I need help, stuck between two SLRs

Nikon F3 HP or Leica R4s

  • Nikon F3 HP w/ Nikkor Ai-s 50mm f/2

    Votes: 4 80.0%
  • Leica R4s w/ Leitz 50mm f/2 Summicron-R

    Votes: 1 20.0%
  • Nikom FM3a w Nikkor Ai-s 50mm f/2

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    5

Parptarf

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I hate to make a versus thread, but I'm so torn between these two cameras I need someone to talk sense to me.

Ok, let's get down to the brass' tax. Nikon F3 HP or Leica R4s. I wanna start by saying price is irrelevant in this comparison, I have both of them before me and I'm ready to purchase.
The F3 will mostly be used with a Nikkor Ai-s 50mm f/2 that I already have. Though I have a 28mm f/2.8 and a 35-70 f/4 for this as well. The R4s will come with a Leitz 50mm f/2 Summicron-R.

I'm gonna use this for street photography and portraits mostly. My D800 furfills my other needs perfectly.
 
If you have lenses that are compatible with the Nikon I'd consider that since it seems like that would give you more options. I'm not familiar offhand with that model.

Leica was not as well known for their SLRs of course as they are for their excellent rangefinders. That lens probably wouldn't work with anything else but their R system of SLRs which might be limiting.
 
From experience, when shooting film I only use a 50.
I don't think I actually used any of my non-G Nikkon F-mount lenses with my FE the three years I've had it. So all I really need is a 50 for analog. Maybe down the line invest in nice wide angle for ther Leica if I go that road. I've heard bad stuff about the early Leica R4 cameras, but the R4s came out two years later, so those issues are supposed to be non-present.

And for the record, I have a usable fleet of glass for my D800, so not being able to use the R-mount opicts on it doesn't bother me.
 
I'd go Nikon. Ultimately more flexibility with classic workhorse build and lens quality. Leica is a good camera but as Sharon said, I think their rangefinder line is really where their value and quality lie.
 
If only the M cameras weren't so expensive. Though, I could probably find an M2 with a Summicron-M for not that much more. But alas, I need a new analog this week.
My FE is beginning to fall apart quite fast. Not only does it leak light so much I have to use a roll of tape everytime I put film in it, it's also in bad shape mechanically. Mainly the rewind mechanism is limping along at best. (Metering and shutter is great though) Down the road I'm gonna fix it, as it's a great camera, but now I just want something more special.

Edit: I take that back, the M2 house might be prized just a tad bit higher than the R3 and R4s, but the M optics is A LOT more expensive.
 
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Almost forgot something. There's also someone selling a Canon F1 with a 55mm f/1.2. Heard great things about both the camera and lens. The thing is that he hasn't tested it, and it's been laying around for a long time. Would suck to have a leaking camera when I'm down in Berlin, Prague and Budapest doing street photography next week. But it's still an alternative to these too.
 
The Leica R4 is basically a Minolta but a very nice camera, have you looked at Leica M cameras they are the perfect street camera
 
It's built off the Minolta XE if I'm not mistaken. Which is not a bad thing. Being able to use Leica optics adds to that.
Then again, the Nikon FE2 or F3 is probably an even better camera. But it doesn't have "Leica" written on it. (I'm a sucker for brands like this. I've had two Porsches christ sake.)

Deciding between these are absolutely terrible.
 
It's built off the Minolta XE if I'm not mistaken. Which is not a bad thing. Being able to use Leica optics adds to that.
Then again, the Nikon FE2 or F3 is probably an even better camera. But it doesn't have "Leica" written on it. (I'm a sucker for brands like this. I've had two Porsches christ sake.)

Deciding between these are absolutely terrible.
Don't choose between them get an M
 
I could get an M2 for a similar price, sure. But Getting a cheap 50 for a Leica M here in Norway before Sunday is impossible. And I need it before then.

Sent from my SM-G850F using Tapatalk
 
I shot the F3 HP as my main camera for 15 years.The thing I liked the MOST about the HP finder (High Eyepoint) version is that it was/is the absolute best viewfinder ever made for eyeglass wearers...it allows you to see the ENTIRE picture area, extremely easily, due to the extended eyepoint distance, which means that you can see the entire viewfinder area with the eye as far as one inch behind the eyepiece. That alone ALWAYS made the F3 HP my preferred camera over the smaller, lighter, cheaper Nikons of the era, the FM and FE series models (which I also own). The F3 HP offers 100% viewfinder image as well as the extended eyepoint.

For me, the viewfinder of an SLR has always,always, always been one of the top two criteria I use in measuring how much I like the camera. I want to be able to SEE and frame what I am shooting with the highest degree of transparency possible, and that is an area where the F3 HP was the leader.
 
But it doesn't have "Leica" written on it. (I'm a sucker for brands like this. I've had two Porsches christ sake.)

Only Porsches? How about a boat? Got a big boat? If not then you need a gold camera -- a gold "Swiss" camera (lizard skin, of course.):

31491177_2_l.jpg


Joe
 
Haha, great. :D

Anyways, someone just put out a pristine Nikon FM3a for sale here. Guess both the F3, R4S and the FE2 was blown out of the competition now.
In other words, I'm gonna buy that FM3a (Most likely)
 
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Go for a rare, pretty much obsolete, gold-plated and snakeskin-covered or lizard-covered Alpa!!!
 
I can imagine the looks people would give me if I went for a street photography session with that. Maybe I should get a really bling necklace and perhaps some gold teeth.

In other news, the only issue, and I mean the only issue, I have with the FM3a is that it's from the 200's and not the 70's or 80's. This basically means absolutely nothing though.
 

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