SLR Cameras

Nikon FM2/T Camera Review – a Stronger and Lighter Nikon
2800 1575 James Tocchio

In 1993, Nikon released a special version of its most respected compact SLR. They wrapped the bones of the FM2n in titanium, called the camera the FM2/T, and decorated it with a price tag of…

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Canon T80 Review – A Canon Fan Shoots Canon’s First Autofocus SLR
2800 1866 Chris Cushing

Back in mid-December James asked if I wanted to review the Canon T80. When I responded enthusiastically (and in the affirmative), James seemed to think I was being facetious. His reponse to my apparent excitement…

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Nikon F2 Camera Review – Nikon’s Pro SLR Evolves
3000 1688 Josh Solomon

From its inception, the Nikon F2 has enjoyed a reputation rivaled by few and envied by many. The camera was designed to be nothing less than the perfect expression of the professional 35mm mechanical SLR…

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Praktica MTL 5B SLR Camera Review
2000 1125 Jeb Inge

No one wants to be the person with the obvious schtick. But after volunteering to review a rangefinder, an SLR, and then a medium format and even half-frame cameras from the Soviet Union, I’m starting…

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Nikon F4 Camera Review – Thirty Years Old This Month
2000 1125 Jeb Inge

The Nikon F4 is the perfect camera for me, but it took a while to get there. Like most photo geeks, I long suffered from Gear Acquisition Syndrome, a disease that makes us think that…

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Minolta XD 35mm Film Camera Review
2000 1125 Jeb Inge

I started shooting film with Minolta’s SRT-101, a historical camera that decades after its creation remains an outstanding machine capable of withstanding severe conditions. My personal SRT had clearly seen a lot of these —…

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Konica Autoreflex TC and the Hexanon 40mm – Shooting Bare Bones
2000 1125 Jeb Inge

In most conversations about classic SLR producers, Konica is always left out. The 1970s hosted a tug of war between camera brands vying for supremacy in the SLR market. One brand would develop a camera…

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Shooting Martha’s Vineyard with the Leica R5 and Kodak Ultramax
2400 1350 James Tocchio

In five years of shooting film cameras, I’d never shot the Leica R5. When one rolled through the shop an hour before I was set to board a boat to Martha’s Vineyard, it seemed like…

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The Nikon FM is All the 35mm Film Camera You Really Need
2200 1237 Josh Solomon

My eyes drifted from one storefront to the next, my stomach grumbling in the late spring heat. For days I’d been craving a taco, a dish so common in my home city that they may…

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Nikon F – The Camera That Changed Everything
2200 1238 Josh Solomon

If there’s one camera that’s been a constant presence throughout my years as a photographer and writer, it’s the Nikon F. Nearly every research trail or trip to the camera show somehow ends with the…

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The Alpa 10D – Hand-Made Mechanical 35mm Film SLR from Switzerland
2200 1238 James Tocchio

I’ve been shooting an Alpa 10d for a year now, and every camera geek I’ve shown it to has asked the same question. “What’s that?” This is no great surprise. Today Alpa makes cameras that…

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Nikon FM3a Review – A Nearly Perfect SLR
2200 1238 James Tocchio

I don’t think there is such thing as a perfect camera. Beyond the quirks of design that cause even the best of cameras to annoy, there’s personal preference to account. Some people like large cameras,…

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Minolta X-570 and the Maxxum 7000 – The End (and Beginning) of an Era
1940 1091 Jeb Inge

Minolta’s story is almost Shakespearean; filled with both beauty and tragedy. The company was one of the most innovative and groundbreaking in the photo industry. They consistently invented new technologies and implemented breakthrough features years…

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The Minolta a7 is the Perfect Film SLR for Shooters Who Want it All
2200 1238 James Tocchio

James reviews a Minolta AF SLR that’s so damn good it feels like launching into DOOM and instantly typing IDDQD.

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