Nikon F-501
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The Nikon F-501 (sold in
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as the N2020) was the first successful
autofocus An autofocus (AF) optical system uses a sensor, a control system and a motor to focus on an automatically or manually selected point or area. An electronic rangefinder has a display instead of the motor; the adjustment of the optical system h ...
SLR
camera A camera is an instrument used to capture and store images and videos, either digitally via an electronic image sensor, or chemically via a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. As a pivotal technology in the fields of photograp ...
sold by the
Nikon Corporation (, ; ) is a Japanese optics and photographic equipment manufacturer. Nikon's products include cameras, camera lenses, binoculars, microscopes, ophthalmic lenses, measurement instruments, rifle scopes, spotting scopes, and equipment related ...
beginning in April, 1986. A nearly identical, albeit manual focus version, called the Nikon F-301 (N2000 in North America) was also available. Subsequent models in the consumer line included the
Nikon F-401 The Nikon F-401 (N4004 in North America) was a beginner's level, autofocus, 35mm, single-lens reflex (SLR) film camera built by Nikon and introduced in 1987. The camera represented one of Nikon's first endeavours into consumer-based autofocus, as ...
,
Nikon F-601 The Nikon F-601, otherwise known as the Nikon N6006, is a 35mm single-lens reflex (SLR) film camera that was produced by Nikon starting in 1990. The F601 featured an improved second-generation autofocus system, motor drive for automatic film adva ...
, and
Nikon F-801 The Nikon F-801 (sold as the N8008 in the US market) is a 35mm SLR released worldwide in June 1988 and manufactured until 1991, when it was replaced by the improved Nikon F-801s (N8008s in the US), which in turn was discontinued in early 1995. Al ...
/ F-801s.


Features

The F-501 is a 35 mm
single-lens reflex camera In photography, a single-lens reflex camera (SLR) is a type of camera that uses a mirror and prism system to allow photographers to view through the lens and see exactly what will be captured. SLRs became the dominant design for professional a ...
with automatic film loading and advance, almost a first for Nikon (the F-301 was their first SLR to feature this). The built-in
motor drive A motor drive is a physical system that includes a motor. An adjustable speed motor drive is a system that includes a motor that has multiple operating speeds. A variable speed motor drive is a system that includes a motor that is continuously v ...
provides single (one exposure and frame advance per shutter button press) or continuous (shutter will fire and film will advance so long as the shutter button is depressed) modes. Maximum film advance speed is 2.5 frames per second (frame/s) on continuous mode, but can be as slow as 1.4 frames/s depending on the status of the focus/exposure locks. Rewind is accomplished manually by a familiar rewind knob which doubled as a release for the back. The F-501 is powered by four
AAA AAA, Triple A, or Triple-A is a three-letter initialism or abbreviation which may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming * AAA (video game industry) - a category of high budget video games *'' TripleA'', an open source wargame Mu ...
batteries housed in the bottom of the camera body, although it can utilize AA sized batteries with an optional attachment (MB-3). The F-501 uses a
through-the-lens In photography, through-the-lens metering (TTL metering) refers to a feature of cameras whereby the intensity of light reflected from the scene is measured through the photographic lens, lens; as opposed to using a separate metering window or exter ...
(TTL) "passive" phase-detection autofocus method for establishing focus. Unlike active systems, which set approximate focus based on distance to the subject, the "passive" system uses a
CCD CCD may refer to: Science and technology * Charge-coupled device, an electronic light sensor used in various devices including digital cameras * .ccd, the filename extension for CloneCD's CD image file * Carbonate compensation depth, a property ...
to "see" the focus subject and focus in a manner similar to a human operator. This method is more precise than the active method, but requires more light to function. The F-501 has two focus modes available, single, in which focus is established and does not change so long as the operator holds down lightly on the shutter button, and continuous, in which the lens continuously re-focuses on whatever is in the focus area. The F-501 is one of only three cameras, the others being the F3-AF and the F4, which can autofocus with the two AF-NIKKOR lenses introduced for the F3-AF, the 80 mm 1:2.8 and the 200 mm 1:3.5. Unlike other AF-NIKKOR lenses use a focus motor in the lens, rather than a mechanical coupling from a motor in the camera. AF-I, AF-S and AF-P Nikkor lenses also use a focus motor in the lens, but are not compatible with the short-lived system introduced with the F3-AF. The F-501 can be set for auto exposure, "hi-speed" auto exposure, "dual" auto-exposure (with AI-S type lenses) which switches between regular auto exposure and hi-speed autoexposure based on the lens attached,
aperture priority Aperture priority, often abbreviated ''A'' or ''Av'' (for aperture value) on a camera mode dial, is a mode on some cameras that allows the user to set a specific aperture value (f-number) while the camera selects a shutter speed to match it that ...
, or full manual exposure modes, which allow the user to set both the
aperture In optics, the aperture of an optical system (including a system consisting of a single lens) is the hole or opening that primarily limits light propagated through the system. More specifically, the entrance pupil as the front side image o ...
and
shutter speed In photography, shutter speed or exposure time is the length of time that the film or digital sensor inside the camera is exposed to light (that is, when the camera's shutter (photography), shutter is open) when taking a photograph. The am ...
s. The shutter speed and auto-exposure modes are set by the use of a dial on the top of the camera, while the aperture ring on the lens is used for aperture control. The "hi-speed" auto-exposure tends to favor higher shutter speeds and wider aperture settings than the "normal" auto exposure mode, while the "dual" mode offers "normal" auto-exposure with lenses at focal lengths less than 135 mm and "hi-speed" auto-exposure if a lens is longer than 135 mm. The F-501 supports TTL flash exposures with a wide range of Nikon flashes. The Nikon SB-20 flash was especially designed for this camera.


