Nikon FM2 User manual

Nikon
INSTRUCTIONMANUAL
EI
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f iloMENcLAruRE
O Shutterspeed/AsA/lSOfilm speed
ring ADR
window
@
@Shutter
release
button
@Shutter
release
lingerguard
@Neckstrap
eyelet
@Depth-of-field
preview
lever
@Self-timer
lever
@Lensmounting
flange
@fitmadvancelever
Meter
coupling
lever
@
Synccord
terminal
@
Lens
mounting
index
@
Focusing
screen
release
latch
@
Lens
release
button
@
Reflexmirror
@
Film
sprockets
@
@Ready-light
@
Viewfinder
eyepiece
@
Rewindfork
@
Shutter
curtains
@fitmcartridgechamber
@
Film
guidepin
@
fitm
guide
rails
Serial
number
@
Filmtakeup
spool
@
Film
anti-curl
roller
@
@
Data
back
contacts Locking
catch
@
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@Depth-of-f
ieldindicators
/Lensmountingring Distance
scale
@
@
Aperture/Focusingindex
@Infrared
comoensationindex
@Meter
couplingshoe
@
Meter
coupling
ridge
Focusing
ring
@
Aoerture
scale@
Aperture
ring
@
ADR
scale
@
ffilt
#$riltii
,rlii i
@
Hot-shoecontact
@
Ready-light
contact
@Accessory
shoe
@
Cameraback
lock
lever
@fitmrewind
knoo
@
fitmrewind
crank
@
fitm
plane
indicator
@
Motordrivecoupling
@
Fitmrewind
button
Shutter
speed
index
@
Shutterspeeddial
@
Multipleexposurelever
@
Frame
counter
@
ASA/ISO
film
speed
indicator
@
ASA/lSOfilm
speed
dial
@
Film
pressureplate
@
@
Motordriveshuttercoupling Tripod
socket
@
Motor
driveelectricalcontacts
@
Battery
chamberlid
@
@
Memoholder
Camera
back
@
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7
CONTENTS
]{OilE]ICLATURE. . . 2-3
FOREWORD.... .......5
BAS|COPERAT!O]|.... ..6-15
GoNTROLStl' DETA|L.... ....16-35
Filmadvancelever. ........16
Framecounter ...... 16
Shutter
release
button. .....17
ASA/ISOfilm
speed
dial... ... ... . t8
Shutterspeeddial/exposuredetermination. 18-25
Setting
theshutterspeed .18- 19
Settingthe
aperture..... .....20
Exposure
determination... ....21
Exposure
display. ......2'l
Meteringrange
ofexposuremeter ... 22
Stop-down
exposuremeasurement.
.
.. .... 23
Exposure
measurement
inspecial
cases. ...24
Duplication
work
andphotomicrography. ...25
Viewfinder/viewing&focusing ..... 26-27
Depth-of-field
preview
lever.. 28-30
Self-timerlever.. .... 30
Multipleexposure
lever.. ...31
Memoholder. .......32
lnfrared
compensationindex. .... .32
Flash
photography. ... 33-35
Ready-light . 34-35
AGCESSORTES. ..36-44
Interchanseaore
ioclsiil
;reen;...
... ..30-32
Close-upequipment .......38
MotorDrive
MD-12 .... .. .. .
39
NikonSpeedlights..... ....40
DataBackMF-16...... ....41
Anti-ColdBatteryPack
DB-2. .
... .42
Right-AngleViewing
Attachment
DR-3. ........ 42
EyepieceMagnifier
DG-2. ........ 42
Rubbereyecup. .....42
Eyepiececorrectionlenses ....... 42
CableReleaseAR-3. ......42
Filters. ..... ..
43
Lenshoods ... 43
Cameracases ...... 44
Neckstraps .. . 44
Compartmentcases. ...... 44
TIPS
(,1{
BATTERY
USE. ....45
TIPS
ONCATERA
GARE .... . 46-47
SPECTF|CATTOI{S 48-49
IilPORTANTI... ......50
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* FoREwoRD
Welcome
to theFM2'suniqueworld
of photography!
