Richard Haw's Classic Nikon Repair and Review

Hello, everybody! It’s a weekend but I’m working from home. I have been doing it for years now, I do this as a habit to prepare myself for the coming week. Preparation is important, not only are you ensuring a good job but it will also save you some time so you can do more things. Every professional is familiar with this, if I have the choice I wouldn’t want to do this but I am overloaded at the moment, I only have my sidekick to help me. This strains me mentally, physically and emotionally but that’s the nature of my job. It’s something that I will have to live with so long as I work in this industry and in this country in particular. Today, I will show you just how important it is to prepare your work so all you do is see how things fall-into-place nicely. It is something that every camera repairer should do, too.

Introduction:

The Nikon S3/S4 is a fine camera, if maintained properly it will keep taking photos as long as film is available. This means that this camera will outlive most of us. An all-mechanical camera is a wonderful thing, much like how a mechanical watch is compared to the quartz ones. There is a certain charm to mechanical gadgets, something that only an aficionado will understand. I would like to show you how much work in involved servicing a mechanical camera in this article so you’ll appreciate the work involved in maintaining it. If you found a reliable repairer, give him a bottle of wine since he’s doing a fine job, a trade that we may not see anymore in the coming years. If you found an honest repairer, send him 2 bottles instead, integrity has no price.

Once your camera has been serviced properly it should take perfect photos for more years to come. If properly cared for the next time you send it to a repairer should be around 5-10 years or more and the repair should be less since all the repairer has to do is clean, lubricate and adjust. You shouldn’t give the camera to another repairer for maintenance, stick to one person. I said that because only he can service it properly since he knows it the best. If you want to change repairers because the last one made a terrible job it’s okay but do everybody a favor and share your experience.

We’re done dismantling the camera, it’s now time to adjust and put all of its parts back. We have spent all of that time dismantling the camera, it is now the moment truth. This will be the true test of how well you have cleaned it. If you did a poor job cleaning the camera your resulting job won’t be good. I always spend extra time cleaning everything, this will be the basis of a good and successful job. Like I always say, never treat this as a repair manual, it’s only for your education and entertainment. Experienced repairers will find this useful if they’re not familiar with this type of camera, novices shouldn’t even touch this at all. Sit back and enjoy the last writeup for the Nikon S3/S4 repair series.

Hello, everybody! I was watching the news once and I saw somebody trying to use and old-style telephone, the type with a dial that many of us grew-up using. You would dial-in a number and it will crank-back each time, it takes a lot of time just trying to dial few digits. Despite it being cumbersome I had plenty of good memories using those old phones, I would call my classmates and talk with them, most of them being girls and we would flirt “online”. It’s funny how time flies and many people don’t even remember these anymore to the point that it felt silly just watching somebody using it. I made friends with strangers and even met lovers using that ancient device, that was how people hooked-up anonymously back then. Before we get too nostalgic, I am going to show you something that made things convenient for everybody at a time when people were used to doing things the inconvenient way. This is important before I told you everything about my naughty teenage years.

Introduction:

The Nikon S3/S4’s speed-selector dial is convenient to use as it doesn’t spin. I love the fact that I don’t have to keep my fingers away from it while making an exposure. This was introduced with the Nikon SP to rival the Leica M3. It was epoch-making as far as Japanese cameras are concerned. In older ones like the Nikon S and Nikon S2, the speed-selector dial spins as you make an exposure. Disrupting it will cause faulty speeds so your exposure will be off by a lot. This won’t happen again in Nikon-land after the Nikon SP debuted.

The Nikon S4 has a clean-looking face because it doesn’t have a self-timer. It is a very handsome camera, it looks good on you if you’re wearing a tuxedo.

