I now own one of the finest 35mm SLRs of all time and I’m dying to tell you about it. I’m going to try really hard not to gush.

A classic Nikon SLR has been on my want list for a long time, but they’re mighty expensive. I could see that to own one, I’d have to go well beyond my usual $50 limit. I thought perhaps I could get a Nikon FE and a prime lens for thrice that, if I were patient. I mentioned my FE desires in this post

I have a few readers who never comment, but instead occasionally e-mail me their thoughts. JR is one of those readers. When he read about my Nikon FE dreams, he wrote me and said, “If you want a truly mechanical Nikon SLR to shoot rather than a mostly mechanical Nikon SLR, I might have an F2 that I could be coaxed into donating.”

An F2? You mean the legendary professional SLR? The true system camera, with interchangeable focusing screens and viewfinder heads? A camera I never even considered because good examples go for so much more than my budget allows?

Yep. He shipped me a Nikon F2 body with its DP-11 Photomic viewfinder head, which features a coupled light meter. Nikon called this combination the F2A.

Nikon F2

I bought the 50mm f/2 AI Nikkor on eBay. I find that 50/2 lenses are great bargains, performing beautifully at prices far less than their faster (e.g., f/1.4) cousins.

Nikon F2

This is where I would normally tell the Nikon F2 story and explain how it works. But the F2 is arguably the most documented and discussed camera on the Internet. I have no new information to add, and no new angle from which to examine it. And it works pretty much like any other match-needle 35mm SLR, except that to activate the meter you pull the wind lever out a little bit.

But comparing the F2 to other SLRs feels like an injustice. The F2 is incredibly well built for pros who shoot constantly, year in and year out. The F2’s reliability is legendary. Also, it’s a true system camera. You start with the F2 body and add one of many viewfinder heads (see a list here) and focusing screens (see a list here). Then you choose from among several motor drives and flash systems, if you need them. You can even customize this camera for you. For example, are you a little farsighted? No problem; slip on an eyepiece with whatever level of correction you need.

By the way, if you’re a Nikon SLR fan, you might also enjoy my review of the F2AS (here), the N90s (here), the N2000 (here), the N60 (here), and the F3 (here). Or just have a look at all of my camera reviews here.

My F2 arrived with the gridded type-E focusing screen and the DP-11 viewfinder head. John warned me that the meter in the DP-11 was fussy, and he was right; I couldn’t ever get it to perfectly center, even with two fresh LR44 batteries. Thank goodness for the wide exposure latitude of Fujicolor 200, my go-to film for testing cameras. It made up for most of the meter’s sins, and Photoshop made up for the rest.

This isn’t the best shot I took, but it does show how blade-sharp this lens is. You can almost count the straws of hay in these rolls.

Hay rolls 3

This isn’t a very exciting composition, either – but just look at that great bokeh. It reminds me of an impressionistic painting.

Needles

This is my favorite shot from my test roll. I took the F2A along on a trip to Nashville, Indiana, a touristy town full of shops. I hung the heavy F2A around my neck. I was very aware of it all the time. But when I raised the camera to shoot, it seemed to disappear. It was simply an extension of my eye. Bliss!

Autumn garland

I took this available-light shot while my friend Dawn and I waited in line to get some ice cream. I’m really pleased with the warmth and detail this lens captured. You can almost feel the rough cut of the wooden walls.

To the Ice Cream House

Dawn lives on a farm; this is her neighbor’s horse.

Still grazing

The next time I shot the F2A I loaded some Kodak T-Max 100. Here’s my parents’ dog, Abigail.

Abigail

It was Christmastime. I made this selfie of sorts in a bowlful of glass bulb ornaments.

Reflected in the bulbs

This is the Palace Theater, aka the Morris Performing Arts Center, in my hometown of South Bend.

The Palace

See more photos in my Nikon F2A gallery.

There was one fault with this particular F2: the meter is jumpy. The needle never quite settles in the viewfinder, leaving me to guess a little as to whether I’ve got aperture and shutter speed right. As you can see I got good exposures, thanks to the exposure latitude of the films I used. But I should send this camera off for a CLA and a repair of the meter.

John said that “many are called, but few are chosen” to make the F2 their primary camera. I appear to be chosen; I loved using this camera.

If you like old film cameras, check out all of my reviews here!
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Comments

51 responses to “Nikon F2A”

  1. urbanhafner Avatar

    Very nice! I especially like the “ice cream” shot. I’m trying not to buy new cameras especially 35mm SLRs. But you’re now the second person that’s raving about that particular camera in a short time. Oh well, some day one will find it’s way into my collection, too :)

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      It’s a fine camera! But like I said, they cost more than I usually am willing to pay.

