Thanks, more videos on the development process would be great, both BW and color.

I have the ais 28mm f2.8 the optics were updated with floating elements for better minimum focus as far as I know. Love that lens ! I’m curious what your favorite pre AI lenses are as you mentioned they are some of your favorites. I prefer the ais lenses as they were later versions with potentially better optics and maybe better coatings …am I wrong on the coatings ? I would like to know what your favorites are. I enjoy your channel immensely!

I bought a Nikon FE, seems to work fine, yes i know its not all mechanical, i also picked up a Pentax P-30 and its excellent, light meters work fine in both. I have an Olympus 35 SPn range finder, the meter seems to work but i have not tested it with film yet, i am just about to, i have two external light meters so it dose not matter anyway

The f number is just the ratio of the blades to the opening

Schmidt Drive

I'm very fortunate to have found this video, love these range finders for the look, the pure mechanical operation and weight in the hand. I've bought some Pentax q cameras from Japan (eBay) and I've been quite happy with them, no problems. Agreed on reading the description, I've been looking for more range finders and some look in mint condition, beautiful. But when you read the description you see something like, a little fungus in the view finder.. Always read. *Sorry didn't see the vid was older, everything still stands anyway, including the websites thanks again.

I want you to know I return to this video EVERY time I load and unload my camera. THANK YOU

This lens has gotten me more compliments on the hard-to-explain quality that people love. Mine has a fairly stiff focus ring, but otherwise I just LOVE this lens!

The Serenar 35mm f2.8 V1 is one of my favorite lenses.

I have this lines and love it, even though it has a scratch on the front element, it doesn’t affect the quality. It has a very painterly rendering and is quite sharp when focused, nice and close. I really really like it for doing weddings and getting close to my subject if they’re dancing or if they doing whatever where I need to see the background and this lens has less distortion than the 2.8 version. And you’re right it’s definitely sharp in the center, and I compared it to the new 24 1.4 lens and wide open I couldn’t see any difference except the 1.4 made the background a little bit more blurry. It’s a lot of money to pay for extra stop. This is nice and small and handy. I even put a chip on mine because it’s AIS lens and the aperture of linear so it works very good on the newer cameras. Just bought the 24 1.7 aps-c lens for my Zfc and I must admit it is an improvement over this lens. But on full frame I still use the old one for its size and character. Great comprehensive review as usual and I like some of your shots. Thanks for sharing, Regards Gerry

Have you thought about adapting a M42 100mm lens to your Ricoh? M42 screw mount 100mm lenses are kinda expensive, but not as bad as the K-mount. The added cost of a M42 to K-mount adapter isn't at all bad, especially since it opens up a lot of possibilities for lenses. Using M42 lenses stopped down all the time is slow, but I don't know many photographers that use telephoto lenses for quick photography anyway.

thank you, definitely the most complicated lens mounting I’ve come across for an old camera meant to be consumer grade

Helios 44-2 58mm f/2；The portraits you take with this lens are very good, intriguingly beautiful. Is it on this camera? I also have this lens, but I am worried about how to use it on F3. Most adapters do not support aperture linkage.

Thanks so much for this! You walked me through loading my film. I just bought this camera because I loved the look of it. Thanks for the info about the FB group. I’m going to look that up.

Just found this one in a 2nd hand shop. Thanks for the upload! 👍

Hello! Excellent video, i just hace a question, without a film in it i shuttered the camera up to the 36 in the counter, now i have a film, but how do i reset the counter before loading the new, i tried the buttom underneath the camera but since theres no film in it it does nothing, i dont want to mess my roll or the counter, id be glad to receive any advice 😅

I just got a mint one with 2 lenses and 2 filters for 200!!

the XH1 lasted me 6 months of light use... seller told me return it to amazon, which cant be done as 30 day limit. No response from AstrHori... So fairly cheap, but get no support.

