The Vintage Minolta Love Project is my plan to shoot every major Minolta SLR along with selected period-appropriate lenses and accessories from the Minolta SR-2 released in 1958 to the Maxxum 5D, introduced in 2004.  

Think of this project as both an homage to a great company and a chance for me to fulfill my dream of shooting the best Minolta SLRs. My first real camera was a Minolta SR-T 101. I bought it and a third-party 50mm lens from a pawn shop while in college. I used to look at photography magazines and imagine what it would be like to own a Rokkor-X lens. Well, with the Vintage Minolta Love Project (VMLP), the time for wishing is past.  

I don’t particularly appreciate shooting with rangefinders and have no need for a P&S, so only SLRs (and DSLRs) are included in the project. However, an Autocord may find its way in, assuming I can get one for a reasonable price. 

VMLP posts will be numbered and appear approximately twice every five to six weeks, life permitting. Each post will consist of the following sections:  

  1. Introduction – the backstory of how I got the camera
  2. Historical Perspective – how the camera fits into Minolta’s product history in terms of innovation, lenses, gear, and the photography marketplace in general
  3. Inspection and Appearance – the design features and cosmetic condition of the camera
  4. Function and Handling – user experience (good and bad) including size, weight, ease of loading, metering, etc.
  5. Shooting – an account of shooting one more rolls of film including specific shots, lenses used, locales, or situations (e.g., night, rain)
  6. Impression – whether I like the camera and why

Once the project is completed, I intend to thin the herd and keep only my favorite cameras and lenses. So far, I know that two of those keepers are the Maxxum 7 and the Minolta XD-11.  

I will be writing posts in parallel manual and autofocus tracks. So, each period will have one manual camera post and one autofocus post. Much of the enjoyment of writing a blog is interacting with readers, and I hope to connect with Minolta lovers from everywhere. I’m living a dream; join in and share the experience.  

Jerome

List of Vintage Minolta Love Posts