My Second Obsession...Nikon!

  It all began with the FE....Well really, my interest in photography itself began a long time before the FE beginning with a little Brownie Hawkeye I received as a Xmas gift as a kid. But my obsession with Nikon came much later after that and after a Zeiss Ikon and a Yashica Minister D which I loved and lost in a house break-in.   

Yashica Minister D circa 1972

Mourning Dove taken thru' a screened window with Nikon D-80

Yellow Swallowtail taken with Nikon D-80

Brown bird taken with Nikon D-80

  That little Minister D was the greatest little learning tool anyone could own, to teach how to use a big girl camera while still having the camera take decent photos if you weren't knowing what you were doing. All that scary stuff like depth of field, film speeds and lighting. I wish I still had it so I could bronze it!  I would almost do that...hehe.

 But I'd always wanted a Nikon. Somewhere in my head I had it that this was "the" camera to use. Perhaps paying attention to photo journalists snapping pictures at news and sporting events on TV, or looking at photos in my numerous photography books and seeing the credits under them. If it wasn't Hasselblad or Seitz, it was Nikon. 

My role model at the time, Ansel Adams owned a Hasselblad but when he went out in the field, he preferred his Nikon FE and Nikon F3 for his work. So, that impressed me and pretty much cemented my choice when it came to purchasing a camera. And oh, was Ansel right! This camera, the FE became an extension of myself. And fortunately for me, there were no more house break ins and I still have this sweet jewel.
                                                                                                                           

Nikon FE circa 1976

Top view of Nikon FE

I took this camera with me everywhere. Being before digital and being poor meant I always had to wait until I could afford to have my film developed, but that was really the only drawback for me. It was what it was. 

I took an art class at the local community college just so I had access to a dark room for a year and that was beneficial. The FE too, was a great teacher. It had 'auto'! Meaning if I got frustrated or I was in a hurry to capture something, I dialed it to auto and I got my darn good picture. In many ways as I look back at older photos, I think some of these will never be duplicated by digital, but then I could be wrong. Maybe I just have a bit of the purists blood in my veins. I certainly can't complain about my digital cameras product.

Time and tide wait on no (wo)man and digital was here to stay and I wanted to be there. What to get! I looked at the Nikon F4, feeling if it was good enough for NASA it was way good enough for me. But cost was prohibitive and I was going to be learning again...always that learning curve, so I settled on the D-80. And fell in love for a second time!   Was it the best on the market? Who knows? Who cared. It was me who would be using it and it was me who loved it - good enough for me.
 
I got so many terrific photos from this camera! Happy, happy! Easy to use, tho' the manual was a bit cumbersome. Nikon still needs to attend to that. If you're a beginner the menu's a bear! But a small criticism overall. If you play with them, you'll learn everything you need to know.
 
From there, I have become a collector of sorts. I found a somewhat obscure Nikon while living in Las Vegas...passing a pawn shop one afternoon I spied a Nikon camera baking in the shops window. Oh how disrespectful! How bloody sad!

My purchasing that one was more a rescue mission than anything else I went in and asked about the camera. "$10.00 and it's yers" sez the man! Nikon #5...the Nikon N75 (aka F75 or U2) which was only sold for 3 years and then discontinued. Not a great camera but not a bad one either...especially for $10.00 But a victim of the digital age...who wanted it anymore? 

Also was what I refer to as my celebrity, a camera and lens that was actually given to me by a good friend who knew my penchant for Nikons! It's a Nikkormat ELW circa 1972 with a 400mm zoom lens. It belonged to a photo journalist for the Philadelphia Enquirer. What stories this old guy could tell, I bet! I am thrilled to have this but am pretty sure it is retired...

Nikkormat ELW

400 MM Nikkor lens

My beautiful visitor...taken with the Nikon D-80

Do I need this many cameras? Oh lordie no! But boy is it fun to be able to grab a camera with a different lens on it without having to change them out. My family consists of eight Nikons now...

After the FE as stated came my beloved little D-80.  The photo here shows how battle worn my baby is already...lots of use, lots of travel.

Nikon D-80

From there it was the D-90 which is very similar to the D-80 above, but having the video option.

Nikon D-5100

 And then the D5100. This is truly an amazing camera when moving from the D-90.

This camera's highlights  -- 

16.2 MP DX-Format CMOS Sensor

3.0" Vari-Angle 921K Resolution LCD   

1080p HD Movies w/Full Time Autofocus  

Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR Lens  

35mm Lens Equivalent: 27-82.5mm 

Fast 11-Point Autofocus System

In-Camera HDR  Special Effects Mode

ISO Sensitivity 100-6400  

Built-In Speedlight Flash With i-TTL

 And just last week a new baby joined the family. This one has me really excited...another gem? Well yes, once I get a better lens on it, I think maybe yes! There is that learning curve tho'...always the learning curve.

Nikon D-7100

The very first photo taken with the new boy was taken by my husband right after he handed me the manual...he still doesn't have faith in my ability to learn by playing.  I admit with each camera there is always something new...this is good. Buttons like Effects and Pet photography, these will be things I play with soon. With six cats in the house, I think I can make good use of that second feature.

Effects, which I've already whetted my taste for with my D5100 will expand now too and I'll be adding photos as time goes on for others to either enjoy or snicker at.

Nose in the manual - here we go again!

  Matters little to me 'cuz  can't hear ya...lol!  I have two last photos for this post. One using the Effects feature of the D5100 and the other is my first photo with the new D7100 using nothing but my instincts and my eye...ability to  point focus and shoot!

Martin 12 string guitar taken with Nikon D-5100

My kitty Spencer is an amazing subject! I used no effects or special settings here with these shots...just aimed and snapped. I will leave you with these...for now! But stay tuned...there will be many, many more!

Spencer on his window sill shelf - a big favorite!

Spencer making spooky in the hardwood floor!