The XE-5 and XE-7 intrigued me because they were part of the Minolta-Leica collaboration, and I wanted to see what the fuss was about. My first XE-5 was a Goodwill buy. It arrived with a good 50mm f2 lens, but the film advance was stuck. Fortunately, a little tinkering resulted in a working XE-5. However, on testing my first roll, I discovered it had a light leak which seemed to be from the door hinge. The finished roll only had leaks on a few frames, but I accidentally shot the rest with the exposure compensation on +2. After these unfortunate events, and since I knew nothing about light seal replacement, I set the XE-5 aside and moved on to the rest of my collection. Maybe two years later, trying to get on with the VMLP, I decided to try the XE-5 again. This time, I bought a second XE-5 with a flash and lens I wanted (it cost just a tad more than paying to have the seals replaced).
The second XE-5 gave good metering and focusing results, and all was well, except the EC indicator metal disc came off. When I found the proper alignment to reattach it, I breathed a sigh of relief and loaded it with a roll of XP-2. I was on my way to some lovely B&W images–or so I thought. Unfortunately, due to a couple of mishaps, only a few quality images came from that roll of XP2. The XE-5 and I seem to be haunted by bad luck.
Historical Perspective
Released in 1975, the XE-5 was part of the Minolta-Leica collaboration. It was a lower-cost version of the XE-7 and was not sold in Japan. Being a pared-down model, it lacked some of the XE-7’s features, such as the viewfinder blind, film advance indicator, and double exposure capability. Also, the aperture is missing from the viewfinder display, and shutter speeds aren’t shown in manual mode. I can’t find specific info about the production run, but Minolta introduced the XD and XG models in 1977, which became the main product lines.
Inspection and Appearance
The second XE-5 arrived in very good condition, which I find interesting because I have seen many pictures of beat-up XE-7s but never a pic of a worn XE-5. The bottom plate had some wear, but otherwise, the cosmetics were good. The leatherette was clean and unmarred. I looked for marks and scratches, but few were evident. It wore its nearly 50 years well. I always check the mirror box and mirror, and both look good.
Since I am wary of eBay sellers who assure me a camera works fine but doesn’t work at all, I loaded batteries and checked shutter speeds and metering. Both worked as expected. A split-image focus screen is standard, which I appreciate. On the camera’s left side is a battery-check switch, which is not as handy as it seems—more about that later.
The ISO value (16-3200)is set using a dial on the top left, which houses the EC control. On the top right, one finds the shutter speed (4-1/1000 sec) control, film advance, and shutter release. The on-off switch and film counter are on the upper right corner of that camera’s back. The stop-down lever on the front of the camera below the lens mount proved to be my nemesis with the second XE-5.
Function and Handling
The XE-5 is a competent camera. Typically, I check camera meters against my iPhone app, and the camera’s meter was accurate. The split image focus screen made focusing straightforward. I tested the shutter speeds and metering in “A” mode in varying lighting conditions, and all seemed well. I glued on the loose EC indicator template and loaded the XP2.
The XE-5 is an old style camera in that it and the XE-7 seem to weigh a ton compared to the cameras I use most often, such as the Maxxum 5, Maxxum 7, X-700, and the AF-C. Aside from weight, the camera is well-balanced, meters well, and the film advance and shutter have a definite quality feel–something I didn’t think I would notice. The XE-5 has an electronic shutter, which means it needs batteries to operate the shutter except for 1/90 (“X”) and “B.”
Shooting
It was August 16, 2023, when I loaded the XE-5 and three other cameras. Feeling particularly upbeat, I attached the Minolta MC Rokkor 75-200mm f4.5 lens and went to take pictures of a jasmine vine loaded with flowers. I was trying to shoot at 200mm and could not focus the lens. Each time I got close to correct focus, the viewfinder would go completely dark. I switched lenses to 50mm 1.4, and everything worked fine. Then, going back to the 75-200mm—again, a dark screen. After about 60 minutes of frustration and yelling, I gave up on the 75-200mm, moved on to different lenses for a few frames, and then put the XE-5 on the shelf.
Ten months later, in June 2024, I decided to finish the roll. This time, remembering the behavior from before with the zoom lens, I looked online for clues about what had happened. Many commenters mentioned that zooms/telephoto lenses could cause the dark viewfinder issue, so I assumed I was out of luck and the XE-5 was not for me. Then, I noticed the stop-down button—it was out! The entire time I had been shooting with the camera aperture stopped down! I never use the stop-down button, so it never occurred to me that might be the problem. I pushed the button in and attached the 75-200mm, and all was well. Thus, ended the step-down saga and started the next tale of woe.
