Leica contracted Minolta to make a re-bodied version of this camera for their first point and shoot. This camera was good enough for Leica. If that’s not enough an endorsement for you I don’t know what is. I bought this camera for my girlfriend on eBay to replace her sadly broken Minolta AF Tele for a great price. These cameras can be had all day long in the $15 to $45 range in great condition, compared to their Leica branded counterpart, which goes for upward of $200. However, both cameras come with dual focal length lenses, one a 38mm f2.8, the other an 80mm f5.6, which extends along with the flash at the push of a button. Both cameras feature an LCD screen at the top displaying shutter count, as well as buttons to force fire or restrict the flash. Her particular camera arrived in near pristine condition, excluding the inexplicably off frame lines in the viewfinder.
She brought the camera on a trip we took to Charleston, along with a 36 exposure roll of Lomography Color 400. If you haven’t tried that film, the color reproduction is beautiful, we will absolutely be buying more. Besides the excellent color reproduction of the film, the photos themselves were remarkably sharp. The areas in focus were crisp and clean, and there was surprisingly pleasing bokeh present in some of the shots. The cameras automated exposures were extremely well metered, with balanced lights and darks and nothing over or underexposed. Only a few of the frames were completely out of focus (the worst of which I took), which could be an issue with the viewfinder, ignoring the minimum focus distance, or just the camera not correctly finding focus. For the most part the images were beautiful, providing sharp, contrasty images.
I personally like the chunky late 80s early 90s aesthetics. It’s by no means a small camera, but should fit fine into a coat pocket or purse. Everything feels solidly made and of pretty high quality for a piece of plastic from 1987. Also the button that moves the lens and flash is super fun to play with. The only real downside is the battery, it takes a 6V 2CR5 which cost about $10 at BatteriesPlus. Hopefully it lasts a little longer than the standard pair of AAs in similar point and shoots.
If you’ve ever wanted to own a Leica but don’t have Leica money, this is your camera. If you’ve ever wanted an extremely capable point and shoot, this is your camera. If you’ve ever just wanted to have some casual fun shooting film without breaking the bank, this is all the camera you need. My girlfriend loves hers, and so will you.
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