understood the exposure triangle and all that was affected by it but I wasn’t doing it in manual, A, P or shutter priority modes.

A couple of the big camera houses came through town and I began to trade and sell my manual focus lenses to buy D and G series auto focus lenses. I could share them between the D780 and the F6. I was getting much better pictures through auto focus lenses. Eventually, those two cameras were all that I owned, I had sold all of my manual focus lenses.

I had made yet another mistake.

I got back into photography because I enjoyed the old cameras. I now was left with two beautiful cameras that took gorgeous photographs but the look and feel of an old but exquisitely manufactured metal and glass lens experience was gone. I missed the 50mm perspective of returning to my high school type camera. I decided to rectify that desire and I searched out the Japanese pancake version of the AI-S lens, it was relatively inexpensive (and tiny) compared to the giant modern AF-S 200-500 f5.6 G that it sat next to on my shelf. But it was beautiful and offered a familiar view of what I wanted when composing a photograph through it.

The Nikon FG I had been using as an everyday carry camera was cheap but feature packed. I sourced another one, cleaned it up and realized that cleaning an old camera was a good lesson but not something I really wanted to do. I could do it but it wasn’t the practice I wanted to do. I almost wasted a roll of film, I had cleaned the focus screen and ever so slightly misaligned it causing the focus distance to be off from what was indicated on the lens. It took 5-6 try’s to get it back in its frame and in the interim, I managed to mar the frosted surface of the screen. Every time I looked through the viewfinder, I was reminded of my troubling experience with the EM and with the row of LEDs indicating exposure in the viewfinder? This also wasn’t what I wanted in my manual focus experience. The FG was close…

I had fucked up again…

Sometimes I learn lessons by mistakes…

I asked myself, “What do I want in my manual focus experience?”

My thoughts lead me to this. A two needle match system. A viewfinder microprism ring with the center split focus. No fully automatic P mode. I want Aperture priority mode where I choose the depth of field and the camera chooses the shutter speed. I also want to shoot in manual mode. Choosing both aperture and shutter speed by the needle indicators. I want a camera that doesn’t waste film.

The camera that ticked all the boxes was the FE.

The FE starts metering as soon as I shut the film back door. Film is expensive to purchase, process and scan. The FE2 and F3 will not meter 00 and 0 frames, the camera internals choose a fixed shutter speed when andvancing the film once loaded and advancing the film after loading wastes those frames. I’m charged by the roll at development and scan services, 36 or 39 frames, same cost, that becomes a big consideration as I shoot quite a few roles per year, those extra frames that the FE allows adds up.

The FE2 or F3, both of which I’ve already owned and operated are great cameras but not the experience I desire using my AI-S lenses.

And, I much prefer the MD-12 motor drive over the MD-4 ~ F3. The grip feels better in hand and this motor drive is aesthetically pleasing, the MD-4 reminds me of a brick.

These are the reasons why I own an FE.

Only what I need and I get more for less…

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I bought the 28-50mm f3.5 to use as a primary lens for the FE. I like the 20mm and the pancake 50mm but I really like the ability to quickly choose between the two. The 28-50 is pretty close, I miss that lens so I bought another one. I also bought a 135mm f2.8 AI. This is a killer portrait and walk about sharp beast. I’m done buying MF (DOOM) lenses. No mas.

I’m two rolls in and I’m going to change one thing on my FE maybe two, the Focus Screen to a Type E grid. I don’t like post production and sometimes I have trouble framing pics to keep them level. The grid in the Type E screen will help with that. Also, the split focus and micro prism ring are omitted in the E screen. I also don’t use a strap, I might buy a rope strap for it too. I like the idea. I use the grip on the MD-12 without a strap. The Optech straps I use are cool and I like them but those climbing rope straps? In black?

It’s calling me.

I’m going to improve the view too.

I’ll change out the mirror bumper foam and clean the prism bottom as well.

Cleaning up the visuals, I really like this camera much more than the F3. Although the F3 is much like the F6 re: focus screen info, the FE screen with the aperture indicator box up top and the needle match system are much better for my manual focus experience. The F6 doesn’t seem like a film camera and when I use it, the lenses/body are interchangeable with the DSLR D780.

The FE is pure manual focus experience I want. The two needle match, the metering always on, the extra frames, it’s my film camera. The F6 is too, really, but not really. The FE is purely a film camera, the F6 bends the rules positively but for my manual focus needs, I want the basic rules in my eye and that’s exactly what I get with the Nikon FE.

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Below is my first and second rolls of film through the FE.