The Nikon F100 - A Sleeper 35mm Film Camera

Nikon’s has been doing lite versions of their flagship cameras for years, way before there was a Z 8 to their Z 9 mirrorless cameras. These lite versions would have similar specs to the flagship models with some compromises - smaller form factor, slower bursts speeds, things that made them perfect as a secondary or backup camera to the flagship, while coming in at a cheaper price point (you can snag one from eBay for less than $300 mint used).

As film photography has had a resurgence in recent years, finding a body that suits personal preferences becomes important. There are so many SLR options on the secondary market; Canon AE-1’s, Pentax K1000’s, Leica M6’s, both from the original run and this new wave of production that started in 2022, and so many others. After spending a few weeks researching multiple cameras, I landed on the Nikon F100 as my personal choice for my current 35mm film camera for personal and professional work.

Nikon AF 50mm f/1.4 D. Can of Coke for size comparison.

Lens Selection

One of the perks of the F100 is where it falls in the timeline of Nikon lenses. It has compatibility with newer Nikon AF-S lenses, lenses that could be used on everything including the latest Nikon Z bodies via an adapter, but it works with older AF lenses. This gives it a huge pool of lenses you can use with it. I love street and portrait photography, so my current lenses for it are the Nikon 50mm f/1.4 D and Nikon 28mm f/2.8 D. What’s cool about the D lenses is that they have aperture rings, so if I were adapt them to another system, like my Fujifilm or Sony bodies, I could use them for filming.

CineStill BWXX 35mm

REEEWIND!

The Nikon F100 has features that make it just as friendly for someone just getting into film photography (like myself) as it does someone whose been shooting film for years. Loading film is easy, with a secure two-part release to avoid accidentally exposing your film mid-roll. There’s an automatic rewind feature that rerolls the film once you’ve gone through all the frames, as well as the option to reroll the film mid-roll with a button combination. One of my favorite features is the option to manually choose your ISO. If you’re film is rated for 400 ISO/ASA film speed, say like Kodak Tri-X 400, you can choose in camera to use a higher or lower (pushing or pulling, respectively) ISO level and the camera will adjust for that choice. That saves mental energy that can be used on things like composition and shutter speeds. (Just remember to note those changes when sending the film off to the lab!)

Built (Nikon) Tough

There’s a comfort in familiarity. Pickup any modern Nikon body and you can feel a uniformity in design language that allows you to go from one body to the next without skipping a beat (thank you Giorgetto Giugiaro). That familiarity makes it easy to adapt to using the F100 especially if you have used another Nikon body beforehand. With dedicated buttons to almost all of its controls, it makes it very easy to come from a digital body to this one and adapt. Additionally, it’s built like a tank especially when equipped with a battery grip, making it feel in hand like a flagship body, while still generally being lightweight, when having a smaller lens attached. My one qualm with the official battery grip - the locking mechanism has too narrow of gap to adequately get your thumb in to twist and release it. In general, I keep mine attached as I feel the pros - better ergonomics, improved burst rate - outweigh the cons.

Kodak Ektar 100 35mm

I think that all in all, the Nikon F100 is a fantastic choice for a 35mm camera. It has so many professional features that make it a great work camera, while still being extremely accessible cost wise. Add to that a wonderful selection of lenses, build quality and features and there’s plenty of reasons why it should be your next 35mm film camera.

Christopher is a Washington, DC area based portrait and concert photographer and filmmaker. You can see his work on Instagram.