Hello, everybody! It was my daughter’s birthday yesterday, we could not go out due to the coronavirus problem so we had to stay indoors to celebrate. I would rather sacrifice a little bit of fun than expose my child to germs. This morning, I had leftovers from yesterday’s modest celebration. It’s not that I am complaining but there are some things that tastes much better the next day such as curry and stew. I used to cook a lot, I would at times cook some stew the previous day in preparation for serving it the next day. This allows the juice to seep-into the ingredients and tenderize the meat even further. I like the resulting texture of the meat as it melts in my mount. While we are in the topic of serving yesterday’s meal, Nikon was also doing the same but it’s in the form of a repurposed lens design. Did it end up better than what’s been implemented before or was it only a case of re-housing the optics? Let us find that out in this article.

Introduction:

The Nikkor-T 10.5cm f/4 for the Nikon S-mount is an odd lens not because it’s a phallic-looking lens but because it has a lot of non-Nikkor traits that made people back then guessing if this was actually made by Nikon. The answer is yes, it’s a true-blue Nikkor but made to a different philosophy wherein price is the biggest concern which means that it was made to be budget-friendly. I made an article showcasing the Nikkor-T 10.5cm f/4 for the F-mount and you can read more about this lens there.

Despite being similar in essence to the Nikkor-T 10.5cm f/4 for the F-mount it has many differences in terms of external styling which made it special in a way since it’s unique to its cousin. Even details that doesn’t have anything to do with the bayonet mount were made to look different. Of the 2 versions, I like this one better in terms of styling and handling. The Nikkor-T 10.5cm f/4 for the F-mount felt awkward because it’s a rangefinder lens made to fit the more-modern Nikon F but this one is just fine.

Hello, everybody! I remembered a time several weeks ago when the world was still unsure about the impact of the coronavirus, it was a time when we could still talk outside with friends and enjoy a cup of coffee or two and eat a few sandwiches by the side of the street. I don’t think we’ll be able to see it happen again anytime soon, once-busy sections of our cities now resemble ghost-towns or a post-apocalyptic scenario. It’s depressing but even at these times there are stories to be told and good-deeds to be made. Read on.

The Story:

This happened around February, I was meeting with a good friend of mine named Hayashi-san. We were talking about random stuff, office politics and generally just keeping up with each other since we haven’t seen each other for a few years. On our way out I decided to have a quick smoke nearby and I found something laying at the grounds of a parking lot, scroll down to see what I found.

It’s a Nikon Df! Somebody left his camera. He was probably sitting there for a quick smoke just like me and probably forgot his precious camera. It looks like it has been sitting there for a few hours. I would have missed it myself, it blended well with the urban environment, you could’ve mistaken it for an abandoned pile of rubbish.

Hello, everybody! In the coronavirus era we’re all scared about germs and what it can do to us if we are not careful. We should wash our hand well, if you went to the toilet, wash your hands first before touching your peter. It’s equally important to wash your hands after doing the deed, too. This helps in preventing the spread of germs. What really helps a lot is using masks as it prevents the spread of germs and you’ll inhale less of it, too. Hygiene is an important part of living, this goes for your cameras and lenses as well. They constantly get close to your face, whatever germs are there will reach your face and enter your body. Today, I’ll show you how I cleaned a camera so it won’t infect me with anything nasty. Old cameras can be health risks if they were used by somebody sick before it got to you. If it was stored in a cabinet for a long time then fungus or other things may have bred in it, too. This is a big risk that’s why people who love old gear like me should be very careful.

Introduction:

The Nikon FM3A was sold from 2001 to 2006. It’s a wonderful camera, it’s so advanced when it came out that nothing in Japan could match it. If you look at it, you’ll think that it’s nothing special because it looks like any other old, manual camera from the 1970s but the insides of the Nikon FM3A is modern and state-of-the-art. Nikon managed to combine an all-manual shutter with an electronic-override for aperture priority, this means that you can use the shutter with all the speeds available to you in manual mode if the batteries failed. Sure, the meter won’t work but you’ll still be able to shoot with it and you’ll have all of the speeds available to you unlike most electronic Nikons where you’re only able to use a single backup manual speed.

