Minolta SRT-101: The Perfect Film Camera for Beginners
A couple of weeks ago, I unboxed my first Minolta camera: the SRT-101. I was excited to add this classic into my growing collection, as it's Minolta's most famous SLR of all-time and often regarded as one of the best mechanical film cameras . Here are some of my thoughts and findings about the SRT:The Breakdown:
If one thing's for sure, the price for this camera is clutch for the broke college student or struggling artist. Courtesy of a wonderful seller on Ebay, this baby was only $45 with a f/1.7 55mm lens included -- it doesn't get much better than that, folks. I definitely recommend using resale pages when buying old SLRs, but if you do, ALWAYS make sure all parts have been tested. Don't get cheated into buying broken equipment! The first thing I noticed about the SRT is that it has a really good weight to it. It has a super solid, shiny metal build that gives a very authentic vintage look and feel to it. As far as the controls, everything on the camera is fully manual but very easy to use. If features a large viewfinder that makes it easy to adjust shutter speed and metering white looking through.
The Specs:
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Type | 35 mm SLR |
| Lens | |
| Lens mount | Minolta SR - bayonet (Meter Coupled) |
| Focusing | |
| Focus | Manual, micro prism with Fresnel lens provided in SLR finder |
| Exposure/Metering | |
| Exposure | TTL meter, manually set aperture and shutter speed (Bulb, 1 to 1/1000 sec) |
| Flash | |
| Flash | Cold shoe, FP & 1/60 sec X-sync |
| General | |
| Dimensions | 51 x 86 x 136 mm, 560 g |
The Results
I'll need more time to experiment with this camera, but the images I was able to capture on my test roll came out sharp and beautifully vivid. I was super satisfied with the SRT and would absolutely recommend it to anyone looking for a cheap and reliable film camera!
45dlls!? that's amazing! I guess I'll go for this one whenever I do the leap to the analogue world. Which, by the way, It would be cool to see the digital equivalent of those photos you took.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, for class purposes, my recommendation would be to be consistent on the 'bolding' of the subtitles. However, I really dig the way this blog post was structured. Keep it up!