Withan
unprecedented
maximumshutter
speedof 1/4000sec.,
your
camera
is
the
fastestSLRavailable
today.
Thisfeatureiscom-
plemented
bya flashsynchronization
speedof '11250sec.,
the
fastestavailable
in 35mm photography.
That'sbecausethe
FM2 uniquely uses semi-beehive-etched,
vertical-traveling,
titanium mechanicalshutter curtains. Other creativity-en-
hancing
features
arethe wideASA/ISO
rangeof 12to 6400,
interchangeable
focusingscreens,
thebuilt-in LEDready-light
as well as capability
for multiple-exposureand motor drive
photography.
Additionally,
the FM2 has a battery power-
saving
feature:a lighttouch of the lockable
shutter
release
button activatesthe meterand the LED exposure
display
system,
whichautomaticallyswitches
off some30 seconds
later.To
obtain
thebest
resultswiththeFM2, besure
to keep
this instructionmanual
handyuntil you've
fully mastered
operation-just a few minutesfor manyyears
of rewarding
photography.
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BASIC
OPERATION
I Remove the battery
rr chamber lid iu
.
Use
acointo
unscrewthelidin
acounter-
clockwise
direction.
D Installthe battery.
-r Wipe
the batteryterminals
clean
andinsert
thebatteries,making
surethat
the+ signsareup Usable
batteriesare:
e
3V
lithium
battery
(t unit)
o'l
.55V
silver-oxide
batteries,
3.1V
(2
units)
o
1.5V
alkaline-manganese
batteries,
3V,
(2
units)
Caution:Keep
batteries
awayfrominfants
and
smallchildren.
lncaseabatteryis
accidentally
swallowed,
calla doctorimmediately
as the
material
inside
the
batteries
cancause
serious
oroblems.
a Putthe battery chamber
v' lidback in its place.
Slip
the
batteryclip
back
into
the
camera
body
baseplateandscrewit clockwise
tightly
into
place.
Note:
Formoreinformation
onbatteries,refer
to
page
45
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,A Full out the film advance
E' te"er - to unlock the
shutter release button z .
The film advance
leverdoubles
as a
shutter
releasebutton
lock Youcanun-
lockthe
shutter
releasebutton
bysimply
pulling
out
thefilmadvance
leverslightly
fromthe
flushtothestandoff
position.
tr Press
the shutter
v' release
button lightly to
switch the erposure meter
on.
Theshutter
release
button
activates
the
exposure
meterwhenlightly
pressed
The
meteritselfstays
onforapprox.30sec.
after
you
have
taken
your
fingeroffthe
button.
looking
throughthe viewfinder.
lf one or
two of the red LED exposure indicator
lamps insidelightsup, this would mean
normalcondition.
Note: Whenthe shutter speed
dial@ is on B
buld, noneoftheexposure
indicator
lampswill
light
up.Be sure
tosetthe dialat another
posi'
tion lf none of the exposure
indicatorlamps
Iight up, either the battery is improperly in-
stalled-in which case you should installit
properly-or batterypower is not sufficient,
in which caseyoushould
change
thebattery.
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BASIC OPE
RATlOJ{
- sontinued
focusingindex
@ onthelens
withthelensmounting
index
@
on the camera
body.
Then
twistthe lensmountingring @
counterclockwise
until
it clicks intoplace.
Confirmthat the
aperture/focusing
indexisright
ontop.
Toremove:
Push
thelensrelease
button
@
andturnthelens
mountingring
clockwiseuntilthelens
comesoff.
Note:
Whenchanging
/enses
withfilmloadedinthe
camera,becareful
not
toexposethemirror
boxtodirect
sunlight.
e Op 60.
-t Pus @
counterclockwise
with
your
indexfinger
whileliftingthe
film
rewind
knob@.The
camera
backwill
pop
open.
Caution:
Nevertouch
theshutter
curtains.
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tr
filmcartridgechamber@
with
thefilm
leader
pointing
towardsthe
takeup
spool
@,
and
push
the
rewindknobbackdown
tosecure
itin
olace.
Note:Youcanuseany
ofthe35mm
tilm
car-
tildgesavailable
onthe
market.lt isadvisable
tohandlefilmin the shade
toavoiddirect
ex-
posure
to
sunlight
{fl Insert the film leader
rYr in the takeup spool.
