This story has many beginnings… (Click on any image to view larger and sharper.)
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| Phil Bradon taught me how to get this result using only ONE flash and one reflector! |
We all know what happened to Minolta. The story was they hemorrhaged money because of a lawsuit with Honeywell Corp. regarding autofocus patents. I shared this story in the book I wrote about the Konica Minolta 7D camera.
Beginning #2 Back in the early days of the internet, Yahoo! was a thing, and Yahoo!Groups usurped Usenet as the premiere online discussion platform for normal people (as opposed to the Geeks and the Nerds who made up the entirety of Usenet). I was mildly active in the Minolta forum, and I suggested we all send a group “Thank You” to Phil Bradon for his stellar level of customer support. I created a framed award and sent it to him, signed by the most active members of the group. Phil later told me that he’s only received two awards in his life; this was one of them. It graced his office wall until Sony bought Minolta, at which time Phil left.
Beginning #4 One day after my book on the Minolta 7D camera was published, I received a letter from an engineer who used to work for Honeywell. Below is an excerpt, slightly edited to remove legally contentious fragments:
“Dear Gary, It was interesting to read your opinion that the demise of Minolta was due in part to the lawsuit loss to Honeywell! Let me tell you some of the inside story of that loss. The invention of SLR autofocus was my invention and my patents which were naturally assigned to Honeywell. Minolta had purchased the Honeywell autofocus IC module and initially were using it in their cameras. Suddenly they stopped using the Honeywell product and came out with their OWN!! autofocus system… based on the ‘401’ patent.
“Minolta was contacted by Honeywell to suggest license under this patent so they could continue making AF cameras. They were advised by a large New York law firm to reject any offers of license by Honeywell. I know for a fact that Honeywell would have gladly settled for a $5 million license arrangement. Honeywell was known as a company which tried to avoid litigation and the most they had ever realized from any past litigation was around $5 million.
“Minolta chose to go to trial and fight patent infringement instead of settling. After five months in court, the jury awarded $96.4 million plus an additional $31.5 million in court costs and licensing fees to Honeywell.”
Minolta was financially weak after that point. I shared this story with Phil Bradon to get his perspective. Here’s what he said:
“All camera companies were working on AF systems for lens shutter and SLR cameras when Honeywell came to Japan with the module that Konica used for the C-35. Minolta’s was infrared as were Pentax and Canon.
“Minolta purchased a license to produce a lens shutter camera with the same module. It was very bad in low light as it was a light based system (not infrared). Terrible for flash pictures. Fuji put a flash light on their camera. A year later, Minolta finished their infrared system and switched it out.
“SLR camera systems continued to be developed. Honeywell showed up again with the module for SLR cameras. Minolta and about everybody else signed the non-disclosure agreement before seeing. Found it was not as good as the one they were developing and Honeywell was not yet finished developing – “give us some earnest money and we will be back in a year with the module.” Minolta was screwed for signing the paper.
“I agree that they should have payed a royalty and moved on. Even though the Honeywell system just about killed Olympus who got out of SLR cameras because of it. Almost took down Pentax and was a failure for the Nikon 2020.”
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| Cameracraft Magazine's first issue. |
Ah, Minolta Mirror. Minolta’s legendary annual publication showing off great photography being made by their cameras, using the best (and costliest) printing in the business. It ran from 1975 until 1993. I knew of its legendary reputation. I think I even had an old issue lying around. Like an old National Geographic magazine, they’re hard to throw away.
“Minolta Mirror was a true labor of love of Dick Bryant. It took a full year to produce one. Dick went to each photographer and personally interviewed him/her and selected photographs. Then came back to Japan and wrote the articles and worked with the printer in Kyoto, Japan to get the very best possible images in print. He used to come back from a printing session to describe how many colors were used to get the job done.”
The above quote was Phil Bradon again, explaining that the Mirror was so popular that Dick Bryant ended up doing it full time, and he (Phil) took over Dick’s responsibilities, writing English manuals and such. Phil ended up moving to Japan to accept the assignment.
Continuing…
So for 11 years now I've been working hard on Cameracraft magazine, seeking out and writing about photographers who were doing interesting and worthwhile things with their cameras.
Then one day out of the blue, I got a call from Phil Bradon. Phil was now working for the company that makes Sekonic light meters. “I’m cleaning out my house; I found a full collection of Minolta Mirror magazines. Could you provide a good home for these?” Having never seen more than one issue myself, I quickly accepted, and pored through them once they arrived.
As I continued to peruse the old issues, something took me completely by surprise: In the 1976 edition there was an article written by David and Shirley Kilpatrick – the very publishers of Cameracraft magazine! (1980 and 1986 editions as well.) I had no idea David was involved way back then. Nor did I realize just how much hair he once had...
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| What a beautiful family in 1976. David is now bald like me. |
Phil and I kept up a healthy email correspondence until his retirement in 2016, and in those emails he revealed some interesting stories about the inner workings of Minolta. I'll share a few tidbits with you here:
They now had a "family" of cameras to sell to the
various markets in the USA.
The SRT-101 was the Middle camera which might be found in entry level and high end resellers. The SRT-102 would be a camera store only camera with the BLACK SRT-102 being in the special Advanced Systems Division stores. The SRT-100 was the mainstay of K-Mart and similar stores.
JC Penny wanted a special camera so Minolta made the SRT-MC, a version of the SRT-100, for them. Minolta Corp did very well with these.
