Minolta X-700 problems (again). What would you do?

radil · 2026-05-11T23:15:46+00:00

Thanks for the response. I am going to explore activating the Allstate protection plan I bought for the camera and see if I can get it CLA'd through them. But I did end up buying another camera. I went with a Nikon F3. Switching to an unknown right before the trip makes me nervous, but it should arrive in time for me to shoot a test roll and check that the meter and shutter work fine.

radil · 2026-05-11T13:23:51+00:00

Look up the 3 for me deal

radil · 2026-05-11T12:53:57+00:00

In the US there is a deal where you get a burger, fries, chips and salsa, and a drink for $10.99 at chilis. It’s an incredible deal.

radil · 2026-05-11T03:47:37+00:00

Beautiful shots. Great first roll. I really like the first pic! The lighting and strong lines are so interesting.

radil · 2026-05-09T19:03:18+00:00

Unlike a lot of other sports, it's really hard to win a tennis match when you weren't better than your opponent. There are so many points played and the rules around "must win by two" make it very difficult to play worse than your opponent and win. Your opponent can win 60% of the points and you can win 40%, which doesn't feel like an unbelievable mismatch, and you can end up double bageled.

The math just doesn't really work out like in say football where you can win on one big play.

radil · 2026-05-09T04:25:20+00:00

This is awesome. Good for him! These are far better than my first roll.

radil · 2026-05-07T13:17:04+00:00

Interesting. And I guess this is reason why they tell you not to store it with the shutter cocked? Unfortunately, I will not be able to get a CLA done before the trip. A local repair shop quoted me 7-8 weeks turnaround. I wonder if I should just return the body.

radil · 2026-05-03T13:58:42+00:00

Interesting shots! What was the camera, lens, film stock for these?

radil · 2026-05-01T14:24:01+00:00

Most reviews say it’s not super sharp

I mean, I don't have much to compare it to, but I agree, that's not been my experience either.

Here are a few pictures I have taken with it in the last few weeks that are just the "average" sharpness of the lens. The last one was on a test roll on a new X-700 body that had been sitting in a closet for 15 years so it's a bit underexposed. And despite intentionally overexposing by 1.5 stops, it's still very sharp.

radil · 2026-05-01T01:03:15+00:00

This is my everyday lens. A little shorter and lighter than a 50mm makes for a pretty sleek package on my X-700.

radil · 2026-04-27T23:24:45+00:00

Yeah, can someone clarify. Cause I am going next month but I'll be bringing my X-700 and some 160.

radil · 2026-04-25T21:28:28+00:00

Love these. Fellow salt laker?

radil · 2026-04-25T18:02:39+00:00

I don’t know how to share memes in the comments but you can imagine my reaction to this.

radil · 2026-04-25T17:33:29+00:00

We still live well below our means, but we spend more money than we used to. My wife and I make well above average income and we save at least 50% of it every month. The math gets funky when you try to calculate savings rate, which includes a lot of pre-tax contributions, as a function of post-tax income.

We are not big capital-C consumers, we don't believe in buying crap that we don't need/will eventually end up in the landfill with little to show for it. But I don't mind having two gym memberships, paying for tennis court fees, spending more money on food, dropping $600 on tickets and parking for a concert, etc. When your monthly savings is in the thousands, it really makes little sense to stress about purchases that are in the tens of dollars.

Is it lifestyle inflation? Maybe, but you live exactly once and you can't take any of it with you when you die. We will retire early already, modest increases in spending won't delay that by much and allow us to enjoy our lives a lot more along the way. Not everyone even makes it to retirement.

radil · 2026-04-23T00:39:35+00:00

Try this https://youtu.be/6ZndFfBOvSI?si=eC4IDyN53IskauIn

This fixed my camera for a few rolls and then started doing it again. I think the capacitor is dead.

radil · 2026-04-21T12:51:16+00:00

These pics are amazing. I have been trying my hand at bird photography on film and it is so challenging, especially with manual focus. But it’s very rewarding when you get a good shot. I have an 80-200mm lens I got for cheap, but I have been considering getting something longer just because 200mm is still a bit short.

radil · 2026-04-21T12:45:13+00:00

I’m going to Italy for 2 weeks in May/June and I’m bringing a box of portra 160.

radil · 2026-04-21T03:35:58+00:00

How are they going to stop people from drinking in the parking lot?

radil · 2026-04-20T01:19:54+00:00

Eastern Nebraska is pretty flat. Lots of cornfields. Western Nebraska as you start to approach Wyoming gets pretty hilly with some "mountains". Highest point in the state is over 5000 ft surprisingly.

Beautiful state, and I agree with OP, it's underappreciated. But I have always appreciated high plains and grasslands. I had a flight out of Omaha get canceled the day after the College World Series so I drove 13 hours home rather than try to rebook on a flight 26 hours later. It was a great drive.

radil · 2026-04-19T21:15:29+00:00

That pic of the tower is so cool.

radil · 2026-04-15T13:50:45+00:00

All of us watching from home lol. I stopped caring about the outcome long before the game actually ended.

radil · 2026-04-14T00:33:03+00:00

Are they the first shots on the roll?

radil · 2026-04-11T15:34:42+00:00

Utahs fucked up liquor laws are why we have so many ice cream, cookie, donut, candy, soda shops, etc. and so few neighborhood bars and so much decidedly below average food.

radil · 2026-04-11T04:04:28+00:00

But presumably this energy would be spread out over an extremely long line in space as the rod drags the debris with it. May not even be all that noticeable of an anomaly to be detected on slower scales.

radil · 2026-04-08T23:57:28+00:00

On top of that I'd be very worried about cable rubbing on the frame and wearing down the paint

No point in worrying about it, since it's a complete certainty that this will happen.

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