Minolta slr's

I have a couple of very nice SRT-101s and a beautiful 102, but my favorite seems to be a simple little 201 that just seems to tick all the boxes. If it weren't for the fact that I love the Pentax LX so much I probably would have fully converted to the old manual Minoltas a long time ago.

I started as a 17 or 18 year old with my first "real" camera with a Dynax 505si super (Maxxum XTsi in the US), which I used with my kit lens mostly on all my travels. I used the different motive programs, but that was about it. I liked it good enough to not care about digital cameras until I dropped it at -25°C in Canadian winter about 10-12 years later. At this time, I looked the first time for digital, and ended up with a Olympus OM-D EM5 (first generation). But suddenly I got hooked on photography, and missed film.
So a half year later or so I bought from an old man for a good price an XD7 (XD11 in the US) with 50/1.7 and 35/2.8. And I loved it. And started to get crazy many lenses, because at the time they were cheap (still now from time to time). And then I moved to Canada because of the girl. And got more Minoltas (a few I sold, but mainly the broken ones which I got in packages for lenses). And more lenses.

Now I am at:
XD7 (my first one, silver, early model)
XD (same as above, but Japanese version. Black, and new generation with new logo)
X570
XE-1 (in silver, what is called XE-7 in the US)
Maxxum 7 (my only AF one)
a Weathermatic Dual 35 for the stupid water fun
and a Autocord TLR , LMX version

Out of these, the Autocord and the XD7 are my favourites, but the X570 and the 7 are fun too. And all the others. I didn't spend much time with the XE-1 yet, I think I prefer the XD7 (lighter, and I think I prefer the LED display over needle).
The XM/XK looked always too much of a beast for me, and it costs more. I never saw one in real life though.The SRT don't interest me that much since I prefer aperture priority and prefer cameras with batteries which still exists. And for the full mechanical fun I still have the Autocord (with a Kenko lightmeter, which is identically to the Minolta Auto Meter IV. Did I mention that my negative scanner is from Minolta too)?

Of course, I'd love to try a CLE, but this is out of my budget. One of the Hi-Matics? Maybe one day if I stumble super cheap over one, but not looking actively. Which one is the best? The 7s II? I never really tried rangefinders.

Lenses: Mostly manual, from the odd 18/9.8 fisheye preset lens and the MD 24/2.8 up to MD 200/4. I love the MD50/1.4, the MC100/2.5, the MD35/2.8. Didn't used the macros (50 and 100mm) much, but got them cheap. Recently found a MD 85/2, still one the first film with it. I like also the MD 24-50/4 and MD28-85/3.5-4.5 zooms.
AF I have only the Minolta 50/1.7, the Minolta 28-105 and the Sony SAM 85/2.8.

Wish Minolta had something medium format after the Autocords! Since there aren't, I'm playing around with an 80s Pentax 645 right now, which seems also compared to Mamiya and Bronica to be a bit of an underdog (maybe I'm wrong on this, but prices are better at the moment).

Back in the mid-1970s when I was at secondary school a friend bought a Minolta SRT-100b when travelling. He bought it duty free and came back from Oz with it dangling around his neck so never did pay the duty. I always admired the camera, which seemed very smooth and refined compared to the Praktica Super TL that i could afford at the time. I always had a sneaking admiration for Minoltas but didn't acquire one until about five years ago, when I bought a black SRT-MC + 50mm f1.7 in a junk shop for a tenner. Apparently the MC only came in black. The seller didn't know whether it worked or not, but the meter gives a sensible reading, shutter fires, etc.. To my shame, I've never put a film through it. I gather from the Internet that the 'MC' model was made for J.C.Penney, K-Mart and perhaps one or two other outlets not normally associated with photographic goods. We don't have J,C.Penney in the UK, not sure about K-Mart, so I wondered how the camera found its way here. It doesn't look to have seen much use, with just traces of brass showing through on the corners.
Steve

Steve Roberts said:

I gather from the Internet that the 'MC' model was made for J.C.Penney, K-Mart and perhaps one or two other outlets not normally associated with photographic goods.