      1. urbanhafner Avatar

        I will have to save up for it, that’s for sure. But who knows, I did just get a Polaroid SX-70 for free :) And sometimes I just spend too much money on a camera (a Rolleiflex T).

  2. Daniel Burnette Avatar
    Daniel Burnette

    The DP-11 metered head likely will be less fussy if you install the silver oxide SR44 batteries instead of the alkaline LR44 batteries. A lot of people think the two batteries are interchangeable but they are not. The SR44 batteries drain in a way to give you the required voltage almost up until the end; the LR44 batteries drop off in a steady way from the time you begin using them. Many cameras from this era were designed to use the SR44s.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Thanks for the tip. I used some LR44s I’ve had knocking around here for a while, so who knows what charge they have left. I’ll see about getting some SR44s before I take the F2 for another spin.

      1. Daniel Burnette Avatar
        Daniel Burnette

        Good luck with it, Jim Grey. Those Nikons are beasts; I never could afford one when they were new. I own a Nikon S3 rangefinder camera and it’s my favorite film camera.

  3. Mark O'Brien Avatar

    Jim:
    Nice photos, and yes, you have the best fully mechanical (and the last hand-assembled camera from Nikon) camera on the planet, in my humble opinion. I have an F2S, with the indicator diodes in the finder, which I like quite a lot. My all-black version was a “bargain” from KEH for a little over $100 last year. You are right about the 50mm f/2. It has excellent corner-to-corner sharpness, and is under-appreciated. Have fun with your new friend!

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Thanks Mark! I’m still a little overcome that John sent me this gem of a camera. I intend to enjoy it to the hilt.

  4. Mike Avatar

    Lots of nice work in that gallery. I was particularly taken by the shot of the two tree trunks against the green.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Thanks Mike! Those trees are becoming a favorite subject. They’re on the fairway that’s behind my back fence, so they’re easy to get to, and the evening sun casts nice shadows off their trunks. Here’s another shot of them, from my Kodak Retina Reflex IV on Tri-X.

      Golf course trees

  5. John Smith Avatar
    John Smith

    The meters in the Photomic heads get jumpy mostly because the ring resistor gets dirty or fails. My good friend Sover Wong in the UK has new, super ring resistors available for some models of the F2 heads which, when installed, solve this problem. It is likely that once the resistor is serviced or replaced, a Nikon F2 would still be functioning long after it’s owner has expired.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Thanks for ‘splainin, John. Yeah, the F2 definitely strikes me as an heirloom camera. That is, if I could only get my sons interested in photography.

    2. Andrew Avatar
      Andrew

      Sover just serviced my F2 and DP11 head. The meter needle is nice and smooth, making this combination 35mm SLR perfection.

  6. Denny Gibson Avatar

    Here’s a confession. I enjoy reading posts, both yours and others, on film cameras but I don’t usually take them all that seriously. Learning about the quirks of old cameras and old film is certainly interesting but it is, to me, interesting in the same way that reading about the warm sound of direct to wax cylinder recording is interesting. This one was different. The F2 and the excellent pictures you took with it show what the old technology could and can deliver. Until just a few years ago, I told anyone who asked that digital might be cheaper and more convenient but film produced superior images. I got away from that as digital got better and better but maybe it’s still true. No need to worry, though. I still won’t be bidding against you on that Exacta or Speed Graphic.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      I don’t fall into the camp that film is superior to pixels. People do stunning work every day with their digital cameras. I enjoy shooting film for the process of discovery, where I learn things about a particular camera and about cameras in general, about lenses, and about films.

      1. Denny Gibson Avatar

        Sometimes it is best just to click the “Like” button. I wish that’s what I’d done here.

        1. Jim Grey Avatar

          I hope nothing about my response pushed you away! It was not my intent.

        2. Denny Gibson Avatar

          Absolutely not but ditto. Just wish I’d have at least left out the wax cylinder bit.

  7. Steve Miller Avatar
    Steve Miller

    Let’s hear more about the ice cream!

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      It was very good, dense and rich. This store makes it themselves, in a host of flavors.

  8. Derek Avatar

    The 50 f2 NAI is a very nice lens indeed. But like all the rest of them I prefer a 1.4 better, more universal for me.

    About the meter being fuzzy. First IF it’s like the my F prism, it probably calls for 1.3V mercury batteries instead of 1.5 (you will have to double check). And the output curve for the batteries are different. If it indeed call for 1.3V, you can get some 625 Zinc air at walgreens and see if that solve the problem. Another thing, check the contacts. Last, it could be the “coil” inside being dirty /dusty.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      The F2 definitely takes the SR44/LR44 button cell. Not a worry there. I’m thinking the comment by John Smith above probably gets at the source of the problem.

