Which film camera should I buy?
Five quick questions. We match them against 121 cameras and today's eBay prices, and show the ones that fit, best first.
cameras fit. Here are the best matches, with today's typical price on eBay UK (tested, delivered).
Pentax Spotmatic35mm SLR · 1964–1976The screw-mount Asahi Pentax Spotmatic (SP, SP II, SP F, ES).
£191typical
Olympus OM-135mm SLR · 1972–1987The small, all-mechanical OM SLR (OM-1 and OM-1n) that started the compact-SLR era.
£197typical
Nikon F435mm SLR · 1988–1996The first pro autofocus Nikon, with old-school dials.
£266typical
Minolta X-70035mm SLR · 1981–1999Minolta's best-selling SLR, with program mode and the MD lens system.
£200typical
Olympus OM1035mm SLR · 1979–1987The beginner's OM: aperture-priority auto only, unless the clip-on Manual Adapter is included.
£69typical
Olympus Pen EEPoint & shoot · 1961–1986The tiny half-frame auto camera (EE, EE-2, EE-3, EE-S) with a selenium meter and no battery.
£124typical
Pentax K100035mm SLR · 1976–1997The simplest, toughest student SLR: mechanical, match-needle, made for 21 years.
£200typical
Canon FTb35mm SLR · 1971–1978The tough, mechanical FD-mount SLR from before the A-series.
£154typical
Choosing a film camera
What is the best film camera for a beginner?
A simple 35mm SLR with a 50mm lens: the Pentax K1000, Canon AE-1 Program, Olympus OM-10 or Minolta X-700. They're cheap, plentiful and teach you exposure. If you just want to take pictures, a working point and shoot like the Olympus mju II or Trip 35 is the easy choice.
Should I buy a point and shoot or an SLR?
A point and shoot does everything for you and fits a pocket, but most are electronic and can't be repaired. An SLR lets you choose the exposure and change lenses, and the mechanical ones last for decades.
Do film cameras need batteries?
Most from the late 1970s on do. Fully mechanical cameras (Pentax K1000, Nikon FM2, Leica M-series, Olympus OM-1, Hasselblad 500C/M) take pictures without one; the battery only powers the light meter.
Why are some film cameras so expensive now?
Demand for premium compacts (Contax T2, Yashica T4, Olympus mju II, Ricoh GR1) has soared while the supply only shrinks, and most are electronic, so working examples get rarer every year.