Minolta Hi-Matic C

The Minolta Hi-Matic C is a 35mm camera. It belongs to the Hi-Matic series of the Japanese manufacturer. It was introduced in 1969 and was produced in a factory in Japan.

Like all Hi-Matic cameras, this model comes with a fixed lens. What makes it stand out is that you have to pull out the lens before using it. This, of course, makes the camera a bit more compact during transport. The lens is a 40 mm with a maximum aperture of f/2.7. The smallest aperture is f/22. A filter can be screwed onto the 49 mm thread.

Focusing is manual. The closest focusing distance is 90 cm. When focusing, three small symbols help for the most common distance. The single one for shots around one meter. The group for pictures with distance of about three meters. The mountain should be chosen for landscape shots with a distance of ten meters or more from the subject.

The camera has a light meter. It is designed for films from ISO 25 to ISO 400, an important limitation if you want to work a lot with high-sensitivity films. For shutter speeds, you can choose between 1/250 second (sun) or 1/30 second (cloud). The camera selects the appropriate aperture from the shutter speed and film speed. The selected aperture is displayed on a scale in the viewfinder with a pointer. It is not possible to select the aperture manually.

An external flash unit can be used via the hot shoe or PC flash connection. The shutter speed should be 1/30 second when using a flash. The camera can be attached to a tripod through the thread on the bottom. A cable release can also be connected. There is no self-timer for this.

With a size of 12.2 x 7.1 x 4.7 cm, the Minolta Hi-Matic C weighs 420 grams according to the user manual. The camera’s power source is a 1.35 V mercury battery.

Films for the Minolta Hi-Matic C

35mm film is exposed in the Minolta Hi-Matic C. This is a common film format for which there is still a good selection of film stock available today. The films should be in the range of ISO 25 and ISO 400 from sensitivity. Great films for the Japanese camera that are still available today are the Fujifilm Superia 400* for color photos and the Ilford XP2 Super* for monochrome B&W photos. Both films deliver reliable results and can also convince in professional test reports. Other suitable films are offered by Foma, Kodak, Rollei and Adox, among others.

The negatives of the 35 mm camera have a size of 24 mm x 36 mm. To the next picture, the film is manually wound with a lever. On the top is the counter of the images already taken. When the end of the film is reached, a small button on the bottom must be pressed in and the film material must be transported back into the cartridge with a crank. Only then can the camera be opened and the film taken for development.