Minolta: The right SLR for me?

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lorriman

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I'm hoping to get some nice bokeh on the cheap. I've been lead to understand that Minolta lenses tend to be good for bokeh, while at the same time the lenses haven't had their prices driven up by the dSLR crowd. So I am thinking of getting myself an XG-M SLR.

But I've only had the bokeh properties of Minolta lenses mentioned by 1 individual, and can't find much on the net.

Any words of advice? I'm not too bothered about sharpness, although a little bit of contrast is nice.

Anyone know of good value Minolta lenses for taking shots of people (135mm perhaps, or is that too long)? Any lenses known for their leica-like qualities?
 
I'm a Minoltian (Minoltite? Minoltoid?) just for luck, it just happened that I bought an x-700 to be able to swap lenses with my girl, and I ended building a system.
I've found the swirly bokeh that someone here loves in '60 Rokkors MC, and modern sharpness in MD lenses.
The bokeh king here is the rokkor 58 f1.2, soft bokeh, it goes swirly stopped down, razor thin DOF, heavy and pretty cheap lens.
For portrait, I use a Rokkor-x 50 1.4, or a 135 3.5 (there's also the 2.8, or the very rare f2). There's also an 85mm, but is very rare, I wouldn't bother searching for it...
About leica quality: the 24mm 2.8 MD is famous beacuse it has been made together with Leica, it has a floating element for close range focus. It's damn sharp, IMHO, flares but doesn't ghost.
I suggest to try a Minolta body (x series, or if you prefer mechanical, SRT series) with a 50mm, they're the cheapest on ebay.

Look on rokkorfiles.com for more info.
 
I like my MD's and Rokkor's a lot. The best expert that I know to talk to at this moment on this subject is Peter Serbe. You can join the Minolta XD group on Flickr or just PM him. Here is a link to that group. He will definitely answer your questions. I'll just post your question myself tho, if you don't mind.

http://flickr.com/groups/xd-11/
 
Bokeh king? Minolta Maxxum 135mm STF f2.8/4.5T, of course!! No lens beats this lens' bokeh. Sony also produce the same copy. It is the only alpha-mounted Minolta/Sony lens with manual focus, and the bokeh result is stunning!! But for the price being cheap? Don't even think about it!!! :bang:
 
XGM is rather ...basic body. Try to get an x-500 (x-570 in the us). Or an xd-7/xd-11.

The lenses are all good, except the oldest auto rokkors and some zoom ones.
A 135/2.8 doesnt cost much and is excellent.

The "celtic" marked lenses were of cheaper assembly, i think.

Check for the aperture when you buy an old slr lens - the aperture should have no oil, otherwise it will stick.
 
Find a good XD-5/7/11/S and cherish it. It is as quiet and vibration free as a rangefinder, you will probably not believe what I have told you unless you have tried one. The only problem is that they almost cannot be repaired should the metering decide to give in. X700 bodies are in plentiful supply and can be easily serviced, however the shutter sounds like slamming a safe door, which maybe not be desirable. At least it is in every way better than a XGM and also accepts the motordrive 1.

In addition to the last poster's recommondation, lenses I can recommed are MC50/1.4PG, MC35/1.8HH, MC100/3.5, 24VFC and 400/5.6APO(any version). I have heard of people say nice things about MD35/2 and MD85/2, however those ones are not as easy to find. The 58/1.4 lenses are good for portraits because they are 6 element lenses overstreched to f/1.4, wide open they are the softest and most flary post war standard lens you will ever get, but it is pretty good otherwise with saturated color rendition unlike later 50mm rokkors. 100mm, 135mm and 200mm rokkors goes for nothing nowadays, but any 85mm seems overpriced.

P.S. The MD135/2 apparently only exists in marketing literature and legends, all known attempts to get one from the bay and other various sources have utterly failed.
 
Great bokeh for dirt cheap = MC Rokkor-PF 58mm f/1.4. It's not as well regarded as the f/1.2 version, probably not as sharp, but the bokeh is still great and you can get one for about $15, where the f/1.2 version will cost you 10-20 times that much.

Paul
 
I ve got two minolta srt 100 and 101, imho an excellent mechanical camera

my favorites lenses are rokkor 50 f2 very sharp lense, small, smooth ;.... and 35 2,8 minolta.

I like SRT because they are full mechanical, you dont have to switch them on, very nice to shoot with it , excellent ligth meter, look on my gallery, most recent pictures in mechanical workshop were made with an SRT 101 + 35 mm 2,8
 
I have a beautiful (heavy as well) XE-7 I got for 50 bucks to replace a X-370 with a hung shutter

There is no limit to the amount of amazing Rokkor glass that can be had for very little ...

still on the look out for an XD-7/11 for the ultimate (imho) compact minolta body

best lenses to look for the money

50mm MC 1.7
58mm Rokkor-X MC PG 1.2
28mm MD 2.8
85mm MD F2 (I haven't had the pleasure to use one but its highly rated)
35mm Rokkor-w HH MC 1.8
45mm f2 (compact and awesome)
 
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You'll pay somewhat less for an XD-5....

