200 Photographers Shared The Best Film Cameras for Beginners: Here's the Results — cameraville

November 21, 2018 in Cameras, Film, Lenses, Tips/Resources/Guides

Almost daily I get a message on my Instagram from someone interested in buying their first film camera, and asking me what is the best film camera for a beginner? It’s an important question and one can often get overwhelmed with the flurry of responses posting in an avid film photography forum or facebook group. I have my own opinions to the question, but I decided to scrub the analog forums and gather some actual data about the best film camera for beginners so you don’t have to.

“Most want to know the actual best camera specifically, but thats like asking someone – what is the best watch? ”

Keep in mind this is not a list compiled by an intern for a pop culture website the morning after a certain celebrity revealed their Contax T2 on a late night talk show. I loaded up a fresh spreadsheet, hit the forums, and documented over 300 camera mentions from 200 different photographers who answered the question – What is the best film camera for beginners? There are several ways to look at the data about the best film cameras for beginners, most want to know the actual best camera specifically, but thats like asking someone – what is the best watch?

“Okay.. well you want to tell time, but anything else? Do you want one big or small? Mechanical or Quartz? Do you care about the brand, want to see the date, moon phase, or just simply tell the time?” You see it’s not so simple. Well if you really insist.. my data shows these are the best film cameras for beginners:

Stay with me, as I said there are a few ways to look at the data. Considering there are over 25,000 different film cameras to choose from, I think it’s best to take a step back and look at the cumulative reputation of a camera series. So below you will find the best film cameras for beginners ranked by cameras series, led by the most popular model among that series.

The most commonly recommended best film camera for beginners within the most recommended camera series was the Nikon FM2. Additionally the Nikon FM, FE, & FE2 cameras were highly recommended making the Nikon FM/FE series the most suggested film cameras for beginners. When the data showed the the Nikon FM2 highly ranked for beginners I was a bit surprised. What surprised me was that I know this camera as an excellent camera for professionals. Both are true indeed, the Nikon FM2 was built to last, and with one of the longest production runs in camera history (19 Years) there are plenty of them out there to buy. Side note, think about that for a minute, a 19 year production run, that’s how relevant and capable this camera was. It would be the equivalent of Apple not releasing the iPhone 2 until 2026, or the iPhone X being produced until 2036.

The Nikon FM2 is around the 2nd most expensive camera on this list, I think the FM2 being one of the most mentioned best film camera for beginners spawns from the idea that it’s capable of not only being your first camera, but also your last. A true work of art that will last a lifetime. I once heard a story about a guy riding solo on a motorbike trip through Europe, one day his bike broke down and he used his Nikon FM2 as a hammer and smacked something back into place that needed a good smacking. He rode onward with a working bike and a working camera.

My Recommendation:

My personal recommendation between these cameras is the Nikon FM. With the all-mechanical shutter of the Nikon FM your camera will always work even if your batteries [for the meter] do not. The FM2 is a little better a camera with some significant upgrades such as a 1/4000th of a second top shutter speed, but you don’t need this, especially if you are a beginner. Stick to the Nikon FM for half the price.

Tied for first place with Nikon was the Olympus OM Series, with the Olympus OM-1 being the model mentioned the most as the best film camera for beginners. The Olympus OM-1 was touted as compact and lightweight upon its release in 1972, a time when heavy and bulky SLRs were standard. Mr. Yoshihisa Maitani led the design team for the OM-1 and he took large inspiration form the Leica M series of rangefinders. In fact with a small lens on the Olympus OM-1 the size is comparable to a Leica M3 setup, a true innovation in compact SLR design. Today the OM-1 remains one of the smallest SLR cameras ever made, similar in size to the Pentax MV and Nikon EM.

The OM-1 has a built-in meter operated by batteries to tell you what settings are required for proper exposure. The mechanics of the camera themselves are mechanical meaning it will operate at all shutter speeds without a battery. One thing Olympus is known for is its large selection of lenses and their compactness. The OM 100mm f2.8 is the smallest SLR 100mm lens that I have ever seen. Buy this camera with an OM G.ZUIKO 50mm f1.8 and a roll of film and you are ready to start shooting. This will be a capable setup for years.

My Recommendation:

I agree with the recommendation of the Olympus OM-1 but if you want to start shooting with more assistance, go for the OM-2 which has automatic shutter speed (if you set it), then you just choose the aperture, focus, and shoot. And if you can’t afford around 100+ USD go for the Olympus OM-10, it’s a cheaper model at about half the cost and will still give you great results of course.