Nikon 100th Anniversary Miniature Nikon F Camera

2018-02-15T08:30:55

A great little model although I'm not a collector, I do love this miniature, sits on my shelves song with books. Adorama also did a perfect job of delivery in my case, arrived a day earlier than scheduled..bonus.

Andrew L.

2017-08-03T20:00:00

This model is packaged in a Nikon 100th anniversary outer box with a gold seal on it. Upon opening the box, there is a folded instruction manual that is supposed to replicate the cover of the original owner's manual for this model camera. Underneath the instruction sheet, there is an inner box surrounded in bubble wrap that has the sequence number of the model camera taped to it. The inner box is intended to look like the original packaging for the camera and houses the display case. The camera model is fully assembled and securely installed inside of the display case with removable tape surrounding the camera and lens. The instructions are printed in multiple languages and show the features of the model camera and which parts can be moved. The movable parts are as follows: shutter release button, film advance lever and rewind handle, shutter speed dial, aperture ring, focus ring, and self-timer. None of them actually do anything, but it is a nice attention to detail. All of these parts are very small and delicate and I would not spend any time playing with them on a regular basis. The lens and back of the camera can be removed. The lens just requires a small turn like any other F-mount lens, but there is no mechanism to lock the lens in place when installed on the body. That is, you don’t have to push the button on the body to release the lens. This makes it difficult to turn either the focus or aperture ring without twisting the lens off. The aperture ring is particularly difficult to turn on my product. There is a "100 year" logo etched into the lens element, and you cannot see through the lens from the viewfinder even though there is a mirror inside the body. The back is removed by turning a locking mechanism on the bottom of the body. I found the back difficult to remove and reinstall because of the film. The "film" is transparent and tinted to look more like color negative film that has been developed but was not exposed. I did not try to remove the film as it was pre-loaded in the body. The camera model is secured to the base of the display case with a single, Phillips head screw that inserts into the "tripod socket" on the camera. All-in-all, this is a very detailed model and displays nicely in the included case. It does not feel flimsy or cheap to me. However, it is small (probably about 3" long and 1.5" tall) which makes moving the various parts difficult. It would have been nice to be able to look through the viewfinder; but the one thing that is a bit of a disappointment to me is that the lens does not have foot markings on the focus ring--just meter markings. I decided to order this because it reminds me of my own 35mm film camera that I learned to shoot on so many years ago (even though it was not this particular model). The product is about what I expected from the images and description on the Nikon website. It would be easier to manipulate if it were a bit larger though. Now that I’ve seen the actual product, I would buy it again. I think the pricing for all the 100th anniversary products is a bit steep, but this one strikes me as being the best bargain of all the products being offered. If you want a little piece of Nikon history, then this is a good choice in my opinion.

rws16

Originally posted at

2017-07-31T20:00:00

This tiny replica is very cool and exactly as pictured. I liked that it was boxed like Nikon cameras in a thick cardboard box that contained a bubble wrapped thin cardboard camera box in which the mini camera in it's display case was enclosed. There is also a thin large folded paper which normally would be the instruction book in camera box, it is in Japanese and English and shows the parts of the camera, what is removable and not. I was very excited at first as I opened each box to get to the prize! The detail is amazing, the instructions show how to load the "film" but it was already loaded in the camera. I think that was how it's supposed to be because there was no place where a loose roll would have been. The film was in the camera - was it supposed to be loaded onto the spool already?? I'm not sure, if so, why not indicate that in the brochure? Otherwise, in handling the impressive little replica, despite the description of it being die-cast metal, much of it has a very plastic feel which was somewhat disappointing. But it does not look plasticky. In any case I think Nikon's "die cast metal" description is misleading, given the plastic parts. The lens would be of the most concern, while it is very exciting that this tiny little lens has movable dials and Detaches from the camera, there should be a better attachment of lens to camera, a CLICK catch or something. As it is, you simply turn it to the right (there is no tension whatsoever) and if you tilted the camera or didn't realize it was in the turned position, it would fall off and could easily break. I also would have liked if we could see through the viewfinder. I know this camera doesn't work, but of the parts that do, I think that easily could have been made more realistic by being able to see through the viewfinder. My limited edition number is 1831, not exciting, I was hoping for a lower number, even number, same digits or something unique, since I did order very early. Oh well. If I saw this in a store would I buy it for $139.95? I would definitely oooh and ahhh over it, but while I hate to say it, NO, unless money was no object. I was caught up in the thrill of the limited edition, 100th anniversary aspect so this was definitely an IMPULSE purchase. I really like it, but again, the money! If it was $50., as a Nikon lover who started with a Nikon FE, yes, I'd buy it again. If much of the parts were made of metal as expected, I would feel better about it. Don't get me wrong, this is a very cool and amazingly exact little 100th anniversary collectible. If $139.95 is change to you, by all means order now. Otherwise, first give it some thought.

ArchitecturalPhotography

Originally posted at