Pullthe
leader
across
gently
and
insert
it
intooneof theslots
in thefilm takeup
spool.Slowly rotate the takeup spool
rnwards
with
your
thumb,makingsure
the
latchintheslotengages
thefirst
or
sec-
ondoerforation
alonq
the
side
of
thefilm
leader.
a I Wind the film advance
I I I lever to advance film
onto the takeup spool.
Wind
thefilmadvance
leveranddepress
the
shutter
releasebuttonuntil
thefilm
sprockets
@engage
the
perforations
on
theedgesof
thefilm.Makesure
you
wind
thelever
fully
until
it
comes
toastop.
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BASIC OPERATION-continued
$ru;l
aD Closethe camera
r-r back.
Closethe
camera
back
untilit
snaps
shut,
making
sure that the perforations
are
perfectly
meshed
with
the
sprockets
and
that
thefilm
is
setbetween
thef
ilm
guide
rails
@.
@ and rotate it in the direction
of the
arrow
on the film rewind
knobuntilit
stops.
Thenfold
the
crank
backin.
aA, Make blank exposures
r-rrr until the frame
COunter is reaCheS frame 1.
Press
the
shutterrelease
button
and
wind
the film advance
lever
until
the frame
counter
reaches
frame
1.
As
you
wind
the
lever,
confirm
thatthefilm
rewind
knob
rotates
counterclockwise.
Thisindicates
the film hasbeenloaded
and is being
advanced
correctly.
lf the knob
fails
to
rotate,
reload
thefilm
cartridoe.
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{ 5, Set the ASAIISO film
llyr speed.
Lift
theASA/ISO
filmspeed
ring
e and
rotate
it in eitherdirection
until
the red
ASA/lSO
filmspeed
indicator@
isoppo'
site
theASA/lSO
filmspeed
indicationin
useUnless
thefilmspeed
issetcorrectly,
you
cannot
obtain
correctexposure.
For
filmspeeds
notindicated
intheASA/lSO
filmspeeddial@,
reJerto
page
18.
{ 1:1 Holdthe camera and
Ivr point it atthe subject.
Basic
holding
posture:
Use
your
lefthand
to cradle thecamera,
with
your
fingers
wraooedaround
thelens and
theelbow
propped
against
your
body
for
support,
as
you
look
throughthe
viewfinder.
Use
your
right
hand'sindex
fingerto depress
the
shutter
releasebuttonand
your
thumb
to
windthe film advance
lever.Wrapthe
other
fingersof yourright
hand
around
the camera body.
You can adapt this
basic
posture
toboth
horizontaland
ver-
ticalformatshooting.
To
holdthecamera
steady,
itis
advisable
toleanonoragainst
something
strongand
stable
(e.g.,a
wall).
Also,
you
can
lookthrough
theviewf
inder
with
therightor lefteye,with
theother
eyeclosed
oropen.
11
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-- BASIC OPERATIOJ{- contimued
'l2mm-diameter
circle)ofthefield
ofviewinside
theviewfinder.
Thenturn
the
shutterspeed
dial@
and/or
lens
aperturering
@
untilthe LED lampfor the symbolfor correct
exposure
o
lights
up.
lmportant! lntermediate
settrngsof lensaperturebut not of shutter
soeedareusable.
Note: Themeter reads
thelight overtheentirefocusingscreen
but has
adistinct
biasonthe central12mm-diameter
area.
12
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Out
offocus lnfocus
{ Q Focus on the subiect
rtur by rotating the lens
focusing ring +o
.
The
FM2
is
provided
with
theType
K2
fo-
cusing
screen
asstandard.
Look
through
the
viewfinder
while
turning
the
focusing
ringuntil
the
two
halvesof
the
split
image
rangefinder
coincide
perfectly
to forma
single
unbroken
imageand
the
image
in
the
microprism
grid
appears
sharp.
Cor-
rect
focuswill
thenbesecured
IJ
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' BASIC OPERATIOJ{-sontinued
h
ffi Depress
the shutter
releasebutton.
