Inherited Minolta SRT202, Suggestions Needed

[daniroyer]

My dad passed away in 2014 and my mom in 2015 and I've slowly been going through their things. Last night, we found a camera bag with a Minolta SRT202 camera, 4 lenses, and a flash. My husband wanted to sell it, but I want to keep it. I'm always snapping pictures with my phone when I'm out and about so it would be nice to use a "real" camera. I paint and would love to explore another art medium. Plus I think it would be a way for my kids to stay connected with grandpa by having their picture taken with the same camera he used to take pictures of me when I was a kid.

Unfortunately, my only camera experience is with those cheap disposable cameras and my cellphone. Until I get a handle on what I'm doing, I have to keep my costs as cheap as possible. That means cheap 35mm film and processing at the pharmacy for now.

After I get the hang of it, what film is recommended? I'm thinking of taking a lot of scenery pics since I live in south Florida. I'm also thinking of doing some sets in b&w. Bright colorful beach pics contrasted with b&w pics of the ghettos.

Also, does anyone have recommendations on where to send my film to be processed? The pharmacy should be fine while I'm fiddling around, but I've heard it's better to send the film off to get better processing and high quality scanning.

Please forgive the quality of the photos. I just quickly snapped them with my phone while trying not to wake my sleeping husband.

I heard this is an excellent camera and I'm eager to learn how to get the most out of it. Thanks so much for all your help!

ETA: Is it wrong that when I see this camera, all I can thing of is Jadzia Dax admiring the old school tricorder?

 

[Designer]

The first thing you should do is a thorough examination and function test. To save time and money, drop in on your local photography store and have somebody look it over (hopefully for no charge). Someone who is familiar with those cameras will need to test the mechanicals and electronics.

If everything checks out (clean and in good working order) then just about whatever kind of 35mm film for the first few rolls. Get whatever the pharmacy has available.

If you have the owner's manual, read it all the way through, and then read it again with the camera on your lap. If you can't find the manual, download one from Minolta's support site.

Some typical problems with old cameras is that the shutter may be sticky/sluggish, giving you a poor starting position from which to learn. The lenses might have some interior mold and also some sticky aperture blades.

 

[john.margetts]

The biggest problem (assuming there are any - there really shouldn't be any) is likely to be deterioration of the light seals. This will be immediately obvious by opening the back and looking at the edges of the body where the back fits. There should be thin strips of black foam in the groove where the edges of the back go. If this is now sticky goo, the seals need replacing or light will get in where it shouldn't.

Another issue (not problem) is that the camera takes mercury batteries which are no longer available. You can use alkaline batteries of the same physical size but these will give a slightly higher voltage which might affect exposure. If so, it will be less than one stop which is well within the latitude of film. You can always use this camera manually with the Sunny 16 rule or a hand-held meter.


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[limr]

Welcome!

I agree with Designer - first, make sure the camera works properly. You say you are in south Florida, and a quick google search shows there are some options for brick and mortar photo stores, so that could be a good option for having someone check the camera for you and recommending modern batteries. There seemed to be a few that still develop film as well.

As for film, I agree that you don't need to get fancy at first, but if you want to keep costs lower, don't get the film at the drugstore. Chances are it's not that fresh (very few people are buying film at stores anymore, so there's little turnover of stock) and the prices are higher.

Go online for your film. There's always good ole Amazon, but also two major suppliers of photographic gear and accessories are Adorama (here is their film page: Film | Buy, Compare & Review | Adorama) or B&H (Film | B&H Photo Video)

Look for some consumer stock color film (Agfa Vista is one of my favorites, and there's also Fujicolor or Kodak Gold. ISO 100 is better for daylight outdoors, 400 is better for low-light situations, and 200 is a happy medium.)

