# Found this at an Estate Sale



## Ashley45 (May 25, 2015)

Hello! I am completely new here and joined to ask a few questions about this 1970's Minolta I found at an estate sale... She is in AMAZING condition and went and picked up a battery and some film for her and the meter is working everything seems to be functioning and I am slowly going through my first roll of film in close to 15 years... Any tips on her? Where I can find more lenses if all goes well with the first roll of film? I also picked up an 80s Pentax K1000 but it isn't in as good of shape as this Minolta SRT MII 

Any Advice is greatly appreciated!!

Thanks!


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## Dave442 (May 26, 2015)

I had the SRT-101 and I believe it was a very similar model. Great cameras, had the auto-indexing long before Nikon and an advanced metering system for its time. 

The SRT-101 only had a cold-shoe so had to run a sync-cord to the flash, not sure on your model. 

Are you shooting B&W or color? 

I particularly liked using a wider lens than the 50mm so I would recommend a 28mm or 35mm as other lens options. The Minolta Rokkor-X are good lenses and would look for those as a first option.


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## Ashley45 (May 26, 2015)

Thank you so much for your response!! I actually bought both B&W and Color as I have a fondness for B&W photography... I am still trying to go through a roll I guess I find it a little more precious in comparison to an SD card you can wipe clean and reuse each time.  I'll have to look for some of those lenses I was disappointed to see moisture in the larger lens in the photograph but I honestly couldn't tell you what lens it is without looking at it. I have a Nikon D3200 with a few lenses nothing too fancy but it's my first big girl camera... I already want a better body and lenses but I'll have to wait til the funds are there


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## Dave442 (May 26, 2015)

If the larger lens does not already have fungus then might try putting it in a bag with rice to absorbe the moisture. But really the longer lenses are best for digital these days.


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## Ashley45 (May 26, 2015)

Thanks! I live in Texas on the Gulf so it's crazy humid here I was actually surprised the camera was in such great shape... I've been having fun with it! Do you have any particular film that you recommend?


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## Dave442 (May 26, 2015)

For B&W I ran a lot of Tri-X through the SR-T camera and its still a good choice. For color film I would buy cheap stuff unless you also plan to spend for good processing. If your going to use different film types then make a note of what you currently have in the camera. I don't think that camera came with a holder for the top of the film box, but a lot of people added them.


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## Derrel (May 26, 2015)

One of the bigger problems with a good number of 35mm SLR cameras are old, deteriorated foam light seals around the back...that's one component that pretty easily "goes bad". Not all cameras relied on foam to light-proof the back; some earlier cameras relied on mechanical baffling, and have NO seals. Replacement foam sealing is cheap, and can be user-replaced. One of my very first light meters was an old General Electric that looked like yours.


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## Ashley45 (May 26, 2015)

It does still have its foam light seal! The Pentax K1000 does not though... Weird seeing as its a good 10 years newer than the Minolta


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## bribrius (May 26, 2015)

uhhh. oh... 

Another filmer....


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## Ashley45 (May 29, 2015)

Ok... so I ran through my first roll and took in for processing at Walgreens... I wanted to make sure that it worked right and came out decent enough that I would continue to use it... I am amazed at the vintage look that all the photos seem to have and you can definitely tell when I wasn't wearing my glasses and thought I could snag a shot lmao!!! No auto focus REALLY shows when you're a little far sided but anyways $17.60 for a roll of film!?!?!?!! AT WALGREENS??? 

Sooooooooo where do y'all get y'alls film developed? lol!! I need some major Newbie help!


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## limr (May 29, 2015)

Ashley45 said:


> Ok... so I ran through my first roll and took in for processing at Walgreens... I wanted to make sure that it worked right and came out decent enough that I would continue to use it... I am amazed at the vintage look that all the photos seem to have and you can definitely tell when I wasn't wearing my glasses and thought I could snag a shot lmao!!! No auto focus REALLY shows when you're a little far sided but anyways $17.60 for a roll of film!?!?!?!! AT WALGREENS???
> 
> Sooooooooo where do y'all get y'alls film developed? lol!! I need some major Newbie help!



Does that price include prints? One thing you can do to reduce the cost is just get the CD and look at the pictures on a computer. Then you can print just the ones you like instead of paying for all of them.

As for cheaper developing, you can check at Dwayne's Photo or The Darkroom.

I'm sure someone at some point is going to mention it, so...if you decide to stick with film, black and white can be easily developed at home and it would be less expensive than sending it out. (You don't need a darkroom for development only - the darkroom is required for printing, though.) The initial outlay of money would be more expensive, but long-term it's definitely cheaper. The thing that will make the initial outlay a bit more expensive is that you might have to buy a film scanner if you don't want to pay a commercial service for scanning (often more expensive than development itself!)