Lookthroughthe
viewfinder,
and
depress
the
shutterrelease
button.In
depressing
the
shutter
release
button,
apply
light
but
steady
pressure
with the ball of your
index
fingerto avoidcamera
shakethat
might
resultinimage
blur.
far
as
it
will
go
totransport
the
f
ilm
tothe
next
frame
andready
the
cameraforthe
next
shot.Donot
apply
excessive
pres-
sure
in
windingthelever.
Youcannotwind
thelever
whenthefilm
is
atanend-you
should
then
rewind
thefilm.
Df Press
the film rewind
- I I button *s
.
Afterthelast
exposure
has
beenmade,
turn
the
camera
upsidedown
and
press
the film rewind
button,
so thatthe ex-
posed
film
canbe rewound
back
into
its
cartridge.
Youdon'thave
todepressthe
buttonallthe
wav.
14
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P
qrD Rewind
th lm.
--r Liftthefilm
r d crank
and
turnitinthe
direction
ofthe
arrow.Atthe
endof filmrewind,
you
willfeel
a slight
resistance.
Continuewinding
oneor two
more
turns
untilthe
crankfeelslighter;
this
willindicate
thatthefilmleader
is
now
f
ully
rewound
into
the
cartridge.
O.i, Remove the film
-vr cartridge.
Push
thecamera
backlocklever
inthe
directionofthe
arrowas
you
lift
thefilm
rewind
crankto openthe
camera
back.
Take
outthefilm
cartridge.
Avoid
unload-
ingfilmin
direct
sunlight.
6 A Put the film advance
3f t lever back into place.
Closethe
cameraback
and
push
the
film
advanceleverinto
place.
When
you're
not
usingthecamera,
you
shouldset
the
film
advanceleverto this
position
which
locks the shutterrelease
buttonand
keeps
the exposure indicator
lampsin-
side
theviewfinder
switchedoff evenif
the
shutterrelease
button
is
accidentally
pressed.
Note:Evenifthe
exposureindicatorlampislit,
it willautomatically
beswitchedoffinapprox.
30 sec
, andtheexposure
measuring
circuit
willsimultaneously
becutoff.
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CONTROLS
INDETAIL
Film advance lever @
The
film
advance
lever
also
functionsasa lock
forthe
shutter
releasebutton.
The
shutter
release
button
isunlocked
whenthe
leveris
pulled
outtothestandoff
position.
Toadvance
thef
ilm,
windthe leverto the right
alltheway until
it stops. lt auto-
matically
returns
tothe
standoff
position
themoment
you
take
your
thumboff it. A single,
completedstroke
of thelever ad-
vances
thefilmby a single
frameandsimultaneously
cocks
theshutter.
Frame counter @
Theadditive
typeframecounter
is
graduated
fromS '12 4-
upto36
ineven
numberswithodd
numbers
indicatedby
white
dots
in
between
the
even
numbers.Even
if
there's
nofilminthe
camera,
the
framecounter
is
operative,
advancing
bya single
frameevery
time
thefilmadvance
leverisfully
wound.After
frame36ofa36-exposure
rollof
film,thecounter
will
not
oper-
ateeven
if
you
repeatedly
press
the
shutter
releasebutton
and
windthefilmadvance
lever;film
willbe advanced,
however,
until
theactualend
ofthe
filmroll.
Thecounter
isautomatically
resetto
S
whenthecamera
back
isopened.
ooli6f
Gi.*
to
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Shutter release button @
The
shutter
release
buttonalsoservesto activatethe FM2's
built-inexposure
meter.
Whenthefilm
advance
lever
is inthe
flush
position,
the
shutter
release
button
islocked
andwill
not
operate.Toreleasethe
buttonfromitslocked
position,
pull
out
the
filmadvancelevertothe
standoff
position.
Slight
pressure
onthe
shutter
release
button
willthen
switchon boththeex-
posure
meter
andtheLEDexposureinformation
display
inside
theviewfinder.
Themeter
and
the
display
remain
onfor
approx.
30sec.after
thefinger
is
removed
fromthe
button,afterwhich
they
areautomatically
switched
offtoconservebattery
power.
