f65, f75 or f80?????????

hi,

 

i am rel. new in photography and want to buy a really good nikon slr

camera. BUT as always the variety is so big, that i can not make a

decision! right now i am in favor of the f75, but i read some reviews

where people said, that it is nor a good choice... i would be very

interested in your opinion on it, cause i think you know nikons the

best! i want a camera, with which i will never ask myself: ¡°should i

have bought the other one??". any suggestions?

n80/f80. Its like a smaller lighter F100

I'd be interested to hear what was said negative regarding the f75. The F70, on the other hand, was an ergonomical mess. I have an N80 (F80 outside USA), love it, and recommend it highly. On here, you'll get such a ridiculous range of opinions, just be ready for them. People telling you to get a fully manual camera even though you can use an f75/f80 in manual, all the way up to people telling you to spend $1k on an F100. As for a lens, consider skipping the zoom that often comes with the camera and get a 50mm f1.8 lens instead. You'll have one of the best optical lenses made, for $100. But it won't be a zoom. Your choice. Good luck!

 

PS-if you never want to ask, "should I have gotten the other one," get an F5. Then, only when you can't pay your mortgage and are sleeping in your car, might you doubt your chioce, but never when you're shooting film. Then you'll just be wondering if you should have gotten a digital slr too!

I would not consider anything less than a F80/N80. There are too many limitations on the F65 and F75. No manual film speed, no second command dial, penta-Dach-mirror instead of a pentaprism, etc. If at all possible get an F100. Get an AF 50/1.8D or 1.4D not a cheap, easy to break, kit zoom lens.

I have an F65 and an F80. I got the F65 first, as a complete beginner, but after half a year I started to feel it was not enough, so I bought an F80 and a Nikkor 50mm F1.8 in addition to the two zoom lenses that came with the F65, and are nothing short of horrible (well, if you're a little concerned about picture quality).

 

The F65 is actually not bad at all, I still use it a lot, but just like it's been said before, you have a lot of limitations compared to the F80, like metering mode (no spot meter on F65, and the camera chooses automatically between matrix and centre weighted metering, according to the selected program mode.), but that's just one example. The F80 also feels much better, which sounds funny, but for me it is important how photographing "feels". I don't think there's a big difference in picture quality, both of them are excellent. People tell me it's not worth considering the F75, they say even the F65 is better than that.

 

So the bottom line is, if you're going to be a casual shooter, but need somewhat good picture quality, you won't need more than the F65. But if you are at least half-serious about photography, and willing to pay a couple of $$$ more for something better, then the F80 is your weapon of choice. By the way, I think there are not many cameras out there with such a good "value for money" as the F80. I love that thing!

I have a N80 and I love it.

Definetely F80 !!!

 

Below is simple formula for anybody wants to select a camera from Nikon:

 

If the choice is F55 or F65 ---> buy F65

 

If the choice is F55 or F65 or F80 ---> buy F80

 

If the choice is F55 or F65 or F80 or F100 ---> buy F100

 

If the choice is F55 or F65 or F80 or F100 or F5 ---> buy F5

 

Why ?? Because Nikon is easy. The higher the number the F or N followed by the two digits, the better the camera. Same applies to the single digit.

 

What you buy will off course strongly depends on your budget and your photography needs.

Good Luck,

There are two F75 Reviews that I am aware of. Both are favourable towards the new F75.

I have one myself that actually replaces the F65.

I tend to agree that the F65 has benefits (size, weight, fps) over the F75.

The F75 on the other hand has many benefits over the F65, not in the least being the in-viewer focus points.

Also F75 metering is superior (F65 has underexposure problems in any kind of backlight and high contrast situation - matrix metering).

If, however, your budget permits, do yourself a favor and go for the F80 (at least).

Why was I so 'stupid' to go for the F75 then ?

The price difference F75-F80 in my country is unbelievable + I use the F75 for candid/action, hiking and vacation pics only - for which F75 + 28-100 combo is great (got a MF Nikon + lenses + flash for other shooting needs).

You might want to look at <a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=0055Ot"><B>this thread</B></a>, in which we all started arguing about two of the cameras you're looking at.

The F70 is indeed a good camera, not messy as people tell.

 

"People telling you to get a fully manual camera even though you can use an f75/f80 in manual" ...Even though it's not the same thing.

 

Get the F-80 and you'll be happy. The only problem is if you intend to use manual lenses, with is a great advantage of the nikon system, and the F-80 can't.

If you're getting a camera anyway, may as well spend a bit more and get the F80. At this level, you get a more solid camera, but more importantly, it's the lowest level Nikon SLR that is full-featured. The others are missing things, like the ability to set film speed manually if you ever want to.

I think the N80 is the bare minimum in the Nikon system right now. It has the highest price/features ratio and will allow you to do almost anything that the F100/F5 will let you do.

 

I'll add to the comment regarding the recommendation of manual focus cameras... I use these cameras regularly and believe me they are infinitely better than trying to use an AF camera in manual. The viewfinders and focusing screens in almost all AF cameras are simply not up to the task.

 

Whatever your choice, buy yourself a decent lens. You're likely to keep it even if you switch camera bodies in the future, e.g. to digital.

In my experience with photography, cars, motorcycles, electronics, computers... etc... no matter what you buy, eventually you'll want something bigger and better. Its inevitable, especially for gearheads like myself. Good luck and enjoy whichever one you decide on getting!

Get the F65 and in six months you'll appreciate what the F75 can do better. Get the F75 and in nine months you'll appreciate what the F80 can do better. Get the F80 and in one year you'll appreciate what the F100 can do better. Get the F100 and in two years you'll appreciate what the F5 can do better. Get the F5 first and you'll never have a perspective to appreciate it, but (after you get passed questioning yourself whether it is too much camera for you) you probably love it anyway. The above simply illustrates the idea shared here that you'll eventually want more camera as you become more involved in photography. Limited only to the choices you listed, I'd suggest the F80. I had one for about 2 years before moving on to an F100. Good camera. IMHO: F65/75 = Fair (beginner); F80 = Good (beginner/intermediate); F100 = Better (intermediate/pro); F5 = Best (pro). However, no matter which you select avoid the cheap glass sold in the "package deals".

Amen to that. Whichever camera you decide to get, get it from a place where you don't have to buy a kit with the cheap kit zoom lens. I've learned my lesson from those. Get the body, and a good consumer lens separately if you have to.

Hi

 

The Nikon writer Thom Hogan has a review of the N75 in which he compares the features of the N65, 75 and 80. It is here:

 

http://www.bythom.com/n75.htm

 

This is a great site for Nikon information.

 

Regards, Ross

Thank you all very much! I will go for the F80 in two weeks...

Congratulations on your choice. I've had my N80 for over 2 years now and have taken the best pictures I've ever taken with it, and that's what photography is all about, isn't it? It's awfully easy to get caught up in the camera equipment "upgrade" mentality - I think it comes with the hobby. However, the N80 is all the camera 99% of photographers will ever need, plus it looks great too, especially with the MB-16 grip attached.