Nikon F4 Video 2: Operation | Capabilities, Tutorial, and Functions Walkthrough 

Thank you, John!

Thank you!

Thank you!

Thank you!

Thank you! Any time you need to stop back for a refresher this video will be here. Also there should be an index in the video description so you can jump right to the information that you need.

@@DavidHancock Hi again. Can you e-mail me? I am an author of western frontier ebooks set in the 1890s. I would like to send you a free digital download as my way of thanking you for the advice no one has been given me. My author website is www.westernfrontierebooks.com My e-mail address is on every webpage. There are 35 eBooks there. Just pick the title you would like to read. My books are gifts to people who help make my life easier. Sincerely, Raymond

@@DavidHancock Where is the main power switch located?

@@raymondcook8364 That's the dial around the shutter button. Lock (the red "L") also turns the camera off.

@@DavidHancock Thank you so much.

Thank you!

Hi: I did all the research on the Nikon F4s body and assorted AF lenses, teleconverters, batteries and film ISO and put it into a 50 page mini-manual to teach me what to do until it comes natural. My Nikon AF-S VR II 70-200mm f/2.8 G lens is super HEAVY compared to an inexpensive 70-200mm Nikon lens. But you get what you pay for in QUALITY of photographs. I am so glad I bought a quality ball head tripod so I can mount the lens to the tripod and NOT directly to the camera body. I got that lens today along with the Nikon 1.4 teleconverter. All I am waiting for now is the Nikon F4s body in near mint condition from Japan.

Thank you!

you meant to say priceless?

Thank you!

Nice!

@@DavidHancock Turned out that the F4S I got was in stellar condition. It produces some very nice photos. I love it a lot! Thanks again for your videos.

Thank you and good choice!

Thank you!

Thank you!

Nice and thank you!

Thank you! That's fantastic that it arrived so quickly, too.

Nice and welcome!

Thank you!

Completely agree on both counts.

Thank you!

Thank you!

Nice. These are great cameras.

Thank you and that's fantastic!

Thank you!

Thank you! These are awesome cameras and rightfully a lot of peoples' favorite Nikon film body.

You are right about the rewind. I mis-remembered when writing the script. I did not know that the P and S modes also only worked with select lenses, however. Thank you.

IIRC, these won't work properly with G lenses. There are some tables online that confirm or refute my memory on that.

Thank you, Pawel!

Thank you! So when someone says F4 -- whatever, it's all the same camera. The F4 has the standard (MB-20) four-AA battery back, the F4S has the MB-21 battery pack an vertical grip shown here, and the F4E uses the MB-23 motor drive. So which camera it is depends solely on which battery pack it has.

Thank you! I agree that the MB-21 is VERY heavy. I've been shooting with my F4 a lot to finish up the review video, but it's almost not fun for me because of the weight. For the MB-20, you may find one alone on eBay, but a better bet is to either find an F4 with one or a part-grade F4 with a rescuable MB-20.

Hey I clean rooms at a Kansas city hotel an the owner had a room of things that people left and never came back for but there was a Nikon F4 in there with all these lenses an a big flash adapter that was in the case i was wondering how much is this worth with all the lenses

Nice! These are still great. And yes, I was still using an F4 until last month. The one on this video was stolen back in 2018 so I replaced it in 2020. The replacement was a Navy news camera and it is rough. So it's not as much fun to use because it's glitchy. I don't know that I prefer the F4 specifically to digital so much. I do tend to prefer film for many uses because it's harder to use well and it contains more detail and image information than does digital. Also taking six different films on a hike lets me get images with different characteristics on the same day. Digital images all look the same. Yes, there's editing is post, but I prefer to get my desired results in camera of I can. Currently I'm shooting an F5, which is much less different than I had expected it to be from this one. I'm planning to release a review of this camera this year, too, above and beyond this manual series.

