Nikon FM10

Yep, it's a Cosina. Cosina have made, and still make (Voigtlander) very decent cameras and lenses - too many to list. However, they make to the price and spec. that they are commissioned to do so. This is a very cheap and nasty camera that will probably fall apart on you. Yes, it takes the wonderful Nikon lenses. If you want a cheap Nikon buy an F301 (extremely under-rated)or F50 - they'll last. If you want a good usable film SLR buy a Minolta, Pentax, Ricoh... (or,Cosina)

I have shot well in excess of 30 rolls of film and have had no problems with the Nikon FM10's durability. In fact, it is a workhorse, and one of the best camera's on which a photography student can learn. The camera is actually made by Cosina for Nikon, and it is time-tested design that has appeared over the years under the names of various camera companies from Canon to Olympus to Vivitar, in addition to Nikon.

As with any device, if it gets too much of a "workout" by some overactive students, who in my experience never treat anothers property with the care they treat their own, then the camera might not hold together too well. This camera was designed to teach, and it is not as durable and hefty as a professional camera that is used in all types of extreme conditions. Treat the FM10 with care and it will respond with many years of fine performance.

I want to warn anyone thinking of getting the Nikon FM10 35mm SLR camera. As a photography teacher I had the misfortune of buying 20 of these cameras for my program. It wasn't long (one month) before the first one started breaking. The others quickly followed suit. Every single aspect of this camera is flimsy and weak. The lens will break, the shutter curtain, the film crank, the shutter button, the whole thing will fall apart simply by using it the way it is supposed to be used. Although it is not too expensive, it certainly becomes so since it will probably only give you 30 rolls of film before it's unusable.