Ever since getting into Nikon equipment, I've wanted a top-of-the-line professional Nikon camera, and even though I was close with my F100, it still was not one of the Flag Ship F-series. And, even though the F5 was the current top-of-the-line model at the time, my dream came true when I purchased a slightly beatup, but functional, F4s in February 2004, some fifteen years after it was origianlly released. |
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First Impressions:
My first impressions were, first, that it truly is a beautifully designed camera; and second, that it is quite heavy. However, I like heavy cameras, and the weight didn't put me off at all. It's not as comfortable in my hands as my Nikon F100, nor quite as comfortable as my Nikon D100 or Konica FS-1, but still quite nice.
The F4s, of course, differs from the F4 in that it is in combination with the MB-21 battery pack, rather than the standard MB-20. With the MB-21, the F4 can deliver film advancement up to 5.7 frames per second, and the option of using its verticle shutter release.
Taking it out for the first time, I found it was much easier to use in low-light situations in manual mode rather than autofocus, compared to the more modern autofocus cameras I have.
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Problems & Difficulties: So far, I haven't discovered any problems, but I do have one complaint. It's difficult to turn on the film advance mode selector, which turns the camera on and off as well as selecting film advancement modes, with only one hand. It really needs both hands to turn the film advance selector and its lock relase button at the same time. A separate on-off switch would have been nicer and easier to use. |
Accessories:
Accessories I have acquired specificly for my F4 include having both the MB-20 and MB-21 battery packs, the AH-4 hand strap, MC-12B remote cord, and a Type E focusing screen.