Film cameras
Nikon FG-20 User manual
User manual for Nikon FG-20. 56 pages in English. Read the original PDF, download or print a copy without registration.
56 pagesEnglish6.4 MB PDF
Loading your manual…Open PDF directly
Document details
- Brand
- Nikon
- Model / document
- Nikon FG-20
- Document type
- User manual
- Language
- English
- Pages
- 56
- File size
- 6.4 MB
- Category
- Film cameras
- Document date
- Not specified in catalog
Search available document text
Find a term, then jump to its page in the original PDF. Image-only pages may not be searchable; check the PDF for exact wording and diagrams.
Page 6 · Read text
FOREWORD Welcome to Nikon's world.of picture-taking ease. With your new FG-20 it's easy to take the type of high. quality photographs which have become synonymous with the Nikon name. The FG-20 features automatic exposure control. Just set the camera to A, select a shooting aperture on the lens, and fire away. The FG-20 then instantaneously sets the proper shutter speed for correct exposure steplessly over the range of 1 to 1/1O00sec. lf you desire, you can set the shutter speed dial to the (t' mark. Then an audible warning is provided to let you know when the scene is too bright to get correct ex- posure or when the shutter speed is around '1l3Osec. or slower, indicating that you should use a tripod. Moreover, the FG-20 offers full manual control of all shutter speeds for creative experimentation; in addi- tion there are two mechanical settings-MgO (1/gO sec.) and A (UutO)-which do not iequire battery power. Before using your camera, please read this instruc- tion manual from cover to cover. A few minutes in- vested now will pay off in years of rewarding picture- taking experiences.View original page 6
Page 9 · Read text
BASIC OPERATION-continued butkus.us
-
lens onto the camera. fl Mount the vr Lenses which are usable with the Nikon FG-20 To remove: While pushing the lens release button @,
are Al-S Nikkor, Nikon Series E, Al-Nikkor, most Al- turn the lens mounting ring clockwise until the lens
modified Nikkor, and certain special lenses. (For comes off.
details about usable lenses, refer to page 54.) tWith film loaded in the camera, be careful not to expose the
To mount a lens, first line up the aperture/distance mirror box to direct sunlight while you are changing /enses.
index @ on the lens with the lens mounting index @
on the camera body. Then twist the lens mounting ring
@ counterclockwise until the lens clicks into place.
Check to see that the aperture/distance index is
exactly at the top.View original page 9Page 11 · Read text
BASIC OPERATION butkus.us -co[tinued rJr-fd
-
with the film the film Advance the film I a{ fl Engage rr I rvr . advanceleYer' perforationswith
+s . Wind the film advance lever and depress the shutterthe sprocket teethTurn the takeup spool slightly with release button until the lilm sprockets engage the perforations on the edges of the film. Confirmyour thumb, so that a Perforatton
at the bottom edge of the film is that the tilm is properly seated between both film
engaged with the small tooth at guide rails @ and there is no lilm slack. Then close
the bottom of the slot in the takeuP the camera back until it snaps shut.
spool, and the toP and bottom Per-
toratrons mesh securelY with the
sorockets.
10View original page 11Page 12 · Read text
Take1Dr-l up the film {I 3v I ToMakeMakedisposeblankblankof theexposures.exposures.first few f rames exposed during film loading, stacK.
Fold out the film rewind crank @ continue to alternately advance the film and depress the shutter release
and rotate it slowly in the direction button until the f rame counter @ reaches f rame 1. While making blank
of the arrow on the film rewind exposures, check that the rewind knob is rotating, indicating the film
knob until you' feel slight resis- has been loaded correctly and is advancing. tf the knob does not
tance. Then fold the crank back in. rotate, reload the f ilm.
o Before the f rame counter reaches f rame 1 , with the shutter speed/mode selector
dial set at A or lhe \t' mark, the shutter f ires at a fixed speed of l /90sec. regard-
/ess of scene brightness. ro indicate blank exposures, the shutter speed needle in
the viewfinder points to C90. At a manual shutter speed selllng, the shutter f ires at
the speed set on the dial although the meter needle will not necessarily point to
that soeed.