Thanks for the upload! I'll look up your review of the 40 mm. f/1.8 now. 👌

I was living in a former Yugoslavia. There was western, eastern and domestic products to choose from. I'm looking right now on a stop watch which I bought new as a kid for my sports activities. And at the bottom it clearly states: "Made in USSR".

Your review was one of the main reasons I purchased a Nikkor -N.C 24mm f2.8 lens a bit over a week ago. I specifically chose this version over the AI version to match the era of my Nikkormat FTN and Nikon F2 Phototomic bodies (1974 and earlier). I paid less than $100 for my 24mm lens rated by the seller as excellent - the glass is perfect and there is miniscule wear on the lens barrel. I have taken a few pics with this lens on my Nikkormat FTN, but I have yet to have the film developed to see the results.

I believe the Nikkor 105mm F/2.5 AI-s is also different to the AI in that it has an additional lens coating (Nikon Super Integrated Coating, or NSIC).

I just saw that the wind button rotates when rewinding so you can see when the film is disengaged before it fully winds into the canister.For those who develop their own film that means no fiddling to get the film leader out. M or X does not matter when shooting without flash. It's just an electrical contact that is closed by the shutter mechanism either a tiny bit in advance (M) or immediately when the shutter opens fully (X). The lever just the position of the contact. Leave it on the setting most of your flashes need.

My first camera that my late dad bought me in early 80's, a Beirette vsn, had same or similar features - 45mm f2,8 lens, exposures 1/30 - 1/125 + B, just plain viewfinder zone focussing with no focussing aid whatsoever etc. I learned photography on that camera. However, after just two or three years it literally fell apart from overuse. No wonder considering it was an dinky ultra cheap plastic camera from East Germany. Obviously made for youth. And it served its purpose well 🙄

(8:12) 🤯🤯🤯... WHY??? I know there's stupid battery compartments, but I guess I'd need more time for changing batteries in that camera than the time I needed to disassemble an AK47 completely back in the day. And that was 70 seconds by the way...

I bought a couple of lenses he recommended, including this one. Amazing lens, and cheap! I also got the 60mm 2.8... What gorgeous images that lens creates.

I agree that the 3 "X' pentax bodies are the ones to go for and are getting tougher to find in good condition namely the KX, MX, and LX. I have two of each all in black. The LX is on a different league. The viewfinder alone is a good reason to pay the premium. Best bet to find one cheap is to wait for a package and sell of the lenses. For the LX, if you have basic repair skills, the sticky mirror syndrome is very easy to fix. One can get a "broken" LX for cheap then just fix it yourself. Just repaired one lately for nothing. Bought for 90 € and a spray of alcohol, she's a 300€ body instantly. For Ricoh, I think the one to go for is the KR-5 super ii with the 1/2000s shutter speed and copal shutter. Of course it is fully mechanical. Just bought one for 20€ with a lens shipped. Something off topic, I would recommend collecting mechanical Miranda cameras. Fairly cheap, interchangeable viewfinders, and short flange distance meaning they have adapters for M42, Nikon F, Konica etc. For lenses, I suggest collecting Adaptall or T4/TX lenses ad you can mount these lenses to basically every SLR. The latter is fairly unknown so they are quite cheap. I started collecting for peanuts and now I have various T4 / TX adapters (Miranda, Mamiya Sekor M42, exakta, FD)

Still own this one, but haven’t used it for years. It’s in mint condition.

Nice video! I used this lens for years, for weddings etc, in combination with the 35/2. On the FE or FE2, the viewfinder was so bright it looked like you were in a cinema. Never missed a shot.

Nice! I used this lens for many years and at the time this 135/3.5 maybe was the best in its class. Super performance even at full aperture.

I owned a 28mm/3.5, I think in 1977. It was the older version preceeding the one you showed here. It had a big front lens which barely fit within the 52mm filter thread, a modernised version of the older Nikkor H 28/3.5. Optically, it was crappy, too much distortion and soft in the corners. So bad, I sold it and tried a Tokina 28/2.8 and even a Series E 28/2.8. The Nikkor 28/2.8 at the time was very good but very expensive! Nikon also had a 28/2, which you showed. The model you show in the video came as a replacement of the older 28/3.5 and it was, and still is, excellent.

