Over the years of shooting film (and writing this blog) I’ve learned a few lessons (often times the hard way) about using different cameras.

I regularly get questions from people asking me what camera I think they should buy - whether they are just starting out or simply looking for something new in their collection. I wanted to pull together some thoughts and reflections on my experiences to date and offer up some suggestions on choosing the ‘right’ camera - or perhaps more accurately the camera that is ‘right for you’.

I will caveat the whole thing by saying that the trial and error process is something to be embraced!! I STRONGLY recommend getting out there and finding out for yourself about this or that camera or lens or film or whatever! There are far too many internet rumours circulated out there by self appointed ‘experts’ stating that you should / shouldn’t do this / that / the other…. sod that my friends!

Finding out for yourself and gaining first hand insights is a huge part of the journey. Rather than setting out any rules - I hope to offer you some starting points for your own exploration and adventure!!

If you ask any film photographer for a recommendation it is natural that they would start by suggesting the very cameras that they own themselves, after all it’s what they have experience with - it’s no different here either so I am going to point you in the direction of cameras that I am familiar with.

I’ve focussed on manual focus SLR cameras as I think they’re a good place to begin, generally easy to get hold of and were originally designed for a mass market (so there’s something for everyone).

I’ve put together four 35mm SLR cameras that I really enjoyed shooting with and represent a cross section within the SLR category - roughly speaking there’s a cheap option, a slightly more expensive one, an even more slightly expensive one and then what I consider to be the ultimate one (for me).

What they share in common is that they are all manual focus 35mm SLR’s and therefore represent a great place to begin if you’re just starting out and looking for your first camera (or if you’ve got millions of cameras already and just want to buy another one) The struggle is real! :D

A manual focus 35mm SLR with a 50mm lens will give you a wonderfully flexible set up with the creative control that can cover any situation - most of these cameras have some automatic features too (some more than others) and the manual focussing part is a great way to focus your full attention on your subject.

For all of these cameras the stock 50mm (or 55mm) lens that often comes with the body is the one to start with, you can fall down the rabbit hole of more exotic glass once you’ve found the body (and therefore lens mount) that works for you!

You don’t have to get hung up on the big name brands (unless you want to) but if you want to keep things low cost there’s a lot of really great kit available at a good price - especially if you’re open to shooting with some less well known brand names or models that were aimed at consumers rather than professional users back in the day. My top tip is to have a think about which lens mount/system you are drawn to, check out other people’s work to see some examples.

Ok enough waffle, allow me to present to you four 35mm SLR cameras that are worth closer inspection - click on the links below to visit the original blog post for each camera:

Chinon CE4S - a compact but fully featured camera that can be found at a bargain price.

Nikon FE - This was my gateway into the cult of Nikon / Nikkor! The original FE can still be found for a good price if you shop around.

Pentax Spotmatic - An M42 mount camera with superb build quality and access to a range of hundreds of different lenses, a great bargain option.

Nikon F2 - the only 35mm film camera you will ever need! This was Nikon’s flag ship professional camera from back in the day and it’s amazing!

So there we go - totally unscientific and entirely subjective suggestions (which are in keeping with everything else on this blog) I heartily recommend you give a 35mm SLR as a starting point for shooting with film - it will allow you to fully grasp the different aspects of photography and the creative control that you have as a photographer without breaking the bank.

It’s worth stating that of course I think all of these options are great - some do slightly different things than the others but in most respects they are very similar.

Because shooting a camera is such a tactile process (especially a vintage manual focus camera) it’s important to get hands on experience and see how it makes you feel - such an important part of the process, a camera should inspire you to pick it up and shoot.

I’ve had plenty of cameras that were a massive pain in the neck to work with and yet somehow they kept drawing me back, so it’s not a linear process we’re talking about, it’s much more in the realm of emotions - all that being said we cannot lose sight of the fact that a camera in and of itself is just a means to an end. It won’t make you a better or more creative photographer - but… if it inspires you to get out and shoot then it is enabling your creativity in some way.

Let me know what your top choice of camera would be?