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Hi Steve.
The phenomena of having a good camera department in what was otherwise a general department store was relatively common in North America for a time - I expect the margins associated with the photo-finishing business had a lot to do with that.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s I worked for a couple of years in the camera (and stationery, and greeting cards, and office furniture and ..) department of two Simpsons-Sears/Sears stores. Sears was the largest volume retailer in Canada of Canon SLRs at the time.
We also sold some Polaroid, Konica and Olympus models, along with a basic selection of lenses, although anything in the catalogue could be ordered through us.
We also sold great quantities of still and movie and instant film. We were a Kodak dealer, which meant exposed but un-developed Kodachrome and Ektachrome could be dropped off one business day, and then picked up developed the next business day. Unfortunately, we didn't sell darkroom products, although some of the competitors did.

Hi Matt,
The closest equivalent I can think of in the UK would be Boots, who are fundamentally a high street chemist and naturally enough offered film and D & P services. Going back more years than I care to remember, they also sold many re-branded products from major equipment manufacturers. I don't recall anything quite as upmarket as SLR cameras, but they sold 35mm projectors, projection screens, lower end rangefinder cameras and even enlargers made by the likes of Agfa, Ferrania, Konica, etc.. As long as you didn't mind the name 'Boots' on the product, it always represented good value for money. The last re-branded material that I regularly bought from Boots was their colour slide film, which was Fuji Sensia, included processing and was a snip compared to Fuji's prices.

Steve

I've moved my Minoltas into my basement studio and I am taking test photos as I slowly build a semi-permanent portrait set in my fairly small space. BY using the Broncolor Balloon on a 375ws Pulso Monolight, it does light a big set. Almost window-light like from a short distance. This light is F16 full power with ERA-100 B&W. Exposures bracketed from F16 to F8 at half stops. Checking the power consistency and eveness of lighting as well as exposure. This fill light will be stationary and floods the entire set with about as soft light as you can get. Shot with SRM's with 16mm and 85mm Rokkors, and SRTs with 58mm F1.4 and 100mm F2.8

Fun to fire up these cameras and burn some aging film. Developed in D:23 1:1 these negs will tell me a lot and provide a basic lighting to build upon.

Broncolor C171 Monolight Full Power F16 ISO 100 F16 to F8 SRMT's 1 by Nokton48, on Flickr

The fill light by itself is kind of dramatic in a way. But I will be adding main light big box and grid spot (aimed at right top background) to embellish this portrait lighting. I may add a strip box from the back to light the hair we will see

I had rather lukewarm experiences via friends who used Minolta gear. There were so many fans/users from what I gleaned in magazines of the day and I had written off my experiences to the fact these friends were a bit less careful in technique than I was comfortable with and the fact that they didn't have the higher-end Minolta gear. I then had an XK go through my hands after buying a large lot of gear from an estate situation. I loved using that camera. The operating logic was intuitive, the finder bright and the 50 ƒ1.4 was a decent performer, giving worthy results. Someone offered me far too much for it and I let it slip away in a weak moment, thinking I didn't need to build another system and I was mainly shooting medium format at the time. I have a CL and it's been a good little friend, showing that Minolta could produce solid performers in that arena, too.

I had a Minolta XG-M.
It was fabulous...i loved it.!
I was taking a photo class at my local college, and they had a lot of iffy cameras to lend the students.
Beginners need a GOOD Camera, so i gave them my XG-M.
I had (and still do) WAY too many 35mm SLR. 4-5 years ago it was not worth much so i was happy to donate it. I have no idea what price it might fetch now.
I also gave them a Canon AE-1P. I liked the way the XG-M metered better than the Canon.

I still have a SRT 202.
I never use it, but i just cannot part with it for some reason.

Have and XD-11 i need to sell. Very quiet shutter and a smooth winding mechanism. I would keep it, but.......................... I also have an X-570. It has become my designated SLR for color film of any type. I really have no need for the XD-11 because of the 570
I prefer it more than any of the Canon A-Series cameras i owned. They were good cameras and i took lots of photos with them, but i just prefer the meter system that Minolta uses.

Here a a couple of random, Minolta videos.
The second one is a bit odd and boring, But it is worth watching once.

Minoltas have long been my favourite cameras and at the moment I own two. One is a really nice XE1 from around the early to middle 1970's which is working really well and the other a XM (XK in the US and other places) I look on the XE1 as a forerunner of the later XD7/X700 cameras with all the essentials there. Made almost wholey of metal it is a weighty beast. The lever wind is by far the smoothest I have ever used!

