[HN Gopher] Minolta X1 (2007)
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Minolta X1 (2007)
Author : brudgers
Score : 38 points
Date : 2021-11-12 19:42 UTC (1 days ago)
(HTM) web link (www.rokkorfiles.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (www.rokkorfiles.com)
| cannam wrote:
| I've a great affection for Minolta, though born from retro appeal
| because I am not old enough to have seen their best stuff first
| time around. I'd love to know more about how the company operated
| during the 50s to 70s.
|
| Their 1970s models, the X1, XE, and XD seem technically really
| exciting but don't appear to have held the attention of the
| professional market - unreliable, lacking something important,
| too expensive, or is it just about the brand? I gather that few
| XEs and XDs (the X1 is too rare to count) have made it to the
| present without some reliability problems, but that's not so
| surprising given the time span.
|
| Briefly - before the pandemic arrived and took away most of my
| spare time - I had a hobby of repairing the Minolta SR-1, the
| earlier purely mechanical camera sold from 1959 to 1971. The SR-1
| is interesting because it was Minolta's ongoing "entry level
| camera" rather than a single specific design - they used the same
| designation for at least five different cameras underneath, in
| the course of its sales life. They're surprisingly different
| under the covers, and you can track a bit of what was going on
| elsewhere in their product line through them.
|
| So the SR-1 model A is a solid mechanical design, complicated but
| not too difficult to understand and repair. Model B is almost
| identical on the outside, but mechanically quite different
| underneath and with some odd design decisions that might have
| been a weak attempt at cost-saving or possibly about
| synchronisation with another product (this is the sort of thing
| that makes me wish I knew more about the company). I haven't seen
| a model C and am not totally sure it exists. Model D I think is a
| bit of a mess, combining the mechanicals of earlier models with
| various new features (primarily the lightmeter, though support
| for it existed in the model B even though the accessory didn't).
| And model E is a serious clean-slate rebuild that is mechanically
| simpler but less accessible and far more like what competitors
| such as Pentax were producing at the time.
|
| I use an SR-1 model A as my usual film camera, it's a bit big and
| heavy and the winding lever carves a big channel in your forehead
| but it's so beautiful and satisfying to use.
|
| (I wrote a couple of blog posts about the SR-1 models A and B, at
| https://thebreakfastpost.com/2019/12/21/notes-on-the-minolta...
| and https://thebreakfastpost.com/2020/03/12/notes-on-the-
| minolta... - I wanted to bring it up to the D and E but reality
| intervened.)
| thekid314 wrote:
| I've been on a buying spree this last month, picking up Minolta
| rokkor lenses for video use. They are some cheap and well made.
| Leica even borrowed their design for their 24mm.
| spacecadet wrote:
| Big Minolta fan as well. About 10 years ago I found an RD175 at a
| flea market and restored it to working order, it was a great
| talking point about the history of digital cameras.
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minolta_RD-175
|
| Contax is another underdog. I still shoot 35mm with a Contax N
| and G, both are incredible pieces of technology and product
| design.
| iveqy wrote:
| I'd a point and shoot, minolta dimage x31. I loved it! It was
| early to have an SD-card which meant that I could film more than
| 5 seconds (until RAM is full) because it was fast enough to save
| to the SD card while filming. It also had an internal optical
| focus which meant no (few) moving parts on the outside.
| mixmastamyk wrote:
| I really liked the earlier version of that one I had in the
| early 2000s. The quality (especially video) was atrocious by
| today's standards but the form factor couldn't be beat. Mine
| had a couple of bad pixels that had to be painted out in gimp.
| Not sure why I didn't return it, but can't remember. Maybe
| happened later.
| ceearrbee wrote:
| Minolta really feels like the underdog of classic camera brands.
| You always hear about Canon or Nikon, but no one really talks
| about the advantages that Minolta brought to market.
|
| They brought both shutter/aperture priority in an SLR, first
| mainstream AF cameras and some amazing lenses and bodies all
| throughout. Its a real shame that they sold their photography
| assets to Sony (though they have done so wonderful things with
| that legacy - you can still see it in 2021).
|
| On the other hand, as someone who shoots both MD and A mount, and
| uses some of their film bodies, its nice that they're not
| ridiculous expensive.
|
| Except, ironically, the X1 - which is a shame because its such a
| neat camera, a waist level view finder on 35mm would be so fun to
| play with - I love it in medium format.
| nix23 wrote:
| >Minolta really feels like the underdog of classic camera
| brands
|
| Hasselblad ;)
| frostburg wrote:
| Very different. Hasselblad was a top choice for the pro
| market (and used by rich amateurs, like Leica), Minolta never
| really managed to breach that market (this camera was the
| most significant attempt).
| nix23 wrote:
| Hasselblad was the opposite of Leica, big format vs small
| format
| frostburg wrote:
| Medium format (large format starts from 4x5 inches in
| modern usage), but while the professional applications
| were different the use by wealthy amateurs was basically
| the same.
|
| (I would know: https://i.imgur.com/VpC8cJB.jpg )
| aaronbrethorst wrote:
| Using your smartphone to photograph your Hasselblad
| focused on your Leica is certainly a flex.
| ceearrbee wrote:
| I would never consider Hasselblad to be an underdog, they're
| a premium brand that has massive name recognition that
| continues to today.
|
| I dream of being able to afford as Hasselblad, instead I'm
| here with my Kiev's and Minoltas!
| nix23 wrote:
| Yeah you are right, but in the mind of non photographers
| hasselblad is a ~no name (except for the apollo mission's
| interested),
|
| BTW: My dad had more minolta's then nikon's in the
| 80`s-90's...well and some Leica's...and one hasselblad (as
| a child i seen that monster as a terrible thing from 1900)
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