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33-852: The FM3A was the successor to the renowned Nikon FM2N camera of 1984 and was the last member of the successful, semi-professional line of Nikon compact 35 mm film SLRs. The other members were the Nikon FM (released 1977), FE (1978), FM2 (1982) and FE2 (1983). They (and the Nikon FA ) all used the superficially similar (but not identical) rugged copper-aluminium alloy chassis and high-quality Nikon vertical bearing-mounted metal shutter and ball-bearing mounted film advance, but with improved feature levels, minor external controls and cosmetic differences. The newer low-budget Nikon FM10 and FE10, while named similarly, are completely different introductory-level cameras manufactured by Cosina . The major improvements in

66-429: A Mint or Near Mint FM3A are as high as the new price (around 800 - 900 Euro in 2001). This makes this camera to be one of the most price-stable 35mm SLRs. Nikkorex F / Nikkor J Autofocus Camera | APS-format | Nikkorex with Leaf Shutter | Nikomat/Nikkormat | All Other Cameras | Manual Focus with electronic features (A mode) See also: Nikon DSLR cameras Nikon FM2N The Nikon FM2

99-465: A flash X-sync 1/200th second.) It had dimensions of 90 mm (height), 142 mm (width), 60 mm (depth) and a weight of 540 g. It was available in two colors: black with chrome trim and all black. The introductory US list price for the chrome body only (no lens) was $ 364. By 1988, it listed for $ 525; in 1995, it plateaued at $ 745 and remained there until discontinued. Note that SLRs are usually sold for 30 to 40 percent below list price. The FM2

132-533: A top speed of an unprecedented 1/4000th second, with an X-sync of 1/250th second. This shutter was able to reach such ultra-fast speeds because its shutter blades had a travel time of 3.3 milliseconds, half of typical vertical travel metal-bladed focal plane shutters of the time.(citation) The improved titanium-bladed shutter from the Nikon FE2 was adapted to the FM2 in 1984 and X-sync increased to 1/250th second. The new camera

165-437: Is a member of the classic Nikon compact F'x'-series SLRs and was built using the same material—copper-aluminium-silicon (copper- silumin ) alloy—as the earlier Nikon FM (introduced in 1977) and FE (1978) cameras. The Nikon FE2 and FA of 1983 also had this silumin alloy construction, along with the limited production Nikon FM3A of 2001, although the design of the housing differs from model to model. Like its predecessor,

198-508: Is an advanced semi-professional, interchangeable lens, 35 mm film , single-lens reflex (SLR) camera. It was manufactured by Nippon Kogaku K. K. (today Nikon Corporation ) in Japan from 1982 to 2001. The original camera was released with some incremental improvements (such as a higher flash-sync speed) in 1984, and this later version is commonly referred to as the FM2n (for 'new', due to the N preceding

231-566: Is large to reduce chances of vignetting with super-telephotos of up to 800 mm, and uses the same mechanism found on Nikon's pro F2 , with some improvements designed to further reduce effects of vibration and mirror bounce. The FM3A accepts all of the Nikkor lenses with the Nikon F bayonet mount that support the Automatic Indexing (AI) feature (AI, AIS), first introduced in 1977. The chrome FM3A

264-478: Is operable without batteries, and only needs the two S76 or A76 batteries, or one 1/3N battery to power the light meter , which consisted of an internal 60/40 percent centerweighted system linked to a center-the-LED exposure control system. The exposure control system used vertically arranged +/o/– light emitting diodes (LEDs) on the right side of the viewfinder to indicate the readings of the meter versus actual camera settings. This metering system can be traced back to

297-533: Is to inspect the shutter—the early FM2n had honeycombed shutter blades and the late FM2n had smooth blades. In 1993, a special ultra-durable version of the FM2n called the FM2/T was released and sold in parallel with the regular FM2n. The "T" stood for titanium, which was the material used for the top and bottom plates along with the camera back. The Nikon FM2/T listed for $ 1120 and was discontinued in 1997. The 1970s and 1980s were an era of intense competition between

330-520: The FM , the FM2n has a long-standing reputation for reliability and durability. It has an extremely strong body of copper-aluminum-silicon ( silumin ) alloy. The FM2's film transport consists of high-strength hardened metal gears and moving parts, mounted on clusters of ball bearings. The camera's precision-tapered, high-strength vertical metal shutter blades were fabricated originally of lightweight titanium (later production FM2 shutter blades were made of aluminum,

