I wanted to see what is it like to shoot with the classic Nikon FM2. I wasn't that thrilled with using my film SLR (Leica R4S), so I wanted to try what used to be considered an industry standard.
I spent February in Prague occupying my good friend's kitchen couch. I am grateful that he survived my stay and on my last day I finally had some free time so we spent a day together with his wife and son. I borrowed his trusty old Nikon and a great day followed.
Nikon was paired with the standard 1.4/50mm lens and I bought some cheap ISO400 color negative film (DM Paradies) for the day. I mainly wanted to see what is it like to shoot with the FM2, I didn't care about the film quality.
FM2 is nice to shoot with. I had no problems even using the camera for the first time. The viewfinder is fantastic. Larger than life (and D800) and very bright with the 1.4 lens. The 1.4 lens also helped with focusing due to the shallow depth of field. However I have missed focus a few times. Compared with my RS4 and f2 lens this Nikon combo seemed easier to focus with. But I will have to take the R4S for a spin as soon as I get home to make a comparison, while the FM2 memory is still fresh.
This is what the Nikon FM2 looks like hanging around your neck.
The film was a cheap amateur thing and the scan is of an average low-res quality. But you can see that the 1.4/50 lens can deliver, especially when stopped down. I can only wonder what would the pictures look like if shot on a quality film and scanned properly.
One thing I didn't like is the stiff time setting dial. I wish it was easier to turn with one finger (with the eye to the viewfinder).