Primary and Backup 35mm Film Cameras

[RAS]

Would any of the folks who have done 35mm film photography professionally be willing to share their thoughts on choice of primary and backup cameras for work targeted for publication? Could we please confine this to the subject, we really have had more than enough postings by self promoting digital camera exhibitionists.

[EricB]

I know you're new to the internet so you don't know anything about etiquette online. Try this... Good Luck

Would any of the folks who have done 35mm film photography professionally be willing to share their thoughts on choice of primary and backup cameras for work targeted for publication?

[kevikens]

I understand your anoyance at the blitz of promotion for digital cameras. Reminds me of all the hype, at the time, to go to instamtatic 126. 110, autofocus, APS or whatever. Many photographers like to keep up with the latest and the photo magazines eagerly have jumped on board with the manufacturers to convince the picture taking public that film technology is soooo '90's. To directly answer your question I prefer a manual focus, match needle exposure camera. Why ? They will function well in any kind of weather, offer precise exposure readings and ease of bracketing and work without a battery if necessary. I like the Olympus OM1 and Nikon FM because they will take winders and motor drives, essential for captuing fast moving trains. If I will be taking slow moving trains or a static display I like to use the Minolta SRT's or Canon FTB. The lens selection for these cameras is excellent and can be picked up pretty cheap at photo shows so you should be able to build up an extensive inventory. By the way, if you need digitalized photos in your line of work you can have the lab put your photos on a CD for about an extra $3 and then play games with your images. Good hunting.

[Ken W2KB]

I go both ways. Pentax Spotmatic F and Pentax 645 for film, and Pentax *ist Digital. Each has its place and its plusses and minuses. That's one possibility, go with film and digital if two cameras are what is desired.

[PCook]

Due to my employers sometimes supplying photographic equipment, I have been able to use Nikon, Canon, Pentax, and Olympus cameras at various times for railroad photography. Each of these companies have produced camera models over the years which have been well suited for the task.

My favorites however are the Pentax MX and LX. My personal reasons for this preference are:

(1) They are both well made and very durable cameras which accept a wide variety of "K" mount lenses and can be used with 5 FPS motor drives, which share the same battery pack. (2) They both have mechanical shutter mechanisms (mechanical backup system for the HIGH shutter speeds in the LX) so you are not dead if your batteries go dead. (3) They both have horizontal travel focal plane shutters which are better suited to stopping high speed action than vertical traveling shutters. (4) They both have all the desirable features for railfan photography without being too large or heavy. (5) The MX with Pentax 40mm lens fits easily in my side pocket, and has been carried to a lot of very risky places including the mast platforms on Navy ships.

I prioritize my use of the MX and LX in the reverse of the preference of most photographers. I use the less expensive MX as my primary camera, due to its smaller size and lighter weight. I use the more expensive LX as the backup camera, when I need the special interchangeable viewfinder features that it offers. I also use the LX on a copy stand as a copy camera.

I have a digital camera (I will not advertise the brand) but usually use it only in situations where I have to transmit images by e-mail attachments. My primary interest is in color slide photography due to image quality, publication requirements, and preserved value of the photographic image. When an image can be randomly reproduced with virtually no loss of quality, as is the case with digital, it tends to have a very low value. With slides there is one original (unless you motor drive multiple shots of the same view), and any duplicate made from that slide is going to be of slightly lesser quality, which helps maintain the exclusivity and value of the originals.

[kevikens]

I should have included my own Pentax Mx for pretty much the same reasons as Mr. Cook's. Good camera, abundance of lenses, small size. I also agree with the former post with respect to archival phtography. If you want generations yet unborn to see your photos I don't recommend digital images. Much of what is stored in digital format will be lost in the future unless it is rendered onto high quality photo paper or constantly transferred to newer formats as older ( and in the digital world that's not very long-try trading in your three year old digital camera and see what you are offered) formats become obsolete. I seriously doubt that much of what is stored digitally will be accessible at all 50 years from now but good paper and slide pictures will still be extant. Come to think of it I'll bet that Pentax MX or Nikon FM will still be valuable when today's digital cameras are reduced to paper weights.

[railohio]

I guess functionality is in the hands of the holder. I've always used advanced amateur bodies (Nikon N80's) and spent the big money on glass. Do I want an F100 or F5 in my bag? Absolutely! Will it enhance my work enough to justify the $1000-$1500 investment? Probably not.

That being said, I use a pair of Nikon N80 bodies for most of my work and an FM-10 and an EM for work when it's adventageous to not have a battery operated camera.

[PCook]

I just wanted to add to my earlier comments that the ability of the camera to accept various viewfinder screens is a very nice feature for railroad photography. Many scenes encountered on railroads have very complex composition and it is sometimes difficult to pick up perfect level position, particularly if you wear glasses when using a camera. The architectural grid screens used for photography of structures and copy board use are very helpful, because if you can identify a good vertical reference (a pole or even a locomotive handrail post) in the scene you can quickly get the camera level even if your view of the horizon is obstructed. The only thing you may sacrifice using a grid screen is split image focusing, and I don't consider split image to be very necessary. In most railroad photography you are far enough from the subject that the available depth of field when the lens stops down is going to cover for any slight focusing error.

[RAS]

Thanks for your thoughts and advice. I hope that some of the other people who post on this site will continue to share their views on this subject.