Thank you for your always inspiring videos! After watching your "praise" of the Autoreflex T I purchased one (with Hexanon lense and original bag) for 70,- Dollars (65,- Euros) -- incredible! I am looking forward to test it. The batteries are no problem to me because I always use external light meters. I have taken photos with Hexanon lenses before and was always very impressed by the color reproduction and the particularly intense color mood. I really appreciate your channel and always find your videos very helpful and encouraging. I'd love to see more... Miranda built similarly beautiful and solid cameras at the time -- also completely underestimated and largely unknown. Best wishes from Berlin, Heiko

Anyone who desires a self-timer but doesn't trust the on-camera one, (or it's broken) can use an Auto-Knips device which, like the remote shutter cable, simply screws into the shutter release screw hole. They were present on the ebay market a decade ago for pennies. Still plenty around, but prices have gone up, but still not extortionate. The Auto-Knips were for a previous generation of 30s, 40, 50s folders that didn't have a self-timer that could be relied upon, and some had none at all.

I started in 1974 with a secondhand FTn. Very rugged, but mounting the lens remained bit of a hassle. When the FE came out in 1978, I was sold immediately. Still wondering why it took Nikon so long to come up with the AI system. They might as well have done some deep thinking in the mid ‘70s and do it right the first time!

Very pedagogic. Many thanks!

Thank-you for answering that question. Well presented. Speaking of Series E, the 50mm 1.8 (?) version which came with the FG I bought new in summer 1985, I shot with that for five years before getting a good used 50 1.4 Nikkor. The sharpness and smoother tonal variation improvement impressed and surprised me on getting back my first roll of prints.

Question 1 Is the N (with no C) version worth? Question 2 Will the D850 motor autofocus work with this lens? THANKS!

I have the MD-11, and just have to remember to turn it off when I'm finished using it. Apart from that, it's the dog's bollocks. I'd still have an MD-12, though.

I appreciate the clear review - no fluff or glam, just the facts. Cheers!

Looks like a USB type C (not mini or micro USB)

So I bought a Nikon FE and some film, and one thing I haven't seen addressed is, how do I know it is in the right spot when I load the film? Like, there are so many exposures, each advance of the lever is one exposure, how do I know it's lined up? Is the entire roll of film exposable? Are there designated spots on the film "where the picture goes?" Or is it just a ribbon that gets cut up later? Because when I put that tab in the reel and wrap it up so it's caught, there are no markings or anything. How do I know I have it in the right spot?

Nice review but the om1 was not the only mechanical option of Olympus; they later also released the om3.

I have the AE version and so far having a ball. I'm a newbie so... learning. But, using on a Canon is an interesting challenge. I'm only interested in manual anyway so... fine, but focusing with this lens can be a challenge handheld. I also have the 40mm Hexanon which I adore, but another focus bishes.. handheld. LOL. But, using this lens is also because of my budget... i just can't afford any Canon lenses... not in my situation. So, I adapt.

My 4x5 lenses use copal shutters.

A good friend of mine gave me one of these cameras today. Glad your video was easy and useful! Cheers! 🤝🏾

The oldest focal plane cloth shutter I have is in an Ihagee 9x12 folder, which is mechanically still nuts-accurate. The oldest metal Copal Square I have is in a Ricoh Singlex F-mount body, still chunking away. I think the early Copal Squares had a teething period where they weren't all that, but they got sorted fairly quickly, obviously.

One fun cousin of this one is the Vitoret DR. More or less the same, but rangefinder focus. Got one for 16€ in a thrift store that works just fine!

Back in the day they sold a Fomapan 800

On my FT2 I would put a strip of black electrician's tape over the opening tag, having been burnt by that one, too. One or two other cameras have the same 'quirk' that's a piece of bad design.

but isn't Nikon 1001 said the new Nikkor 35 2.8 has better image?