Nikkormat / Nikomat

More basic than the Nikon F but same lenses and similar build quality.

**Nikkormat FTN, 50mm f/1.4 Nikkor-S** (Color photos of the camera were made with a Nikon F, 55mm f/3.5 Micro-Nikkor-P.C, and Portra 400.)

**Swoosh hair.** Bethesda, Md. Nikomat FTN, 50mm f/2 Nikkor-H, Lomography Fantôme 8, 2024.

Nikomat, Nikkormat… What’s the difference?

The cameras are identical except for the nameplate on the prism. In Japan it was the Nikomat, elsewhere it was the Nikkormat. Putting this into car enthusiast lingo:

—> The Nikomat is the JDM version.

**1953 Porsche 356 ‘Pre-A’ 1500 Super** at Katie’s Cars & Coffee, Great Falls, Va. Nikomat FTN, 50mm f/2 Nikkor-H, FP4+, 2025.

Nikomat v. Nikon F

The Nikomat was a way to use Nikon F lenses with a less expensive body. Compared to the Nikon F, the Nikomat has:

No modularity. No interchangeable prisms, focus screens, or other accessories.
No split image focusing (until the FT2 model or later).
An integral light meter (the Nikon F’s meter is part of the detachable prism).
A shutter made by Copal rather than Nikon.
Foam seals in the rear door. The Nikon F has a removing back with metal-to-metal fit, so no rear door.
Approximately equal size and weight and from what I can tell, nearly equally heavy-duty construction.

**Anime figurine** Nikomat FTN, 50mm f/2 Nikkor-H, Lomography Fantôme 8, 2024.

Design and use

The first Nikomat was introduced by Nikon in 1965 and went through a series of model iterations through the mid-1970s. Mine are both the second-generation FTN which appeared c. 1967. It sold well, was in production a long time, and is not hard to find today. It wasn’t until 1975 that the next model, the FT2, came out. (McKeown, 1996).

The Nikomat is a rugged, high-performance machine. An all-mechanical, manual exposure SLR. The battery is only for the meter, so I leave it out and use a hand-held meter or the sunny 16 rule.

This camera was intended to compete with cameras such as the Pentax. ‘Costing roughly the same as a comparable Pentax, each successive Nikkormat model was unarguably heavier, tougher, and a more ‘professional’ feeling camera than the Pentax’ (Matanle, 1996).

**Washington, D.C.** Georgetown Nikomat FTN, 50mm f/2 Nikkor-H, FP4+, 2024.

Style

The Nikomat has style, but it is not nearly as recognizable as the Nikon F.

**Pitango Gelato.** Bethesda, Md. Nikomat FTN, 50mm f/2 Nikkor-H, Tri-X, 2024.

Controls

The controls differ a bit from most other 1960s and 70s Japanese SLRs. Instead of a shutter speed dial on the top plate, there’s a collar around the lens mount, similar to the (later) Olympus OM-1. The film sensitivity (ASA/ISO) is set with a sliding tab, also located on a collar around the lens mount.

I like the lens-collar shutter speed control. It puts the three essential picture-taking controls (focus, aperture, shutter speed) in one place — lens-centric. Although I’d say this idea is better executed on the Olympus OM-1.

**Rainy afternoon.** Bethesda, Md. Nikkormat FTN, 50mm f/1.4 Nikkor-S, HP5+, 2023.

Maintenance and repair

I replaced the mirror bumper foam on the Nikkormat, that’s it. A simple job and I did it myself.

References / further reading

Long, Brian. Nikon: A Celebration, 3rd ed. Ramsbury, England: Crowood Press.

p. 65: ‘The Nikomat series was actually far more important in historical terms than many collectors realize’.

Matanle, I. 1996. Collecting and Using Classic SLRs. New York: Thames and Hudson.

McKeown, J.M. and J.C. 1996. McKeown’s Price Guide to Antique and Classic Cameras, 1997-1998. Grantsburg, Wis.: Centennial Photo.

p. 338: ‘The Nikkormat name never had the snob appeal of the Nikon F, and was considered by many to be the ‘poor cousin’. Those of us who used them knew otherwise… Rugged, workhorse cameras!’