@@DavidHancock I watched a video about the F5, but I'm not convinced I want one instead of my F4. It does have an improved metering system, and I believe it has more than one focus point for auto-focus. Then there's the F6, but an F6 is still expensive. Keep checking the used cameras at KEH. I bought a second body from them, which came with the smaller and lighter battery pack - that's the difference between an F4 and an F4S. Prices from KEH are very reasonable, and they stand behind their sales, if there is ever any issue. My new "used" camera from KEH is much newer than my older camera. There is a shop near Miami, "Southern Photo Technical Service", where they have factory trained repair people - for around $250 they would disassemble your F4 and make it all like new. You can contact them at "service@sp-ts.com". They just repaired my viewfinder, and we had a good talk about the F4. It's a LOT of work to get inside it, and for the same $250 you could probably buy a replacement camera over the internet. Apparently a weak point in these cameras is that people leave batteries in them when the camera is put away, and eventually that leads to major problems and "glitches".

Thank you! I'll give it some thought. My first one needed the battery chamber cleaned and it took a while for it to work properly (the corrosion traced the wiring.) This one has a LOT of issues -- frame counter stops at 20, dented prism housing, missing strap lug, three cracks in the body, a super-glued-on battery housing, and of course I got to clean battery alkaline out of it as well to get it to work. Honestly, when I sell it, it's almost certain to be listed for parts anyway, even though with some patience it still works. My F5 has problems, too. The rear command dial is tricky and sometimes responds, sometimes doesn't, sometimes does the wrong thing, and the shutter button sometimes randomly triggers itself. My F3 has a failed viewfinder LCD. The F and F2, however, both work beautifully. :D

They are pretty great. There's a lot that I like about this more than the F3 in terms of functionality and system compatibility.

That depends on which teleconverter and lens mount. If they are both AI-S and AI-D (I believe the latter is correct) then they should work with AF. If they are G, AI, or NAI, then AF won't work.

@@DavidHancock Hi: Here is the eBay Link with the product information towards the bottom of the link page. I so appreciate your guidance. www.ebay.com/itm/Nikon-Nikkor-AF-S-TC-20E-2X-III-Lens-TC-20E-III-New/201021349710?epid=101705515&hash=item2ecdce5f4e:g:k6wAAOSwcGhdQEoq

Yes, that should work. It will work with your F4 yes. As for the lens, as long as the lens has a screw-drive autofocus then this will work with it, too. I don't know for certain which lens you have, but if it is an AI-S or AI-D then yes this will work just fine.

@@DavidHancock Hi: The lens I am buying this week is: Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/4G ED VR N M/A Lens with Nano Crystal Coat Shoot high-contrast images effortlessly with the Nikon AF-S telephoto zoom 70-200 mm f/4 lens. Lightweight and powerful, this Nikon Nikkor camera lens comes with a Silent Wave Motor (SWM) that helps capture well focused shots quickly and quietly. Moreover, thanks to the optical super integrated coating (SIC), internal focus lens design (IF), optical vibration reduction (VR), and three extra-low dispersion (ED) elements, this 70-200 mm f/4 lens makes low-light shooting possible. On the Manual/Auto (M/A) focusing mode, this Nikon Nikkor camera lens assists in getting a sharp and clear view of your subject. All in all, the Nikon AF-S telephoto zoom lens is a smart choice for all photographers.

@@DavidHancock Thank you for your advice. Any college would benefit you as an instructor in a photography class. In 1983 I took a creative writing class with no interest in writing a poem, story or book, it was just a 5 credit elective. That class "Opened my eyes and mind" to the world of creative writing. I equate the same "Magic" of excitement in your two videos for photographers wanting to enter the world of Nikon.

IIRC, yes. The AEL should reset when released, I believe. I don't recall it being a toggle switch between locked and unlocked.

@@DavidHancock thank you!

You're very welcome I'm glad to help you learn your camera. And yes, the AF will continue to work.

