Minolta AF-C

24

It looks, talks, feels and exposes like the legendary Lomo LC-A! What are the differences you ask? Check it out!

The Minolta AF-C shows a lot of resemblance with the Lomo LC-A or the Olympus XA. They’re all cute, pocket-sized and idiot-proof camera’s. But, while the others are zone focus, the AF-C is made for people who are even lazier: it is autofocus! It comes with a truly neat cover that slides down and unveils the lens and with a cute flash that is attached to the side of the camera, like with the XA’s.

The AF-C has a semi-wide 35mm f2.8 lens and is fully automatic, for those lazy snapshotlovers out there. The Minolta is very easy (duh) in use and is overall accurate in exposure. Some people might think the lack of manual settings is a negative point, but you can lock the autofocus by pointing the centre of the viewfinder on your subject, pressing the button half and then reframe. Besides that, you can use the iso-dial to under- or overexpose your shot, depending the circumstances. The AF-C has a “film-in” indicator next to the frame counter and loading film is really easy cause of a little part which presses your film on the spool. The shutter is really quiet and the autofocus makes a little bzzz-bzzz noise when activated.

I’m a big fan of this camera. It has a beautiful design, is tiny, quiet and fully automatic. Also, the flash that comes with it is really small, so it’s comfortable to take with you. Maybe the fact that there isn’t a hotshoe is a downside because it would give some more possibilities, but hey, you can’t have everything, can you?

I’ve tried to make multiple exposures with this camera by turning back and cocking the film rewind, pressing the button on the bottom of the camera and then turning the film advance. But, (un)fortunately this didn’t always work and it resulted in some long horizon-like pictures which look like a collage of people, places and objects I photographed. I like the results because they’re so unpredictable. The AF-C is quite rare and hard to find. I’ve bought mine for 20 euro, so I guess that’s affordable. If you bump into one, make sure you take her home and treat her to some nice film. You’re in for a great date!

written by cubilas on 2009-09-09 #gear #review #minolta #multiple-exposure #autofocus #minolta-af-c

24 Comments

  1. jaalvarez
    jaalvarez ·

    The last photo ...
    A Photographer "in fraganti" !!!
    Good shoot !!!

  2. ethermoon
    ethermoon ·

    woah! i thought it was another upgrade for LCA or something when looking over the thumbnail. :D
    nice review.. likes photo 30. nice

  3. mattydk
    mattydk ·

    cool review, great gallery!

  4. moochie_lomo
    moochie_lomo ·

    Very cool! I love little cameras like this. Looks as if it's got a great lens, too. I really like your collages - especially #s 21 and 23. Excellent! Great stuff. Thanks for bringing this camera to our attention!

  5. herbert-4
    herbert-4 ·

    Very nice review, and the overlapping multi's and the penultimate portrait are glorious. Also the camera info is messed up... LSI please fix!!

  6. cinzinc
    cinzinc ·

    love the gallery

  7. blue-dog
    blue-dog ·

    Nice review..i have never seen this camera..did my tip help w/ doubles?
    www.lomography.com/magazine/tipster/2009/06/01/you-can-make…

  8. stouf
    stouf ·

    Super review !!!

  9. lomosexual_manboy
    lomosexual_manboy ·

    Really great gallery, especially the doubles. I like cameras like these where you can go buck wild and they come out awesome.

  10. vicuna
    vicuna ·

    Great review and gallery!! The double shots are beautiful!!

  11. ishoothorizon
    ishoothorizon ·

    Volgens mij ben je een vlaming.

  12. breakphreak
    breakphreak ·

    like your photos

  13. dogma
    dogma ·

    Great review and super doubles :)

  14. ivoryocean
    ivoryocean ·

    #9 is beautiful!

  15. cubilas
    cubilas ·

    Thanks Lomography for posting my review!
    And thanks everyone for the great comments!

  16. cubilas
    cubilas ·

    @ blue-dog: yea, that's what I used, can't remember if it was your tip that got me doing it or some divine intervention
    @ herbert-4: what do you mean camera info messed up?
    (btw: my other review of the Tenax I still has the wrong camera picture with it: LSI, time for action!)
    @ ishoothorizon: eerder Belg en pas erna Vlaming (kan belangrijk zijn in deze communautaire tijden)

  17. andyzz
    andyzz ·

    Can it be shoot in the low light conditon like LC-A ?

  18. cubilas
    cubilas ·

    @ andyzz: yes it can, it doesn't lock the shutter when there's too little light but of course the autofocus might have trouble focusing when it's too dark, so it's better to use it in daylight or with the flash

  19. photo_david
    photo_david ·

    This is a great little camera. I spotted one on eBay for next to nothing after reading this. Just got the package, it's like a rock solid little LC-A. Awesome; very fun to shoot with, can't wait to get the first roll developed! :)

  20. robvent7
    robvent7 ·

    great review and shots! I love 23

  21. cfib
    cfib ·

    cool;)
    I got mine yesterday for €3 :P but without batteries :/

  22. photochrom
    photochrom ·

    I got this wonderful camera on my birthday. Sadly the flash is missing and I couldn't find one. :( This camera is just priceless. :D I've posted a couple of shots on my blog: mauvaisesnouvellesdesetoiles.tumblr.com/tagged/Minolta_AF-C

  23. graslund
    graslund ·

    Great review! What type of film did you shoot for those last 8 pictures? Love the colors!

  24. bewar3them00n
    bewar3them00n ·

    Just picked bought one of these cheap, with flash, in it's case. Looking forward to running a few rolls through it. Love your double exposure prints!

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