NikonRF2

Place the Nikon RF2 in context and you land in the late 1980s, the golden age of the autofocus point-and-shoot. Catalogued as a autofocus compact, it pairs the Nikon 35mm f/3.5 with a 35mm film path. Worth knowing up front: sold as the One·Touch 100 outside Europe — Nikon's naming for its cheap compacts changed with almost every border crossing.

Format

35mm

Year

1987

Lens

Nikon 35mm f/3.5

Min. focus

0.65 m

Flash

Built-in auto, range ~10 m

Battery

2× AA (some versions 1× CR123A)

The Nikon 35mm f/3.5 sits in the daylight sweet spot: sharp wide open, well-corrected against flare, and small enough to disappear in a jacket pocket. Standard 35mm keeps it compatible with whatever Kodak, Ilford, Fuji or CineStill stock you find on the shelf today. A single CR123A lithium cell powers everything including the motor; still cheap and stocked at most camera shops. The built-in flash will fire whenever the meter decides it should, so learn the override before your first night out. Minimum focus is 0.65 m, close enough for a coffee cup or a face but stops short of true macro. Worth knowing in the field: the 'RF' has nothing to do with rangefinders; it is just a Nikon series letter, which trips up collectors constantly. Best for street, travel and environmental portraits — 35mm is the all-rounder documentary photographers default to.

The Nikon RF2 hasn't been swept up by the algorithm yet, which is the entire window — get one before the rest of the internet catches up. A footnote that often comes up: the focus-memory switch on the front lets you lock distance and recompose — a genuinely useful feature on an otherwise entry-level camera.

• §1Sold as the One·Touch 100 outside Europe — Nikon's naming for its cheap compacts changed with almost every border crossing.
• §2The 'RF' has nothing to do with rangefinders; it is just a Nikon series letter, which trips up collectors constantly.
• §3The focus-memory switch on the front lets you lock distance and recompose — a genuinely useful feature on an otherwise entry-level camera.
• §4Runs on two AA cells, so unlike most late-80s compacts you can bring it back to life with batteries from any corner shop.