You'll pay somewhat less for an XD-5....

IGMeanwell said:
still on the look out for an XD-7/11 for the ultimate (imho) compact minolta body
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And You will be getting nearly the same camera as the XD7/11. I seem to recall that the only real difference between the 7/11 and the 5 is a bit of information in the viewfinder. Modes of operation are the same, i believe.

A nice 5 will be half the price of a nice 7/11.
 
There is no best Minolta SLR, they are all awful. Worst user interface of any camera I've ever looked through- any of the various VF's Minolta has come up with.
 
I had an XD-5; I beleive all it lacked vs the XD-7/11 was the aperature data in the viewfinder and the viewfinder blind. I LOVED the camera, but the electronics died. Would buy another if I wasn't afraid of a repeat failure. I replaced with a X-570 and a SRT-102.

My father is a Leica screw mount shooter, and he bought me the XD-5 for my high school graduation - of the choices available (and in budget - it wasn't a 7/11 after all), it was most Leica-like to him.
 
I've got an XG-M which is really good. The lack of real speed-coupled meter in the VF is the only limitation, especially when the A mode refuses to work... Otherwise, wonderful VF (with Accute Mate, more than 2 stops brighter than an Pentax).
I was wondering, is there any big differnce between a Rokkor and a MD lens?
 
sepiareverb said:
There is no best Minolta SLR, they are all awful. Worst user interface of any camera I've ever looked through- any of the various VF's Minolta has come up with.
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I have to agree. I wish Minolta had made a decent body, because their lenses are awesome. I have a few monilta lenses and got an SRT-101 on ebay. The camera works perfectly, I had it CLA'd after I got it, but I can't stand the viewfinder. It is near impossible for me to see the correct focus in it. There are newer Minoltas with better focusing screens but the exposure meter readouts suck. I looked at an X700, which would be a nice camera if the manual mode did more than tell you what shutter speed it thinks you need. It doesn't tell you what speed you actually have set, nor does it tell you that you have the correct exposure set like a match-needle system does. Worthless. I'll stick to my OM-4T bodies. Bright, easy to focus view, incredible exposure system.
 
2529489552_ff683d85ce.jpg


... this Minolta lens, IMHO :D
 
The XD's, X's and the XG7, a XG9's are real nice. Yeah, the meter read-outs are not the best. However, In the dark you can compensate by forgeting about reading the numbers and go with the relative position of the LED. No problem.
 
Chriscrawfordphoto said:
There are newer Minoltas with better focusing screens but the exposure meter readouts suck. I looked at an X700, which would be a nice camera if the manual mode did more than tell you what shutter speed it thinks you need. It doesn't tell you what speed you actually have set, nor does it tell you that you have the correct exposure set like a match-needle system does. Worthless. I'll stick to my OM-4T bodies. Bright, easy to focus view, incredible exposure system.
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:rolleyes:The X500/570 does not have this particular problem, however it is missing the smart exposure system that X700 has. Like the OM4, X700 in A mode take the reading after stop down for effect, the one you see in the viewfinder is only a prediction. X700 is one of the few cameras that works readily with early auto rokkors and their chinese copies as well as some modified russian glass.

It is not the design and worksmanship that makes the difference, rokkor lenses blow the socks off most Nikkors and many takumars of its time in terms of construction, most pre-AIS nikkors have very shallow helicords and the lubricants dry out promptly while MC rokkors, unserviced for 30+ years, are still found in prime condition. Minolta used a differencial maximum aperture detection from their MC lineup, it took Nikon almost 20 years to address the same issue with the same approach. The problem with minolta is that they are way too much ahead of its time and like pentax it failed to build a professional system because of their very success in the low end of the market. The early electromechanical bodies, XE and XK, were marvels at its time; as for now nobody have come up with a compact SLR that is as good as the XD (okay, the olympus OMs are pretty cool, but my opinion is biased). Minolta could have done better if they have used more mature technology and make more durable products. Maybe that is why Leica R system is just like them: Great optics, amateurish system, and their bodies SUX.
 
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I like the Minolta bodies a lot; they don't suck at all. Every camera has its shortcomings. I reach for my XG-1 10 times more than my OM-1, though it could be because my XG-1 has Grip-Tac on it. That stuff is fantastic; it makes you want to pick up the camera and use it.
 
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