I have been spending hours late into the night, learning about film photography, challenges, techniques, and the thrills of this art form. Back in Sri Lanka, film photography was dead, literally. We did not have anyone selling film rolls, and more importantly anybody developing film in a commercial setting. But here in Singapore, film is still alive, and thriving. So I knew that this was my chance to get my hands on this classic form of art.
Say “Hello!” to my new friend, Nikon FM, a fully mechanical 35mm film camera that was released in 1977 as a replacement for Nikkormat FT3, produced until 1982 to be replaced by Nikon FM2. Yes, this camera is fully mechanical, in the sense that you do not need a battery to trigger the shutter and capture images. However, there is an inbuilt through-the-lens light meter in this camera that requires a battery to function. As tiny as it is, the battery in this one would last for many months without replacement. Even if it runs out, I could always fall back to using a light meter app on my phone, or just go with Sunny-16 to get close to the right exposure.
Right now, almost all that I can share about this camera is the kind of things that you can easily find online on YouTube. So let me take a pause here, push a few rolls of film through this, and then come back with what I learned from that experience. I am excited especially because this camera is actually older than me, so I will be holding an important piece of history in my hands during these shoots.
On a separate note, I finished shooting my first roll of film through the Kodak Ektar H35, the 35mm half-frame film camera that I bought a few weeks back. I have dropped it to be developed, and now waiting patiently to see the outcome.