363-504: The Nikkormat FT (aka Nikomat FT) of 1965 and its center-the-needle system. The viewfinder also had Nikon's standard interchangeable focus screen with various focusing options. The major improvements in the FM2 compared to the FM were limited automatic dedicated electronic flash control and a mechanically timed vertical metal shutter (bearing mounted for reduced friction and extended life) reaching

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396-402: The 1980s had not only left the market, but become inoperable. Time has proven the FM2 to be very tough and reliable and it is regarded as one of the best-built and rugged mechanical 35 mm cameras of all time. Many professional photographers continue to use the FM2 as a backup camera, both because of its ruggedness and because it is capable of full mechanical operation with all features except

429-678: The Automatic Indexing (AI) feature introduced in 1977. The Nikon-made AI lenses of this type are the AF-S Nikkor, AF-I Nikkor, AF Nikkor D, AF Nikkor, Nikkor AI-S, Nikkor AI and Nikon Series E types. Nikon's most recent 35 mm film SLR lenses, the AF Nikkor G type (introduced in 2000) and the AF Nikkor DX type (2003) will mount but will not function properly. IX Nikkor lenses (1996), for Nikon's Advanced Photo System (APS) film SLRs, must not be mounted, as their rear elements will intrude far enough into

462-481: The FE2. The FM3A is built to a high level of workmanship and material quality. It shares the advantages of the FM and the FM2n, both generally regarded as two of the most reliable cameras ever built (both in terms of operation under extreme conditions and in day-to-day reliability reports from repair shops and magazine surveys). It has an extremely strong body of copper silumin alloy. The electronics are well protected within

495-591: The FM2 included the Nikon MD-12 motor drive (automatic film advance up to 3.2 frames per second), the Nikon MF-16 databack (sequential numbering, time or date stamping on the film), and the Nikon SB-15 (guide number 82/25 (feet/meters) at ASA/ISO 100) and Nikon SB-16B (guide number 105/32 (feet/meters) at ASA/ISO 100) electronic flashes. The FM2 is a mechanically controlled manual focus SLR with manual exposure control. It

528-473: The FM3A compared to the FM2n are the hybrid electro-mechanically controlled aluminium-bladed focal plane shutter , the aperture priority auto-exposure mode, the match-needle exposure control system and provision for through-the-lens ( TTL ) off-the-film (OTF) electronic flash automation. In other words, the FM3A merged the robust mechanical systems of the FM2n with the proven, reliable electronic exposure controls of

561-413: The Nikon MF-16 databack (sequential numbering, time or date stamping on the film), and the various compatible Nikon TTL flashes (SB-15, SB-16b, SB-20, etc.) In manual mode, the camera is completely mechanical in operation, and only requires batteries for the light metering information system. In aperture priority mode, the batteries continued to power the meter, but are also utilized for shutter timing and

594-412: The body and of extremely high quality, including the flexible circuits. The FM3A'S film transport consists of high-strength hardened metal gears and moving parts, mounted on clusters of ball bearings. The vertical metal shutter utilises precision tapered high-strength aluminium alloy blades and oilless self-lubricating bearings. The guide rails are made of stainless steel. The mirror is made of titanium. It

627-456: The discontinuation of the FM3A on 11 January 2006, leaving only the expensive and heavily electronic Nikon F6 and the inexpensively built Nikon FM10 in Nikon's 35mm film SLR line. Since the announcement of the FM3A's discontinuance, value on the secondhand market of the FM3A camera (and its FM2 predecessors) appreciably increased, this is especially true of the black model. As of 2014, the price for

660-405: The discontinued Nikon FE2 , which had begun to skyrocket in value on the secondhand market. Nikon responded to this phenomenon with a revival of their classic FM/FE series design. The FM3A's expensive construction and conservative design were not intended to appeal to the consumer-level market. Nikon instead marketed the camera to serious amateur and professional photographers who were desirous of

693-639: The exposure control electronics. The FM3A's metering information system consisted of a match-needle system using two needles pointing along a vertical shutter speed scale on the left side of the viewfinder to indicate the readings of the built-in 60/40% centerweighted silicon photodiode light meter versus the actual camera settings. This system can be traced back to the Nikkormat EL (Nikomat EL in Japan) of 1972. The viewfinder also has Nikon's fully interchangeable bright focus screen with various options for focus. During

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726-474: The high-end professional and semi-professional market to the growing consumer market. The latter desired an affordable, yet full-featured 35 mm camera, but were intimidated by the need to learn the intricacies of operating a traditional SLR. Against this backdrop, the FM2 may have seemed an anachronism, yet it sold well. It was a reliable, durable mechanical camera in a time of ever-increasing electronic automation, and often, less durable construction. The FM2

