What's your favourite FD body, and why?

<p>Since getting my F-1 and F-1n's back from servicing for shutter and meter calibration, and picking up two nearly mint EF's, I'd be hard pressed to say which is my favourite FD body. </p>

<p>For the longest time I thought that it was the F-1N, which is a piece of engineering art <em>par excellence</em>, and IMHO the finest SLR ever made (despite its lack of mirror lock-up). But I certainly use my T90's the most of any of my FD bodies. There's someting to be said for being able to readily select exposure and metering modes. But then again, there's also something to be said for the mechanical "simplicity" of the F-1 and F-1n. And the EF is pretty cool, too, with its vertical travel shutter, hybrid mechanical/electronic shutter (like the F-1N), and battery voltage regulator.</p>

<p>So I'd really like to hear from my fellow FD users about your favourite bodies. I really love them all.</p>

<p>I don't mean to slight the A-series bodies. My first FD body was an AE-1, and my second an A-1.</p>

<p>And soft spots remain in my heart for both of them...</p>

<p>I've been trying to wear out an EF for years so if for no other reason that durability i'll have to say the EF.</p>

<p>I love the feel and layout of my A-1. Despite it's recent decline in use, it is still my favorite 35mm camera. JR</p>

<p>My first was an A-1, which I grew to dislike using over a period of 10 years...after 13 years without it, I fell in love with the T-90, which along with my Leicaflex SL2 are getting fair amount of usage these days.</p>

<p>MY AE-1 is my favorite even though I never use it.</p>

<p>Because it is the only one I bought new... And that started everything</p>

<p>'A' series were my first Canons, and the F-1N is my favorite <em>objet d'art</em>, but these days I find I usually pick up a T70 as a walking-around camera. </p>

<p>I think that my favorite FD body is the original F-1. I have had several of the various Canon bodies: F-1N, AE-1, AE-1P, A-1, T-90, FT, FTb, FTbn, Pellix. The T-90 always felt like an EOS that never quite took off. Everything about it felt like an older EOS body but I still had to manually focus; something about that never quite caught on in my brain. I should mention that I had my EOS A2 long before I bought a used T-90, so I was already accustomed to the EOS bodies. I got an original F-1 not too long ago. It (along with a Minolta SR-T 102) is my favorite manual camera and one of my favorite cameras <em>period</em> . I love the fact that it is a mechanical camera and it's the first professional slr system Canon designed and for that reason I think that it holds a very, very significant place in Canon's history. I consider it to be the Canon camera that helped to get the whole 'Canon vs. Nikon professional camera' debate stirred up. It also has a very smooth shutter and quick-return mirror so it always feels like a very high-quality, high-performance camera. I like the 1/2000 top shutter speed as well, and I like the low-profile look of the prism. Everything about it feels great to me and with a 35/2 lens usually mounted on it, it goes just about everywhere with me (again, along with my Minolta SR-T 102). My second favorite FD body is probably the FTbn; truth be told, my second favorite manual Canon is the FT but it's not an FD body. It's a great camera though.</p>

<p>I didn't want to raise the "Canon vs. Nikon" debate in my original post, but since you've raised it, Andy, I've got one observation to make. It's often said by Nikon users that they <em>love</em> their bodies, and that we Canon users merely view ours as tools, as mere pieces of photographic equipment. Aside from the Freudian implications of all of this, it's clear from this thread, and many others, that FD devotees also <em>love</em> their gear. Perhaps the same cannot be said for EOS users...</p>

<p>I have a few FD bodies, and everytime I have a new roll of film, it goes into my original F-1. It is just an awesome body. All manual, a simple light meter, it all adds up to more creative control of the photographs.</p>

<p>My favorite is the EF for esthetics and ergonomics. I also find the FT series to have a certain charm.</p>

<p>I can't think of <em>any</em> camera that I really love but plenty that annoy me. I'm from the "camera-as-tool" camp. I'm an image maker. Seeing is important to me. The camera is nothing more than a clunky device (compared to my eye) I'm forced to wedge between my eye and the scene so as to preserve it. To that end, clearly, some work better than others. The F-1n annoys me the least with it's simplicity, it's beautiful build quality, it's professional accessories and...of course...MLU. Sometimes...when the flow is good...for a fleeting moment...I actually forget it's there, which , for me, is the highest praise I could possibly bestow on any image recording device.</p>

<p>The F series, my F1N AEs and EF, I also have a T90, A1, and FTbn, with the exeption of the T90 I've used them all for more than twenty years,, but if I had to choose one it would be the F1s, with the EF coming a close second.<br>

<br /> P.S. Michael Axel - I just wish the EFs wind on lever had a bigger stand off angle like the A1, so you could get your thumb behind it then it would be perfect.</p>

<p>Having recently bitten the bullet and 'invested' in Canon FD gear my views are somewhat narrow and uncompromising. I'd place the F1N in <em>first place,</em> several points ahead of my other FD cameras in all practical respects. I much prefer it to my Nikon F3HP, but it falls a tad behind my semi-retired Pentax LX in a few small respects.</p>

