First Rolls of Film On My “NEW TO ME” Minolta X-570
Facebook Marketplace is a social media platform in its own right. You click that little local shop icon, and next thing you know, you've spent an hour or two scrolling through items you don’t need, more than likely making inquiries about things you have no business buying. We’ve all done it. We’ve all found a heck of a deal or laughed at someone asking for way too much money, wishing we could comment, “Are you crazy?” I was drinking my coffee a few weeks back, scrolling through Facebook Marketplace, looking for Minolta (now Sony) A-mount lenses to use on my Minolta Maxxum 400SI. It’s a more modern SLR film camera that has autofocus and feels pretty much like a DSLR; you just load film and cannot preview. This was my first and only film camera, and the nostalgia was real until I was scrolling marketplace.
While looking for a nice, newer A-mount lens, I came across another Minolta camera with three lenses: a 24mm f/2.8, a 50mm f/1.8, and a 70mm-210mm f/3.5-5.6. I had been keeping my eyes open for an older, more classic-style film camera—one that gave more of that analog feel than the 400SI I was using—but I hadn’t found anything just yet. That is, until this came across the screen on my phone, and to make it better, it was listed for $50, originally set at $150. My first thought was, “What’s wrong with it?” A short conversation later, it all seemed to be working properly. The seller just didn’t want it any longer; it was a family camera, and no one used it, so it was time to give it to a new home. Somehow, I was going to be the lucky winner.
Though this deal had been listed for several days, long enough for the seller to knock $100 off the price, I was not going to waste any time picking it up. “Do you take Venmo?” I asked the seller, only to soon find out they do not due to issues they’ve had in the past. I’m not sure what kind of issues people are having with Venmo, but now I needed to wrangle $50 cash, and no one carries cash these days. I casually strolled around the office hunting for someone with $50 or a group to build me $50, and after asking everyone, the last person I asked had me covered. I was in the truck and headed to check out my new toy.
After loading the first roll of Kodak Gold 200, cranking the film advance lever, and snapping my first photo while hearing that sweet sound of the 1983 shutter, I was hooked. Three rolls of film later—two Kodak Gold 200 and one Kodak Ektar 100—I figured I would share my opinions on the quality of the camera. First and foremost, the camera feels wonderful in your hands. It’s an antique, and to someone new to the sport of film photography, it’s just got a magical feel. What really makes it great is that it combines the antique feel with some more modern amenities, like the fact that it can meter for you. There’s no need to carry a light meter or hope that you’re exposing properly; the camera will let you know. Despite these features, you still have all the mechanical dials, no extra bells and whistles, and you manually advance and wind the film. The ability to select your film speed or ISO, since it doesn’t read the DX code, allows you to more easily rate your film a stop higher. This is something I really enjoy, as I have found that I like my images in certain scenarios to have a little less contrast by bringing more light to the shadows.
Photo of my son looking for fiddler crabs on the sandbar.
Minolta X-570 | Kodak Gold 200 | Lab - “The Photo Spot”
My goal here is to showcase some of my favorite photos from my first batch of images on this camera. I honestly don’t have a lot more to say about the Minolta X-570; really, there isn’t much to it, but in reality, this is why I love it. This is what drew me into film photography: the simplicity of the cameras, vintage glass, and the fact that it makes you slow down. You’ll notice your bad habits brought on by digital photography and relearn the art of composition. You’ll take in the moment more. You’re no longer firing off 100 shots; instead, maybe 1 or 2, and if you’re feeling frisky, 3 or 4.
Looking at this first image, Kodak Gold 200 rated at a film speed of 100, you can remove the shadows from the image, retain highlights in the sky, and render all colors true while maintaining great skin tones. This is an example of when I like to rate a stop higher. It’s also photos like this that make me love shooting film photography. As I tell people, the moments captured feel more real. Maybe it’s because I am burned out on the absolutely perfect digital images I see all day, every day, from work to scrolling social media and everywhere else. Or maybe it’s because when I look back at my childhood, all the photos of me are film photos taken on that same Minolta 400SI. I don’t truly know what it is, but I can say the moments captured feel much better on this medium.
Two photos on a recent road trip; The first, a gas station we pulled off at around 3am to allow my wife to feed our 4 month old son. The second, a shot of my view from the backseat while entertaining my two boys on the last leg of our drive.
Minolta X-570 | Kodak Ektar 100 | Lab - “The Photo Spot”
These two images were two of my first on Kodak Ektar 100. What I loved about these images was how dark the shadows were without completely losing all information. I am giving full credit here to the Ektar 100 and not myself; I am still learning. As I continue shooting different film stocks, I really begin to realize how strong film is when it comes to retaining highlights and shadows. I was blown away by both of these images and how they turned out.
Photos of a casual walk around the Buffalo Trace Distillery Campus in Frankfort, Kentucky.
Minolta X-570 | Kodak Gold 200 | Lab - “The Photo Spot”
As I have said, one of the things I love most about shooting film photography is that I have to slow down. Film isn’t cheap, development isn’t cheap, and neither are the scans. Shooting, developing, and scanning the first three rolls of film from the Minolta X-570 cost about $80, so taking time to compose and look through the viewfinder to decide, “Do I want to take this photo?” is a big deal. Even with this careful approach, you’re not always going to get the best image or one you love. The seven images above are some of my favorite photos from a recent trip to Buffalo Trace. We had made the stop to pick up a bottle of bourbon and walk around to get some exercise, and of course, I wanted to try out the new camera.
I love the way these photos came together. The aged and char-covered brick mixed with the bright greens of summer, all diffused by a storm front moving over, made for a great place to open up and expose a few frames of Kodak Gold 200. This is by far my favorite film stock, as it captures a very warm scene while keeping colors true to the eye.
This read may be all over the place, but I wanted to capture the story of coming across my new camera and showcase some of the first images exposed with it. A week traveling for vacation and visiting family became the trial period for what has now become my new favorite toy. The mix of antique Minolta prime lenses, beautiful film stocks, and great locations made for an amazing test of my ability to find a scene and make a great photo, all while gaining some experience with my “new-to-me” Minolta X-570.
