joseph_krause

I recently purchased a black Nikon FM3A with a 293580 serial number. I noticed at the back of the film load cavity a five-digit code, 11030. Having owned several Nikon F3 cameras where similar codes appear, I believe that the five digits indicate the specific production date and camera options or variants. I assume that my code means that the camera was made in November 2003 with 0 variants. Can anyone confirm this reading of the code?

Yes, I have lifted and rotated the dial. Over the years, I have used probably 5-6 F3 cameras but this is the first time I have encountered this sticking problem.

I have recently acquired two Nikon F3 cameras (one F3 with standard DE2 prism and one F3P). In both cases the ISO dial is very difficult to rotate. Any recommendations?

 

Thanks.

As already suggested above, the Hasselblad SWC is the way to go. I far prefer the newer SWC/M with a 38mm Biogon CF T* lens. However, it might break the bank because the newer versions are in the $2,000+ range used. But you will have one of the finest lenses ever made.

<p>Many thanks to all for the thoughtful responses and, especially to Edward Ingold for his guidance. Yes, a CFV16 back may be a good first, step as I certainly don't have the means to invest in a CFV50C at this time. Because I am using my SWC/M body progressively more, Edward's precautions about using a digital back with the 38mm Biogon leads me to think that I should stick to BW film until some new digital back technology appears on the horizon.<br>

My best, Joseph</p>

<p>Many thanks to all for the thoughtful responses and, especially to Edward Ingold for his guidance. Yes, a CFV16 back may be a good first, step as I certainly don't have the means to invest in a CFV50C at this time. Because I am using my SWC/M body progressively more, Edward's precautions about using a digital back with the 38mm Biogon leads me to think that I should stick to BW film until some new digital back technology appears on the horizon.<br>

My best, Joseph</p>

<p>As a dedicated amateur, over the last two decades I have principally used film for my landscape photography, usually shooting with my Hasselblad 503 CX and 50mm CF f/4 and, more recently with an SWC/M 38mm Biogon, which I saved a long time to purchase. Like most Hasselblad nostalgics, I am very attached to the 6X6 format which film affords. However, I am also discovering the art and benefits of digital and am seeing that there are more and more digital backs available, if using a 645 format, on the market. Most still seem in the high price professional range. However there do seem to be some backs that are more approachable price-wise. Is there a best option entry level back for an amateur looking to explore the digital turf? </p>

<p>Avi,<br>

If you are an experienced photographer, which I sense you are, I would recommend traveling with the compact and lightweight Hasselblad SWC/M (or more recent 903 or 905 versions) along with two A12 backs. The 38mm f/4.5 Biogon lens has a stellar reputation, is versatile and produces fabulous landscapes. Joseph</p>

<p>Thank you Russ and Evan for the Hasselblad contact information that you sent. I will e-mail Hasselblad requesting information about replacing the cord. Since posting this message Paramount Cords, fully to its credit, did inform me that it was also attempting to obtain information from Hasselblad about this cord. Hopefully a solution will emerge early in the New Year.<br>

My best, Joseph</p>

<p>I have been searching for some time on the internet for a replacement Y cord for my Hasselblad ProFlash 4504. This is the original TTL cord that came with the flash with a 6 pin female plug at the long end and a 6 pin female + standard pc on the Y end.<br>

On suggestions from this site I have contacted Paramount cords but that company does not seem able to rebuild this cord. No luck on ebay or at KEH after many searches.<br>

I have the original Y cord that no longer works on my Hasselblad flash, having tried it out with several Hasselblad lenses on my 503CX. <br>

Can anyone recommend someone who might be able to rebuild the Hasselblad cord from the original?<br>

Any help would be appreciated. Joseph</p>

 

<p>Hi Joana,<br>

To follow-up on what Shun Cheung recently posted about staying on topic, let me just summarize some of the points made above which I can confirm from personal experience. 1) Good lenses are more important than camera bodies and today there are many older Nikon prime lenses available at bargain prices; 2) the F100 has many of the useful features of the later film autofocus Nikon cameras but its outer rubberized cover is prone to stickiness over time and, 3) there are some great deals to be had with a bit of searching for some classic Nikon film camera: the Nikon F3 is a reliable camera that I still use today. Good luck with film! </p>

<p>Kadir,<br>

Some fifteen years ago I sold my Nikon FE2 and several lenses to purchase from KEH a Hasselblad 500CM, A12 back and 80mm CF T* lens. The gear was ranked at the bargain level. It was a considerable investment for me. Even though I later traded the 500CM for a 503CX (which made the use of flash much easier), both the 80mm and A12 have endured the test of time and I still use them regularly today. Over the years I have purchased other Hasselblad lenses, but the 80mm CF can do most jobs with impeccable results. You will not regret the investment.</p>

