(1936) This was the first TLR made in Japan to have a double-exposure prevention mechanism. 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/300. Used 120 film.
(1939) The first Japanese TLR to use the Rollei system of film advance -- the film is automatically stopped without the need to check numbers in a window. 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/300. Used 120 film.
(1943) Special military version with interchangeable lenses -- 75mm (f3.5) and 150mm (f4.5) lenses. Shutter speeds of T, B; 1 - 1/400. Used 120 film or 35mm film.
(1948) 85mm (f2.8) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/300. Used 120 film. Interchangeable lenses. Prototype only. Never marketed.
(1950) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Used 120 film. Two models existed.
(1953) 75mm (f3.5) Promar lens made by Asahi. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Used 120 film. Two models existed.
(1954) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Used 120 film.
(1954) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Used 120 film.
(1955) Minolta turned everything upside down with this model. In fact, they mounted the feeder and take-up spools backwards! Why would they do that? They determined that this would increase the tension on the film and create flatter film -- and hence sharper images. It later became standard practice in TLR cameras from most companies.
(1955) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/400. Used 120 film.
(1955) 75mm (f3.5) lens. This was the first Japanese camera to be fitted with an EV-based exposure meter, and it made picture taking much easier. The meter was not coupled to the shutter speed or aperture scale, but it was easy to use. First, dial in the film speed into the meter. Then the meter produced a single, EV number instead of an f-stop and shutter speed combination. This EV number -- Minolta called it an LVS number -- is then dialed into the shutter/lens assembly. The f-stop and shutter speeds are assigned LVS numbers and the combination must equal the LVS number from the meter. This system was used later on the 35mm Minolta SR-7, and other Minolta cameras, as well. It sounds awkward, but it worked well, once you got the hang of it. Yet another Minolta first. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Used 120 film. Built-in selenium meter. Two models existed.
(1955) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/400. Used 120 film.
(1956) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/400. Used 120 film. Same as original, but a depth-of-field scale was added to the side of the crank.
(1957) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/400. Used 120 film. Several images sizes. It has a removable panel just above the hub of the wind lever which allows different sets of gears to be installed by the user to generate film spacing for different film formats.
(1958) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Improved version of the RA with a new shutter with speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Other features were the same. Prototype only.
(1958) 75mm (f3.5) lens. New shutter with speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Used 120 film.
(1959) Much smaller than the other Minolta TLRs because it used the smaller 127 film for 4x4 images instead of the 120 film which made 6x6 images. It has a shorter 60mm (f3.5) lens and shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Only about 5,000 of these were made so they get pricey.
(1961) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Used 120 film. Lens marked Chiyoko Rokkor.
(1961) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Used 120 film.
(1962) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Used 120 film. Lens marked Minolta Rokkor.
(1962) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Used 120 film. First Minolta TLR to be marked "Minolta Camera Co."
(1965) An updated version of the original Autocord -- the camera just says Autocord, and the Minolta literature refers to this as the Autocord Stardard, but photographers often refer to it as the Autocord I or Autocord model 1 which leads to a lot of confusion -- since it is not the first Autocord model and the "I" or "1" never appears anywhere. 75mm (f3.5-22) Rokkor lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Used 120 film. Front plate changed from earlier Autocords to include a small "MINOLTA" above the "AUTOCORD". Built-in double-exposure control -- and over-ride. M and X synch at all shutter speeds. Built-in pop-up magnifier and eye-level sport finder. Built-in self-timer and cold flash shoe.
(1965) The Autocord CDS is an improved version of the Autocord with a built-in CDS meter. The meter is built into a panel above the lens and meters a 15 degree angle (designed for semi-spot metering) -- viewable as a large circle in the middle of the focusing screen. It accepts film speeds from ISO 6 to 25,000 and has a HIGH and LOW setting -- as well as OFF. The meter uses an EV scale on a large knob on the left side of the camera -- making it easy to read from the viewing position. Uses a single PX-1 battery or equivalent.
(1966) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. This was the first Japanese camera designed to use 120 film or 220 film -- by rotating the pressure plate. Since the film counter only ran to "12", with 220 film the counter was reset to "0" for the 13th through 24th exposure. It was short-lived and quickly replaced by the Autocord III, so it is hard to find.
(1966) Improved version of the Autocord II with a built-in CDS meter. It was short-lived and quickly replaced by the Autocord CDS III, so it is hard to find. Uses a single PX-1 battery or equivalent.
(1966) 75mm (f3.5) lens. Shutter speeds of B; 1 - 1/500. Designed to accept 120 or 220 film by rotating the pressure plate -- without having to reset the counter after the 12th picture! The film counter can be set for 12 (120) or 24 (220) shots.
(1966) Improved version of the Autocord III with a built-in CDS meter. Uses a single PX-1 battery or equivalent.
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