Nikon EM & Nikkor 35mm Review – A Quest for An Ideal Compact Film SLR – Pt2 – by Ed Lara

In a prior post I shared my thoughts on the Pentax MV-1 which I purchased at the same time I found a Nikon EM. I bought both in an attempt to replicate the great experience I had using the compact,  Olympus XA, but in a slightly bigger body.

I got my Nikon EM body with its dedicated MD-E auto winder. In spit of the combo being bulkier that the EM alone, It actually feels very good in my hands, especially with the modest hand grip up front. It comes close to the great handling I felt with my old Olympus EM-5  digital micro43 camera plus battery pack. Hence, I have used the EM with its winder attached the whole time I’ve owned it.

I know that when the EM first came out there were many critics who said it was too much of a “cheap” amateur camera compared to the hefty F-series pro cameras. My experience is very different. The camera feels very solid and reassuring in hand. When the EM arrived I borrowed a Nikkor 35mm F2.0 from a friend. Mounting the very solid Nikkor made the EM feel even more substantial.

Control Comparison

The controls on the EM are very similar to the Pentax MV-1: a simple three way switch around the shutter release with options for AUTO (for camera-determined shutter speeds), M90 (1/90 sec) for flash and B for long exposure Bulb. The last 2 setting allow the cameras to be used without a battery. Apparently, when set to AUTO without a battery, the camera fires at a shutter speed of approximately 1/1000, though I have not tried this feature yet.

The light meter is activated by pulling out the film advance lever partway. Looking through the viewfinder, to the left one sees a set of shutter speeds from 1/1000 at the top to 1 sec at the bottom. The light meter needle indicates the approximate shutter speed selected by the camera. The camera alerts the shooter with an audible beep if the meter deems the exposure to be over, or if shutter speeds below 1/30 are used. Unlike the MV-1, the EM has a backlight compensation button on the left front of the camera body, which provides an additional 2 stops of exposure when pressed. While this does not have the flexibility of a real exposure compensation dial, it works well.

Advantages in the Real World

The EM’s finder is bright, and focusing has been very quick and easy. This is the biggest advantage of this camera  compared to the Pentax MV-1 and compact 40mm pancake lens.  I have had a much better shooting experience with the Nikon EM. Technically, the fact that the EM also has clear shutter speed readouts and a needle gives it a better set of visual indicators compared to the color “smears” for over, under and correct exposure of the MV-1. But, in action, I hardly refer to the needle and shutter speeds anyway, so this was not really a big advantage.

Results

I have never owned or shot with Nikon equipment extensively before, but because of the reputation of the lenses, I expected the images to come out very well. After seeing the downloaded scanned images, I was not disappointed, The color rendition of the Nikkor on Kodak Ultramax 400 was really good, and Nikon’s bottom center-weighted metering pattern did pretty well overall. I am very pleased with the results, and look forward to shooting with the EM more frequently.

Verdict

The Nikon EM certainly has a few advantages versus the Pentax MV-1: the backlight button, the ability to use 3 shutter speeds without a battery, and bright viewfinder are the top three in my book. However, the EM and 35mm Nikkor combo is no match for the diminutive Pentax MV-1 and 40mm F2.8 pancake in terms of compactness and portability. Because of its smaller overall size, shooting the MV-1 feels closer to shototing with the Olympus XA, but with a more comfortable to hold/use camera body. With the EM I find myself shooting more deliberately and slowly, as I would with my film or digital rangefinders. Granted this is in part due to using it with the EM Winder, but the bigger Nikkor lens also adds to this feeling.

That said, the Nikon EM and Pentax MV-1 are both excellent compact cameras to shoot with, though I would use the MV-1 for the more intuitive and stealthy style required for street shooting. The Nikon EM and MD-E  winder is better suited for more less rushed moments like portrait or nature photography.

All in all, I am really pleased with how this comparison went, and I look forward to using both these cameras regularly for the foreseeable future.

If you want to see more of my work, you can follow my Instagram feed: @photoedontheweb. Thanks for reading!

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