NIKON FM3A 35mm SLR Camera Body (Lens not included)

The FM3a is a completely mechanical camera with only the most basic electronics built in. DX sensors make forgetting to reset the film settings a thing of the past. The Aperture Priority shutter setting allows the you to let the camera do the heavy work of deciding the shutter speed. And the center-weighted TTL metering makes an external light meter redundant.

Forget all those niceties. You are looking for a camera that will take you back to the beginning, back to a time when you enjoyed the fiddling and fondling of cameras. You don't want the automations, and with this camera, you don't need to think about them. The film ISO settings can be changed manually to allow pushing and pulling of film. The shutter speed can be set manually from 8 seconds down to 1/4000th of a second. And the focusing and aperture setting is ALL manual.

If you like having complete control over a camera, this is the one for you. It won't give you spot metering or auto-focus or 'portrait' mode and 'landscape' mode. But it will give you the tools to craft the photos you want, the way you want.

It's not a digital wonder. Thank heavens.

That said, there are a few things Nikon could have done better. They could have put in a mirror lockup to keep the camera steadier. They could have made the exposure compensation dial easier to use (get rid of that button, Nikon!). And they could have made the light meter easier to see in the dark. But these things are niggling inconsistencies at worst.

The camera works well and is excellent at what it does. The rest, as they say, is up to you.


Amazing!   June 20, 2005
Jonathan Alan Escher (Colorado Springs, CO USA)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

This is definitely one of the top five cameras on the market. Completely worth whatever you pay for it. Its durable, easy to use and turns out fantasic quality photos.


Back to the future...   July 8, 2003
Christo (Vancouver, Canada)
6 out of 7 found this review helpful

Is everyone you know buying a digital camera? I have decided to go against the trend, and bought a FM3A. A light-weight and nearly manual camera. Why Nikon? After having used Canon for 20 years I decided to make the switch because I wanted better built quality. Something that lasts.

This baby has nearly all the pro features you are looking for in a camera. Built-in light meter, TTL flash, DX ISO, 1/4000 to 1 second, plus B. I usually choose the semi-automatic mode; by setting the aperture manually, then allowing the camera to set the shutter speed automatically.

As such, this camera is perfect for landscape photography. If you are like nature, and enjoy bush-walking or mountaineering, this Nikon is great. It only weighs 570g. This means that you can get away with using a light-weight tripod - if you don't mount big glass (a heavy telephoto lens). And it does not take much space. Good for travelling as well.

The only feature I sometimes miss is mirror lock-up. Without mirror lock-up, camera shake can cause problems at slower shutter speeds. But you can get around this issue by using the self-timer (causing the mirror to flip up before the shot is taken). A spot light-meter would have been nice, but you can still take spot readings by using a longer lens (or by zooming in).

The good thing about this film camera is that it provides me with the best of both worlds. I have the quality (and cheap price!) of film, the convenience of (slide) projection, but I can still scan the images into the computer if I need them digitally. And I can use the same set of lenses, should I decide to buy a digital body one day.

This is a simple to use semi-automatic camera - yet you can get find accessories for it (Nikon and third party) - including a motor-drive and flash.

Classic camera. I love it. Highly recommended.


Chrome and Black Leather   January 27, 2004
R. Rosener (St. Louis, MO United States)
6 out of 7 found this review helpful

I just bought one of these used, but in great condition. What a joy to hold and use! Light, fast, responsive, but not a toy for ones who like "idiot proof" cameras. A peerless image making tool for those who know what they want and can still multiply & divide by 2.... I wear glasses, and the finder presents no problems. Standard PC connector for studio use, and cable release for time exposures. NO SHUTTER LAG! If you can see it and hit the button, the moment is captured on film for the ages. Add an MD12 motordrive, Vivitar 285 flash and you've got a set-up that will do anything. This rugged and substantial camera will go anywhere. Best of all, no batteries are needed for basic operation. Cons? I don't have two of them! Get a 50mm F1.8 lens with it and skip the cheap zoom. You'll see what photography was meant to be.


Excellent camera, however...   January 24, 2007
achidley (USA)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful

There are many good reasons to get the FM3a:
* It weighs about the same amount as an N80 (my previous camera), but virtually everything on it is made of metal.
* Batteries are easy to find and cheap because you rarely need to replace them. I recommend getting the single, larger lithium battery for the sake of convenience.
* It combines bits of the FMx and FEx series to form a hybrid manual/electronic system, so if you're in a situation where you can't use battery power for whatever reason you can still use it as a fully manual camera.
* It's not as chunky as AF cameras like the F100, but the tradeoff is that the ergonomics are very different.
* The simple controls are easy to learn and can be used while wearing gloves. The knowledge also transfers easily to other manual-focus Nikon cameras you might buy in the future, like a used F-series model.
* Because this is a mechanical camera and not an AF camera being used in Manual Mode, there's no risk that you'll hit something accidentally and spend a couple of minutes trying to figure out what you changed. I used to periodically knock my N80 back into AF or auto exposure while pulling it out of my camera bag, which got really annoying when I had to take a quick shot.
* It can use a traditional, cheap screw-in shutter release cable. It's easy to find long cables for $20 and under at places like eBay.
* It has Aperture Priority mode, unlike other FM cameras.
* Unlike some older mid-range Nikons, it goes up to a shutter speed of 1/4,000 a second.
* DX coding, which can be very handy when you've got a mixed bag of film speeds.
* Last, but certainly not least, you have a wide range of used, well-made AI Nikon lenses available to you. I recommend getting `80s (but not E series) manual-focus lenses because they're metal and easy to find used for around $100 or less (I got my 50mm/f1.4 for $60).

HOWEVER...if you're on more of a budget, you might be better off finding an older model like the FE (which I also have). It is more or less the same body, with little differences here and there.

If you're split over which to get, here's a few things to keep in mind when comparing the FM3a and the FE:
* Price! The FE is fairly common, so one in decent shape sells for $150 and under. You might even find a combination FE/manual-focus lens auction on eBay going for about half that.
* Accessories. The bodies are very similar, so they can use some of the same accessories like the rubber eyecup and the MD-12 motor drive.
* Age. The FE was made in the late `70s/early `80s, so there's more of a risk that something isn't working right. On the other hand, there's plenty of sellers who've used their FE a handful of times and then stored it in a closet.
* Smoother speed dial and film advance lever. Compared to the FE, the FM3a is much stiffer, though you can feel each click on the shutter speed dial more easily.
* A darker focusing screen, which is good or bad depending on whether you use fast glass.
* Shutter speed. The FE only goes up to 1/1,000 of a second, and the maximum flash sync speed is also lower.
* No DX coding, so you have to set the ISO speed manually.
* It can't take the single lithium battery that the FM3a can because the voltage is slightly too low to power it. The 2 alkalines work fine, though, and the FE has a switch next to the eyepiece to check battery power. Your shutter speed options are very limited if you run out of power.
* No viewing window for checking on the film canister. Instead, it's got a little slot that you can stick the end of a film box in as a reminder of what film you've got loaded.