The XM was Minolta's attempt to break into the pro market around the time the Nikon F2 came onto the scene. It lacked some of the Nikon's pro requirements such as a motor-drive, but was also more advanced with such things as a infinitely variable shutter speed in auto. Shutter speed range of between 8 seconds and 1/2000 is all I need. Getting a good working model is hard to come by now and I am lucky to have found one. Even more chunky than the XE1 but with such a quiet shutter you could almost think it was a rangefinder camera. the one I have looks as if it has been used as a proverbial doorstop and looks quite battered but when I had it serviced and shutter speeds checked it was given a clean bill of health.

As for Minolta lenses, I have yet to find a poor one. Even the often cheaper 'Celtic'; lenses which have been compared to Nikon 'E' series lenses. My only 'want' is finding a 20mm F2.8MD at a decent price (for that, read reasonable price) and in good condition, or even a 85mm F1.8 prime. I have got around that last omission by using a Tamron 90mm macro but would have preferred the real thing.

I am not a lover of zoom lenses, but the 24/35MD, 35/70MD or the 28/85MD are off the top shelf when it comes to performance.

The XE1/5/7 (depending on market) film advance is crazy smooth. One of the nicest I've used.
I use an XK, and have never considered it quiet like an RF camera!

I'll weigh in here a bit.

I'm no expert regarding Minoltas; just an aficionado. My first SLR was an XD-11 kit passed down to me from my grandfather in the mid 90's. He had unfortunately suffered a stroke, and as such, was in no condition to show me how to use it. I eventually took an introductory b/w photography course in college and used that kit. Took great pictures. I'm a sucker for brand loyalty, so I guess I've ever since been a fan of Minolta.

Ten or so years ago, I purchased off the Bay three used Minoltas in "as-is" condition; the intention was to teach my wife how to photograph. Can't remember what I paid, maybe $30? This included another XD-11 (my first one was no longer with me), an XG-M and another which I forget the model. Of those three, only the XG-M fully functioned. I took a few roles of film through it, and then set it aside, primarily because my wife, after shooting a roll or so, wasn't interested in film photography. Didn't shoot anything else Minolta until last year.

With Covid, my other hobbies were essentially put on hold, so I got back into photography. I was surprised by the resurgence of old film cameras. I looked around, and discovered Garry's Camera; sent in my Minolta bodies, and he got them CLA'd and/or working again. Browsing the Bay, Craigslist and FB Marketplace, I started seeing a lot of Minolta gear on sale for cheap. Interestingly, though, the Canon and Nikon gear of the same vintage was selling 2-4 times that of the Minolta gear. I concluded that since these brands were still around, the hipsters (who seemed to be the one driving up prices) didn't know about Minolta and thus no one wanted it; but they did want the Canon/Nikon gear. So I started buying. My intent was to gather up enough gear that I could potentially start a side b/w photography instruction business. That hasn't come to fruition as of yet, but if it ever does, I have the gear. Presently, I have about 30 Minolta SLR camera bodies, many SRT models which will run without a battery and would be perfect for the beginner student whose job it is to do their own metering anyway. Prices I've paid have been from free (an entire X-700 kit that wasn't firing, but got it fixed by Garry for ~$60) to $50 for an XE-7 (which Garry also CLA'd). Also picked up two Maxxum 7's, locally, for $50 each with lens. I think I kept Garry employed last year with the number of CLA's I sent him. Grin.

I don't know what it is, but I just love Minolta's. Which isn't to say they are any better than any other cameras available at that time, but I've always liked the look and feel of a Minolta. In the past year or so, I also spent a lot of time educating myself on the history of Minolta via The Rokkor Files.

I truly love the old MC all-metal lenses. Throw on a 50/1.4 to the XE-7, and you've got a camera that will provide you with "nostalgic" looking photos (at least to me). For flash, I've got an old Metz 45-CL; makes a great combination with the XE-7 (or just about any other camera, for that matter). I've been taking great photos with that camera, as well as Autocord that I picked up earlier this year as well.

Lately, I've been on the lookout for older, harder to find Minolta lenses.

002 by Nokton48, on Flickr

I've been using my SRM's down in the studio to test, using many rolls of ERA100 and many old MC lenses

Here's the 100mm f2.5 MC ands the 24mm F2.8 MD which came much later. Good pair for going out.

Nokton48 said:

002 by Nokton48, on Flickr

I've been using my SRM's down in the studio to test, using many rolls of ERA100 and many old MC lenses

Here's the 100mm f2.5 MC ands the 24mm F2.8 MD which came much later. Good pair for going out.

