- #NIKON FE SERIAL NUMBER YEAR CODE SERIAL NUMBERS#
- #NIKON FE SERIAL NUMBER YEAR CODE PRO#
- #NIKON FE SERIAL NUMBER YEAR CODE PROFESSIONAL#
The F4 misread the pulse of where the market was really going.
#NIKON FE SERIAL NUMBER YEAR CODE PRO#
The F4 was a brilliant camera in many ways, but its AF was already weak upon debut, so when Canon blew the pro market apart with the clean-sheet EOS1 a year later, the handwriting was on the wall. bringing out 12MP bodies to fight a competitor that was imminently updating to 16 and 22MP). Nikon management often dithers and keeps product suffocated in committee for so long that by the time it hits the market its already a year too late and on the cusp of being outmoded (i.e. The F4 lost steam to Canon in a manner similar to how Canon later beat the crap out of the D3/D700 in the digital era. I’ve heard that the F4 somehow offended many pros and they shifted to Canon.Īs the saying goes, history doesn't repeat but it does rhyme. There can also be issues with the auto-load and motor drive subsystems, which like the display involves replacement parts that are difficult or impossible to find now. What kneecaps the F4 is the eventual "display bleed" issue in the viewfinder: once the display goes, the camera is noticeably less enjoyable to operate. The F3 has irritating design flaws (viewfinder display, shutter release response, metering system weirdness) that make it unusable to an F2 enthusiast, the F5 and F6 are too similar to a DSLR, the legendary original F is less comfortable to handle than the F2 and has less reliable/usable meter prisms. I'm in the small fan club that considers the F4 the only serious competition to the F2 for title of "best overall manual-focus F model". Serial # above 25xxxxx adds a few more niceties like slightly stronger body shell, more secure connection to Nikon flashes, etc. The lowest recommended serial number range is 2147000 and above: these have improved, more durable shutter dial, meter mode switches, back springs and low-battery alert circuit. Other modifications are less critical: nice to have, but usually not dealbreakers.
Granted, most people are unlikely to change finders or screens from shoulder height in the field, but it was enough of an issue that Nikon felt compelled to modify the latch system.
#NIKON FE SERIAL NUMBER YEAR CODE SERIAL NUMBERS#
Unless sent in for a retrofit by their original owners, serial numbers below 23xxxxx can have issues with the meter prism coming off more abruptly than expected when changing finders or screens, causing the camera body to drop to the floor etc. Approx 600,000 bodies were sold during the F4 market lifespan of 1988-1996.Īs a very rough rule of thumb, F4 bodies with serial numbers above 23xxxxx are preferable to lower numbers because they definitely include the most critical design update: more secure prism latches.
#NIKON FE SERIAL NUMBER YEAR CODE PROFESSIONAL#
A compromise approach to shopping the F4 is recommended: you probably don't want to get a beater professional discard F4 just because it has a late serial number, OTOH you don't want to overpay for a first-batch F4 just because its pristine. There are people, though, who hate the F4, and people who I trust report stories of it completely dying.Īs with many vintage cameras, overall condition should be your first priority, then you can look for subtle variations between batches. Just don't try to use a data back, as it's like your worst memory of trying to program an 80s VCR but with fewer buttons and less room to display information(the first roll I shot with one, I ended up with dates in the frame despite triple checking that I had that turned off but exposure between frames on). To me, the F4 is a great crossing point of having a lot of modern conveniences(AE with lenses AI to G, matrix with "real" AI lenses, AF with everything but AF-P) but also a dedicated dial, switch, or button for every function. I'm also an F2 and F4 guy who never really fell in love with the F3 and considers the F5 too big, power hungry, and unwieldy(I love the F to collect and fondle, but not shoot). One of mine has a couple of bleeds-nothing to make it unusable, but they're there.Īs for your liking of them-this seems to be a more polarizing camera than any other pro body Nikon had made. Unfortunately, I can't answer your questions directly other than to say that one of the common issues seems to be the viewfinder LCD.
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