11View original page 12Page 13 · Read text
BASIG OPERATION-continued butkus.us-
The film soeed, in the form of an ASA/lSO number, is 14.ffit lnfi,tlt$,irB"ti# speeo rins @ and
rotate it in either direction until the white index dot printed on the film carton and also on the cartridge
@ is opposite the film speed in use. itself. This number is a numerical rating of the film's
The scale @ on the ASA/ISO dial has settings from sensitivity to a given amount of light; the higher the
ASA/ISO 25 to 3200. Two dots between each number number, the greater the sensitivity, and vtce versa.
stand for intermediate settings, such as 64, 80, etc.
As a convenience, the most popular film speeds of
64, 100, 400, and 1000 are in red.
12View original page 13Page 14 · Read text
the shutter speedlmode the lens to the desired {15.I tt_li I Set 16. Set selector dial to A or (r' . aperture.
Both settings indicate automatic exposure operation. With a 50mm f/1.4 lens and ASA/lSO 100 fitm, use theAt (t' , an audible warning is provided to let you following suggestions in setting the f/stop on the lens.
know when the scene is too bright or too dark to lndoors: tl1.4-Il4
get correct exposure or when the shutter speed is Outdoors (cloudy): tl 4-tlB
around 1/30sec. or slower, indicating that you Outdoors (clear): f/8-f/16
should use a tripod.
A locking mechanism is provided between the A and
It> setting. To move from A to (tr or vtce versa,
depress the lock release button @ as you rotate the
dial.
. For manual shutter speed settrngs from 1/1000sec. to 1sec.,
refer to page 23.
't?View original page 14Page 15 · Read text
BASIC OPERATION-continued butkus.us
-
./l
Hold the camera steady. a7 r I I Many blurred shots are caused by unsteady For maximum stability, stand with your feet flat on the
holding of the camera. The basic shooting posture is ground and slightly apart; also when using slow
this: Cradle the camera in your left hand with your shutter speeds, try to lean against something stable,
fingers wrapped around the lens barrel and your such as a tree, fence post, or wall.
elbow propped against your body for support. Then
grasp the end of the camera body in your right hand
with the index finger on top of the shutter release
button and the thumb between the camera film ad-
vance lever. You can look through the viewfinder with
either eye, while you can keep your other eye opened
or closed. lt's easy to adapt this basic posture to both
horizontal- and vertical-format shooting.View original page 15Page 16 · Read text
Out of focus-18, Genterthe main subject and focus
on the subject.
Because the Nikon FG.20's ex.
posure meter is centerweighted,
compose the picture with the
main subject at the center. The
Type K clear-matte focusing screen
is provided as standard. Turn the
focusing ring @ untilthe two halves
of the split image rangefinder coin-
cide perfectly to form a single
unbroken image and the image in
the microprism appears sharp.
Correct focus will then be secured.
15View original page 16Page 17 · Read text
OPERATIONTcontinued-butkus.us
-BASIG [El=-----
I Overexposure lsll
1+$i-l
lml Correct exposure
picture blur (ffi) lisl lt Possible \_-_/ H ILr- Underexposure I llj-l
UF erposure. the Gheck {I Ov r release button halfway slower (For more information on. avoiding blurred shutter Depress the
to activate the exposure meter. lf the meter needle images, see page 32.)lf the meter needle stays in the
in the viewlinder points to any number between red zone at the bottom (underexposure warning zone)
1 and 1000 (indicating shutter speeds lrom 1 to or swings up to the red zone at the top (overexposure
1/1000sec.), you can get correct exposure at the warning zone), under- or overexposure will occur at
aperture selected. Note that, however, a slow shutter the aperture you have set. In this case, reset the lens
speed causes blurred image. With the shutter speed/ to a larger or smaller aperture as the case may be.
warning mode selector dial set at (t' , the audible warning Note that with the dial at [t> , the audible
sounds if the shutter speed is around 1/30sec. or also sounds to indicate under- or overexposure.
