The Minolta ER is an SLR camera. It was introduced in the early 1960s. It was produced in a factory in Japan. It was the first attempt at an SLR with automatic exposure by the Japanese company.
Unlike other Minolta SLRs from time, the ER comes with a fixed lens. The manufacturer's name of the lens is "Rokkor TD f/2.8 45 mm." The focal length is 45 mm and the maximum aperture is f/2.8. You have to focus the lens manually. The minimum distance to the subject is 90 cm. In addition, there were two attachments for the camera, a 35 mm and an 85 mm.
The 35 mm camera is equipped with a built-in selenium light meter. It can be used with films from ISO 10 to ISO 400. Unlike "normal" SLR cameras, the correct exposure is not measured through the lens, but via metering cells above the lens. The aperture and exposure time can be freely selected. However, the aperture setting can also be set to "A". Then the aperture is automatically set based on the shutter speed.
The Japanese camera comes with a leaf shutter. It offers shutter speeds from 1/500 second to 1/30 second. A bulb mode is available for long exposures.
The Minolta ER has a thread for a tripod and cable release. It also has a self-timer. The self-timer has a lead time of ten seconds.
With a size of 14 x 9.2 x 7.7 cm, the Minolta ER weighs 880 grams according to the instruction manual. The camera is mechanical and can take photos without batteries. The light meter does not need batteries either. However, the metering cells can lose accuracy over the years or stop working completely.
Films for the Minolta ER
What is needed for the Minolta ER is 35mm film. The 35mm format is very common, so even today there are several manufacturers and many developing labs. Available photo films for the SLR that are easy to get are the Kodak Ultramax 400* for color shots and the Ilford XP2 Super* for B&W shots. Both can convince in various reviews and are well suited for everyday use and travel. Of course, there are other manufacturers of 35mm film on the market.
The 35mm photo camera exposes an area of 24 mm x 36 mm. With a normal film (135-36), 36 photos are usually possible. To the next picture the film is wound manually. The return transport is also done manually. A frame counter provides information about the number of pictures taken.
