Minolta Manual Focus

[Josh66]

OK, so I've been wanting to get a mechanical, manual focus camera for a while now. My birthday is not too far away, so I might be able to make this a present for myself.

I shoot Canon now, so that means I will have to buy at least a couple new lenses no matter what I go with.

So then I was thinking - I have 2 Minolta lenses laying around (probably crap, a 70-210 and a 35-80; they look cheap as hell...cheaper than a kit lens)...

While I don't necessarily plan on using those lenses, it did get me thinking.
I hadn't really considered Minolta, and I know almost nothing about them.

Which bodies should I look for? Any to avoid?

 

[dxqcanada]

Minolta SLR's that I liked ...

X-700 ... it was a good camera ... though very electronic.

The highly under-rated and unknown XK/XM !!
If you can get your hand on one of these ...

 

[Josh66]

Well, 'mechanical' isn't really a requirement...

I would like at least the ability to trip the shutter with no batteries though.
(Not sure if any of these have that. But I guess I could let that slide too, if it was a cool enough camera, lol.)

The X-700 looks very nice (and cheap too)... X-570 looks good too.

 

[dxqcanada]

The XD-7 had a mechanical shutter speed of 1/100.
The X-700 is only electronic.

 

[compur]

I believe all of the X-series Minoltas have electronic shutters (though some
may have one or two mechanical speeds).

The X-700 was Minolta's last manual-focus camera and very popular. They
were made up until 1999 so you can still find mint or near-mint examples.

The earlier XD-series and XE-series are fine choices too but be sure to
check them out first for full functionality. They may also need new light
seals as they used the foam material that deteriorates with age.

The XG-series was popular too but, again, be sure it's fully working. I often
find these in DOA condition due to electronic failures.

For a fully mechanical shuttered Minolta you'll have to go back to the
SRT-series (SRT-101, 102, etc.) or the earlier SR-series. These are fine,
rugged cameras but they're now 30-50 years old and you need to be sure
they are fully functional before buying -- especially the meter, if any. The
focusing screens on these also tend to get dirty with age and are not
easily user-replaceable.

I think a late model X-700 would be the easiest choice. The batteries are
the cheap LR44 type and last a long time. It's also a great camera with
options like motor drives, focusing screens, TTL flash, etc. Hard to beat
in a MF SLR.

 

[Josh66]

I think a late model X-700 would be the easiest choice. The batteries are
the cheap LR44 type and last a long time. It's also a great camera with
options like motor drives, focusing screens, TTL flash, etc. Hard to beat
in a MF SLR.

LR44s? I had to look that up on google images... Damn! That's all the power it needs?

I think if I end up going Minolta it'll be the X-700. The only bad thing I've read about it is that it doesn't display the shutter speed in the viewfinder (only the suggested shutter speed)... Is that really as big a deal as it sounds?

 

[benhasajeep]

When I was in school I had a Minolta X-370 as my second body. Used it pretty regularly over that time span and never had an issue with it. Brother borrowed it and never returned it. He lost it somewhere :er:.

 

[Josh66]

OK - Lenses.

It is my understanding that Minolta has never changed it's mount (and this is also the mount used by the Sony alpha dSLRs), so there should be no compatability issues right?

The X-700 meters wide open, right?

 

[SonnarSphere]

minolta had gone through a few mounts. the a-mount (AF) was from the 5000/7000/9000 SLRs onwards.
Minolta AF - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

i think the X-700 is MD mount.
Minolta SR mount - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Josh66]

i think the X-700 is SR (MD) mount.
Minolta SR mount - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

That link basically says that there are four versions of the same mount - updates to incorporate new features.
All changes were forwardly inclusive, and backwardly compatible. So basically - all lenses will fit all bodies.

 

[compur]

Sony Alpha and Minolta Maxxum cameras use the same mount.

Minolta manual focus cameras (such as the X-700) use a different
mount which is not compatible with the Maxxum/Alpha mount.

 

[Josh66]

Not compatable in what way? The lens won't physically fit, or it will fit but work work?

 

[Josh66]

OK, so then would it be correct that for the X-700 any MD or earlier lens will be fine?

 

[SonnarSphere]

you want 'MC' and 'MD' lenses. the pre-1961 'SR' are not compatible
according to the wikipedia article. the X-700 is from 1981. A-mount
(sony alpha DSLR mount) will not fit. it is a different mount.

 

[Josh66]

if the lens is 'SR' it will fit an X-700. SR is a bayonet-style mount.
Minolta ('Sony') A-mount is non bayonet-style. there are not cross-compatible.

Ah, OK - I think I got it now. All of the manual focus lenses are compatible, but the auto focus is different.

i think the X-700 is SR (MD) mount.
Minolta SR mount - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

That link basically says that there are four versions of the same mount - updates to incorporate new features.
All changes were forwardly inclusive, and backwardly compatible. So basically - all lenses will fit all bodies.

I think this is what confused me. All of the manual focus lenses are forward & backward compatible. (But the auto focus mount is different.)