Starter film camera? (Pentax vs Olympus vs Canon vs Minolta)

[mwmcbroom]

<p>Madison, all of your choices are good ones, except for number 5. Numbers 1 through 4 all work well in manual mode, but the A-1 is somewhat handicapped in manual mode. If you want to stick with an A-series camera, the AT-1 is a better choice because it is a manual only camera. But I think the King of the economically priced manual Canon FD cameras is the Canon FTb. It is simply a wonderful camera and has taught many a student the how-to's of photography. You can find clean FTbs on the used market ranging from $25 to $50, depending on cosmetic condition mostly.</p>

[darin_cozine]

<p>For a first camera, i would say the Minolta SRT101. <br>

The Pentax k1000 is a bit of a clunker to me.. it was built to be a student camera, and it shows.<br>

The olympus OM1/2 are great cameras, that is what i shoot with. But it can be hard to find a good clean working body. Lenses are a bit pricey these days.<br>

Canon FT FTb's are rugged tanks. Canon EF would be a bit better even, This would be my second choice. Or first if you like the extra grip/weight of a full size camera. Viewfinder is not as nice as the Minolta.<br>

<br />The Minolta SRT is a great all-around camera, most of the ones I have seen a thrift stores still work perfectly (except for the abused ones). The metering is excellent. Great viewfinder. Many lenses at reasonable price.</p>

<p>-All vintage cameras are going to require some basic maintenance. Replacing the foam seals. Cleaning the battery compartment. Cleaning the mirror box of dust (dont touch the mirror!)</p>

 

[glen_h]

<p>Yes, I also like the FTb. I have one, with an alkaline battery. (The A76 or equivalent fits close enough.) Seems to work fine, and the meter is close enough for black and white film. </p>

<p>Slow shutter speeds seem close just by looking at them. Faster ones follow about the right ratio, from looking at them. Close enough for me. </p>

[MTC Photography]

<p><img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/16652353-md.jpg" alt="Untitled" /></p>

[moon_mullins1]

No one has said it yet but a Nikon F2 is superb, by far my favorite and most used film camera body. not too

expensive and there are plenty of good ones to be had. The Nikkormats are also solid well built bodies that just keep

going. I'm also a big fan of the Pentax Spotmatic series and the K1000, all great items. There is almost no wrong

answer to this question.