Silverbased

I have an odd fascination with the “popular” rangefinder cameras of the Eisenhower era. And this 1955 entrant in the category, the Minolta A, certainly wins adorability points with its plump body style.

It features an Optiper MX shutter ranging from 1/300 to 1 second; and a Rokkor 45mm f/3.5 Tessar-type lens.

This was an interesting historical moment, when Japanese camera companies began breaking away from imitating German models and started innovating with their own ideas. What’s more, they were able to produce popular models at a price that spelled the death knell for American camera makers.

This model sold for about $50 when new—a bit less than the price of the chunky, and by then quite obsolete Argus C-3. Argus had introduced its C-4 by this time, at a street price of about $70; yet this Minolta scored a few points even in comparison with that, like with the rapid wind lever, PC sync connection, and greater range of shutter speeds.

The one shown has a problem with sticky blades in its leaf shutter, so it’s going to take a little work before I can shoot with it.

[An earlier version of this posted on Flickr 22 October 2007.]