Nikon N6006/F601

My first Nikon was a used N6006 I picked up on usenet in 1997 or so. This replaced my trusty old Minolta X-700 when I decided I needed autofocus (AF) to get sharp pictures. It has improved my level of in focus shots to 100%. ;-)

I've been an "advanced amateur" since about 1973. With one exception (noted below), the capabilities of the N6006 matched or exceeded those of the Minolta X-700 that preceded it. I prefer setting a shutter speed dial and aperture ring when I'm not using program mode, but most of the settings on the N6006 aren't difficult to access. (That said, there are a lot of features you might never discover without reading the manual.)

The N6006 has two program exposure settings - a traditional one-for-one program that adjusts shutter speeds and lens opening in lockstep, and a vastly superior Auto Multi-Program setting that takes into account the focal length of the lens in use. See Program Exposure on the Nikon N6006 for full details on the two exposure modes. Once you read it, I think you'll agree that the Pm mode is the way to go when shooting in program mode.

In addition to the normal instruction manual, the N6006 ships with a separate instruction manual that covers flash photography. As with the Pm program mode, Nikon gave a lot of thought to flash photography. Their Automatic Balanced Fill-Flash (ABFF) is designed to make fill-flash as easy and balanced as possible. However, ABFF is designed for well lit situations and is poorly suited for general indoor flash photography. See Flash Photography with the Nikon N6006 for details on ABFF and other flash capabilities of the N6006.

Except for the lack of a good program flash setting for traditional flash photography, I've been very pleased with my N6006. This is definitely an area I'll address when I buy my next Nikon - the N65 looks very promising.

The most common complaints about the N6006 are that it is noisy and it doesn't autofocus as fast as newer cameras.

If you have any comments on the N6006 or see any errors on this page, please email Dan Knight . Thanks!

Specs

• N6006 released 1990; discontinued
• Exposure modes: Program (P and Pm), aperture preferred, shutter preferred, manual (no metering in manual mode); manual allows setting shutter speeds in 1/3 EV increments
• Metering range: EV 0-19 at ISO 100 with f/1.4 lens (4-19 for spot metering)
• Metering type: 5-zone matrix, center weighted, spot; meter stays on for about 8 seconds after removing finger from shutter release
• Exposure compensation: ±5 stops in 1/3 stop increments
• Auto exposure lock: yes, via AEL button
• Film speed range: ISO 25-5000, automatically set by DX film cartridge, manual settings from 6-6400
• Autofocus modes: single AF sensor, single-servo (focus-and-lock) and continuous focus AF, focus-priority can be disabled
• Autofocus range: about EV -1 to 19 with ISO 100, requires f/5.6 or faster lens
• Viewfinder: 0.75x magnification with 50mm lens, 92% frame coverage,
• Lens mount: Nikon AF. Will not meter with non-AF lenses.
• Shutter: 30-1/2000 sec.
• Flash sync: 1/125 sec., also slow sync and rear curtain sync options
• Built-in flash: yes, GN 42 (ISO 100/feet), covers 28mm or longer
• Accessory shoe: standard hot shoe with ready light, monitor light, and TTL contacts
• Flash modes: automatic balanced fill flash in AE modes
• Film advance: about 2 frames per second
• Battery: DL-223A/CR-P2 lithium battery
• Dimensions (W x H x D), body only: 6.1" x 4.0" x 2.6" (154.5 x 100 x 66.5mm)
• Weight: 23.0 oz. (650g) without battery

Online Resources

• N6006 Cheatsheet, how to use spot metering on the N6006.
• Review: Nikon N601/F601, Patricio Murphy About.com
• Review of Nikon N6006, James. "...this camera gives you lots of features for the money."
• N6006 Specifications, Liang-Wu Cai, MIT.edu. Also Nikon N90s and N6006 Review.
• N6006 Specifications, Nikonlinks
• Nikon F-601s/N6006s Specifications, Niklas Nikitin
• Nikon N6006, Epinions.com
• Nikon N6006, Thomas Martin's personal site
• Review: Nikon N6006, cwt, Used Camera Resource Center. "This camera comes very close to being an ideal camera."

Warnings

• The following can not be attached to the N6006 (body or lens may be damaged) : Non-AI, Fisheye 6mm/5.6, Fisheye OP 10mm/5.6, 200-600mm/9.5 (#280001 to 301922), ED 180-600mm/8 (#174041 to 174180), ED 360-1200mm/11 (#174031 to 174127), 400mm/5.6 and 600mm/5.6 with focusing unit AU-1, PC 28mm/4 (#180900 or smaller), PC 35mm/2.8 (#851001 to 906200), reflex 1000mm/11 (#142361 to 143000), reflex 2000mm/11 (#200111 to 200310) [Nikonlinks]
• The following teleconverter/lenses can not be used (Correct exposure may not be obtained) AF Teleconverter TC-16/TC-16A, AF Nikkor 80mm/2.8, AF Nikkor 200mm/3.5 IF. [Nikonlinks]

Go to Nikon AF SLR home page.

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