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What was the difference with MC and MD lens..........was it the AE function or something like that.?
Thanks

The 24mm F2.8 did not come in MC as I have ever seen. I've only seen them in MD

MD lenses work in shutter mode like with the XD11

Studio cameras Minolta SRM XK SRT by Nokton48, on Flickr

I've moved these into being studio cameras, they are all presently loaded with ERA100 B&W I'll process in D23 1:1. I've been shooting with all of these

My two SRM's, four SRT's, and my XK. All very SRT-like. Everything is working flawlessly and this great for testing and trying out a few ideas regarding lighting

^-- Nice!

Duceman said:

^-- Nice!

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Thanks Duceman

These are fun to use. I started out with the SRT100 when I was 16.

Nokton48 said:

The 24mm F2.8 did not come in MC as I have ever seen. I've only seen them in MD

MD lenses work in shutter mode like with the XD11

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According to http://minolta.eazypix.de/lenses/index.html the 24/2.8 exists both as MC and MD.

And yes, MD lenses work in shutter priority (XD series) and P mode (X700) and aperture priority. MC work only in aperture priority (and manual, of course). But beside this, using an MC on a XD body is no problem.
MC was introduced with the SRT series, MD with the XD series. The older Rokkor (pre-MC) from the SR-area have only preset aperture, but are usable as well, I have a ROKKOR-TC 135/4 and an UW.ROKKOR-PG 18/9.5 (fisheye) from that generation.

ant! said:

According to http://minolta.eazypix.de/lenses/index.html the 24/2.8 exists both as MC and MD.

And yes, MD lenses work in shutter priority (XD series) and P mode (X700) and aperture priority.

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In order for the P mode on the X-700 to work properly, I believe the MD lens needs the locking switch engaged, exposing the green indicator. It is my understanding that not all MD lenses (i.e., the earlier ones) have this feature so, while they'll definitely work with the X-700, P mode will not work as intended.

Nokton48 said:

I've moved these into being studio cameras, they are all presently loaded with ERA100 B&W I'll process in D23 1:1. I've been shooting with all of these

My two SRM's, four SRT's, and my XK. All very SRT-like. Everything is working flawlessly and this great for testing and trying out a few ideas regarding lighting

Click to expand...

Have you had any of them converted to available battery?

My first Minolta was an Action Zoom point-and-shoot.

When I became somewhat more serious with photography, I picked up a Maxxum QTsi (really a point-and-shoot disguised as an SLR) and then a STsi and XTsi. I later picked up a 3xi and 3000i which were attached to lenses I wanted.. These are all light weight cameras but work well with varying levels of sophistication.

More recently, about 8 years ago, I felt the need to get back to basics and picked up an SR-1 (and then another one), 2 SRT-201's, and a X370. The X370 is interesting, because it looks like a simple camera, but is elegantly designed to do all I need it to with very few knobs or switches. The SRT-201's are still my favorite. One of them was converted to modern batteries, the other I adjust to ISO setting to compensate.

I recently have started a Nikon collection. These cameras feel sturdier, and are sometimes easier to shoot, but don't take better photographs - I guess all my cameras are limited more by my skills than camera manufature.

Duceman said:

In order for the P mode on the X-700 to work properly, I believe the MD lens needs the locking switch engaged, exposing the green indicator. It is my understanding that not all MD lenses (i.e., the earlier ones) have this feature so, while they'll definitely work with the X-700, P mode will not work as intended.

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The lock just locks the smallest aperture, you can easily set any MD lens like this. Only the X600 (Japan only) requires special lenses for its special focus confirm feature.

Good Minolta SRT etc. site: www.rokkorfiles.com

ant! said:

The lock just locks the smallest aperture, you can easily set any MD lens like this. Only the X600 (Japan only) requires special lenses for its special focus confirm feature.

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I stand corrected. Not sure where, but I could've sworn that I read somewhere that the newer locking lenses must be used to take advantage of the X-700's "P" mode. But, checking the Owner's Manual, you are correct in that any MD lens will do:



I also checked the manual I had laying around for the 280PX flash, which says essentially the same thing:

pbromaghin said:

Have you had any of them converted to available battery?

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Yes the SRT's have all been converted to modern battery; excepting the two SRM's which do not have meters. And I am so good with that The XK was CLA'ed completely by Essex, right before Hurricane Katrina swept in and out to sea