The notes above are all helpful if there is a problem.
- Focusing screens: Original screens for the FM2 are the K2 (split image with encircling micro-risk)/B2 (plain matte field)/E2 (plain matte field with gridlines). (Nikon support page -
screens available for FM2) I always found the K series screens to be annoyingly fussy with all the focusing aids that got in the way of my seeing the subject, and always replaced that with the E2 ... that way you can focus on the ENTIRE screen without the focusing aids getting in the way. This is supremely easy with an 85mm f/1.4 ...the focusing aids are NOT as accurate as the plain matte fresnel focusing screen surface. The K3/B3/E3 screens were the same but were introduced for the FM3a model with a smoother matte fresnel focusing surface ... because people liked that. I always found them harder to focus accurately with: the tooth of the E2 screen made the in-focus/out-of-focus transition clearer to my eyes. All of these are compatible/usable across all the FM2/FE2 etc models. I'd go get an E2 screen (easily available from Ebay for under $50).
- Technique: Then practice, practice, practice. I've found it (after 20+ years of using, beating on, pounding around with Nikon FM/FM2/FE2 cameras) very very unusual for the reflex mirror/focusing screen/focus plane alignment to go out of adjustment ... I mean, it never happened on any of the four bodies I had, some of which were bought ultra cheap and badly beaten by the previous owners. The 85/1.4 has extremely little if any focus shift from wide open to f/4 too, so the likelihood is that you're simply still learning how to focus it properly. It takes time, and you are going to spend some film learning focusing technique. Accept that and just get to work practicing.
* Remember that to run a couple of practice rolls through the camera, all you need to do is practice focusing and process the negatives. Cheap B&W film and process yourself ... $4 a roll. Study your results with a 10x loupe and see if you nail the focus.
Depth of Field: A typical portrait distance with an 85mm lens should be about 5 to 8 feet. At 7 foot distance and f/2.8, all you have is four inches of DoF: from
DOFMaster ...
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Subject distance 7 ft
Depth of field
Near limit 6.84 ft
Far limit 7.17 ft
Total 0.34 ft
In front of subject 0.16 ft (49%)
Behind subject 0.17 ft (51%)
Hyperfocal distance 279.6 ft
Circle of confusion 0.03 mm
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That's an awfully tight DOF to do portraits with, and is less than the typical distance from the tip of an adult man's nose to his ear lobe. Getting the eye in focus is critical, but a picture will look like it's out of focus if the nose and the ear lobe is out of focus even if the eye is sharp. f/4 nets you 6 inches, which is enough (barely); f/5.6 nets you 7.5 inches which is nice for that kind of work. Think about what you're trying to achieve, and use the lens opening that nets enough DoF to cover your important subject areas properly.
The hyper-thin DoF that is so vogue in portraits these days is generally speaking ugly to my eye. Too much out of focus... Better to have a little more in focus and actually have a sharp appearing subject. I almost never shoot portraits with openings wider than f/4 unless I'm simply constrained by light and exposure needs...
🙂
Good luck!
G
