Minolta exposure meter

[Rob Ruttan]

I have a couple of old Minoltas...SRT 101 & 201...which I like because 1) they're great old tanks 2) they're good, simple cameras (they have what Aristotle called arete!) and 3) I have a dislike for the 'throw it our' mentality and like to keep old stuff running. However, the exposure meters in the are all shot. Anyone have any thoughts regarding the repair of the meters?

Thanks,

Rob

 

[chriscrawfordphoto]

They can be repaired, but expect to spend $100 or more for each camera. I actually have an SRT-101 I occasionally bring out and shoot with (I use Olympus cameras mainly but have a collection of other old cameras i like to play with). My SRT meter works fine but I never use it. The spot metering in the OM-4T bodies I use spoiled me, so I carry a handheld meter when I use my old cameras like the SRT. The centerweighted or full frame metering that old cameras use just isn't accurate for most scenes without some guesswork exposure compensation for unusual lighting and subject types. But if you like it, its certainly fixable if the price isn't too much.

 

[thuggins]

"The centerweighted or full frame metering that old cameras use just isn't accurate for most scenes without some guesswork..."

Really? You may want to have your meter checked! I've been using a OM-4T for years and have not used the spot meter more than a handful of times, and that was mainly for playing. If you are cognizant of your scene and the light levels in it, center weighted metering will be more than adequate.

 

[Christopher Walrath]

I have a Minolta sr-T101 and I have no idea whether the meters work or not. I have for the past couple of years metered exclusively off-camera. It slows down my process to make me think about what I am doing and my picture taking has greatly benifited from the resulting deliberation. As to repair, I have never inquired but the cameras work fine without the meter.

 

[Rob Ruttan]

Thanks. Interesting...I use off-camera metering a lot, but it does slow me up. Sunny f/16 is pretty good too!

 

[Chaplain Jeff]

Contact Mark Hama at www.markhama.com

He is the best Minolta repairman I know of in the US.

Even people in Europe regularly send their Minoltas to him.

He is the ONLY person I know who will work on Minolta XK's.

Jeff M

 

[chriscrawfordphoto]

Thuggins,

Some people accept 'good enough' and others demand perfection. A spot meter allows perfection, an averaging meter delivers good enough. Before I got my OM-4T bodies I carried a Gossen Ultra Spot II and used it for everything even when the camera had a built in meter. The averaging meter in my OM-T bodies matches the spot meter if you meter an area of even tone, so they don't need looked at. The problem is you need to guess at how much compensation to use with a non average scene because no one, not even you, can evaluate a scene and know how far from an average exposure it deviates. I don't like to guess.