I had a Nikon FE for years, I loved shooting but about 18 months ago it gave up the ghost. Soon after, I found pretty well loved FE2 on Ebay and decided to give it a punt.
I liked the fact that the FE2 has a shutter speed of 1/4000th sec compared to the FE which was 1/1000th. This gave me greater chances to shoot with wider apertures in bright light. Unfortunately, after shooting the 1st roll, it was evident that there was a really bad light leak. Being quite tight, rather than seek repair, and just as a first test to find the cause of the leak, I decided to see if the back from my broken FE would fit the FE2. As luck would have it, the replacement not only fitted but it eliminated the leak… Result!
I also have an FM2n which I do love to shoot, but the ease of the aperture priority on the FE2 means I tend to use it more.
Recently I have been trying out the various motion picture stocks available. I’ve been developing them at home in C41 and was eager to compare what they would look like when developed in the correct chemistry.
Here are 5 frames shot with the FE2 from my 1st roll of Fuji Reala 500D. I had it developed by SilverPan Labs in Bristol, and I’m very pleased with how they look.
The colours are pretty close to how the scene really looked, maybe a little more subtle. The grain is also far finer compared with my efforts in C41, to be fair, I still like how my initial efforts look and will be trying some other stocks in ECN2 shortly, just to see which I prefer in which chemistry.
My websites:
https://timdobbsphotography.wordpress.com/
https://usingfilm.wordpress.com/
Have you ever tried the FM3A?
No I have not … I have an FM2n which I love but not tried any F3’s yet 🙂
The photos look so great. They look comparable to a Leica camera. They have that nostalgia look to them. Great job. I’d like to see what some portraits would look like.
The FE2 is essentially the same size as a Leica M. I’ve got my FE2 fitted w/a 55mm micro-Nikkor. This is my ‘technical’ camera; my Leica M is my field camera, and the Nikon is for studio work involving close-up photography. The FE2 is a fine camera, and both cameras compliment each other without competing with one another. Truly an under-rated Nikon.