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I also love my F5. This is a machine and nearly weather proof. Superb.Of course, I love film and make my living in a "negative" way. I shoot a lot of Nikon for personal photos and the need of a lighter camera and no tripod for PhotoJournalism and some landscape. For the past 40 years of photography that I have loved every minute of, the F5, as a 35mm machine, has been the best 35mm camera I have ever used.I love the larger 6 x 7 neg of the RB's and the 6 x 6's of the Rollies. You have to know what you are doing with this camera to get the best.
However, the F5 is a great body to attach a Nikon lens, of any quality, to. The real difference is the F5's meter. I have a Nikon D70s and a Nikon D300. I am a Mamiya RB67 Pro SD photographer. Mostly 120 and 220 Fuji. I have used many formats over almost half a century and the Nikon F5 is the best of the 35mm's I have used and beaten up.
The custom settings are your way of setting it up for your needs. Form. However, it will give you great results out of the box if you let it do the work for you.Should you make this choice and learn the camera, intensely, you will have a friend for life. Nothing in life is free of learning. Be careful though. But, if I had to choose a 35, it would be the F5 for its performance and its meter.
I love Med. My lenses are pro lenses and that is the real crux. The meter is superb and I don't feel that Nikon has beaten its meter game in a meaningful way since the F5. Don't drop it from the rim to the bottom of the Grand Canyon You can ruin anything if abused. I use the F5.
The lens, not the camera, for the most part. I have never beaten up this tank of F5 mechanics and electronics.
Charlie It is part of my body and the results are always the same-wonderful. I feel totally comfortable and confident with this camera. Long live the F5. I have been a photographer for 50 years and have shot with the best-Hasselblad, Contax, Canon, Mamiya, etc. The one film camera I have kept in my possesion is the F5. I just hope I can continue to buy film and find decent processing.
The high eyepoint finder works great for me and my thick eye glasses. And that's not a bad thing. I think the Canon EOS 1V cameras and lenses focus a tad faster (I tend to use them more for my motor racing assignments) but the F5 is such a joy to use and the Nikon glass is so sharp that I look for assignments where I can use this camera. The F6 looks like a winner and handles well too.
However, as good as it was, I would not want to go out on a magazine assignment with an old F2. I used to think that the F2 was God's gift to photography. The F5 is everything the F4 was plus it focuses better and faster. The controls are where Nikon has put them over the years so long-time users should have no trouble working fast with the F5. The camera takes lithium batteries and they seem to last through many dozens of rolls of film - not as cheap as alkaline but very convenient and much lighter to carry. The F5 remains for now in the product line, despite the introduction of the new and more expensive F6. Mine has seen rugged use here and in Europe and it has never failed me.
I have an F4 too and in its day, it was a gem. But its $2400 price tag and the fact that the majority of the market for a high powered pro camera has already turned to digital, makes me wonder who but a serious amateur with deep pockets will pony up the bucks for one. The camera is a joy to hold (at least for my two hands) and is possibly the best handling camera I have ever used in my over 30 years of picture taking. Rock solid and mine is 30 years old and it still works fine.
The capabilities of modern AutoFocus cameras make my old F2 and even the F3 too limited - especially with regard to invaluable tools like automatic fill flash, auto exposure, simple exposure bracketing and simple and fast film loading. As mentioned above, it focuses very well and very fast - especially with the newer "S" lenses with the motors in the lens. The only gripe I have is that the removable prism does let in dust but every Nikon I have has the same issue. My final warning to you camera junkies out there is that once you handle the F5, you will not want to put it down.
I have one of every model Nikon F made from the FTn to the F5. But I shoot a lot of motorsports and the F4 was too slow for fast action. It's simple to eliminate the dust with a soft brush or some canned air so it's a pretty small gripe.
Indeed it is the only professional grade autofocus 35mm SLR which comes with interchangeable finders and screens, harkening back to its F and F2 predecessors. In a sense, it is the autofocus equivalent of the old Nikon F and F2 cameras, which made Nikon's reputation for building a first-rate professional quality SLR system. However, it is about to be replaced by the newly introduced - and much lighter - Nikon F6, so potential purchasers should look carefully at this camera and the F6, before making their purchase. Without question, the Nikon F5 is one of the best conceived, well built professional quality autofocus 35mm SLR cameras I have come across. True to the tradition of ruggedness expected from a Nikon F series camera, the F5 is truly built like a tank. I've handled the F5 in camera stores and also at trade fairs such as Photo Plus East; it may be the best handling autofocus SLR I've come across.
My purchase is a late model production camera and I am aware that the earlier models did have a battery consumption issue. I would assume that the person who made this purchase has an assortment of Nikon products and knows what they are doing. I don't hesitate using this camera in adverse weather conditions and just wipe and clean it. That the person never picked the camera up and realized how heavy the camera is. I think because of the weight the camera balances nicely in your hands and the F5 is a dream to hold. The F5 was introduced in 1996 and was a top of the line 35mm camera and in 2004 it still is the top of the line.
Some comments lead to believe that some people have walked in from the street and purchased a two thousand dollar camera. It would hard for me to believe that someone will purchase the F5 as a first Nikon camera. Battery Consumption: Battery consumption has not been a problem for me. The craftsmanship is superb and I enjoy how well the F5 is made.
It is because this is simply the best film camera you can purchase from Nikon and it just might be the best film camera you can own.Negatives: I wish the focus area brackets in the viewfinder illuminated in red similar to the N80 and F100 I know other manufactures make great cameras but eight years later this camera is still at the top of the list.This camera will be that last film camera that I own. Familiar Controls: I like the ability to go from one Nikon to another and most of the controls seemed familiar. I think it is one of the attributes of this camera the ability to get the shot, quickly and accurately.
Weight: The F5 is a heavy camera but I like the weight and feel of the camera. Weather Sealing: I have taken the F5 while on a sailboat in Kauai in 15 foot swells hanging on to the boat with one hand and just pointing the camera with the other (program mode) and guess what I got some good shots. Not that the F5 is that heavy look at some medium format cameras. It is not because I'm going digital, because I'm not at the moment.
I take better pictures with the F5, let me clarify, at an air show, while whale watching and of course all the people shots I would have missed if it were not for the speed of the auto focus and the wonderful metering system. I am able to hand held this camera at a lower shutter speed than I could with other cameras. If you are looking at this camera I'm sure you already are aware of peoples comments good and bad.
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