My new favorite 35mm film camera very well may be the Minolta X-700. I received this camera as a present from a friend 2 weeks ago and it hasn’t left my side since. I’ve put about 4 rolls of film through this bad boy already and I show no signs of slowing down yet. There are a plethora of 35mm SLRs to choose from and to be honest, I’ve shot with almost all of them. There is the ever popular Canon AE-1, Nikon F2, Olympus OM-1 and the list goes on and on. I’ve shot with all of the “important” 35mm film cameras from Leica to Canon and I think this Minolta X-700 is my favorite to date! Here’s my top 5 reasons why I love this camera so much.
- Price
Yes, I got this camera for free but when you lookup this camera on eBay you can nicely find one of these for under $200! There is an ever increasing barrier to entry on these 35mm SLR’s with the prices of Canon AE-1s going for as much as $250+! That’s entirely too much money for a 30+ year old camera which is what makes the X-700 such a good deal.
- Modes
The X-700 offers you a number of modes to learn how to shoot film. From full on manual mode, to (P) programed automatic exposure mode, and Aperture Priority Mode this camera has a number of options to learn how to shoot. With (P) mode the camera operates almost like a point and shoot with you only having to effectively worry about focusing. That’s a neat little trick for a 35mm SLR!
- Size
The X-700 is pretty tiny which makes it a nice camera to carry around all day. With a carrying weight of just over one pound this thing is not going to be a hassle to lug around with you.
- Lens options
Since this camera came into the Minolta family in 1981 there is a LOT of lenses to choose from. Basically any manual focus lens from Minolta will fit although they suggest using the “newer” MD lineup. I have the 21 & 28mm lenses and am looking forward to adding at least the 50mm soon.
- Fun
Listen I’m not sure there’s any better reason to buy this camera than it’s just a fun one to use! I’ve been enjoying it so much I’ve been neglecting all of the other 35mm cameras in my collection and let me tell you, there’s a lot of options. At the end of the day, this camera is a great bang for your buck entry point into the world of 35mm SLRs and one I just can’t seem to get enough of!