<p>I have been very impressed with the FTb & FTbn. These are clearly robust cameras which exude an air of dependability and they are uncomplicated in use. Setting aside the mercury battery issue, their only failing is that the meter switch wasn't incorporated into the wind lever, or somehow made to cancel automatically. I'd still prefer a Nikkormat FT2 if the choice of lens was not an issue, but I can't fit my Canon lenses on a Nikon.</p>

<p>Third place goes to the T90 : it's a <em>very likeable camera</em> despite its utter quirkiness in my view. Personality-wise, it's ok for the occasional date, but love is <em>not </em> in the air .... It just begs for a zoom lens to be fitted, but manual focus zooms are something I hardly ever use nowadays. My A1 was about to be relegated to the role of door-stop when I relented and sent it for a service ... I still don't know why.</p>

 

<p><em>"Perhaps the same cannot be said for EOS users..."</em></p>

<p>I'm one of those that <em>can</em> say the same for my EOS gear. I love my EOS 1vHS more than any other camera I've ever used. It's the most dependable, rugged machine with the quickest response in every situation. I also actually love my EOS 30D, but my 1vHS is so good, it makes me want to use film!</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Somewhat smilar to Mark W. the only FD body I bought new (from the military exchange) was the early F-1. I've made several thousand images with that body and would never be without one. Getting my first one stolen started me on ebay in 2000. Replaced my first model with a second model and never looked back. Since then got an AT-1 and T-70. Like them both but not my faves. Bought a mint EF which runs hard on the heels of the F-1n but emphasize "on the heels".</p>

 

<p>My favourite <em>design</em> is undoubtedly the T90 which set the pattern for so much of what has followed, it's DNA is still in most of the cameras on the market, of any brand. It's a bit of a fluke though as IMO Canon, can't do the aesthetic part of design. If Colani hadn't been involved the T90 and the Eos system would have been very much like the T80 and would probably have bombed.</p>

<p>Since the Eos thing has been brought up, I loathe the Eos system having used the 3, the 1V and currently running with a 1Ds and 400D for Digital. It's not just the ergonomics, which have always seemed to represent a step backwards from the T90 to me, but the sheer ugliness of most of the bodies and lenses. If I was starting now I'd probably switch to Nikon. Better camera design and now they have full frame digi and a decent range of TS lenses... Rant over.</p>

<p>To use; probably my New F-1 though the lack of AE lock is a pain.</p>

<p>The FTb-n...for the same reason others have said about their favorite. It was my first Canon and was purchased new (after scrimping and saving for a year) with the 50mm 1.4 SSC lens. The two of us have wound our way thru 10's of thousands of exposures since 1974 without even a hint of a problem. Everything is intuitive, so I can concentrate on the picture...not the various settings and options.</p>

<p>I once 'cheated' on my trusty FTb when the A-1 was introduced. We had our little affair with various auto exposure modes and a winder also, but after awhile the A-1 started squeeking on me, and I realized where my true love really belonged.</p>

<p>Since then I've acquired many other FD bodies, and they all seem to get along well on my shelf...but the FTb is still there smiling back at me when I pull out some great old Kodachromes we did together back in the 70's.</p>

<p>Way back in the 1970s, when I was shooting with Canon, my favorite body was the F-1. I also had an EF, but there was something about it I didn't like (don't remember exactly what now), so I sold it. I also had an FTb which I enjoyed shooting with.<br>

When the A series cameras came out, I looked at the AE-1 and A-1, but decided to stick with the non-electronic F-1. Too bad it used mercury batteries, otherwise I'd like to have another one now.<br>

I've since moved on to Nikon (F3HP and F2A bodies).</p>

<p>I agree with your original post, an impossible question to answer. It's like trying to decide between brunettes, blondes, and redheads, it's all good lol. Although I will second what Andy said about the 1VHS. If the T-90 is Miss County Fair Strawberry Queen, the 1VHS is Miss Universe.</p>

<p>I will have to say the EF, only reason I choose it over the original F1 is that it is lighter and has the oversized shutter speed knob that is just easy to use without having to look for it. That being said, the T70 gets more use than any of them even though it is not my favourite. I quess because if the T70 gets banged up, broken or stolen, it is the cheapest to replace.</p>

<p>The original question is a little like asking, which of your children do you love the most ?</p>

<p>The F1 old from 1976. Titanium shutter with 1/2000 sec. Large and heavy body with a wonderful shutter release feeling. I felt I could use two stops shorter exposure than the A1 or AE1. I liked the big rectangular exposure meter.</p>

<p>F1 is a better companion in a dark alley than virtually any other camera. Nikons are wimps by comparison (except for FTn, which rattled amusingly), and plastic purported Canons? Forget it!</p>

<p>For now I would say that the F-1 is my favorite. When I get my F-1n overhauled I may like that one even better. After that I would pick the EF and then the original FTb. All of these cameras will work without batteries. The EF will miss some of the slow speeds this way. All of these have the mirror lock-up feature. If I could get the silicon meter cell of the EF into an F-1 I think I would have the perfect camera. The FTbN has always felt a little less solid to me than the FTb and its depth of field/stop down lever isn't as nice as the one on the FTb. In any case I have three FTbNs so I still use them. </p>