Purchasing this camera some 35 years after it's release, and having been involved in photography for some 45 years in a mostly amateur level, and after owning a few of Nikon f3's, (which this one was competing with), i was pleasantly surprised. Tho, the f3 is easier to handle, and more ergonomic, and the winding mechanism superior, as is the viewfinder, (back) blind. I found this camera to feel amazing in the hand, and stunning to look at. The one aspect i did not like is the depth of field preview, or stop down mechanism. for the time i think retro, and also with the finder it came with i disliked the appendage on the prism side for the auto-winder. Viewfinder superior to the f3. Fs's crystal readout a bad, bad choice. The fact it has a hybrid shutter trumps nikon in a big way. Why did they go to all the trouble of making a superior camera and leave this out??? The battery compartment on F1, another negative. However it is a fine professional instrument, made extremely well.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Had to get it checked out cause the shutter and multi-exposure lever were stuck, cost me $45 but now functional. There’s a shutter squeak due to loss of lubrication, can be easily remedied. A battery coil in the motor drive was gone so I had to use some aluminum foil, works fine now. There was a battery explosion in the flash and the damage was beyond repair, had to buy a new one but luckily found a great twin flash for $10. All the batteries needed for this ran about $20. All together the price of this setup was $165 but not bad for a complete set with a f/1.4 lens.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
As a long time user of my originally purchased new Canon A1 and a user of an AE1 Program, I always desired to get my hands on a F1. I am a trained photographer and printer with a masters of science in imaging. Photography was my first real income when 15 and had my own darkroom developing my A1 images. Long story, but after storing the film cameras and more than 10 years of using digital, I went back to the A1 and AE1 and thanks to eBay to a F1N. That is when I finally held and felt this beast that escaped me for so long. Easy to learn for a professional and the results are immediate and stunning. Now I know what I missed and what I craved. It is heavy, it feels durable, is solid and takes great pictures in film that are impossible to match with any digital and image software processing. It is not only a good camera is an object to admire. Best of all, it uses all of the FD mount cameras and interchange with all my other film Canon cameras. I could not resist, I also got through eBay an F1 older type and EF since are similar design and box. The F1 is a fantastic family and will only bring satisfaction to the artist and the technician. Enjoy.Read full review
I have another Canon F-1N and have always been well pleased with all of Canon's Products. I started with a Canon A-1 and the F-1N is the only step above that camera as far as I am concerned. I also have a full line of Canon FD L Series Lenses and still prefer Film to Digital. Of course, film must be converted to digital before editing, but I prefer the extra creativeness required to shoot a good shot with film. To me, Digital is almost cheating and distracts me from the creative edge I love!!! I originally bought Canon Products because they are quality products at reasonable prices. They have also been innovators with their products, for instance the Canon FD24mm f/1.4L Lens was the fastest wide angle lens made at that point in time! I will always use Canon Products whether Film or Digital. I do have a Canon Digital Camera, but prefer my film equipment.Read full review
Sophisticated brass body Canon F-1 - top of the line model competing against Nikon's F or F2 of the same period. There were some similarities on this Canon F-1 model with the Nikon's F2 and the later release F3. Mainly on the metering system. While Nikon F & F2's metering system is all built into the prism Photomic top, Canon's entry for this market, F-1's meter is built into the body like the Nikon F3, the prism top is used solely for viewing purposes, i.e. metering info and composition. Canon F-1 meter used the 1.35V mercuy battery but it can tolerate the modern day 1.50V substitute Canon FD or FL manual focus lens must be used with this body, and since this bayonet mount type lens is no longer used on Canon's present system (EF lenses), those widely available used lenses are going for cheap on eBay and the used marketplace. The hefty feel and solid camera body, together with the all manual shutter and robust mechanism made this a pro's favorite. There are 3 different versions of F-1: Original F-1 has 1/2000th top speed 25-1600 ASA/ISO setting Second F-1 or later version has same top shutter speed but 3200 ASA/ISO and a plastic tip advance lever (front appearance is same) and a film memo insert on the back to distinguish it from the original Last F-1 or NEW version has a totally different top (with built in flash mount on top - the older two versions do not have this mount on the prism) and a hand grip added but minus the self timer/metering switch in front. You can check this info from the Canon Camera Museum: http://www.canon.com/camera-museum/camera/film/series_f.html?lang=usRead full review
This is one of the most incredible combination of hard to find items from the remarkable Canon FD Modular System for Professional Photographers. The F1 camera body was the camera of choice of journalists because of its toughness, very important in the field ,and its versatility. The pentaprism finder for example could be replaced by the higher performance Sports Finder , that produces a larger ,brighter image that can be observed at a distance from the camera and positioned at different angles ,all welcomed qualities ,highly necessary for rapidly focusing Telephoto lenses ,in less than desirable light and or rapidly occurring events , such as Olympic Games or Journalism. The 35mm f2.8 Tilt and Shift lens, working synergistically with the Sports Finder and the exceptional reticulated Focusing Screen type "D, Precision Matte with Grid" ,for example , makes this camera a natural for Architectural and Table Top Photography ,fields where specialized photographers cannot afford any distortion in their pictures, requiring the utmost optical control that only Shift ,Tilt and a Laser Reticulated Grid focusing screen can provide to comply with the Scheimpflug rule of Photography .Read full review
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