It has more things in common with a Nikon FE than a Nikon FM, even how it looks reminds you of the former. I don’t know why they named it the Nikon FM3A, maybe they’re referencing its all-manual shutter. The shutter is very advanced, it’s an electro-mechanical hybrid. Not only that but Nikon made it small enough to fit inside a tiny chassis.

Hello, everybody! There is lots of hype today regarding the iPhone’s camera. Phone photography has evolved to new-heights and they take great pictures so many people just ditch digital cameras because smart phones made them obsolete. This is most apparent when it comes to compact digital cameras, if we are talking about cameras with a decent-sized sensor then that’s another story. The hype is true, I don’t see the need to carry a small camera anymore just to shoot mundane things, I can easily share my photos, too. Speaking of hype, we’ll talk about something that’s hyped in the internet so it now has a cult following. Let’s see if this will live up to its reputation.

Introduction:

The Nikkor 135mm f/2.8 Ai-S debuted in 1981, succeeding the Nikkor 135mm f/2.8 Ai. It’s a very popular lens because of its optical quality and utility. It is one of the best portrait lenses you can buy today despite production halting in 2005. Its production run is quite high, a lens that’s made for 24 years is a sign of success. The prices went down for a time but the internet hyped this recently so the prices went up again. Let’s find out if the hype is true in this article.

The build quality is top-notch but not as solid as the Nikkor 135mm f/2.8 Ai. The older lens was made tougher, with plenty of screws while this one was made with more-modern production techniques which includes the use of scotch tape and other cost-cutting techniques. While that is efficient it’s not what I would call “durable”. The Ai-S lenses were made with high quality in general but they pale in comparison to the earlier Nikkors when it comes to toughness, just read my other articles and you’ll see what I mean.

Hello, everybody! With the coronavirus lockdown being loosely enforced, I cannot go out from my house to enjoy my usual weekend routines. Staying home gives me chance to enjoy some simple things that I took for granted. Things like eating a simple meal and enjoying a smoke afterwards or taking a nice, long siesta surely feels refreshing. It’s sometimes nice to get out from our usual routine and enjoy the simpler luxuries of living. It’s like riding an old car around town in a lazy weekend. Speaking about simple things, we’re going to talk about a simple Nikon that touches on the basics. It’s something so simple that it takes us back to the roots of photography, all that without having to spend a lot of money. It’s cheap yet it’s feature-packed, something that will benefit students and the casual photographers alike.

Introduction:

The Nikon FG is an advanced version of the Nikon EM, it debuted in 1982. It was only made for 4 years and was replaced with the Nikon FG-20, a cheap, dumbed-down version of this capable camera. This camera is an improved Nikon EM with manual shutter speeds, programmed (P) mode and the usual aperture priority (A) mode amongst other things. Despite being a cheap and somewhat flimsy Nikon it has everything an advanced photographer needs. It can even mount to the Nikon MD-14, a more advanced motor-drive that’s also compatible with the Nikon FG’s siblings. It’s able to use the Nikon MF-15 data-back which makes it even more useful for documenting.

Despite all the advanced features the Nikon FG is still an amateur camera, it is most-apparent in its build quality where you get a sense of flimsiness and it doesn’t have the reliability of its more expensive cousins like the Nikon FE and specially the flagship models. The shutter mechanism for example isn’t as tough as the ones found on the more expensive models but it’s not so bad either and it will last you hundreds of rolls before it taps-out. A nice touch is the little screw-on hand grip, it makes the camera easier to hold but I find it annoying as it gets in-the-way, you’ll have to remove it in order to mount its motor-drive. Needless to say, these are easily-lost.

