My name is James Nguyen and I’m a 20 year old Vietnamese hospitality student, photography hobbyist, studying in Switzerland.
I have now sold my Konica Hexar AF, but to be honest, I regret it somehow. Although I enjoy my new Leica M4-2 very much, the Hexar AF is just a camera that helped me make the biggest step into photography and changed my photography style and perspective.
This camera is a joy to use. The 35mm f/2 lens is just gorgeous, in fact, it is the most brilliant lens I have ever used. I will not say anything about the comparisons people make between it and the 35mm Summicron because I haven’t owned one, or even tried one. It is for the experts to judge. I was satisfied in every aspect: color rendition, sharpness, contrast, bokeh, etc…
![](https://www.35mmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/000074270020-1024x679.jpg)
I love how simple it is to operate this camera. Even though you can manually set the settings, I always put it on A mode, choosing my desired aperture and letting the camera do the rest. I used it without its silent mode, as it slows down the autofocus and auto winding function a little bit. Even outside it’s quiet mode I think most people would be amazed at how quiet it is.
There is one limit with this camera, and that its maximum 1/250th second shutter speed. Personally, I always put Portra 160 in it and shoot with no problem. Some may want to get an ND filter for it, I personally did not because I didn’t want to have to compensate the exposure.
![](https://www.35mmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/000074280020-679x1024.jpg)
![](https://www.35mmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/000051-4-690x1024.jpg)
![](https://www.35mmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/000074280033-1024x679.jpg)
![](https://www.35mmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/F1000034-e1533377308712-686x1024.jpg)
All photos were shot with Portra 160
So why did I part with this beautiful gem? I just kept worrying that one day its electronic mechanisms would fail and it would die. Honestly that was the only reason that I have moved to a Leica M camera. The Konica Hexar AF has helped me find my photography style and made me love film photography/cameras even more. And I miss it everyday.
If you are interested in more photos of mine, I posts photos regularly on my Instagram!
Thanks for reading and hope you guys enjoy the post! Keep shooting film!
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Comments
lasousa on 5 Frames with a Konica Hexar AF – By James Nguyen
Comment posted: 22/08/2018
Martin Hugh Henley on 5 Frames with a Konica Hexar AF – By James Nguyen
Comment posted: 09/04/2019
Comment posted: 09/04/2019
Mathias on 5 Frames with a Konica Hexar AF – By James Nguyen
Comment posted: 20/08/2019
If I want really good pictures, I'll just stick with my SLR - a little heavy but back then everybody was used to carry them anyway.