I didn’t particularly want this Nikon body. I was more interested in the lens. But the price of the body plus lens was so attractive that I decided to go for it.

The Nikon N6006 (also known as the F-601 outside of the US) was launched in 1990. The Nikon F4 was at the pinnacle of the Nikon product line. Below it was the ‘prosumer’ Nikon N8008. Then came the N6006 aimed at advanced amateurs. Finally came the N4004 targeted at the beginner end of the market.

The N4004 was the first, coming out in 1987, and started to take on the modern camera “look”: electronic film advance; thicker grip and the newly introduced command dial to allow multiple functions without dedicated dials.

Then in 1988 came the Nikon N8008 with its four-button cluster on the left side and the command dial on the right. PASM shooting modes were introduced. This layout has not changed much since.

Enter the Nikon N8008, in 1988, with the new “push-button” interface and the new “matrix“ metering, which measured five segments and then averaged them to give the correct exposure.

In 1990 the N6006 was introduced featuring the same controls, and also including a built in flash, burst mode (2 frames/second rather than the N8008‘s 3.3), a slower shutter speed (1/2000 rather than the N8008‘s 1/8000). It was sold as a less sophisticated alternative to the N8008 but in fact had improved matrix metering and a predictive autofocus system that could track moving subects.

It continued to be produced from 1990-1994.

For more information see the appropriate section on the Malaysian Internet Resources site.