16View original page 17Page 18 · Read text
picture. Take theD 6 I To take a snbt, t ar I AdvanceStroke the filmtheadvancefilm. lever to transoort-v trip the shutter by pushing -the shutter release button all the way down; apply the film to the next f rame.
light but steady pressure with the ball of your index .lf the lever becomes difficult to operate at the beginning of
finger to avoid camera shake which might result in the roll, this menas that the film is not winding onto the take-
blurred images. up spool propeily. /n this case, rewind the film immediately
e lf you trip the shutter in darkness or with the lens cap and load it again.
attached, the shutter remains open. ln this case, reset the
shutter speed/mode selector dial to a manual settina.
17View original page 18Page 20 · Read text
OFen the camera back and24.- - take out fllni cartrldge.
Avoid unloading in direct sunlight. lf there is no shade
available, turn your back to the sun and use your own
shadow to shield the camera.
19View original page 20Page 21 · Read text
COI{TROLS 11{ DETAIL butkus.us
Shutter Release Button @ Fllm AdYance Lever O
Depressing the button halfway switches on the expo- To advance the film, wind the lever to the right com-
sure meter and activates the viewfinder exposure pletely until it stops. The lever returns to the standoff
information. The meter stays on for approx. 20sec. position as soon as you take your thumb off the lever.
even after taking your finger off the button; then turns A single complete stroke or a series of shorter ones
itself off automatically to conserve battery power. advances the film one frame and simultaneouslv
Depressing the button all the way down releases the cocks the shutter.
shutter.
The shutter release button is threaded in its center to
accept a standard cable release for tipping the shutter
when the camera is mounted on a tripod.
oThe shutter cannot be tripped unless the film advance lever
O is stroked completely to cock the shutter.
20View original page 21Page 23 · Read text
CONTROLS IN DETAII-se6tinuedbutkus.us
button. Note that shutter speeds between engraved- numbers (i.e., intermediate speeds) should not be I used. The dial has the following settings:
(t' (auto with audible warning):
Used for aperture-priority automatic mode shooting.
You manually set the f/stop first; then the camera
automatically selects the matching electronically
controlled shutter speed steplessly between 'l and
1/'1000sec., depending on the scene brightness and
the film speed in use. An audible warning is provided
Shutter Speedf Mode Selector Dial @ to let you know when lhe scene is too bright or too dark to get correct exposure or when the shutter The Nikon FG-20 offers aperture-priority automatic speed is around 1/30sec. or slower, indicating that mode ooeration and manual control of all shutter you should use a tripod. speeds from 'l to 1/10OOsec., including the M90
(mechanically controlled 1/90sec.) and B (bulb) .When using a tripod, be careful not to screw it into the camera's tripod socket @ too tightly, as lhls might damage
settings. To set the desired shooting mode or shutter the camera.
speed, rotate the shutter speed/mode selector dial
until the desired setting click-stops opposite the shut- A(auto):
ter speed/mode index O. At the A (for automatic Same as the (t' setting but without an audible ooeration) and (t' (lor automatic operation with an warnino.
audible warning), a locking mechanism is provided to
prevent accidental shifting of the setting. To rotate the
dial from the A or (t> setting, depress the lock re-
lease button @. You must also depress the lock release
button to move the dial from A to a manual shutter
speed. However, to move the dial from a manual
setting back to A, it is not necessary to depress the
22View original page 23Page 24 · Read text
M90 (mechanical 1/90sec.): { 1/1000 -1 sec. (manuat):
Used for full manual control of both the f/stoo and At this setting, the shutter operates mechanically at
shutter speed. Numbers on the dial are reciprocals. 1/9Osec. This setting allows you to take picrures even
e.9., 10OO means 1/1OO0sec., 5OO means 1/5OOsec., when the batteries are exhausted. lt can also be used
and so forth. 60 is engraved in red to indicate the for electronic flash photography with units other than
fastest sync speed when using electronic flash units Nikon dedicated Speedtights.
other then Nikon dedicated Speedlights. Manual
settings are used in the following cases: B (bulb):
'1. When using a separate exposure meter. At this mechanical setting, the shutter curtains @
2. When intentionally over- or underexposed photos remain open for as long as you depress the shutter
are desired. release button. The B setting is especially useful
3. When manual exposure compensation is necessary when making long time exposures with a cable release
(see page 37 for more details). with the camera mounted on a tripod.
