Slr reviews from Reddit
Summary
We analyzed 200 Reddit reviews across 6 subreddits and 28 posts to rank the best Slr brands recommended by redditors, including communities like r/AnalogCommunity, r/Polaroid, r/filmphotography, r/vintagecameras, r/analog. Top-rated brands include Nikon (4.5/5), Canon (4.2/5), Pentax (4.2/5).
Stats
Reviews200
Subreddits6
Posts28
Brands19
Products94
200 reviews from
and
By Brand
/By Product
#1
Nikon
4.5
(52)
"Price to value, probably the Nikon F100 is unbeatable."
"Excellent to Mint Nikon f5 out of Japan on Ebay - $300 to $500."
"Nikon F5"
"Love my Nikon f4."
"Every time I go out with my F100 I'm satisfied with me choice. It's fast, accurate, the meter is spot on every time and it feels very modern in the hand."
"Nikon F100, af-d lenses are dirt cheap now too."
"I got a Nikon F5 last year in excellent condition for £400. Fantastic camera, can use almost any Nikon F lens from the past 75years."
"Yep, it's got to be the champion in do-everything-well category. Light meter is sublime, AF nails it 99/100 times, solid build quality."
"The Nikon F5 is so nice I bought it twice. It was the last full pro body made by Nikon in that it has interchangeable viewfinders."
"Nikon f100. By a long shot."
#2
Canon
4.2
(39)
"Canon EOS! I have a 1V and a 3. Fantastic cameras and paired with good glass can just create incredible images."
"Canon 1n and 1v, plus all the EF lenses you could ever want - from Canon and third parties. Buy a Canon DSLR like a 6D, 5DII or better along with it and you can share lenses."
"EOS-1v is sort of the pinnacle. Feels pretty much like shooting a Canon DSLR, and lenses and most other stuff is interchangeable with them."
"I have been enjoying using a Canon EOS 30. It has eye tracking autofocus, where it tracks which one of seven focus points you’re looking at, and it works extremely well once calibrated to your eye."
"I love my F-1 New"
"A2E is a FANTASTIC camera and if I wouldn’t have gotten a sweet deal on an F6 I’d have kept mine."
"I got my Canon EOS A2E for $65 from B&H."
"Canon F1 new."
"Canon 1v with its ability to take multiple spot meetings and combine the data."
"Canon Rebel hands down ... if you want the full analog experience: the trusty soviet tank Zenit 11."
#3
Pentax
4.2
(24)
"I second the K1000. My photos always turn out so good from it."
"Honestly, love my Pentax K1000! Super easy to use, durable as hell, and just one of those ‘makes sense’ cameras I find myself throwing in my bag or car all the time before I go somewhere"
"I throw my hat in the ring with the Pextax ME Super as well."
"Pentax MX : Excellent camera, fully mechanical."
"Pentax MX, great pocketable camera, amazing VF, and an unbelievable lens line up"
"Pentax *ist has a very advanced AF with 11 points and matrix metering"
"Not fully mechanical, but a great cheap camera, Pentax P3. You can find them for like 30 bucks with a lens on them."
"On the fully mechanical side, there is the KX and KM and K2 but they're same size as the K1000. The MX is smaller and good. On the electronic side, check out the Super Program (more capable and often cheaper than the ME Super)."
"The K1000 is a good camera, but overpriced in comparison to the ME Super and most other cameras of the K and M series."
"The classic answer is the Olympus OM-1 or the Pentax MX."
#4
Minolta
4.3
(21)
"If you’re coming from minolta, I really recommend this. I have a maxxum 7 that is by far my most used camera for just ease of use."
"Try to find a Minolta Dynax 7. It's outstanding."
"Maxxum 9, the price performance is ridiculous you can easily find one for about 200-240 maybe less. That camera focus better than my Pentax K-1 ( and that's a digital camera)! The honey comb metering is awesome and the build quality was another level."
"I have two Minolta 600si cameras. They're brilliant and great to shoot with."
"Seconding the Minolta X-700 and any of the cheaper EOS bodies (I have the Rebel 2000). The X-700 has one of the best focusing screens I’ve ever used!"
"Amazing program mode (specifically with MD lenses, I think they have some special feature including balanced fast moving aperture blades and OFT light measurement), OTF flash exposure control, aperture priority, surprisingly nice and quiet cocking action."
"Minolta. Easy choice. The glass is cheap, plentiful and good, and the cameras are very nice to use and well understood if something goes wrong."
"I got a minolta x570 with flash module and 2 lenses in perfect condition just for $20."
"If you're not willing to use eBay your Minolta A mount options will be limited though. Although I use the Minolta a9 I think the maxxum/dynax/a7 is good."
"For true budget, there's nothing better than Minolta Dynax/Maxxum 5. Absurdly cheap and has compatibility with even the latest SSM lenses."
#5
Polaroid
4.3
(18)
"The 680 I think is the best instant camera Polaroid ever made."
"It’s a phenomenal camera. I’ve had mine for 25 years and only two years ago had it refurbed."
"I bought one in great condition and refurbished for €250(!) ... It turned out great."
