Gear

The Nikon F-301

The Nikon F-301 was the first SLR camera I purchased when I got back into photography. In this article I try to explain why I think it was a great first 35mm camera to buy.

The Nikon F-301, a.k.a the N2000, was the first SLR camera I purchased when I got back into photography. It's a manual focus camera from 1985 that takes Nikon F mount lenses. The body is a mix of plastic and metal but feels very solid. It takes four AAA batteries and features a motor drive that winds the film on automatically once a picture is taken, so no multiple exposure ability on this one.

Nikon F-301 35mm film camera. — The Nikon F-301. Comfortable to hold, good build quality, cheap 35mm camera.

Key facts about the Nikon F-301:

Nikon F-Mount
Strong polycarbonate build
Good ergonomics
Known as the N2000 in some markets (North America)

Is the F-301 an underrated Film Camera?

In 2012, before the resurgence in popularity of film this camera cost me $200 NZD for a copy in excellent condition with a 35-70 zoom lens included, the lens in decent condition. This lens wasn’t technically that great but I didn’t mind and got many pictures with it that I still like to this day. I used it as my only lens until I got a brand new 50mm prime lens about 8 months later.

I owned this camera until 2024 when I sold it to someone buying their first film camera. While they paid more than I did for it in 2012, due to the rise in popularity of film photography amongst gen-z, they got a good deal. The Nikon F-301 is still a very good and much underrated film camera.

It can do almost everything a new film photographer would want, with the possible exception being multiple exposure photography which my FE2 could do. However, it is more comfortable to hold in the hand than the Nikon Fe2, the fastest shutter speed of the F-301 is 1/2000, which is fine for most situations, and the viewfinder is very good.

The light meter is accurate, reliable, and very easy to see how many stops over or under you are. The best light meter I’ve used was on my Fe2 but I’ve heard on some copies the Fe2 meter can be broken or unreliable, and given the needle mechanism on that camera is 40 odd years old now it's something to think about. The f-301 isn’t any younger but the display seems to be very reliable and given it's an LCD it either works or it doesn't.

I miss the F-301 light meter some times when using my Nikon F3, the plus/minus display on that camera just isn’t as intuitive to me as the F-301s display where you can easily see how under or overexposed your image will be.

These are some of the reasons I think it is a great camera for someone who wants to start out with film photography. It has great ergonomics in the hand, it takes the F mount lens made by Nikon or a third party, you can put a professional film stock in it and you’ve got the ability to make pro quality pictures with a camera that cost about $100 on eBay. I’m not sure what material the F-301 is made out of, it seems like a mixture of plastics which feel solid and sturdy. Over the years I bought a 50mm 1.8D, 55mm macro lens, and 35mm prime lens for it and the pictures were no different than my much more expensive Nikon F3, and the camera more reliable than my copy of the Nikon FE2.

Black and white image of Queen Street in Auckland. — Queen Street, Auckland. Picture taken on a Nikon F-301 with Kodak Tmax 100 film.

Nikon F-301 Downsides

I can only think of a couple of downsides to this camera. The first one isn’t a big deal in my opinion. The shutter speed "only" goes up to 1/2000 of a second. The F3 has the same fastest shutter speed, and that was instagram's most popular film camera not so long ago. My FE2 did 1/4000 but I can’t actually remember using it, maybe shooting outdoors on a very bright day it might be good peace of mind but I think it was uncommon for me to use it. If you are not going to be taking pictures in bright midday blue sky sun all the time then I’m confident in saying 1/4000 shutter speed is a luxury.

The other downside is the noise. The F-301s motor drive auto winds the film on to the next frame. This is convenient but the drive in the F-301 is quite noisy. If you are just getting into film, taking outdoor shots or finding your style then this is probably not a big deal. It might be a big deal if you are taking portraits in a studio or you are taking pictures of models in an otherwise quiet environment. In this situation the noisy camera could be quite distracting. I never found this noise annoying when taking landscape shots, or when taking one or two portrait pictures of people. But when doing a studio session with a model or customer and taking many pictures in a session it would bother me and I prefer to use a quieter camera.

Dog park picture. Camera: Nikon F301. Lens: Nikkor 55mm 2.8 micro with expired Portra 160.

These are the only downsides I can think of writing about the Nikon F301. If you’re looking to get into film photography and won’t be shooting longer sessions in a studio or indoor space with clients then the Nikon F-301/N2000 is a camera I’d recommend. It’s still relatively cheap, reliable, has a good and intuitive light meter, and can take most F-Mount lenses (not the Nikon G-lenses), and runs on AAA batteries that can be found in any supermarket. Perfect for a beginner or someone who wants a low cost film camera.