Compatibility

Like all Nikon SLRs, the F-501 accepts Nikon's F-mount lenses, but will only autofocus with lenses designated "AF." Likewise, fully automatic exposure will only work with AI-S type lenses, including many autofocus lenses (G-type lenses are not supported by the F-501). In both cases, the camera will function with lenses without these abilities, but will not autofocus or may not have full auto exposure capabilities. AF lenses designated "D" add no functionality to the F-501, and "AF-S" and "VR" lenses will not perform their special functions if attached to an F-501. Continuing Nikon's practice at time, the F-501 has interchangeable focusing screens, a feature that is now quite unusual. Three screens (types B, E and J) were available for the F-501. Breaking from practice, though, Nikon removed the ISO-type cable release socket. Remote control functionality is still available, however, through the three-pin terminal on the camera's front with the Remote Cord MC-12 and the like. ISO cable releases can be accepted by the Terminal Release MR-3, which also doubles as a second shutter button.


Design

In design terms, the F-501 took a different look from previous Nikon cameras. The introduction of a
polycarbonate Polycarbonates (PC) are a group of thermoplastic polymers containing carbonate ester, carbonate groups in their chemical structures. Polycarbonates used in engineering are strong, toughness, tough materials, and some grades are optically transp ...
-clad body rather than metal, which caused the camera to be
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instead of
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, was the most immediate and obvious change. Also new to this model is the addition of an extended grip on the shutter button side of the camera body, a feature which has grown in subsequent autofocus SLR camera designs ever since. Nikon adopted some design concepts from the F501 in the company's first professional autofocus SLR, the
Nikon F4 The Nikon F4 is a 35 mm autofocus (AF) single lens reflex (SLR) film camera, introduced in 1988 as the next generation in Nikon's line of F series professional cameras. With industrial design by Giorgetto Giugiaro, the F4 was the first pro ...
, in 1988. Less obvious is the addition of a red stripe on the right hand front side of the camera. The stripe first appeared in the
Nikon F3 The Nikon F3 is Nikon (, ; ) is a Japanese optics and photographic equipment manufacturer. Nikon's products include cameras, camera lenses, binoculars, microscopes, ophthalmic lenses, measurement instruments, rifle scopes, spotting scopes, an ...
in 1980, and some variation of it has been a design feature of every Nikon autofocus camera since, but on the F-501 the stripe is horizontal rather than vertical for the first time.


Notes


References

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External links

{{Nikon 35mm Film SLR Cameras F501 F501