Nikon N65 35mm Film Camera

Product Rating
4.37 of 5
118 reviews

Price Range
$150 - $150

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Product Description

Summary

I've had this camera, as well as 2 N60's, a 6006, a D100, D70, Em, and several other Nikons. I agree with the post that this camera has the capability to service either novice or professional. I shoot mostly SLR Digital now, and I will be purchasing a D200 with my tax return, this is actually my second N65 and I got this one for about $80 including s&h, which I think is a very great deal! This is such a versitle camera.

Strength

I like that I can instantly shoot right as I turn on the camera, I like the matrix metering and although it sounds silly, I really like the built in speed light. True, I am a professional, but I'm also a Mom too. There's been many times I was just shooting some photos at a birthday party or a school event and didn't feel like hauling in my stroboframe and flash units.

Weakness

I wish it had a MB unit that would allow me to bulk load batteries and advance the film quicker.

Summary

In the mid-1970s I thought I'd like to get into photography so I bought the best camera I could afford at the time, a 35mm SLR Yashica with TTL meter. It was pretty basic. Manual Exposure, Manual Focus, Manual Film advance etc. A couple of years later, zoom lenses began appearing on the consumer market and I began thinking I'd bought too soon but I kept the camera for 25+ years. I'd get enthusiastic about taking pictures and lug the thing around to special events and on vacations for a year or two and then tire of the whole experience and put it away for a year or two. I dug it out for a vacation to Mexico in 2001 and really enjoyed taking pictures again but didn't so much enjoy lugging around the bulky hard-shelled case needed to carry multiple lenses. On my return, I decided to get back into photography as a hobby and thought an equipment up-grade was overdue. I traded the Yashica for the Nikon N65, which was then new to the market. The kit came with a 28-80mm zoom. I've used this camera ever since but always with mixed feelings about whether I'd really "traded up". On the plus side, auto focus, auto exposure control, light weight and the composition flexibility afforded by the zoom lens make it as easy to use as a simple point & shoot. So I use it far more regularly than I ever used the Yashica. Photo quality is consistently good. It is very easy to take really good snapshots and nearly impossible to take really bad ones. I don't believe I've ever gotten an obviously over or under exposed or out of focused photo. My wife carries a point & shoot and the difference in the quality of the prints obtained from the two cameras is obvious. On the down side, the photos are not as sharp as those produced by the Yashica with its fixed length lenses and the same reduction in weight that justified the purchase still makes it feel like a toy. The image quality produced by usinf the various programmed fully automatic mode so good, I've pretty well forgotten what little I once knew about photography. The N65 can be used in fully manual mode or set up with Apurature or Shutter Speed priority Auto Exposure and the lens can even be manually focused so it is certainly possible to be creative but it is so easy to use it as a fancy point & shoot that I never over-ride the auto settings and doubt that many others do either. It could be a decent entry level camera for someone wanting to take up photograpy as a serious hobby but I really think it is best suited to people who want better than average point & shoot snapshots. If I had it to do over again, I would still buy this camera for taking snapshots but would have passed on the trade-in allowance and kept the metal-bodied Yashica and collection of fixed length lens for more limited use when I was feeling creative.

Strength

Multiple progammed auto exposue modes, reliable metering & auto focusing. Light weight and overall ease of use.

Weakness

Packaged kit lens is very good but not as fast or razor sharp as higher priced Nikon zoom lenses or most fixed length lenses.

Summary

This camera is a great camera for beginers but has the ability to become manual as your ablity increases.

Strength

Ease of use ability to up grade

Weakness

Focus in low light can not find a focal point film does not have the option to stay out so a person can use the rest of the film or switch between roles

Summary

this was my first camera. I've taken amazing pictures and with those in my portfolio i have gotten some work here in the orlando area.

Strength

In order: 1. Ease of Operation 2. A camera is only as good as it's lense. Nikon has a wide variety of quality optix. Comparing Pentax and Minolta. 3. price. 4. If you steal it nobody is going to miss it. 5. Sells easy on ebay.

Weakness

1. Can't shoot infrared. 2. Can't set film speed. Which means you can't buy bulk and wind it. 3. Meter is average. Bracketing is important with this camera. Don't beat yourself up over the weak metering system. Even with a top of the line f100 nikon you will get consitency with a hand held meter. 4. No spot metering. 5.

Summary

I found this to be an excellent camera upon my first year of using it. I purchased it December 2002, and I think that the camera is much better than its Nikon counterparts and offers a better value. The ease of which I can use the camera is astounding, and it is not complicated. A good camera to spend a day with and just fool around with the aperture and shutter speed, etc

Strength

EXCELLENT beginner camera, and can even be taken as a full-time camera if you don't want to be a proffesional photographer, but just want to keep it a hobby.

Weakness

Focusing is sometimes a little difficult.