Minolta SRT201 – Fuji Superia 400

Minolta MD 50mm 2.0
Tokina RMC 80-200mm 4.5

I dug this camera out of a box at my favorite camera store. I love a good clearance section, whether it’s at a camera store, music store, book store, clothing store. I’m a cheapskate at heart, so finding this Minolta SRT 201 for $5 was a dream. It needed just a little bit of cleanup but it seemed to be working just fine. I think it was in the bin because the lens that came with it was stuck wide open, and it does have some body damage on the top plate indicating a drop. Anyway, I started the search for a bargain lens to pair with this bargain body and came up with an incredible deal on a Minolta MD 50mm f2, a Tokina RMC 80-200mm f4.5, and a Tamrac camera bag – all for $16. A Weincell MRB625 battery for the internal light meter cost around $4. So for $25, I had an entirely new camera system and I could see what Minolta was all about.

While similar to other SLRs I have used, this Minolta is definitely balanced and tuned differently. It feels more upright, broad shouldered, taller maybe. It’s pentaprism housing is angled more forward, with a wide peak. This camera is a giant compared to a a similarly specced Pentax M series or Olympus OM from the same era. Winding on is a little loose; it’s effortless, but that makes for a less positive feel overall. There’s also a little more resonance in the body, or maybe it’s more that the sound escapes out the fittings somehow. It’s less damped than a Spotmatic, but feels and sounds similar in some ways to an early Canon, like the FT. It feels solid and has clearly survived some misuse, though there are some plastic bits that I worry might become brittle over time. Just for context, I have yet to get my hands on any vintage Nikon or Leica SLRs, so I can’t compare it to any of those. It definitely feels more robust, industrial, mechanical, compared to the later Minoltas like the X-700 or even the XG series. The viewfinder and the light meter are better than the Spotmatics or the Canon that I have, easy to use even with eyeglasses (though my focusing screen and/or mirror need to be cleaned) All in all, a good camera that can take a lot of good lenses. I get why there’s a Minolta fandom.

I also discovered that I love 80mm while using this Tokina zoom. I’m now on the hunt for a fast prime in the 75-90mm range. For my style of photography it would be a really nice option.

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