The 7sII is a gem, definitely a keeper. If not for the VMLP, I would never have tried one, but I am so glad I did. Before the 7sIl, I had only used a rangefinder once, my father-in-law’s Leica, which was probably an M3. I did not like the rangefinder experience and had not used a rangefinder since 1985 until my 7sII arrived two years ago. Since 7sII models are not cheap, it required a greater incentive than the VMLP for me to buy one. Multiple reviews spoke of the sharpness of the lens and its diminutive size—I like small cameras. The final convincer was a video comparing a set of fixed lens rangefinder models. The 7sII held up well, especially given the price differential.
I don’t have a “bargain buy” story for the 7sII, except I bought it before prices reached their current level. The test roll of Ultrafine Xtreme 400 was enough to convince me I had made a great purchase.
Historical Background
The first Hi-Matic was released by Minolta in 1962 and was the first Minolta camera with auto-exposure capability. The 7sII was released in 1977 and was the last classic rangefinder in the Hi-Matic series. The remaining Hi-Matics, which ended production in 1984, had many automated features. Some say the Vivitar 35ES and Revue 35, both made by Cosina, are analogous to the 7sII and that the 7sII was also Cosina-made. They do share similar builds and lenses. However, I bought (and sold) a Vivitar ES35 because it did not allow a manual shooting mode. I’ve never used a Revue 35. I could not find info regarding the length of 7sII’s production run.
Inspection and appearance
My 7sII was slightly below market price because it had a social security number engraved on the bottom plate. Otherwise, it was in excellent condition. The 7sII is a simple camera; bells and whistles are lacking. There is no “film load” indicator, and film loading is no different than for any SLR. I was pleased to see the leatherette on my copy was in good shape, and aside from the engraved SSN, the metal surfaces had no significant scratches. I didn’t like the idea of the former owner’s SSN being so prominent, so I bought a second “for parts” 7sII and switched plates.
The viewfinder window is smaller than I would like, but the rangefinder patch is clear and easy to see. When a rangefinder arrives, the first thing I do is check the rangefinder focus because I only keep fully working cameras. Once satisfied the rangefinder was behaving normally, I inserted a battery and checked the meter against my phone app. It seemed accurate, so in went a roll of Ultrafine Xtreme 400.
Function and Handling
One of the things I like most about the 7sII is its small size and lightweight (a little more than 16oz). The 7sII has shutter-priority exposure and a top shutter speed of 1/500 (1/8 is the slowest). The meter is inactive in manual mode; however, I have not found that to be an issue. ISO settings range from 25 to 800. The lens has a max aperture of f1.7, and metering is done through a sensor right above the lens, which means that filters are automatically taken into account by the metering system. MFD is about 2.9 feet. The film advance lever has a relatively short range, making it quick to go to the next frame.
In manual mode, the metering system is disengaged, which can be an issue. However, I usually use the camera with the meter engaged. My main gripe with the 7sII is the size of the viewfinder. If the viewfinder were 25% larger, the camera would be nearly perfect for me.
The 7sII requires a 1.35-volt battery that is no longer available. I read about people using SR44/LR44 batteries, which are 1.5 volts, with no issues. I tried an experiment using SR44 batteries and testing the meter reading against my iPhone meter app. Since I was in AUTO mode, I could not know what shutter speed the camera would select. So, I chose a shaded scene and a bright one at near midday to see how the camera meter would react. The camera indicated an aperture of f4. The iPhone app read f5.6 for the part-shade scene with a shutter speed of 1/250. These were not too far apart, so I then went to the bright scene. Here, the iPhone app read 1/2000 for an aperture of f8 (I was using 400 ISO film). However, the camera meter never read an aperture greater than f4. Next, I put in an expensive Wein cell 1.35-volt battery. Then, for the bright scene the meter read f16 bordering on the red zone. The reading for the shaded scene was f5.6. So, it seems that the battery has a significant impact on the accuracy of the aperture/shutter speed settings in AUTO mode.
Images
After the initial test rolls, I decided to try a roll of Portra 400. It was a bright day, and I wanted to take a few shots in the shade. Prior to using Portra 400, I had only used 400 ISO B&W film, so I was used to a certain level of grain. The Portra in the 7sII blew me away with its sharpness. Also, the meter performed better than I expected for a nearly 50-year-old camera. The images of the flags and pears impressed me the most. Both are clear and sharp, and the colors are true-to-life for both. I’ve taken many photos of our lemon tree in the sun, and very often, the lemon is overexposed. Here, the entire scene is exposed correctly, with no blown-out highlights. Only my Maxxum 7 has taken an image as well-exposed as this.
Impression
The 7sII has joined my Minolta AF-C as a camera to take when walking about. Compared to an XD with a 50mm 1.4 lens, it is positively light. Metering is excellent, and the images are sharp. On top of that, the camera is simple—aim, focus, shoot. Lately, I’ve taken to using zone focusing, which makes shooting even simpler. My only gripe is with the viewfinder size. I wear glasses, and sometimes it takes longer to focus because of the small window. However, zone focusing has made that much less of a problem. The camera is designed for 1.35 v batteries, so I will use a Wein cell with that voltage.
The 7sII is a very capable camera that fits easily into a coat pocket. It travels well and makes great images. Definitely a keeper!
