The Nikon Fm2 camera is indeed a work horse.  This is my very first film camera and I’m sure most people started film photography with one too. There are a couple of variations being the original FM2 and the FM2n where the later model have a slightly higher flash sync speed. I have the privilege of owning both of the models (one chrome which I sold off early this year and another in black ) and to be honest I did not notice a slight difference between them apart from the different X sync shutter speed. The earlier models have the more sought after honey comb titanium shutter while later models are aluminum alloy.  I can’t vouch which is better or more durable as I have not encountered any issues with the FM2 so far. Do note that Nikon do not indicate the Fm2n on the camera body hence the only way to differentiate between these models is the flash sync speed of 125 (FM2) and 250 (FM2n) on both of the camera shutter speed dials as well as on the serial number. ( more details on the link below )

The FM2 are equipped with a illuminating LED type metering system which is displayed on the right of the view finder. Like most film cameras back then, the metering is center weighted and it feeds on the readily available LR44 battery which are pretty cheap. I love cameras that could work with or without battery and the FM2 is one of it. The FE2 on the other hand  would not be fully functional once the battery is dead hence giving the FM2 a little bit more of an advantage.

Comparing to other film SLR from that era, I personally favs the FM2 and the Olympus OM1. The FM2 view finder is not as wide or bright as the OM1 but the maximum shutter speed of 1/4000th second on the FM2 is indeed another advantage. The camera layout is well thought off and intuitive to use.

One the streets, it’s fairly easy to use. Maybe that’s why most beginners started off with one. The Nikon F mount works with almost all the lenses from the 50’s till now hence mostly likely it will work with your existing nikon lenses as long it has an aperture ring on it.

There are a comprehensive write up on the FM2 and the F2n variations on the link below. give it a read if you are planning to get one . It’s best to do some homework before investing on a film camera . After all it’s easily 20 years old : ) Hope this helps. Have fun and keep shooting !

http://www.mir.com.my/rb/photography/hardwares/classics/nikonfmseries/fm2/index.htm

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