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Any 35mm SLR style Digitals?

H

Hoopsontoast

pfm Member
Does anyone know of any digital cameras that have the simplicity and manual controls (Aperture, Exposure, Focus etc) of old 35mm film cameras?

I learnt photography on an old Minolta X300 of my parents with the humble F1.4 50mm lens -

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3172/2561730287_5e6b8ae8cf.jpg?v=0

And i miss the simplicity of it, choosing the Exposure and Aperture with the little red dial in the Viewfinder, Manual focus and general handling and build of older cameras.
Using my current Digital, a Konica Minolta 5D, is certainly easier, but i miss that user interaction, pride and sense of 'actually-doing-it-myself' :) But i also love B&W and when i have tried it on the 5D it never looks anywhere as good as on the old X-300

some pics of photo's/prints i did with the X-300 back in Sixth Form-

http://www.flickr.com/photos/16900818@N06/2580051597/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/16900818@N06/2580868692/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/16900818@N06/2580860256/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/16900818@N06/

Apart from the obvious of buying one and getting the photos processed and put onto CD ;)
 
I started by using my dad's Voiglander Vito B, then on to a Pentax S1 my uncle gave me. Minolta X300 my first new camera, bought when a student at the tender age of 19.

When I went digital it was to a Pentax *ist DS. They take all the old manual lenses, and are pretty easy to handle in aperture or shutter priority mode.
 
Any digital SLR with a manual (or Aperture priorty) mode that can accept and meter old manual lenses will do. In the Nikon world they have excluded people from using manual focus and "AI" lenses from the real cheapo cameras (D40) but you can now get cameras like the D200 and Fuji S5 at silly prices and mount something like the Nikkor 35 F2 (the AIS version) on them. This would give you a 50mm (35 * 1.5) equivalent to your old set up for a knock down price compared to a full D300 with kit lens.

If you think you want autofocus, then the new Sigma 30mm F1.4 is pretty funky and can be had to fit a variety of mounts.
 
An R9 is no longer a solution new as the Leica Digital Module R (DMR) is discontinued. So you would need to wait for a digital R10 or look for a DMR on the secondhand market, where they retain high prices.

Nick
 
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