Minolta makes a Leica, The minolta XE

minolta's top of the line prestige camera.
#minolta XE=7# #minolta XE-5# #minolta XE-1# #minolta XE# minolta XD-11# #minolta X-700#

[@MokkaDog808]

Right out of High School in Hawaii, I got a job selling cameras & film in Waikiki and got a deal on a couple of Minolta cameras (XE-5/XE-7) along with a spot meter 4, flash & slave, and a few portrait lenses. Those quickly became my favorite non surf photography cameras (Nikon FM2/F3 with a 300 mm f2.8 AF- hard to beat & useful on both AF & non-AF Nikons, but heavy). The Minoltas were quiet, smooth, easy to hold for long periods, as well as durable. Plus, they had really nice lenses. I still have the XE-7 w/50mm 1.4, but the shutter was toasted years ago & lens got dropped one too many times, but it looks cool next to the Retina 3C, Brownie Target, and Polaroid. Thanks for the video, nice to see other folks appreciating Minolta cameras.

[@ASMRlicious]

Just got my hands on one ha!

[@kevinslaney486]

Surely it's Leica makes a minolta. ....R3. Leica took the body designed by Minolta

[@MrGibsonguy335]

In June of 1972, Minolta entered into an agreement with Leitz to share technology and cooperate in R&D. This demonstrated how dominant the Japanese manufacturers had become in the camera world and their expertise in electronics was now prized by the German companies. And Minolta was happy to avail themselves of Leitz' experience in optics and production techniques. The XE was the first SLR model developed under this cooperative arrangement and became the template for the Leica R3 www.678vintagecameras.ca/blog/x-marks-the-spot-the-minolta-xe-series

[@jasongold6751]

@@MrGibsonguy335 But a failure for both. Camera body at R4 and Minolta not reliable..

[@kevinslaney486]

@@MrGibsonguy335 Absolutely. I am a big minolta fan. The R3 showed how much Leica was impressed by them. I owned the Minolta XM until recently. A magic and amazingly solid camera. Worked absolutely perfectly and still tight and beautiful after 50 years. Still have the XD7 and X700 and Dynax 7. Went digital with Sony A7 so I can use my Minolta AF lenses with the special AF adapter.

[@MrGibsonguy335]

I have an X-1 (XM, XK all the same) and it is a magnificent camera.

[@lensman5762]

There is no point in buying a Minolta with a Leica badge. R4 had electrical problems and some of the dials were not long lasting, R3 seems to have been a bit more reliable. Up until a few years ago though, they were a good platform to get into the proper Leica made R lenses that are superb and were less than half the price of their M equivalents, but sadly in the last few years with the bandwagon of Leica this and Leica that the price of Rs have shot up beyond reason. Three years ago you could get an R6.2 in good shape for around £300.00. Now you are looking at double that for a so so model, and lets not talk about the lenses. You might as well buy a decent minolta and save yourself a lot of money, unless you want to show off the red circle.

[@MrGibsonguy335]

Everyone has to realize Leitz only approached minolta because minolta had something Leitz needed! Leitz had no experience making electronic cameras. All they ever made were mechanical cameras. By the 1970's Leitz had the choice; modernize or go out of business. Starting from scratch would have taken them many years. Engineering wise, everything came from minolta. Lietz didn't have anything to bring to the table.

[@jasongold6751]

Sorry, Minolta or Leica R4 are unreliable. True fact! Get newer models from either! Bad advice! Minolta Rokkor lenses are very good!

[@MrGibsonguy335]

I own XK, XE, XD and X700 cameras . They are sometimes quirky and can consume batteries but, as far as my experiences, they have been completely reliable. Any 50 year old SR-T is still running like a top today. I have no experience with Leica cameras so I won't comment there.