| Camera Name: | FED 2 |
| Type: | 35 mm rangefinder camera |
| Focus: | manual |
The FED 2 was a 35 mm rangefinder camera introduced in 1955 by FED. The name of FED comes from the initial of Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky.
The FED 2 is a new design that is quite different from the FED 1. It has a longer rangefinder base (67 mm), a combined viewfinder and rangefinder window, adjustable diopter for the viewing window, a self timer, and a detachable back for film loading.
There are six models.
To load a film, two locks in the base of the camera need to be turned. The entire back and bottom can then be removed as a single unit, allowing easy access to the film chamber. Standard 35 mm film cassettes are used, with film being wound onto a removable take-up spool (the latter often becomes difficult to remove on older cameras). Winding the film cocks the shutter and forwards the frame counter simultaneously. The FED 2 has a manual frame counter located below the wind-on knob, which must be reset by hand when loading film.
The Fed 2 has a curtain shutter with speeds from B, 1/25-1/500s. After detaching the back, two screws on under the camera allow you to adjust the spring tension and change the shutter speeds, which may have become slow over time. As with similar cameras, it is important to cock the shutter before operating the shutter speed dial. Failing to do so may harm the mechanism. When firing, this dial will rotate. After re-cocking, the speed set will be indicated correctly again.
The FED takes 39 mm screw lenses. The one shown here is a 50mm Jupiter-8 lens. Many FEDs come with Industar lenses. On this lens, the aperture is set on the front and focusing is done with a focusing ring. The rangefinder is coupled to the lens. The field of view in the viewfinder is that of a 5 cm lens. For other focal lengths, a separate turret viewfinder was placed on the accessory shoe.