"Yea I have a stock sx70 sonar and it's one of my absolute favorites."
"I've had mine now for 2 years and I've had no issues whatsoever."
"Converted sonar + mint flash bar beats the 680 and saves money"
"Old SX70s or SLR680 have numerous issues ... They work perfectly after a proper service"
"I have an sx70 sonar with a flash, I have shot pretty extensively with a 680. I can conclusively say the 680 is a much better camera."
"I LOVE my SLR680."
"The SLR680 flash is arguably the most intelligent flash ever installed on a Polaroid camera."
#6
Mamiya
4.1
(10)
"If you found an rb67 for $350, that’s a steal. They go for at least double or triple that."
"+1 for the Mamiya 645. It’s an awesome little camera and lenses for it are still cheap."
"Mamiya 645. Was my first film camera and love it."
"If you’re looking for cheap 6x7 I’ve had good luck with the Mamiya press universal/super 23 line."
"Reliability in mind, Mamiya or Bronica 6x4.5 systems."
"I just bought a good condition RB67 for $350 an hour ago."
"Mamiya C22 or 33 at that price"
"Mamiya 645, or a CLA‘d Pentacon Six (if there are some around where you are) Also Bronica, but I’ve never used them myself"
"Buy it now prices for an rb67 kit around $350. If you want 6x7, the RB has some good features."
"You can get a Mamiya Universal Press for that price. However, it's on the chonky side of things."
#7
Olympus
4.3
(7)
"The om-1 is a small form factor especially when looking at it's contemporaries."
"Olympus om-1 or olympus pen-f
Pen F is half frame so you also save some money on film"
"If you want a new system I’d recommend the OM system. The OM2n is similar-ish to the AE-1 in functionality."
"The classic answer is the Olympus OM-1 or the Pentax MX."
"Olympus OM1/OM2 : Small cameras, really refined."
"An OM1 is what I would go with."
"My general suggestion for a cheap yet absolutely great little gem is the Olympus OM-1."
#8
Ricoh
4.0
(5)
"Ricoh KR-5 Super. Fully mechanical, with robust construction inside and out."
"Good bets for an inexpensive mechanical K-mount are the Ricoh XR-1 and the KR-5/XR500."
"Ricoh XR-1 (also sold as the Sears KS1000), completely mechanical, has a great match needle setup for the meter."
"Ricoh KR/XR series are cheap and surprisingly good for the money. I got KR-10 Super as my first SLR camera."
"Short answer: Ricoh XR-2s (also sold as Sears KS Auto)."
#9
Bronica
4.0
(5)
"I love the Bronica ETRS series."
"Bronica SQ as well."
"Love my Bronica ETRS"
"Keep an eye out for a Bronica ETR or ETRS body within that price range. They’re great."
"Bronica SQ-a… could possibly find a deal on a complete setup"
#10
Konica
4.0
(4)
"Nearly all of them are shutter priority in semi-auto mode (in fact they were the first ones being able to automatically adjust the lens’s aperture)."
"Konica T4: Incredibly good Hexanon lenses, solid quality, reasonable prices as still a bit under the radar."
"I love konica, and I'm glad you took a close look at them."
"Absolutely, no problem at all! Im glad you got the konica III."
#11
Contax
4.0
(4)
"Contax AX if you want a chonky boy. The AF is actually pretty fast and quiet."
"Yashica fx-3 or Contax Aria, the former is cheaper and mechanic."
"I've just picked up a contax RX from 1994 for £120, it has all of those features plus automatic bracketing, ae-lock, centre weighted and spot metering, 3fps motor drive, plus a few other things."
"A Contax Aria will provide a similar quality experience."
#12
Kowa
4.0
(2)
"I got my Kowa 6 with the 85 and 150 lens for 250 bucks."
"A decent Kowa Six can be had for that price if you like square shooters."
#13
Chinon
4.0
(2)
"Instead of Pentax Spotmatic I'd recommend Chinon Memotron series or Cosina CSR."
"I learned on a Chinon. There solid and fairly basic."
#14
Yashica
4.0
(2)
"Get the Yashica Mat 124 or other similar twin lens reflex (TLR). Can probably get one for 100-300$."
"Yashica 124."
#15
Pentacon
4.0
(1)
"Pentacon six. Cool lenses, like 50 f4, 80 2.8 standard of course, 120 2.8 and the almighty 180 2.8."
#16
Fujifilm
4.0
(1)
"I have a Fujifilm S3. Which is just the F80 with a Fuji CCD sensor slapped into it. But the af works great with my 24-70 2.8G ED."
#17
Panasonic
4.0
(1)
"A great affordable first camera is a Micro Four-Thirds one like the Panasonic GX85. The lenses cost much less than other systems and everything's smaller and lighter"
#18
Cosina
4.0
(1)
"Find yourself a cosina ct1super. You can often get them for a couple tenners, they are very smal and lightweight cameras but al mechanical and very capable."
#19
Praktica
4.0
(1)
"I bought a Praktica for £30 the other month and it works perfectly and takes decent photos."
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