I shoot film almost exclusively and have a dedicated flatbed film scanner. I do my own b&w and bring my color to a local lab that just develops - no scans or prints. So I'm lucky, I know. If that lab ever goes out of business, I guess I'll be shooting a lot less color!


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## Ashley45 (May 29, 2015)

You said develop black and white easy at home.... I think I need some further details...


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## limr (May 29, 2015)

You said Gulf coast of Texas - anywhere near Houston? There seem to be several independent small film labs. Just do a little googling and you might find a local price that can give you a good price if they are still doing development on premises. Walgreens or Walmart are just going to send theirs out to a national lab, anyway. In fact, I think Walmart sends to Dwayne's.


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## limr (May 29, 2015)

Ashley45 said:


> You said develop black and white easy at home.... I think I need some further details...



You will need...
1. a developing tank (I recommend Patterson: Paterson Universal Tank with Two Reels Super System 4 PTP115

2. A changing bag (for taking film out of the cannister and loading it onto the reels and putting them into the light tight developing tanks (something like this: Dot Line Large 27x30 Changing Bag Black DL-0188 B H  I like the bigger sizes better than smaller. More room to work.)

3. Chemicals. There are three mains steps: developing, stop bath, fixer. A common b&w developer is Kodak D76 (Kodak D-76 Developer 5160296 B H Photo Video and a good fixer is Ilford Rapid Fixer (Ilford Rapid Fixer Liquid 1 Liter 1984262 B H Photo Video  Unfortunately, someone else will have to chime in more about chemicals. I actually use a homemade developer called Caffenol so I don't know much about the traditional chemicals. I use the Ilford Rapid Fixer, though, and it's excellent.

There's also something called PhotoFlo that you add to the last rinse to help keep water spots from developing on th film. It's essentially the same concept as JetDry. In fact, I use JetDry instead of PhotoFlo. You only need _literally_ a drop, so one bottle will last you for years.

4. Misc accessories: a timer, measuring cups and spoons, a can opener to crack open the film cannisters, clips and somewhere to hang the film to dry, small scissors to cut the leader off the film before loading the reels...

The overall process is not complicated, though it can certainly seem more complicated when getting into the nitty gritty details. It's a lot less mysterious once you start doing it. Well, except that first time you pull out a strip of film with images on it, it's absolutely like magic


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## 480sparky (May 29, 2015)

Ashley45 said:


> You said develop black and white easy at home.... I think I need some further details...



You can get into developing black & white at home for $150 or less.

Supplies & materials needed:
Tank
Reel(s)
Dark bag (aka film changing bag)(optional if you have a room that you can make light-tight)
Thermometer (no, the one you use in the kitchen won't work)
Measuring cups (no, don't take any from the kitchen!)
Storage containers (need to be chemical resistant)
Old can opener
Scissors (any old pair will do, but I prefer the small child scissors)
Some chip clips to hang the film up to dry
Chemicals:
   --Developer
   --Stop bath (optional)
   --Fixer
You can find free timer apps for your phone.


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## limr (May 29, 2015)

Oh, and don't be too put off if the K1000 looks a little rough. As long as the seals are good and the lens glass is good, the camera will still probably work just fine. The thing is a tank. I've had mine for 20+ years and even after all I've put that camera through, it still works like a champ. Seriously. Tank.


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## limr (May 29, 2015)

Ah, I forgot the thermometer! I knew I'd forgotten something. Hey, I'm on the East Coast, it's late for me


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## 480sparky (May 29, 2015)

A word of caution about 40-year-old film cameras:  The shutter may not be accurate.  They generally tend to be OK at 1/60 and slower, but the faster speeds usually aren't what you dial them to.

For instance, 1/125 may be 1/100, 1/250 end up at 1/150 and 1/500 is 1/190.  You'll end up with a lot of over-exposed shots.  Without a shutter timer, you'll just be guessing unless you want to burn several rolls of film to benchmark the shutter.


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## 480sparky (May 29, 2015)

limr said:


> Ah, I forgot the thermometer! I knew I'd forgotten something. Hey, I'm on the East Coast, it's late for me



Sniffin' hypo again, huh?  That'll do it!


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## dxqcanada (May 31, 2015)

Ashley45 said:


> You said develop black and white easy at home.... I think I need some further details...



The How I Develop Film thread Photography Forum


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## desertrattm2r12 (Dec 25, 2015)

Dwayne's Photo in Parsons, Kansas. Develop only $5.


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