  9. smitty1063 Avatar
    smitty1063

    Great work Jim,Looks like you got a winner here.That fuji color is hard to beat.
    Ice cream and classic cameras really make a fun day:)

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Thanks my man. It was a great day all around, and yeah, that Fujicolor is fine stuff.

  10. John Smith Avatar
    John Smith

    Besides being big fun to shoot, the F2 is always an attention getter. I was prowling the streets of San Francisco some weeks back shooting Tri-X in my F2S when an older gentleman walked over and mentioned what a fine camera I had. Turns out he has one too and he worked on the Nikon lens assembly line in Japan in the 70s. We spent about 15 minutes talking about all of the great Nikon glass and he gave me some great tips on which pre-Ai and Ai lenses are the best, in his opinion. Of course, you get all the young folks with their iPhones walking up to you and saying “Cool! Is that a film camera?”

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      How cool that you met someone who worked on the Nikon assembly line. What a fun conversation that must have been!

      I get the most attention when I shoot anything but my SLRs. My big Minolta Hi-Matic 7 rangefinder has gotten me the most attention, followed probably by my various Argus cameras because they all look so different.

  11. tk47man Avatar
    tk47man

    And for those who dig old cameras…take a peek at Nikon’s just announced Df. It’s proof that everything that is old is new again.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      I know ….droooooool.

  12. Christopher Smith Avatar
    Christopher Smith

    What a lovely Camera I’m really envious I’m sure you’ll have many years of enjoyment out of it. Its a bit out of my collecting price range but I can dream I may be lucky one day.
    I really like your photo’s you have taken with it.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Thanks Christopher! I’m fortunate to have it.

  13. stillthrill1 Avatar

    Very cool! I shoot quite a lot with my Nikon F3HP. As one of your commenters noted – the F2 was the last handbuilt camera from Nikon. I would love to get the feel for the F2. But I can attest to the feeling of the F3… it’s superb. One thing I don’t appreciate as much however is that the F3 requires batteries for operation though. And I also have the 50mm F2… really great lens.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      I’m always going to put a battery into this F2 because I really don’t enjoy guessing my own exposure or using an external meter. So from that perspective, the F2 is as good as the F3 for me.

      I have no complaints with the 50mm f/2 either! Wonderful warm color. I’m an enormous fan of Pentax glass and love the signature color that the the SMC Pentax-M 50mm f/2 delivers — but I think I like this Nikon’s results a little better.

  14. pesoto74 Avatar

    I really impressed by the results with this lens. The color rendition is excellent. I agree about the f/2 lenses being underestimated. I have used the wider version of other lenses and unless for some reason you can’t live with that bigger stop I am not sure they are worth the extra money. I know a lot of people will say they are, however they are usually the people who have already paid the extra money.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      I bought a 50mm f/1.4 SMC Pentax-M for use with my Pentax cameras because I kept finding myself shooting at church in available light, and that extra stop really helped. But under normal circumstances, I don’t need that stop, and the 50mm f/2 does equally fine work.

  15. Bill Barry Avatar
    Bill Barry

    Jim,
    Great article on the F2a, I just picked up a black F2a with the DP 11 head, along with a chrome F with non metered prism head at a garage sale. $170 for both cameras with lenses. Shooting back and forth between the F and the F2, shows how Nikon took an incredible camera and made it even better. Every control on the F2 is right where it needs to be. Kinda makes the F seem fiddly by comparison. I do need to find a mid AI prime lens and the 50/f2 looks like a bargain.
    I really enjoy your camera write-ups and your contributions on Curbside Classics.

    Best Regards
    Bill Barry

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      You got a good bargain on that gear! The 50/2 is a good enough lens at a good price. I’d love to have a 50/1.4 but they sure are pricey.

  16. alanbigskies Avatar
    alanbigskies

    Using F2 kit I earned my living freelancing for business magazines for roughly twenty-five years. These cameras are certainly the most robust, reliable and easy-to-use equipment I’ve come across.

    Most of my work was on construction sites and farms; my F2s were out in heavy rain, dust storms, snow and heat-waves and survived numerous drops (including one of fifteen feet), a drenching with cider, wet concrete and so on. The only recurrent glitches were that, now and again, shutter-speeds would ‘wander’ a little and they became clogged with dust during harvest. My local technician’s eyes lit up with glee whenever I took these cameras in to be sorted out. In his opinion they remain the best 35 ml cameras ever made.

