Nikon FM2N obstrusive advance level

I've just purchased the Nikon FM2N and will be testing it out tomorrow. Although I'm quite excited to do so, I'm a little bothered by the fact that the advance lever needs to be pulled out to be able to press the shutter and see the light meter.

My dominant eye is my left eye, so I tend to use it to look through the viewfinder when taking the photos. This means that I can't lean my face too close to the camera if the advance lever is sticking out.

Am I doing something wrong?

Cheers!

It's designed that way to prevent the battery from being drained dead.

480sparky said:

It's designed that way to prevent the battery from being drained dead.

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Hey Sparky. Oh that's a shame, not the best ergonomics, I'm not used to having an advance lever poking me in the face whilst trying to focus or frame a shot. An on/off would have been nice.

I'm not sure if Nikon made a rubber eye cup for those who wear glasses. It might allow your face to be slightly further from the viewfinder (and from the lever, too). Does anyone know if one was made?

The way around that is to buy the MD-12 winder. The camera then uses the batteries in the MD and you don't get poked in the eye

nzswift said:

The way around that is to buy the MD-12 winder. The camera then uses the batteries in the MD and you don't get poked in the eye

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Thanks for the suggestion nzswift, will have to look into that soon. Used it the Nikon FM2N for the first time and quite pleased with the results. Here is an example:

Or use a handheld meter and shoot in manual.