Down the Road

Photographs and stories by Jim Grey

Recommended reading

Jim Grey

💻 One of Ted Shideler‘s many interesting pursuits is old schoolhouses. He has documented many in east-central Indiana. In a very interesting article, he shares with you how you can recognize old schoolhouses yourself. Read How to identify an old schoolhouse when you’re out driving around

Small church or school
Pentax ME, 35mm f/2.8 SMC Pentax-A,Fujifilm Superia X-tra 400 @EI 200, 2018

💻 Benj Edwards tells the story of the seminal video game, Pong, on its 50th anniversary. Read The Making of Pong

💻 Skateboarders have long been reviled. I guess they can be a nuisance, but I’ve never experienced them that way. All they want is a place to skate. Eric Lee Burch is a skateboarder, and he writes a terrific story about how he was instrumental in his town building a skate park. Read Dedication to the cause

📷 John Margetts found a small device that lets you make photographs of transparencies. It’s made by Leitz, of Leica camera fame, and is probably from the 1930s. Read Leitz Eldia

📷 Lots has been written about the Nikon F3 online in this era of film-camera reviews. Mike Eckman adds his voice, but focuses on the camera’s history, and its usability. Read Nikon F3 (1980)

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Comments

7 responses to “Recommended reading”

  1. Andy Umbo Avatar
    Andy Umbo

    Never much a 35mm pro, but I remember my Nikon using buddies lamenting the introduction of the F3, as heading down a wrong road with battery dependent shutter speed timing. Even today, if I bought a Nikon for historical love and daily use, it’d probably be the F2. Going from mechanical shutters to shutters depending on batteries for timing is and was no small change, it was monumental. It was the beginning of going from a camera that may be able to be repaired in perpetuity, to a camera that will eventually have to be junked because you couldn’t do anything about the defunct electronics. It was Nikon admitting that their camera, going forward, might have a limited service life, and that you needed to buy the next version.

    The light meter being included In The body was a nice change for them tho. Worked for many studios that had a 35mm Nikon sitting around to shoot slides of projects they were working on, and they never had the meter, always just had the prism. Nothing felt more perfect than an F with a prism, so finally incorporating the meter was long overdue.

    Reply
    1. Jim Grey Avatar
      Jim Grey

      I think the worry about the F3 was overblown. Tons and tons of them are still working today.

      I do want an F with a prism, though.

      Reply
      1. Andy Umbo Avatar
        Andy Umbo

        When Nikon went the way of the F3, there were an amazing amount of pro 35mm users that were already testing and incorporating the FM, which was still totally mechanical. Far from being considered a “down line” camera, many pros considered them the next step. The FM even had a hot shoe and not the futzy strobe mount over the rewind shaft the Fs did. I knew of one shooter that wouldn’t even bother to get CLA’s done on the FM’s he was using, since his trade in value when he bought a new body, meant his new body was less than a CLA. The primary advantage of the F series camera was the 100% image in the viewfinder, always touted by the reviewer fanboys, but of little consequence to the actual user, where in most cases, the slide mount covered a small percentage of the film, and made the viewfinder in the FM/FE pretty accurate to a mounted transparency. You can’t doubt the built quality of the original F series cameras, but once the electronic shutter came in, users started going down the path of considering their tolls with a limited service life.

        Reply
      2. Kodachromeguy Avatar
        Kodachromeguy

        The same is true for the Nikkormat EL from 1972. This model proved to be amazingly durable. Nikon eventually renamed it the Nikon EL.

        Reply
        1. Jim Grey Avatar
          Jim Grey

          I used to own one! I sold it because I thought its shutter was capping. Pro tip: if you see what looks like that in an EL, check to make sure the battery is seated properly. The battery goes under the mirror. If the door pops open, the mirror won’t work right and it’ll cut off the top of each image. I’m sure I sold my EL needlessly. :-(

          Reply
  2. tcshideler Avatar
    tcshideler

    Thanks for the shout-out!!!

    Reply
    1. Jim Grey Avatar
      Jim Grey

      De nada, amigo!

      Reply

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