    I’ve kept my kit: five bodies with S, A and AS heads, a range of equally-indestructible ais lenses and five drives – which proved more vulnerable than the bodies and are now beyond repair. My favourite body was a 1971 model and my preferred head the A version whose needle i found perfect for shooting transparencies.

    I ought mention my technician reckoned some spare parts for the A head were getting hard to find – hence the fifth body and head for spares if the need arose. But that shouldn’t alarm anyone who has bought an F2A in good condition – it took thousands of rolls of film before a metering problem showed up.

    These days I use Fuji’s X-Pro1 and I’m delighted with it. (I have looked at Nikon’s Df, mentioned above, but didn’t take to it – the top plate is too crowded for my clumsy fingers). But if i could still get pro-level E6 processing locally i would undoubtedly still use my F2s regularly…and with much more pleasure!

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      I love this testimonial to the F2. You used yours well, and sometimes they took abuse, and they kept on going. It gives me optimism that my two F2s (I also have an F2AS) will last and last. My F2A has a wonky meter, so one of these days I’m going to send the whole camera out for an overhaul and to get the meter repaired. Then I can keep b/w film in one F2 and color in the other and be ready for everything!

      I’m grateful for the good word on the X-Pro 1.

  17. Michael Lee Avatar
    Michael Lee

    I confirm that you should get it to Sover Wong. He worked on my F and it shoots like new. He is nothing short of legendary among F2 shooters. He offers Superb service and follow ups, pictures of work in progress along with a CD of full reports and orher goodies. Do your F2 a favour and get it healed at Sover’s ;-) cheers.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      It’s definitely on my to-do list!

    2. Andrew Avatar
      Andrew

      Agree completely. I bought a used F2A and sent it to Sover right away. Cleaned out some mild fungus, replaced the meter’s CDS cell and calibrated the shutter speeds to perfection. He even smoothed out the one dent on the body to the point of being invisible unless you know to look for it.

      Very reasonable price (about $400 for fully servicing the body AND finder) for outstanding service. Equally the same level as Sherry Krauter and Dan Goldberg in Leica land.

  18. cosmin Avatar
    cosmin

    let me share with you a little piece of information you’ll find verry usefull.
    So ..are you ready to get this information? take a deep breath..and here it come.
    The nikon F2 can work at any shutterspeed beetwen 1sec and 1/2000 sec.And when i say any..it means ANY.Even if the speed you need to match your needle is not on the speeds wheel,you can put it in beetwen ,and the camera will shoot just the way you want it to.So..if you want to shoot at 1/1500 you can do that placing the weel just beetwen 1/1000 and 1/2000. Just the same,you can set 1/1250 or 1/1750 ar any other speed you need

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Yes! I did learn that somewhere along the way. Such a versatile machine.

    2. Andrew Avatar
      Andrew

      And absolutely indispensable feature for us bokeh-fanatics who shoot aperture priority (as in wide-open) with fast lenses.

      I typically shoot Ilford Pan F ISO 50 in daytime and HP5 ISO 400 at night with the fabulous Nikkor 50mm f/1.2 AIS with a two stop orange filter (daytime only).

      With the steeples shutter speed if the exposure isn’t spot-on perfect, its because I screwed it up, not the camera.

  19. […] to know more here are a few reviews of the F2 from Casual Photophile, Emulsive, Dan Schneider and Jim Grey. And here is a video walk through with Travis Mortz. Finally, here is Nikon’s own brief […]

  20. […] more on the F2 here are a few reviews from Casual Photophile, Emulsive, Dan Schneider and Jim Grey. And here is a video walk through with Travis Mortz. Finally, here is Nikon’s own brief […]

  21. Tom H Avatar
    Tom H

    Great shots with that added nostalgic feeling! They seem like proof of how well you got on with that camera right from the start.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      As the fellow who gave me the camera said, either you’re born to shoot the F2, or you’re not!

  22. John P Garner Avatar
    John P Garner

    I have owned my F2A since I purchased it new in the late 1970’s. The only work to it has been a repair to a flakly on-off switch when new, under warranty. It still is an execellent camera with my small collection of older prime glass lenses (none of that plastic stuff) which I share with my Df (in full manual mode of operation.) Current project is to relearn IR on film using the Df to create a database of exposure infomation to translate to the F2, hopefully with less wasted film shots. I am looking forward to good images in the long term. Light is very harsh here in Florida so a lot of shots get ruined if you do not watch yourself.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      I haven’t shot mine in several months…you’re making me move it up to the front of the to-shoot queue! I have a Df as well and I very much love shooting my MF Nikon lenses on it. I use the 55mm macro on the Df all the time.

  23. […] More Reviews on the Nikon F2:Alex LuyckxMike EckmanTheo PanagopoulosJim Grey […]

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