Hello all,

I have an opportunity to purchase an Minolta X-700, in good shape, for a very, very low price from a coworker. I am a high-end Nikon user so I have a few questions on this little Minolta gem.

I shoot looong exposures. I do alot of lightning, night time, moon light, and star trail photography.

1. Can anyone comment on the battery drain on exposure times from 30 seconds to hours?

2. Is is possible to purchase an external battery pack for the X-700?

3. Finally, is it possible that the motor drive could act as a power supply?

Sorry for the elementary questions, but the B&H listings don't have much info. on minolta's, and as said before, I am a Nikon guy.

Thank you, John

-- John Purdy (jpurdy@netwurx.net), May 08, 1999

Answers

You might try asking your question also on the Minolta Mailing List website:

http://www.rit.edu/~ecl6895/Minolta/Mail/

-- Henry Richardson (henry_richardson@hotmail.com), May 09, 1999.

The X-700 is a great little camera, but is not the machine you want for long exposures. The two 1.5 volt silver oxide cells (better than the 3V single lithium)will last forever under normal conditions (~1 year), but will exhaust themselves in a hurry (1 exposure) if you're shooting long time exposures. I'm not aware of any external battery pack, but you could probably build one without a lot of fuss. Not sure about the motor drive supplying power to the shutter though.

-- Barry Schmetter (bschmett@my-dejanews.com), May 09, 1999.

Hi John, here is a link with some info on the X700:

http://www.hempac.net/mug/bodies.htm

-- Marcus Erne (cerne@ees.eesc.com), May 12, 1999.

I've been using a Minolta x-700 under normal use, usually shooting about 4-6 rolls of film a month for the last 3 1/2 years and have never had to change the batteries (which has amazed me). I've done a few projects which involved long exposures around 5-20min and the camera performed like a champ. I think alot of it may also have to do with weather and temperature conditions.

-- rafael (rafa82@hotmail.com), May 21, 2001.

Why not buy a second-hand SRT 101 Minolta--They are superbly built and can use all the X700 optics and are available much more cheaply than an X700. Since they have non-electronic shutters, they are not battery dependent. True, they are heavier, but with long exposures and a tripod, you won't notice the difference. I have 2 as well as an X700 and prefer their more solid feel.

-- Malcolm Drummond (revd.m.drummond@btinternet.com), January 12, 2002.