@@DavidHancock Hi David: I must admit, after buying my Nikon F4s body which has NOT arrived yet from Japan, stuck in customs I assume, I felt very intimidated about using the camera since it has been decades since I have held a 35mm SLR. But thanks to watching your Video especially and others, plus videos on wildlife photography, I am far less apprehensive. I'm switching out the Nikon F4s mb-21 battery grip for the mb-20 battery grip to make the body lighter. I read Lithium AA batteries do NOT leak, so the connectors in the battery grip won't get corroded from regular AA batteries. I urge anyone wanting to BUY a Nikon F4s body to buy a Nikon F4 body instead because you'll SAVE Money not having to switch out the battery packs to make the camera body lighter. For all of the brilliant advantages of owning a Nikon F4 camera, I won't complain about the weight. As a photographer, "It is the end result, photograph quality" we care about. The camera dials are so useful and your video and others explain them so well, I know anyone buying a Nikon F4 or F4s will never want another camera. I have the Nikon 50mm AF lens and Nikon 70-200mm AF lens but am buying the Nikon 70-300mm AF lens because it will be more versatile. I am also buying the Nikon 300mm AF lens and Nikon 200-500mm AF lens in August. To make things SIMPLE, I have decided to buy only AF lenses and in the P Priority Mode, the camera will adjust the exposure and aperature for me. As long as I press the shutter button down halfway to let the Autofocus kick in, I should be fine. I have chosen Kodak 400 UltraMax 35mm film. Why? The Kodak UltraMax 400 Speed 35mm 36 Exposures Film has been rated the best 35mm film on the market for a lot of great reasons. This ultra-fast film features an ISO of 400, making it very sensitive to light even in very poorly lit settings. Perfect for indoor and low light settings, the Kodak UltraMax 400 Speed 35mm Film also produces much less grain, which gives crisper, clearer images that are easier to appreciate. I have already ordered a professional tripod and camera bag. Wildlife photography was my love in the 70s and I'm so eager to make that journey again back to something that made me very happy. Thank you again for providing the best Nikon F4 video.

@@DavidHancock Actually, the VR makes no difference, because it isn't activated by the F4.

The only AF Nikon lens I use is their 50mm f/1.8. I'd use a 1.4 instead of I had one, but the 1.8 is a great lens. I'd recommend the same basic kit for any camera lineup -- 28mm, 50mm, and 135mm. That does 99% of all the photography that most people need.

Nice! I think you'll like the F4. It's a great camera, not too hard to use, and very capable. You can also set it up for how you want to shoot (for instance I shoot primarily in aperture-priority and then I generally just adjust the aperture in most of my routine photography) and that will help keep the operation simple.

No, they don't offer a 1 year warranty. Those are grey market items imported illegally and carry no Nikon warranty. Nikon will not service them, no matter what, and they're the only ones who can at this point. Unless the eBay seller displays an Authorized Nikon Seller logo in their listing, you should never buy anything from those sellers.

Thank you!

I think the way you would do it is by adjusting the aperture with the command wheels.

I'm not 100% certain which one you mean, but here's a photo I found online that labels each viewfinder item. www.anatomyfilms.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/nikon13.jpg

Thank you!

Thank you! If we're thinking of the same thing, it lets light into the meter display so it's easier to read.

@@Andrus198524 thank you and yes you can. I only use rechargeable batteries if possible.

Thank you! I want to say that's normal. To check that I'd say just sacrifice the first frame of your next roll. Set the shutter to something like a full second and then take the lens off. Take a shot and if you can see the film you're in good shape.

@@DavidHancock Thank you much! That's what I'm going to do. I read in some old forums that it is normal, "to keep people from touching the curtain..."

@@zackminkowski902 Yes, the shutter on the F4 doesn't fire when the back door is open, it's normal.

@@Ryan-lc4bl Thank you

Thank you and it's a good idea to fix it to prevent dust and dirt from getting in the viewfinder. The simplest way would be to get it aligned and then put a single drop of super glue on each end to hold it in place.

IIRD, yes, you can use Lithium. I would suggest just picking up six Eneloop Pro batteries as those work stunningly in these.

