Thrifted Frames: First Rolls with the Minolta Freedom Tele AF
A hands-on look at the 1988 Minolta Freedom Tele AF. Despite its bulky early-AF chassis, this $5 thrifting steal delivers great results on Kodak 200 film and shares a fascinating history with the Leica AF-C1. Full thoughts and image galleries inside.
The Minolta Freedom Tele AF, this is a point and shoot camera made by Minolta that was released in 1988. This camera is kind of bulky for it's semi basic function, which I attribute to the fact this was early in the AF days, and the way they handle the lens zoom between 38mm. and 80mm. This camera functions like most modern cameras with autofocus, where you half press, wait for focus, then fully press to select the shutter.
Interestingly enough, this camera was the base for the Leica AF-C1 point and shoot camera, though the lens focal length on that is advertised as 40 f/2.8 & 80 f/5.6 where this is 38 f/2.8 & 80 f/5.6. I wonder if this is to make them appear to be different, or if there's anything actually different with the lens in that camera. I've thought about buying one to compare, but this camera came in at a steal of $5 + shipping, where the Leica AF-C1 usually comes in at around $100.
I really like on this camera the LCD display that showcases where you are for exposure count, and it also shows the status of the timer, something which I didn't showcase.
Upon pressing the lens select button, the camera expands to leverage the 80mm f/5.6 mode, and extends the flash which I assume is for better brightness, as the in camera mode seems pretty heavily diffused.
Here are some example shots I took with the camera, all using 200 speed kodak film, but the first 2 pictures are Kodak Gold 200 and were from my first roll determining if the cameras even worked. The remaining pictures are Kodacolor 200.
Overall though, for the price I paid especially, I couldn't be happier with this camera for a point and shoot. It's easy to use, light enough, even though it's a little bit on the big side, it's still easy to bring with me and leverage. I currently have it loaded with a roll of Fujifilm Color 200, and this continues to be leveraged in my rotation.
Full Gallery of photos taken with this camera https://gallery.mrthrax.co/gallery/92OZNPQl9HnEB9O7KFOG6g4z