Best 35mm camera design - or rather - which is your favorite?

[elekm]

I like the minimalist approach. I am not a big fan of a camera that has many buttons, switches and dials. I don't care for cameras that require two hands and multiple button presses to do something as simple as change the shutter speed or change the film speed.

I definitely admit to being a throwback.

I don't mind having LEDs in the viewfinder, although a sweeping needle still works for me. And I've found that as long as you don't pound on your cameras, that needle probably will still work correctly 35 years later (Nikon F2A, FE).

If the meter doesn't work, I'm OK with using a handheld meter.

The great thing about photography is that there is a camera out there for everyone. From those who want nothing more than a box and a lens to the folks who really enjoy and thrive using the latest gear.

So, there probably is no right or wrong answer to this question, because each of us want and expect something different in a camera. And that's OK.

[Truzi]

My Favorite is my Sears KS-2 (Ricoh XR7). It was my maternal grandfather's, which is probably why it is my favorite. It is quite easy to use, does all I need, and is my main camera.

I have a Voigtländer Vitessa and a Zeiss Icon Contessa (folding 35mm) that I really like. I love how robust they are, especially the Zeiss, and their engineering is a work of art. The Contessa is built like a tank, and while in sad shape from sitting idle in a second cousin's farmhouse longer than I've been alive, it still performs quite well. It has some bad lens fungus I've not attempted to remove yet. Once cleaned up, it will probably be my number-two 35mm.

Not a favorite camera, but one of my favorite camera situations, was with a point and shoot Kodak 35mm from the late 80s. It had a thumb-wheel film advance. When I asked people to take a picture of me with it, and it didn't auto-wind, they thought they broke it.

[Yashinoff]

There is something nice about the Ihagee Exa. A few shutter speeds, a few F stops, you can even change the lens if you want to. I've found that I tend to look towards simpler cameras lately. As long as I have enough control to make creative decisions, I'm pretty satisfied.

[one90guy]

Never owned one that I did not like, my favorite at this moment, Mamiya NC1000S, which is my newest.

[ambaker]

Too many, and too hard to pick a favorite.

Short list would be:

Canon Elan 7e. Great for action shots, and the eye control works for me.

Yashica TL Electro-X. My first 35mm SLR.

Ricoh XR-S. Yes it is essentially an XR-7. No you cannot get rechargeable batteries for it anymore. But hey, it's got solar panels and solar panels are cool. Everyone who has seen it up close mentions it.

Horizon 202. A one trick pony to be sure. 120 degree panoramas are all it does. No batteries, no meters, no focus, only a few speeds and aperture choices; just keep an eye on the bubble level to minimize distortion. But then the images always seem to impress my friends.


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[LyleB]

FM2

[Marvin]

I was talking to the owner of a local camera store and he said he thought the Nikon F5 was the best film camera ever made. I am sure the F5 contributed many photos to National Geographic.

[Ali-C]

My favourite camera, bar none, is my F3/T. Given the choice I'd love to use nothing but a pair of these for everything, sadly I can't but I'm getting as much use out of it as I can while I can! The only down side to it is that I can't use the 50/55mm Super Taks on it! But hey, nothing's perfect.

[benjiboy]

My all time favorite is the Canon F1N which in my opinion is the best manual focus 35mm SLR ever made https://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=e......1ac.1.7.img

[Jim Rice]

I know y'all will laugh and laugh, but....

The most intuitive: OM-1n by far. It just instantly fit into my hands and did what I asked of it.

What I have now: Contax RTS-I. Its a nice camera, though a bit bulky and heavy and screachingly loud. The glass makes up for all of that.