Minolta Capios 150S

The Minolta Capios 150S is a point-and-shoot camera from 2000. The 35mm camera was built by Minolta in a factory in China and sold on the Japanese market. The model was also sold under the name “Minolta Riva Zoom 150” and “Minolta Freedom Zoom 150”. The camera was aimed more at entry-level and casual users, for example for vacation. It has a number of automatic functions and you usually don’t need a manual to operate it.

The 35mm photo camera is equipped with a fixed lens. The lens is composed of six elements in six groups. The zoom range is 37.5 mm to 150 mm. The largest available aperture is f/5.4 at wide angle and f/11.9 at 150 mm. The lens is focused with an autofocus system. There is a focus lock button. The closest focusing distance is 60 cm. At 150 mm, you have to keep a minimum distance of 85 cm.

The 35 mm camera has an exposure meter. It can be used with films from ISO 25 to ISO 3200. The camera technology determines the correct film speed via the DX code. The camera has automatic exposure control and sets aperture and shutter speed automatically. There is exposure compensation that makes images 1.5 stops brighter.

In low light conditions, the built-in flash can be used. It achieves a range of up to 4.6 meters when shooting at ISO 100. The flash has an automatic mode to avoid red-eye. There is also a mode for portrait shots with flash at night and a fill-in flash. However, the flash can also be turned off completely.

The 35mm camera has a thread for a tripod and a self-timer on the bottom. The self-timer has a lead time of ten seconds. If ten seconds is too short for you to get into position, you can reach for the wireless remote control, which is available separately. The radio shutter release with the model name RC-3 can be used with several Minolta cameras and has a range of five meters.

According to the instruction manual, the camera weighs 190 grams and measures 11.2 x 6 x 4.4 cm. There is an eyelet on the side of the camera for attaching the camera strap or a wrist strap.

The camera requires a CR123A battery (eBay / Amazon*). One battery charge is enough for about 300 pictures. A CR2032 battery (eBay / Amazon*) is required for the wireless remote control.

Films for the Minolta Capios 150S

According to the instruction manual, the Minolta Capios 150S is designed for 35mm film. The film is automatically transported by the camera. After each shot, the film is rewound for the next frame. Up to 0.9 frames per second are possible in continuous shooting mode. The number of pictures taken is shown on the top display along with other information.

For the 35mm format, there is still a good selection of material for color and black-and-white shots. Possible films for the compact camera are the Kodak Ultramax 400* for color shots and the Kodak T-Max 100* for black and white shots. Both films deliver solid results with the compact camera.