4. When taking creative filt-in flash shots with Nikon oTo prevent inadvertent battery drain, you shoutd set the
dedicated Speedlights where you want to use shutter speedlmode selector diat to Mg| or B when the
shutter speeds of 1/60sec. or slower. camerc is not in use. That way, even if the shutter release
oEven at manual settings, the metet needle doesn'l show button is depressed, the meter wiil not be activated.
the shutter speed set on the dial but it indicates the
correct shutter speed, according to the scene bright.
ness, the aperture set on the lens, and fitm speed in use,
.lntermediate settlngs on the shutter speed/mode selector
dial cannot be used while those on the lens aperture ring @
can be. Therefore, slop the lens aperture down or open i up
to the appropriate intermediate setting when fine adius,t_
ment of the exposure ls necessary.
23View original page 24Page 27 · Read text
COI{TROLS lN DETA|L-contlnuedbutkus.us- Manual mode indicator LED
12mm-diameter circle
Meter needle
Overexposure warni ng zone
Shutter speed scale ffi
Underexposure warning zone
Ready-light (see page 41) ill 4 Erposure Vlewf I nder Information
l2mm-diameter circle. The Nikon FG-20 employs Shutter speed scale. In both the automatic and
through{he-tens (ttl) centerweighted full-aperture manual exposure modes, the meter needle indicates
exposure metering. This means that light passing the correct shutter speed, according to the scene
through the lens is measured at maximum aperture, brightness, aperture set on the lens and film speed
thus assuring a bright finder image during shooting. in use.
Special emphasis is placed on the brightness in the t For shooting moving sublects, the FG-20 lets you se/ect fast
12mm-diameter centralarea. So, by placing the main shutter speeds on auto for freezing the action or slow ones
subject in the center of the frame, you can get the for producing an intentional blur, To owrate the FG-20 in this way, turn on the exposure meter by depresstng the shutter correct exposure in most situations. release button halfway and then rotate the lens aperture ring
clockwise or counterclockwise until the meter needle points
Meter needle. As soon as the shutter release button to the desired shutter speed.
is depressed halfway to activate the meter, the needle
automatically shows the exposure information.
26View original page 27Page 28 · Read text
{
.. .,, $* ff
Underexposure wamlng zone. lf the needle stays in Overexposure warning zone. lf the needle is in the
the red zone at the bottom left of the viewfinder, this overexposure warning zone, this means the scene is
means the scene is too dark to get correct exposure too bright to get correct exposure with the aperture
with the aperture you selected. To prevent under- selected. To prevent overexposure, stop the lens
exposure, select a wider aperture or, if necessary, down until the needle drops down into shutter speed
attach an electronic flash. As a last resort, chanoe to scale. lf all else fails, attach a neutral density (ND)
a faster film. filter to the lens or change to a slower speed f ilm.
o lf the needle stays ln the underexposure warning zone even
with a bright scene at a setting other than M90 or B, this Manual mode indication LED. This LED (red M)
indicates that the batteries are exhausted. At the Mg] or B lights up after the meter is turned to indicate when
setting, the needle stays rn this zone. the shutter speed/mode selector dial is set to a
manualsettino.
27View original page 28Page 30 · Read text
1
!
Self-T[mer Lever @
This device is useful when you want to include yourself cancel operation, because returning the self{imer
in your pictures. To activate the self-timer, pull the self- lever to its original position will immediately trip the
timer lever up as far as it will go. This can be done shutter.
either before or after the film is advanced. Now that The self-timer can be used at any shutter speed/mode
the self-timer has been set, just depress the shutter selector dial setting except B.
release button. lmmediately the reflex mirror @ will cWhen using the self-timer with the camera on auto, be sure
rise and the self-timer will start to operate; the shutter to keep your eye at the viewfinder eyepiece @ or cover it
then fires approx. 10sec. later. lf you want to cancel with the palm of your hand as you depress the shutter re-
the self-timer's operation after the lever has been set, lease button. This will prevent stray light from entering the
move it slowly back to its original position. Then you eyepiece and adversely affecting the automatic exposure
can take pictures in the normal way. However, once meter reading.
