DPR Forum

Welcome to the Friendly Aisles!
DPRF is a photography forum with people from all over the world freely sharing their knowledge and love of photography. Everybody is welcome, from beginners to the experienced professional. Whether it is Medium Format, fullframe, APS-C, MFT or smaller formats. Digital or film. DPRF is a forum for everybody and for every format.
Enjoy this modern, easy to use software. Look also at our Reviews & Gallery!

First Minolta reflex Macro

G

Guest

I am ver curious about the first Minolta macro lens. It had 39mm Leica threads. It came with the Leica thread to Minolta Body adapter.
The question is why was it produced with the Leica thread? Was there a Visoflex for the Minolta screw mount camera perhaps? I have this lens it is very sharp--also the lens can be used as an enlarging lens (it works great)--maybe this is the answer?

It would be great to find out the whole history of this neat lens!
 
I have a dimage 7i. i was told in a camera store I could purchase a Canon Tc-Dc 58N lens for telephoto. I would need a converter. Does anyone have any experience as to what I could buy to extend my distance? thanks. janet
 
The "Minolta 35" rangefinder camera from 1948 to 1958 and the "Minolta Super A" rangefinder camera of 1957 used Leica screw thread lenses, apparently.

Minolta then made a 3-prong bayonette lens rangefinder, the "Minotla Sky", but soon decided that TTL viewfinder was "better" for creative control of photography, and so they never released the camera. Minolta converted their research into the Minolta SR series of SLR cameras using the 3-prong bayonette lens mounts.

Minolta swithced their research into rangefinders to the now classic series of "Minolta Hi-Matic" cameras which eventually became fully automated as they became Minolta's modern point and shoots.

The Minolta body adapter is to fit the Leica screw thread lens to a Minolta Manual Focus SLR, I presume, even though the lens itself was originally produced for Minolta's own 35mm interchangeable lens rangefinder cameras.

Minolta made such adapters whenever introducing new cameras so their customers could use theri old lenses - also fitting MF lenses to AF, and AF lenses to APS. WIth stacked adapters, you could put that Leica screw lens on an MF adapter, then on an AF adapter, then on an APS adapter, and use it for Minolta S1/S100 APS SLR! Imagine, mounting a 1948 lens on a completely unrelated 2003 camera?!?

Whoever said Minolta abandoned their previous customers?

Finally, the comment about the Dimage camera is NOT in sequence here. I suggest pursuing a Dimage thread elsewhere to see what other Minolta Dimage 5/7/A1 users say about suplemental lenses for macro or telephoto work beyond the internal lens's close focus and wide angle to telephoto offering.

Good luck.

Peter Blaise
Minolta Photographer
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/minoltarangefinders/
 
I am interested in what you find out too, especially for the macro. I love to photograph flowers. I know B & W does have an adaptor and telephoto which exdtents the range of the telephoto. Since I did not have a macro lens for my flowers I used diopter lenses of +1,2 and 4. Hope this helps.
 
I believe that when you write "B & W" you mean "B+W".

B & W usually means "black and white" as in the chemical silver based film and processing.

B+W is the lens filter maker in Germany, a subsidiary of Schneider Optics. Here's a link:

---

http://www.schneideroptics.com/filters/filters_for_still_photography/

Which says, in part:

Schneider Optics - Filters for Still Photography - B+W Filters

The B+W Filter Company has been manufacturing optical filters for over 50 years. Our filters use Schott optical glass from which the filters are diamond cut, precision ground and then polished to ensure flatness on both surfaces and uniform thickness throughout. These, among other innovative measures, allow us to offer filters that meet the needs of even the most discriminating users.

A note to our customers outside the United States: Please contact our parent company in Germany for literature and dealer information.

[links to] Filters

UV / Warming Cooling for Black and White Film Neutral Density Polarizer for Infrared Special Filters Close-up <-- <-- <-- Soft Focus Color Correction Redhancer for Digital Photography Slim-Line Graduated Accessories Distributors Temperature Chart The B+W Difference B+W Handbook

---

Notice the CLOSE-UP above. That is what most people are after when they want to focus closer using their existing lenses.

Also, if you lens is interchangeable, you can insert an extension tube between your camera and your lens to enable closer focusing.

Also, there are many other suppliers for close-up filters, also called DIOPTERS. I like Hoya, Tiffen and others.

Enjoy, and share some images when you get the opportunity!

-- Click!

Love and hugs,

Peter Blaise Monahon Minolta Vivitar Tamron Fujifilm Ilford Kodak Adobe Hewlett Packard et cetera Photographer Member/Liaison of the award winning Northern Virginia Camera and Photography Clubs and Groups USA peterblaise@yahoo.com http://www.peterblaisephotography.com/
 
Not having one (I have the Minolta A fixed-lens rangefinder), I wonder if it's a three-prong lens mount on the Minolta Super A rangefinder camera (Leica used 4 prongs). Any links to images of the lens mount?

In 1957, Minolta had a research model Minolta Sky interchangeable lens rangefinder with a 3 prong lens mount which looked like the shape of the SR lens mount, but it used a locking pin like the eventual Minolta A auto focus lens mount, surprisingly. So, even if Super A/Sky/SR lenses fit each other's mounts, they may not lock in place (or focus to the same film depth).

We may never know.

See images of the 1957 Minolta Sky interchangeable lens rangefinder at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/minoltarangefinders/files/email-images/minolta-sky-35mm-interchangeable-lens-rangefinder-1.jpg and http://groups.yahoo.com/group/minoltarangefinders/files/email-images/minolta-sky-35mm-interchangeable-lens-rangefinder-2.jpg

Does anyone know - can I include an image here within the email for all to see?

Click!

Love and hugs,

- Peter Blaise Monahon - Minolta Vivitar Tamron Fujifilm Ilford Kodak Adobe Hewlett Packard et cetera Photographer - Member/Liaison of the award winning Northern Virginia Camera and Photography Clubs USA - peterblaise@yahoo.com - http://www.peterblaisephotography.com/
 
Images can be only uploaded directly in the forum while posting there. You use for that the "upload attachment" button. But these images are then only visible in the forum, not in the e-mail notification. Among other negative consequences it would slow down the send process too much.

if you see the "name" of an image in an e-mail notification, you know that somebody uploded one in the forum. Just click on the link at the buttom of the e-mail and you can see the image in the forum directly.
 
Back
Top