Minolta XD11 “poor man’s Leica” w/50mm 1.7f
Body serial #1177678
Lens serial #2547450
Comes with Legacy’s 30 Day Warranty
In great shape! Shows some leather shrink, common for its age, and merely cosmetic.
Sold as the XD11 in North America, the XD in Japan and the XD7 in Europe, this manual-focus camera was the result of a 1977 partnership between Minolta and Leica, which made this camera the first SLR to combine both TTL aperture and shutter priority modes. (As well as full manual mode) Leica would go on to build its R4, R5, R6 and R7 on the chassis of the XD11.
It was called the “poor man’s Leica” but there’s nothing poor about this camera. In fact, it’s likely the best manual focusing camera Minolta ever made.
It has shutter speeds from 1/1000 to 1 second for automatic modes and stepped speeds from 1/1000 to 1 second plus bulb mode in manual. In shutter priority mode the camera has complete electronic aperture control.
The viewfinder is bright and easy to use with exposure information down the right side. You don’t need to take your eyes off of it in manual mode, though the design of the shutter control is wanting when compared to the 202. Shooters wanting different viewscreens could choose from four Acute-Matte finish options. The silicon photocell TTL meter has an automatic exposure range from EV1 to EV18.
The shutter moves vertically and is much quieter than all previous models, which along with its small size is ideal for street shots. That shutter also allowed for a 1/100 flash sync, which is almost twice as fast as that found in the future X-700.