<p>Joseph</p>

<p>Stephen,<br>

If you just need a flash for family gatherings that is hassle-free for your Nikon D7100, the obvious solution is the Nikon SB 400. There is only one button on it: ON and OFF. It will swivel and give the correct lighting commanded by the camera. I use one on my pro Nikons and it does the job admirably there too.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>There is nothing like the hands-on assessment that a camera show can afford. But after now twelve years of experience with KEH involving probably thirty purchases (mostly for Hasselblad equipment) and two re-sales, I would say the following: with few exceptions the KEH rating system is reliable, and often you are surprised by a purchase that is a mark up on the scale. My first resale several years ago was a fair deal. Recently though, my greatest disappointment with KEH is when I attempted to sell back some of my most expensive purchases from the company. The offers were humiliatingly low and non-negotiable. </p>

<p>I recently purchased an Epson R3000 for $599 and it is a superb printer, producing excellent fine art quality prints with outstanding results in B&W. It delivers prints up to 13x19 but, as Harry states above, it guzzles ink: it uses nine cartridges which usually cost around $30.00 each using the Epson brand. </p>

<p>Thanks much, Howard. This is precisely what I was looking for.</p>

<p>The Roman writer Horace in his <em>Ars Poetica</em> used the analogy "ut pictura poesis" that is, "as in imagery so in poetry". A looser modern rendering would probably say that a picture tells a thousand words. I sense that Horace and his descendants thought of a balance between words, imagery and the external world. Not a particular advocate of Horace, I have several times thought of his famous analogy in photographic terms. Because it seems rather pertinent if you ask, as did Gisele Freund several decades ago, "What does photography say?"<br>

In today's world visual media, and particularly photography, seem to validate Susan Sontag's notion of aesthetic consumerism, where we have all become image-junkies, longing for a beauty that always eschews us. On the other hand, Roland Barthes wants us to believe in his book <em>Camera Lucida</em>, that "photography evades us" and cannot tell any story. <br>

Given our constant exposure to photography's political, journalistic and marketing purposes, is there any room left for creative photography to speak its own language?</p>

 

<p>If possible, could someone provide me with the printer setting profile for Crane Museo Portfolio rag paper used on a Epson R3000 printer with images edited and launched through Aperture 3? Aperture 3 (or the R3000 driver) offers a limited number of third party paper options. Thanks, Joseph</p>

<p>Thanks, Jim, good suggestion. I will contact Billingham directly.</p>

<p>Jay:<br>

Over the years I have used many Nikon film cameras and a large range of lenses. Although I could provide convincing reasons for electing any of the cameras suggested in the above posts (all available for a reasonable price in today's market), my recommendation would be to opt for the F3 with a MD4 motor drive. It is a wonderfully simple camera to use that survived the test of time and endurance by the pros (I believe that it had the longest production run of all the F cameras). It is also a camera that obliges you think about exposure, aperture, focusing and film speed. The F3s pro successors (the F4, F5, F100 and F6) with auto-focus capabilities, matrix and spot metering options, and program modes are brilliant cameras (I still use my F4 often), but armed with a lens such as the 35mm f/2, the F3 allows for a good deal of photographic learning. Good luck in you choice.</p>

<p>Several years ago I had my eye on a Billingham bag that looked like a larger Hadley but had a leather bottom and brass studs. Now that my children are (just about) through college I am hoping to buy this elegant and durable looking bag but can't find any sign of it anywhere on google. Can anyone assist? Thanks, Joseph.</p>

<p>Gisele Freund's book on Photography and Society and Milan Kundera's notion of imagology I think make convincing arguments about the social power of a few images in modern society. Images, Kundera suggest, have replaced ideologies. I don't know what tangible impact the images of Eugene Smith and David Douglas Duncan had on the outcome of the Korean war, nor those of Philip Jones Griffith and Eddie Adams on the Vietnam conflict. The atrocities of war have been recorded photographically probably since the Crimean war when the first early discussions occurred between public opinion and states based on photographic evidence. </p>

<p>So I return to my original question. Why is photography not driving debate about the present wars? I strongly hope that Jon Willbrecht's position does not mean that our society is vaccinated against images of misery, violence and misfortune.</p>

<p>Joseph </p>

<p>The power of photography contributed to raising public awareness about the reality of war in Korea and Vietnam. In a culture obsessed with imagery, the realities of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars are conspicuously absent. Why such political silence in our images? </p>

<p>After difficult love affairs with Metz flahes, I have married my Nikon D2H to an SB-600. They are now inseparable. It is a brilliant flash for the price. Best, Joseph</p>

<p>With great regret I just had my last roll of Agfa APX 100 developed. I have used Ilford Pan F and FP4 over the years but those films, as capable as they are of representing complicated if not delicate tonal ranges, do not seem to have the same chemistry as Agfa film. I have searched the web and ordered some Rollei Pan 25 and Retro 80s to find a suitable replacement. How do these Rollei films compare with Agfa? Joseph</p>