I shot a few frames, and all was fine. Then, inexplicably, the shutter would stay open for 20-30 seconds on some frames, then close. The behavior was random. Wondering what new ill had befallen my XE-5, I set up a still-life scene to test. I then used the 50mm 1.4 PG and MD 100mm 2.5 to test shutter behavior. The behavior persisted—random frames with 20-30 exposures. Again, I went online and found that XE-5s behave this way when battery power is low. The battery-check light had not indicated a problem. I put in new batteries, and the shutter behaved normally. Letting the camera sit idle for ten months had drained the batteries. And there you have sad tale number two. With new batteries, the camera performed flawlessly.
Images
August 2023
The first shots of my Minolta V2 and V3 rangefinders—the speedsters (the V2 has a top shutter sipped of 1/2000, the V3 1/3000)—were taken with the 50mm 1.4 PG. The next is the jasmine vine image shot with the 75-200mm. It is blurred because the stop-down drama made it impossible to focus. I then switched to the 50mm 1.4 PG to take the black-eyed Susans and the 100mm 2.5 to take the geranium/sweet potato vine photo and the dove. All were shot and stopped down. After these shots, I went back to the 75-200mm, got completely fed up, and put the camera away for ten months.
June 2024
Having discovered the stop-down error, I shot the still-life images with the 50mm and 100mm 2.5 again. The blurred images show the results of the delayed shutter issues. Even so, the 50mm 1.4 PG and MD 100mm 2.5 gave beautiful results. They are joining the MD 28-85mm, MD 75-150mm, AF 100mm 2.8 macro, and AF 28-105mm in the group of my favorite lenses.
Impression
The XE-5 is weighty, coming in at a little more than SR-Ts, which becomes noticeable quickly. I like the camera’s quality, but it is not the first camera that comes to mind when going out the door. If you are one who likes sturdy, heavy cameras, the XE-5 would be a good choice. Considering all the trouble I had with this camera and the first XE-5, I can’t say anything horrible about them. After all of these years, the metering was spot-on with both cameras. With good batteries, the shutter works well and the film advance is as smooth as people say. I like how it looks, like a baby panda, so that’s good. Like the XE-7, the XE-5 is a quality camera.
I shoot in “A” mode 90% of the time, which works well on the XE-5. The missing aperture display is annoying, as is the missing shutter speed in manual mode. The nagging issue for me is that there are still about 28 cameras waiting for their VMLP outings. Will I go back and shoot the XE-5 again? Not for a while. With cameras like the XE-5, my big problem is deciding how much of a collector I want to be. That is, deciding which cameras I want to keep. This is now my fifth year of the VMLP. Having shot test rolls with nearly all of my cameras, including the rangefinders and folding cameras, I am developing favorites, and there is only so much time I can devote to photography. There are cameras that, after having run a few rolls through them, it’s unlikely I will use them again. Should I keep them anyway???
The collector in me says, “Keep at least one of everything.” But then, the guy inside, who just likes making photographs, says, “You have too many cameras!” Each camera and lens one buys has its story, and it seems wrong to send the camera or lens away and hang on to the story. Getting rid of an item with a story is like ending a friendship.
The VMLP has allowed me the shooting experiences I sought but has also made my life a little more complicated. I know, first-world problem, right? However, don’t let my collecting quandary affect you. The XE-5 is a good camera, and if the weight isn’t a problem, try one.
Hi I used to have a XE-5 and I thought it was a lovely camera. Well done for persevering with it. What a shame a little stop down button would cause all those problems. Its just too easy now with the digital cameras. You need to learn photography to use a fiml camera to its potential.
Yes, the XE-5 performs well, and my copies are in really good condition. However, they are not the first cameras that come to mind for shooting. Digital camera are very helpful in learning photographic principles because they allow rapid feedback. Learning exposure compensation and hyperlocal distance were confusing until used my Maxxum 7D for testing. I’m loving the MD Tele Rokkor 100mm 2.5, though. They produce brilliant results.
I’ve been fascinated by the XE series, but after getting rid of my SR-T 101 a few months ago, I am loathe to get an SLR that’s even heavier than that. I really dig my XD5, as it’s got the same performance of the XE series but in a more compact package.
I took my XD5 for the first time after the test roll last week. It feels and behaves just like my XD11, so I’m happy with it. The XE series is weighty, and if it were not for me doing the VMLP, I likely would not have them. The XE-5 is not a bad camera, it’s just that I have so many other options. That Tele Rokkor 100mm 2.5 is proving to be a gem.