759-586: The highest possible quality and precision of control, and a service life estimated not in years, but decades. The FM3A's introduction coincided with a major technological revolution in photographic technology – digital imaging. Many photographers, professional and amateur alike, switched to digital, resulting in a huge decrease in film SLR sales. By 2004, annual sales of digital cameras had surpassed those of film cameras. Though FM3A sales remained steady, they were minuscule in volume compared to Nikon's other cameras, and steadily increasing costs forced Nikon to announce

792-417: The light meter, even without a battery. Nikkorex F / Nikkor J Autofocus Camera | APS-format | Nikkorex with Leaf Shutter | Nikomat/Nikkormat | All Other Cameras | Manual Focus with electronic features (A mode) See also: Nikon DSLR cameras Nikon F6 The Nikon F6 is a 35 mm film single-lens reflex camera body manufactured by Nikon between 2004 and 2020. It

825-480: The major SLR brands: Nikon , Canon , Minolta , Pentax and Olympus . Between circa 1975 to 1985, there was a dramatic shift away from heavy all-metal manual mechanical camera bodies to much more compact bodies with integrated circuit (IC) electronic automation. In addition, because of rapid advances in electronics, the brands continually leapfrogged each other with models that had new or more automatic features. SLR camera manufacturers were attempting to expand from

858-487: The mid-1990s, a demand arose among some photographers for a quality manual-focus alternative to the 35 mm autofocus SLR camera. These cameras required complex computer and processing mechanisms, and especially in their amateur and consumer versions, were known for neither their ruggedness nor a long service life. Nikon owners began to demand a durable, precision-made camera with the AE electronic features and prized construction of

891-430: The mirror box to cause damage. During the early 1980s, Nippon Kogaku manufactured approximately 70 different types of manual focus Nikkor AI-S and Nikon Series E branded lenses. They ranged from a Fisheye-Nikkor 6 mm f/2.8 220° circular fisheye to a Reflex-Nikkor 2000 mm f/11 super telephoto. The AF-S Nikkor, AF-I Nikkor, AF Nikkor D and AF Nikkor autofocus lenses will work for manual focus only. Accessories for

924-624: The same as those found in the Nikon N8008), while the mirror/shutter mechanism rides on self-lubricating bearings. The mirror linkage uses the same mechanism found on Nikon's professional F2, with some modern improvements, such as additional foam dampeners, designed to further reduce effects of vibration and mirror bounce. The FM2 also features Nikon's close tolerance assembly and minimal space lubrication, meaning that it will reliably operate in temperature extremes of −40 °C to +50 °C. The FM2 accepts all Nikon F bayonet mount lenses that support

957-420: The serial number on the rear of the top plate), although both versions are labelled as the FM2 on the front of the camera body. The FM2 originally used an advanced Nikon-design, metal-bladed, bearing-mounted, vertical-travel purely mechanical focal plane shutter with a (then unheard-of) speed range of 1 to 1/4000th second plus Bulb, plus a fast flash X-sync of 1/250th second. (Actually the first models were with

990-503: Was not designed for budget-minded snapshooters who would never bother to learn to use shutter-speeds and aperture settings, but rather was intended to appeal to serious photographers who demanded a tough, rugged camera. Nippon Kogaku believed that advanced photographers were not interested in every possible automated bell and whistle, but rather in high quality and precision workmanship. The FM2 remained in limited production until 2001, long after many other more complex electronic designs from

1023-412: Was often sold in a kit that includes a color coordinated chrome finished Nikkor 45 mm f/2.8P lens. This special flat "pancake" lens was manually focused on the FM3A, but contained a CPU which could communicate focal distance to Nikon's later autofocus (AF) camera bodies. Other accessories for the FM3A include the Nikon MD-12 motor drive (automatic film advance up to 3.2 frames per second), as well as

Nikon FM3A - Misplaced Pages Continue

1056-524: Was renamed the Nikon FM2n (New FM2 in the Japanese market), but remained marked FM2. The only external differences were the red 250 setting on the shutter speed dial and the N serial number prefix. Advances in metallurgy proved the suitability of high-strength aluminum as a substitute for the expensive titanium used in the shutter, and was adopted for the FM2n in 1989. The only way to identify the different versions

1089-507: Was the sixth film camera in Nikon's 35mm F-series SLR line-up. Designed by Nikon, the model was manufactured at their Sendai plant. The F6 was the most recent and final model in Nikon's F series. The model was discontinued in October 2020. It replaced the Nikon F5 , manufactured from 1996 to 2004. It can accept any Nikon F-mount lens with full metering functionality, excluding non-AI . At

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