First I wanted to say that I really love your blog, and your photography is what I aspire to achieve with mine.
I shoot with my dad's old Nikon FM2n, and I totally love it, but I only have one lens, a 35-80mm f/4.
I wanted to buy a new lens, but hardly any have manual aperture rings, which renders them useless with my camera. I was going to buy a second hand lens, but I'm worried about the quality of the glass.
My second question is regarding film; I currently only shoot colour negative film, and I wanted to start shooting slide, and I was wondering, when I'm going to cross process a roll, do I still use the light meter, or should I just follow the same settings all the time? Sorry if this is a bad question, I always get super nervous when I'm worried that something is going to go wrong with Frank (my camera).
Okay, last question (I swear!): Do you think it's worth buying a Diana F+ from lomography? I love the images that it produces, but do you think it would be better to just get the Lens and adapter for my camera?
Thank you SO much, I totally love your blog.
Happy New Year to you as well! So, for your FM2n (which is actually just the newer version of the FM2) I’m not sure what you mean by “manual aperture rings render my camera useless.” Manual aperture rings are on the lens (not the camera) and the FM2 is compatible with any Nikon or Nikkor lens that uses a Nikon F bayonet mount. I think literally every lens I have ever owned (except my fish-eye, which I never use) was purchased second-hand. You can find some great quality lenses, especially manual focus lenses that most people are too lazy to use now. I recommend adding a standard 50mm or a wide-angle to your lens collection, they are both very practical for a wide variety of situations.
Moving on… when you switch to color positive film, you will definitely want to use a light meter. The stop range of color negative film is 3 stops before you lose information in the negative from under or overexposure. Slide film has a stop range of 1 1/2, which is why it is frequently referred to as “professional” - because your exposure really needs to be on point. Obviously you should set your ISO on your light meter to match the ISO on your film, unless you are pushing or pulling.
And last one… I personally have a hard time recommending Lomo for Dianas and Holgas because I think I literally paid $5 for my Holga and $20 for the Woca I bought 5 years later. Most plastic medium format cameras will give similar effects; you can look for an Agfa Isoly on eBay or at flea markets. They sell for a fraction of the price of Holgas and Diana’s on Lomo.com. However, if you really want a “Diana” and only a Diana, Lomo is definitely your best option. The effects from plastic cameras are created from a combination of the lens, a crappy shutter, and a plastic body (which usually has light leaks). Using a lens adapter will not give you the same allover effect. Hope that helps :)
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