If so, it'll be in the video. I don't recall if I covered that or not.

@@DavidHancock thx. I don't thik it was there but I will look throught the trascript. I was distracted for part of the video so maybe missed it. video was very good.

Hey, Tony, the Nikon lens compatibility is a bit more complex than I can keep memorized. If I recall, however, this camera cannot control apertures that do not have a mechanical coupling. I forget if those lenses shoot exclusively wide-open or stopped-down.

You have to use then entire roll. If you open the back of your camera's your images will all be lost.

@@DavidHancock but I'm not opening the back of the camera to put a new lens in. So I'm asking if light is let in when trying to switch lenses? if I have a 50mm and want to switch to 28mm whiling shooting is that okay, is what I meant

@@chelseaperry7733 Oh got it. I misread your question. Yes you can change lenses whenever you aren't taking a photo. The shutter curtain in prevents the film from being damaged when you change lenses.

@@DavidHancock ok thank you just making sure!

Yeah, so does the one I bought to replace this camera after it was stolen. No idea what that's for.

If the fireworks are nearby, and within your control, like a sparkler or fountain, then you can focus on them and manually set a long exposure. For distant fireworks, say over a lake or for a city display, then just focus at infinity. You can probably get away with Portra 160 or Gold 200 if you shoot at f/4. I don't recall the best aperture for fireworks, so I'd experiment a bit. Also, if you have digital, it's worth trying on that as well to gauge timing. You can then either set the shutter to 30 seconds or, for more control, to bulb. In the latter case, when you see a firework launch or you light it, then hold down the shutter until you feel like you have the shot you want. That lets you kill the exposure before the next firework, which a 30-second shutter speed might not. However, with a fixed shutter speed all your images will be exposed the same. There are advantages to both approaches.

@@DavidHancock its the next street over, don't know how they pull off hours if roman candles but they do. Stranget yet do to my location, all I have to do is aim south for the neighbors show and north for the city show.

You know, I'm not sure. I didn't have any G lenses when I had this camera.

Thank you!

Thank you. Sounds like the LCD may be failing. That tends to happen on older and heavily used Nikon bodies.

Hmm. Good question. I think that the meter is in the prism, so it might help. Before doing that, just verify that all the settings are dialed in correctly, that EV comp is off, and check it versus the Sunny 16 rule instead of your DSLR. As a general statement, DSLRs are accurate for metering, but some of them (and I can't speak specifically to the D850) play funky numbers with the ISO settings, some of them being off by a stop or more. Assuming all that checks out and the metering is still off, it's possible that a meter cell has failed and if those are in the prism (I think they are) then replacing the prism would likely solve the issue.

@@DavidHancock thanks so much for the detailed response. Yes I just thought it was very strange that shooting indoors to get the ISO film setting at 400 and the aperture at 5.6 required me to set the shutter speed to over 1/1000 of a second just doesn’t seem right definitely should be closer to around 1/80. Anyway, good stuff take care great videos. 👍😊

Thank you and that's distinctly possible. This was the first really complex SLR video that I made and I may have left those off the outline. For the AFON, IIRC, that activates the AF function without having to half-depress the shutter, which allows focus without the risk of an accidental exposure. For the AE-L, that locks exposure so that the settings don't shift when you move the lens. That's useful if you want to meter a photo off a person's face when the person is in the shade and the background is very bright.

I'm sorry still a great video

Thank you. These videos are exactly a video manual, a walk through of everything that each button does.

Thank you and I have not tried that. I'm not sure which trigger is required.

Thank you! Yes, recycling old batteries is absolutely vital. Back when I lived in California there was a place a short walk from my office where I took all my batteries for recycling. That was very convenient for sure.

The matte finish is the original one for this camera (when new), and it becomes shiny with heavy use, you're probably lucky to have a nice clean older copy, as most of the "mint" condition ones are late models, around 1996.

You have to hold it.