you have depressed the shutter button you cannot
29View original page 30Page 31 · Read text
COI{TROLS 11{ DETAlI-sentlnuedbutkus.us
-
Fllm Plane lndicator @ Infrared Focusing Inder @
The film plane indicator (e) is engraved on the top When you use infrared film, the plane of sharpest
deck just behind the ASA/lSO film speed ring @ . lt focus is slightly farther away than that in visible-light
indicates the exact oosition of the film inside the photography. To compensate for this shift in focus,
camera and is used to measure the exact distance most lenses have an infrared focusing index (a red
between the subject and film plane, such as in macro- dot or line) beside the distance index as a rule of
photography. The distance between the film plane thumb.
and lens mounting flange @ is exactly 46.5mm. After focusing in the normal way, look at the lens and
take note of the focused distance; then reset the
focusing ring so that the desired distance is aligned
with the infrared focusing index. Finally, attach the
appropriate filter, such as the R60, etc., and take
the shot.
e In infrared photography, the camera's built-in exposure
meter will not give an accurate reading, so use the rec-
ommended settrngs supplied by the film manufacturer and,
as insurance. bracket yourshots.
?nView original page 31Page 32 · Read text
teter Goupling Lever @
This lever couples with the lens' meter coupling ridge For fixed-aperture lenses, photomicro.
@ on the aperture ring to perform full-aperture meter- graphy, or astrophotography
ing. Lenses whose aperture ring doesn't couple with Since the aperture is fixed when using Reflex-Nikkor
this lever can not be used. For the following lenses, lenses, or in photomicrography or telescopic photog-
stop-down exposure measurement must be per- raphy, it is impossible to change the exposure by
formed. varying the aperture. So, on auto, take the shot by
simply depressing the shutter release button. On
For lenses or accessories without automatic manual, turn the shutter speed/mode selector dial
diaphragms until the correct exposure is obtained. lf the scene is
When a PC-Nikkor lens or bellows attachment is too bright to obtain correct exposure, use an ND filter.
used, focusing should be done with the lens wide
open while exposure measurement and shooting
must be done with the lens stopped down.
oWith a PC-Nikkor, the correct exposure must be determined
on manual before shifting the lens.
31View original page 32Page 33 · Read text
TECHNICAL INFORMATION butkus.us
To prevent the picture blur due to camera shake thatRelationship Between Shutter Speed is likely at slow shutter speeds, it's recommendedand Aperture that you select a shutter speed which is never slower
than the reciprocal of the focal length of the lens in
use. For example, when using a normal 50mm lens,
select a speed no slower than 1/60sec. (the closest
number to 1/50). For a 200mm telephoto, use no less
The amount of light reaching the film is determined by than '11250sec., and so forth.
the combinaton of shutter speed and lens aperture. oThe FG-20's audible warning rs based on the normal 50mm
A shutter speed of 1/125sec. lets in twice as much lens, the standard and most popular focal length in 35mm
light as a setting of 1/250sec. and only half as much slr photography.
light as '1160sec. Likewise, an aperture setting of f/11
lets in twice as much light as f/16, and half as much
as f/8. Thus, if the correct exposure for a particular
picture-taking situation is '1l5OOsec. at fl2, then
1/250sec. atIl2.B or 1/1000sec. at f/1.4 will give the
same exoosure.
The table above is an example showing the inter-
relationship between shutter speed and aperture.
Each combination produces the correct exposure but
the effects in the oictures are ouite different. The best
combination will depend on the results you want. Fast
shutter soeeds freeze motion while slow soeeds
produce a deliberate blur. Also, small apertures give
greater depth of field, while large apertures restrict
the zone of sharp focus to the main subject. (Refer to
page 34 for details on depth of f ield.)
32View original page 33Related documents and language editions
From the M. Butkus archive. Original publisher and archive notices are retained.
Check the model and edition against your equipment.
PDF verified 2026-10-10.