For black and white, Kodak Tri-X is a long-standing classic. It's 400 ISO only. If you want 100 ISO, there's Kodak T-max. Both of these films had a bit of a price hike in the last couple of years, so if you want something comparable for a little less money, try Ilford HP5 for 400 ISO or Ilford FP4 for 100 ISO. They also sell Kentmere, which is is a decent enough film, but personally, I'd go with the Ilford or Tri-X.

If this hobby "sticks" and you continue shooting film, then I suggest eventually looking into developing your own and also buying bulk film and rolling your own. That will definitely be more cost-efficient long-term. At that point, you'll probably also have to decide if you will go full-on into darkroom wet printing or if you'd prefer a hybrid process and buy you own scanner to to create digital negatives and print from there. But that's for later For now, dive into learning how to use that awesome camera!

(Yes, you heard right - it's a good camera )

 

[Gary A.]

Minolta made solid, consumer grade cameras. You are right that it has much more value as a working memorial to Grandpa then getting around $150 or less on EBay (total for the entire kit). It would be a great camera to learn the basic fundamentals of photography. There is a successful painter in this forum, who has charged into photography with complete abandon. He likes photography so much that he has given his paints to his son (also a painter). In the beginning, just shoot with the 50mm. Don't start fiddling with all the lenses. Learn the properties of the 50mm before you move to another lens. Then do the same all over again, shoot mainly with the new lens until you are completely familiar with shooting that lens. Many community colleges offer beginning film photo classes. If you have the time, that would be a great way to learn exposure/metering, development and printing.

After the camera has been checked out. Find a nice quiet spot, the beach or a park where you played as a child. Sit down and spend some time just hold the camera, focusing, releasing the shutter. I suspect your father will love that you are using his camera and help guide you through your photographic journey and photographing his grandchildren.

 

[webestang64]

Those things are tanks. Like said above you should be ok if those light seals are not trashed.
Good luck and have fun!

 

[Dave Colangelo]

As many have mentioned these are fairly easy to check on your own. Here is what I generally do,

1. Before opening the back, crank the rewind lever in case there is film in there. If there is get it developed and see what you find!
2. Open the back and gently blow any dust out of there
3. GENTLY Advance the load lever and trigger the shutter. If you cant advance the lever try triggering the shutter and seeing if its already loaded. If you feel force or cant do either of these things the camera may be jammed and you should NOT force it. Set it to one of the slower speeds and look to see if the shutter is moving and the mirror is moving. If everything is actuating properly its more than likely its more or less working. The shutter speeds may be a bit off but we are at least starting off in a good place.
4. Gently blow any dust out of the front of the camera as well.
5. As mentioned the light seals on these cameras degrade over time. They generally turn to dust, very gunky black dust that can clog things up. They are however pretty easy to scrape out and replace at home. All you need is some naphthalene (to dissolve the old glue), something to scrape the old gunk out with (i like dentist tools) and a new set of seals. A good set of pointed tweezers will help get the new seals in as well. Use a Q-tip to get the Naptha into the channels, let it cut through the glue a bit then gently scrape out with your tool of choice. Do a few natha wipes when its clear, let it all try out then put the new seals in.
6. Examine the lenses for fungus and other optical issues.
7. Actuate the aperture ring and focus to make sure everything is working properly.
8. Attach the lens and make sure it seats properly.
9. Get a replacement Lithium battery and see if the meter works. You can check it against an app like this if you dont want to get a hand held meter.
10. Run a roll of film through it, take pictures at all different settings and make notes of each frame. Get them developed and see which how they come out. The notes are key so you can see if everything is exposing properly.
11. Have fun!

Just some thoughts. In generally these older mechanical cameras have few problems as they are well built and all things considered simple. Often times if there is a shutter speed issue it tends to manifest its self in the lower speeds. The faster shutter speeds tend to work better as time goes on. Since this camera clearly has some sentimental value its worth fixing instead of replacing. There are lots of sacrificial "for parts" bodies out on ebay should you need to scrap them to bring this one to life. Lenses are plentiful and cheap should you need to replace to add to your collection.

Regards
Dave