@@DavidHancock Im going to have to play with mine I read that it stays out till the shutter is fired and resets R1 now im confussed

@@gman922 The best thing you can do is pop in a roll of film, shoot it, and see for yourself.

@@DavidHancock I plonked some test film in and did a manual and power rewind, the R1 lever stays set out, the film rewinds, new film in the R1 lever stays set out till the shutter is released.Regards.

Not at all. AE-L would be for, as an example, metering off a person's face and then stepping backwards ten feet and shooting with them in a scene that's either darker or lighter than their skin tone. There are a lot of other uses, but for most shooting you won't need to use AE-L.

It will not. So what you'll want to do is know what frame you have to start on, let's say 12, and set the camera to M mode, the shutter speed to the fastest speed and then put the lens cap on. Advance to the known used frame count +1. So if you have 12 frames used, go to 13. That eliminates the risk of frame overlap due to the other camera having a different leader length than the F4. After you've advanced to known used +1, then start shooting as normal.

The battery pack is screwed in on the bottom, if I recall correctly. On mine it was glued on so I couldn't demonstrate that. And yes you can switch the batteries off with the main power switch but the camera only uses them for metering, auto focus, exposure, and film advancement. Switching the camera of won't actually extend the battery life.

@@DavidHancock Hi: Thank you so much. I am a disabled veteran with two head injuries so things that are new to me are difficult to comprehend. That's why your video is helpful to me. I know the body will be lighter and that will help when carrying and using it. One last question. I have been reading conflicting videos where they say batteries last a long time or you have to change them frequently. Can you clarify this question for me as to approx. how long I should wait before changing batteries? Thank you.

@@raymondcook8364 Good question about battery time and I don't have a definitive answer. It depends on the batteries. Eneloop Pro batteries will out last Wal-Mart brand by a lot. Also using autofocus will drain batteries. So the best thing is to have good batteries and then see how long they last. I recall shooting up to a couple dozen rolls on one set of Eneloop Pro batteries without having to change them. I don't know how much longer they could have gone without being recharged. Maybe one more roll, maybe 40, I don't know.

@@DavidHancock Thank you for your advice.

What mount version is the 80-400? If it's an AF-S or AF-D (I believe on the latter) then yes it should work.

@@DavidHancock Here is the link: www.ebay.com/itm/Nikon-AF-Nikkor-80-400mm-f-4-5-5-6D-ED-VR-lens-with-filters/184279274482?hash=item2ae7e693f2:g:BCoAAOSw6VVesInl Does it have to be a AF-S?

Looks like it. There's a screw-drive AF in that lens' mount (lower right side, photo 3, I think.) So just make sure that your teleconverter also has that screw drive connection and it will all work as it should.

@@raymondcook8364 You're wasting your money on that lens, since it's primary feature other than the zoom range is VR (vibration reduction). But the F4 can't activate that; only certain Nikon digital camera bodies can use that.

I would go without. I can't recall for certain but I don't think that the VR feature works with the F4.

@@DavidHancock Thank You.

There is no non-VR version. But you're still wasting your money. If you want to shoot at other than f/5.6, the "E" electronic diaphragm only works at f/5.6 unless you have a digital Nikon introduced since 2007, including the D4, D4s, D3, D3s, D3P, D3x, Df, D810, D800/e, D750, D700, D610, D600, D300, D300s, D7000, D7100, D7200, D5500, D5300, D5200, D5100, D5000, D3300, D3200, D3100 and newer.

Do you know if the camera has ever had batteries leak in it?

Hmm. That's curious. I've not used that lens so I can't say for certain if it's an exception. On my F4, my AF 50mm lens works in autofocus in any aperture setting. Now, with all the Nikon lenses that have electronic contacts they have to be set to the smallest aperture (largest number) for the aperture controls on the camera and modes like program mode to work. It's possible that's what the other video meant to say.