Pressingthe
shutter
release
button
all
theway
down
releases
theshutter When
youdepressthe button,
touchthe finger-
guard
@
withthetipof
your
index
fingerand
depress
itlightly
with
smooth,even
pressure.
Thismakes
shutterreleaseoper-
ation
smoothandstable.Witha shuttersoeed of 1/30sec.or
slower,itis advisableto
attachthecamerato
atripod anduse
acable
release
to release the
shutter,
this
will
prevent
camera
shake
whichresultsin blurred
photographs.
The cablecon-
nector
can
bescrewed
into
the
hole
at
the
centerofthe
shutter
release
button.lfthetripodhas
a largehead,
contactbetween
the
lens
barrel
and
theheadmay
makeitimpossibletoturn
the
lens
aperture
ring.
Inthis
case,use
'the
specialtripod
adapter
suppliedwiththe camera
betweenthe triood
head
and the
camerabody
II
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-CONTROLS lN DETA|t-continued
ASA|ISO film speed dial @
TheASA/ISO
scaleon the dial has numbered
settingsfor
speedsfrom
ASA/lSO
12to
6400.The
dots
between
each
oair
of
ASA/lSOnumbers
standforintermediate
settings,
such
as64,
80,
etc.Theillustration
above
gives
thespeedsfor all inter-
mediate
settings.ASA/lSO
100
and
400areindicated
in
red
as
they
areused
quite
often.
ASA/lSOis
anumerical
rating
ofthe
film's
sensitivityto
agiven
amount
of light.
Thehigher
thenumber,
the
greater
the
sensi-
tivity,
andvice
versa.
TheASA/lSO
of
your
film
isindicated
on
the
cartridgeitself.
lt is
also
printed
onthefilm
carton
andon
the
datasheet
oacked
inside.
Shutter speed dial 6D
I erposure
determlnation
Setting the shutter speed
To
set
the
shutter
speed,turn
the
shutter
speed
dialtotheright
or
left
until
the
desired
shutter
speednumber
click-stops
and
is
aligned
withthe
shutter
speedindex
@.
The
dial
has
indications
for
B
(bul'b)
andfor
shutter
speedsfrom
1to'l/4OOO
sec.
The
250
engravedinredindicates
thefastest
syncspeedfor
anelectronic
flash
unit.OnB,the
shutter
curtains
@remain
openforaslong
as
theshutterrelease
buttoniskept
depressed.1isfor
indicat-
ing
one
second,2tor 112
sec.,60
for
1/60
sec.
andsoon.
Oneof
thetwo
adjoiningnumbers,
excluding
Bis two
times
or 112 as
much
asthe
exposure
amount
ofthe
other
number.
Notethat
shutter
speedsbetween
printed
numbers
(i.e.,
intermediate
speeds)cannot
be used.
Since
youcan alwaysconfirm
the
shutter
speednumberinside
the
viewfinder,
you
don't
have
to
seethe
shutter
speeddialas
vou
turnit.
1B
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rastsnutJrspeed StowsnuttersDeed 19
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-GONTROLS lN DETAllrcontinued
t!*tu Mffi
Setting the aperture
Thelens
aperturedetermines
the
amountof lightreaching the
filmplane.
Generally,
when
you turn the aperture
ringone
graduation
inthe
directionof
thelargernumbers,
theamountis
reduced
by 112.
(tnisis
whatstoppingdownbyone
graduation
means.)
On
theother
hand,
whenthe
aperture
ringis
turnedone
graduation
inthe
direction
of smaller numbers,the
amountof
lightis
doubled.
(tnis isknown
asopeningtheapertureby 1
stop.)The
lens
aperture
ring
clicksatthe
position
ofthenumbers
engravedalthough
intermediate
lens
aperturesare
usablecon-
tinuously.
Lensaperture
greatly
affectsdepth
offield
(see
page
2B).Withthe exception of a few speciallenses,Nikkorano
Nikon
Series
E lenses enable
full-aperturelight
measurement
even
whentheaperture
ring
is
moved.
These
lenses,which
are
said
to have an automaticdiaphragm,stopdown
to the set
aperture
only at the instant
the shutter release
buttonis
deoressed.
20
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