nikkormat ft3
Sightings in April /
My Nikkormat FT3 has returned from the shop in perfect working order. These were some of the first things I saw through its viewfinder after it had been repaired. All but the bottom photograph were shot at my new favourite focal length of 24 mm. The last image in the series was taken at 50 mm (I think.)
Kerrisdale Views /
A pair of test photographs taken with the Nikkormat FT3. The 50 mm f/2 AI lens performs well—better than I had expected.
Two self-portraits (as tests) /
Whenever I get a new piece of camera equipment, this is the first test shot I make. The photograph at top was made with my beloved Nikon FA, equipped with a new-to-me 24 mm f/2.8 AI-s lens, and exposed on Ilford HP5+ black-and-white film.
The photograph at bottom was made with a Nikkormat FT3 equipped with a 50 mm f/2 AI lens on Ilford Delta 400 Professional film. This was the first exposure I made using the camera and lens, which I had just purchased very inexpensively as a set from EBay (on the recommendation of Nikon camera guru and YouTuber, Brian Grossman.) The Nikkormat is a very well-built, solid, heavy camera that I am sure will outlast me. However, this particular copy has problems: its film-advance/shutter-cocking mechanism doesn’t always work properly. I have dropped it off for servicing at Van Cam.
For several years, I shot exclusively with a 50 mm lens. Its framing of the world, as depicted in the bottom photograph, was so imprinted upon my brain that I began to see reality carved up into its rectangles, even when I wasn’t looking through the viewfinder. Recently, I have taken up 35 mm, 28 mm, and 24 mm lenses in succession, and I am fascinated by their more expansive framelines. I want to go wider still. I am much more drawn to the top photograph than to the bottom, even though the latter shows the subject in more detail.
I seldom spend time considering self-portraits beyond their usefulness as tests of camera equipment. However, these two have got me thinking once again about self-knowledge. For my most recent musings on this endlessly slippery topic, see “From the Gods comes the saying, ‘Know Thyself’”