Hello, everybody! I’ve been granted permission to work-from-home due to the coronavirus pandemic. It is essential that every member of the team is synced to the main workflow seamlessly from home. This requires plenty of effort in the engineering side as data and communication needs to flow well despite people being scattered in multiple locations. This reminds me of the rangefinder cameras of old, it’s amazing how the rangefinder couple to the lens and how it can still accurately depict what’s going to be in-focus. That’s very clever considering that it was pioneered nearly a century ago. This is a complicated mechanism that links 3 things and that’s the topic of our article today.

Introduction:

The shutter-speed selector of the Nikon SP chassis is robust, the same goes for the Nikon S3 / Nikon S4 and the Nikon F, too. All of these share the same chassis except for the Nikon F which uses a modified one that will accept a mirror-box so it’s made wider. The shutter-speed selector mechanism is not a new design entirely, it inherits a lot from the older Nikon S2 as the basis. It is not identical yet not too-different either in principle and you can see their similarities once you get to know how they both work. Despite that, this is a big leap for the Japanese camera industry, the shutter-speed mechanism is a modern one wherein you can change every speed of the camera using one convenient dial. I am not aware of any Japanese camera that can do this at the time the Nikon SP debuted since most, if not all Japanese cameras used the Leica-type shutter (as far as 35mm goes).

The W-Nikkor 3.5cm f/3.5 is a good partner for the Nikon S3, it balances very well with the camera and the 35mm frame-lines help you frame with it. You won’t need a separate accessory just to frame your shot.

Hello, everybody! It was snowing yesterday despite the sakura trees being in full-bloom. This is a rare occurrence, something that not a lot of people experience in their lifetimes. It’s like watching Tom Jones perform with his stable-mate Engelbert Humperdinck at a pub, can you imagine that? This is my first time to experience such a thing and this will certainly stay with me for a very long time. Speaking of rare occurrences, I’ll show you a rare lens that many people don’t see often. It was only made for over-a-year and that is the reason why it’s rare. Owning one is special but I have two of these so that makes it even better.

Introduction:

The Nikkor-S 5cm f/2 Auto was made from 1959 to 1963, it is the first 50mm lens for Nikon’s then-new F-mount. The flapping mirror of an SLR became a challenge for lens designers back because existing rangefinder lenses have long rears that will hit the mirror. This became such a problem that making a “standard” 50mm lens became a challenge. Nikon had to improvise just to create a proper 50mm lens for the Nikon F and the solution was to have the front element act as a sort of “magnifying element” to achieve a 50mm AOV or angle-of-view. It’s a stop-gap until the Nikkor-H 50mm f/2 Auto succeeded this lens a few years later.

Admire the beautiful lines in the aperture and focusing rings, these are the reason why the earliest F-mount Nikkors are called “tick-mark” lenses by the majority of the Nikon collectors community. It’s a throwback to rangefinder Nikkors, to an era where craftsmanship reigned supreme.

Hello, everybody! Looks like I cannot go out for the weekend as the city is in a state of voluntary lockdown, thanks to coronavirus. This is starting to be a big inconvenience for a lot of people, including me. My usual work routine’s time has been affected, too. Even time for social functions is affected and it is wiser to stay home than going out for a pint after work. Abstaining from a lot of vices and unnecessary things will be the theme for the next couple of weeks for everyone. While we’re on the topic of only doing the essentials, it is time that we take a look again at the Nikon S4, a stripped-down version of the Nikon S3.

Introduction:

Let’s now continue our series on the Nikon S3/S4. In part 1, we talked about the reasons why both cmaeras exist. We’ll mostly talk about the Nikon S4 in this article and what makes it unique from the more-common Nikon S3.

The Nikon S4 is an elegant camera. The viewfinder doesn’t have frame lines for 35mm which makes it less-cluttered and less-stressful to view. If you like shooting with 50mm or 105mm lenses this camera has frame lines for them. You won’t have to see the 35mm frame line that you won’t need. I love using the Nikkor-S 50mm f/1.4 Millennium with it. The Voigtländer VC meters work perfectly with it despite not being coupled.