Autofocus should work at any apeture regardless, unless P, Ph and S modes is used, in which the camera won't work at all (an error message will apear on the LCD), until you change the apeture to f/32. You understand that it can only be used in P, Ph and S modes, right ? Regardless, you'll have to set the apeture to f/32 to be able to let the camera control it, AND get the right exposure. It's not because of the autofocus not working, but with any AF-S lens you WILL have to set it to the minumum apeture, otherwise you can't shoot.

I think you're talking about the exposure mode selector, correct?

If I'm thinking of the correct lever, that should be the double-exposure lever.

This lever actually locks both autofocus and autoexposure, at the same time, when the AF-L button is pressed. So it just makes for easier shooting, not having to press AF-L and AE-L separately.

I don't know enough about Nikon flashes to answer accurately.

@@DavidHancock thanks anyhow. I’m waiting for a response from Nikon.

@@DavidHancock David, SB-700 only works in Manual Mode. I bought a Like New SB-28 that is compatible with the Matrix Balanced TTL Mode. Much like the SB-24 that I bought with the F4s when it was new.

@@joeprete7424 makes sense. Thank you!

I don't recall the SN cutoff exactly, but the info about that in the video would be the most accurate that I had.

Thank you!

I have the equiavent of matrix metering, but the issue is with the capture mode. The camera defaults to program, which with my lenses is aperture priority. So the camera kept changing frame rate and sensitivity as the content changed. What I needed to do was what I do now, take a gray-card reading, dial in my settings, and then lock the exposure so that the shutter speed, sensitivity, and aperture remain fixed.

Thank you!

It is on some of them, if I recall. I think the newer ones had a different shutter.

@@DavidHancock Firstly.. Thanks for the great videos and dedication. My F4 is quite "new" I think with serial starting 256.. The reasons I thought about the flash sync being 1/250 are that I bought in the 80s and still have FA and FM2. Those have 1/250 flash sync speed and 250 in the dial is red as is in my new F4e. E meaning enormous:)

I would assume so. I've used Duracell rechargeables in mine.

If I ever get one, I sure will.

I just got a 4T a few weeks ago and started the outline. It will be a while before the review comes out, but I really want to make the OM-1 and OM-4 videos as quickly as I can.

F4S.

No on the XQD cards, but still 35mm images have way more image data than 4K. So if can do, quite easily, 8K or 12K stop motion animation.

Haha.

It's a pretty complicated camera. You can make it simple, though, by only using the functions that you need.

That's a hot take I haven't heard before.

@@DavidHancock All control buttons are small and very close to each other, e.g. the on/off switch, one has to press down the very small button and turn to put it on, the LCD screen is so dim and so on ... . Anyway, too many minute buttons to control the settings. People bought it for the sake of name, Nikon. F5 and its younger sibling, F100 are much better, close to early Nikon DSLR.

I fumble my way through everything; you should see how bad I am at being an adult. But since I do these videos almost exclusively from memory, and since I've made something like 300 camera manuals now, it does get a bit hard to remember all the intricacies of how hundreds of different cameras work.

@@DavidHancock Thank you David! Your videos have been very helpful and very much appreciated.

Which 50mm 1/4 lens do you have? Nikon changed the mount over the years a number of times. If you want to check that your lens works properly, set the aperture to f/8 or smaller (just because this is easier to see) and then use a manual shutter speed of 1 second or longer -- preferably bulb. And then look at the lens when you hold the shutter button. The aperture should close. for testing that the modes work, give it a try in sunlight with the sun to your back. At f/16, the shutter speed should be approximately the same as the film speed. So set the ISO to 500 (one dot between 400 and 800) and then the aperture to 16. The shutter speed, if you meter off something like a tree or an unshaded sidewalk, should be round-about 1/500th. So in shutter priority mode, setting the shutter to 500 means the camera should indicate something like f/16. In aperture-priority, the camera should indicate a shutter speed around 1/500th. If you're testing the camera inside and have a fast shutter speed (indoors that's anything faster than 1/125th), especially if you have a film that's 100 ISO or slower, there may not be enough light to give you an aperture smaller than f/1.4.