Top three best cameras you have ever bought

Thought i'd resurrect a "Thread from the dead" :)

Nikon D4
Nikon D810
Nikon D3, was a gamechager when i got it. Happy to see there's still a lot of love for D3/D700's.

Worst 2 a hideous Minolta D'image & the D800 :facepalm:
 
Can’t remember if I’ve answered this but will need updating anyway.

Olympus OM1
Nikon D750
Sony A7RIV
 
Best digital, Nikon D200 loved the CCD sensor, worst Canon PowerShot Pro 1 lovely lens, hideous sensor even for then. Best film camera Pentax MX, worst Pentax MZ something or other, still trying to erase it from my memory.
 
Canon 350D - my first digital DSLR and the start of the road to ruin
Canon 1D mk3 - forced me to justify it by starting down the route of sports photography which led to an amazing side-career
Leica M9 - just beautiful
 
X-E1. After lots of Canon stuff it was a real "wow" moment. Went on to get the X-T1 and the X-T2 after it. If an X-E4 appears I may buy it to replace my X-T2, or I may just get an X-Pro3. I almost picked the 350D (my 1st digital) but whilst it was a great camera, it wasn't a game changer. Just allowed me to carry on digitally.

Pentax 645n. I love this camera. The RB67 got me back into film by way of medium format, and I do love the RB, but the Pentax just has that usability alongside the really nice glass and auto-focus. If I could only keep 1 MF camera, this would be it.

Voigtlander Bessa R3M. Out of all the 35mm cameras I've owned, if I had to keep one and sell the rest, this would be it. And the clincher - would you believe it - is the 40mm Nokton and 40mm framelines. I much prefer rangefinder focussing to SLR, and 40mm is my field of view. The M3 is a gorgeous camera, but no lightmeter, and my incompetence with sunny 16 let it down. The M6 is also wonderful, but very clinical.
 
D750

Rx100 iii
 
I see I gave a troll answer before, 3 cameras I wanted rather than ever used, so here's my true top 3:

Fuji X-H1
Nikon D800E
Fuji X-T1

I place the H1 above the FF Nikon because I simply much prefer ML, I also don't see any significant difference in terms of output bar the higher res on the D800 raw files
 
This is pretty easy as apart from small compacts I have only every had 3 cameras in my more 'serious' photography life:

Panasonic FZ8
Nikon D60 (technically this was actually a gift too)
Nikon D7000
 
Not in any particular order:

(1) Nikon D3 - first full frame DSLR
(2) Nikon D4 - still use this and no desire to upgrade it; still does everything I want.
(3) Nikon F3 - still got this from 1989 & still love it.
 
1 - Canon AE1 - technically bought for me as it was a present, but it was my first proper camera 24 years ago, and I've seldom looked back. I've sold and bought it back and sold out again twice now, and am kind of tempted every time I see one mentioned...

2 - Nikon D80 - first DSLR and let me rediscover my love of this hobby. The bridge camera I had before then was good (done kind of Panasonic superzoom) but the Nikon was everything a "should" be. This was 14 years ago now.

3 - Panasonic DMC-G9 - second mirrorless camera after the G5, and let me re-rediscover my love of this hobby... First "pro-level" (whatever that means) camera and dear god what a camera! I'm scratching the surface of its capabilities and absolutely stunned by what I can achieve with it!
 
Bronica SQAi loved that camera and broke my heart when I sold it for such a low price (due to digital)
Canon 20D I had the 10 before but the 20d was a big leap forward with a much better focus system especially with moving subjects.
Canon 1DX such a great camera that I used professionally for 7 years. The first digital camera I owned that when successor came out (MKII) I felt no need to upgrade. This was huge.

I now shoot Sony a7III and A9. Cameras I have owned but did not make the list Praktica MTL50 (would be No4 on the list) Canon 500n Canon AE1 Mamiya 645 Canon 10d 30d 40d 1DMK3 1DMK4 5DMK2 5DMK4
 
Canon T90 - My ultimate film camera
Canon 30D - My first Digital SLR
Canon 5D Mk4 - My current (and possibly last) DSLR
 
Well to accurately answer the OP like many it would be the last three so D750-D810-D850 they were without question the ‘best’ cameras I have owned.

However if I were to add in a favourite it would be a 5mp Minolta Bridge camera that cost a relative fortune and I just loved it.

edit: found it!! https://m.dpreview.com/reviews/minoltadimage7i
 
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Yashica FX3 - my first SLR from 1982 (or thereabouts) and still in my bag
Nikon D40 - fitrst DSLR in 2008 (now used by my gransdson)
Nikon D750 - current camera

There have been a number of other Nikon DSLRs since the D40.
 
Well to accurately answer the OP like many it would be the last three so D750-D810-D850 they were without question the ‘best’ cameras I have owned.

However if I were to add in a favourite it would be a 5mp Minolta Bridge camera that cost a relative fortune and I just loved it.

edit: found it!! https://m.dpreview.com/reviews/minoltadimage7i

I still have my Dimage 7i too, and it gets the occasional airing. 5mp was quite impressive when it came out and, yes, it cost more than I could really afford too! In fairness though, this was in South Africa where imported consumer electronics have always been very expensive compared with the UK.
 
Vivitar V2000. Small, light, plasticky. Very simple; fully mechanical and manually controlled, with a +o- metering indicator, with the 'o' lighting up in green, the + and - in red. Such a brilliant idea. Pentax K mount. My first ever 'proper' cam, bought in 1992 from Vic Oddens in London Bridge, for £100 inc a 28-70mm kit zoom. Got me through my A level photography, which then led on to uni. Those two year son the A-level course were some of the best of my life. That camera enabled me to really fall in love with photography, and set me on a journey I'm still enjoying. Still got it; it still works! Probably the one camera I would never part with.

Nikon D600. Bought in 2013. Replaced a D200 I'd bought a few months previously, to get me back into photography, but which quickly proved too limiting. The D600 was an instant revelation. Enabled me to explore photography much more, and to really hone my craft. A brilliant camera, so capable, produces such wonderful results. Still got it, still using it regularly.

Nikon Z6. Bought last year. Bought to replace a D3300 which I'd bought for travelling etc. An incredible camera. Where the D600 astonished me, this leaves me dumbfounded. It's low light capability, particularly, is just unbelievable. And it focuses on someone's eye; even if they're moving about!!! It even focuses on a cat's eye!!!!!!! :eek:

I've had/have a fair few other cameras, some really good. Currently trialling both a Nikon F4 and a Canon EOS 1. Who knows, maybe I'll fall in love with one of them too. But the above 3 will do for now.
 
Sony DSC V1, first digital camera, 5mp but got some lovely shots with it and a weird infra red night vision setting was cool. Sold many years ago.

Olympus OM4, bought to sit alongside my OM1n and there's little to separate the two.

Bronica S2A, a beautifully engineered, work of art that is just wonderful to handle and work with. Like a 50's Chevy in the hands.
 
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