Other changes in the SRT enabled creating a "new" series of cameras and the 200, series was born. It was then easier to track the world movement of product and protect the USA market from "gray market" cameras.
Race To the Bottom
Phil: I was actually in Japan when they were working on this. Never saw it. After being quite vocal on the XD and XG projects as well as Weathermatic A and Talker, I can guess why the tech center was not as forthcoming on it. [Ed. note: Corporate didn't always appreciate Phil's input on their designs.]
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| I got this image from the Minolta collector's Facebook page. The Minolta XX was another pre-production camera before the name of "XK" or "X1" was finalized. (Had it been called "XY", it would have been a boy.) |
Thank you Gary for such posts. I have been an avid Minolta enthusiast for many years and here I'm still leaning new things about the company and rare products. Thanks again.
ReplyDeleteEmmanuel
Time to dust off my small collection of Minolta Mirrors and appreciate the sheer quality of photography and production!
ReplyDeleteWhat a neat story. Thank you so much Gary. I don't use Sonys anymore, but I still appreciate this wonderful repository of information and history and fun. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteA nice walk down memory lane, Gary. In the 1980s, I made friends with several prominent figures in Minolta's New Jersey office including Phil Bradon and John Johnny. I confess my introduction to those guys was greatly facilitated by my engagement/marriage to the woman who did Minolta's US marketing, Terri Gleason. Alas the marriage didn't last, but I owe an unpayable debt to her and to Minolta, as they both promoted my work. Moreover Minolta let me borrow lots of gear I could never afford to purchase during my years as a part-time nature photographer/full-time medical student. Phil Bradon was also more than helpful if I needed a button mod on one of my many X bodies. Having those connections at "the mind of" was simply great, and produced some great publicity events I was priveleged to be a part of. Among other things they paid my way to accompany several of the staff of the Brooks Institute of Photography on a photo tour of Australia; give a lecture series at various colleges in California; and also lecture about flower photography at the Philadelphia Flower show for about 10 years running.
ReplyDeleteYou failed to mention that cheap megazoom digicams are once again appearing with the imprinted name of minolta. Someone bought their IP licenses apparently.
Thanks, Kerry, for adding to the story!
Delete(I didn't mention the cheap modern Minoltas because I felt it was too far away from the storyline.)
Hi Gary, what an interesting read this was… I still absolutely love all my old Minolta lenses. I always say they are second to none in handling color. Great blog post!
ReplyDeleteMinolta lenses were known for remarkable color rendering consistency across their lens line. That was important back in the days of shooting transparencies.
DeleteThat photo again! Dick Bryant didn't visit us then, when Richard (elder son, now a motoring journalist with Car magazine and Parkers) was tiny. He did come and stay overnight, meeting photographers, after we moved to Scotland in 1989 - it was late spring, his 'room' was part building site with a bed temporarily put in the Georgian drawing room we never ever got round to restoring. He met photographers in the garden and daughter Ailsa (now 41) was quite charmed by our visitor; Dick was one of those people who just get on with other beings, whether children, animals, eccentric recluses (read some of his interviews) or gods of the photographic pantheon.
ReplyDeleteThe photo of Shirley and me with Richard was taken by Jack Schofield, editor of Photo Technique, visiting our first house. Shirley had just washed her hair and it was still wet, making her look quite different as it was actually shoulder-wide and length. From the look of me I must have washed mine too as it was never that 'big'! Thank you for remembering all this. I never met Phil Bradon and much regretted Dick's retirement to the USA and his departure from his remarkable life not long after.
Always enjoy reading these informative stories. My first Minolta was an SRT101 that I bought while living in Chicago. Later back in UK I had it converted to a black painted finish. Now that's worn on the edges and the brass shows through very elegantly! I am proud of a collection of metal Minoltas including an XK - all now almost worthless of course - and of my A99 and A6300 that now serve all the needs of an 80-year old snapper.
ReplyDeleteXKs are considered collector's items and therefore far from worthless. Most owners hang onto them because it reminds them of happy times in their lives and/or adventures that the camera helped them document.
DeleteGary: Thank you for the Minolta story. I bought a Minolta SRT-101 in 1968 (55 years!) and been a Minolta-Sony user since. Had 3 or 4 Minolta bodies including the Maxxum 8000i and ending with the Maxxum 7. Then my first DSLR, the KM 7D, in 2005. Followed by the A700 and A77. I am currently shooting A7III and A7IV. The SRT-101 was a lovely camera. Been a good ride. Thanks. Clive
ReplyDeleteThanks, very interesting. I've used many Minoltas over the years and wrote a review of the Maxxum 9 for an American magazine. I attended a Montreal used camera event on Sunday. A dealer was trying to sell a Minolta XM with the original finder. It was the same as the XK. The body seemed to be in pristine condition. I used to have an XK, but it stopped working. It would be interesting to get some history on this model. It was supposed to compete against the Nikon pro models, but I don't think it was much of a success. I'm kind of regretting not buying the one at the show. I could have got it for about $350 cnd.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to collectable items, there's no right or wrong answer to "should I have bought it?" or "Was the price too high?" The safest option you have is to take advantage of the opportunity (it may never cross your path again) and then sell it for what you bought it for later if you end up having buyer's remorse.
DeleteHistory of the XK / XM: http://www.rokkorfiles.com/XK.html
DeleteVery interesting, thanks for sharing, Gary! It explains, at least partially, Minolta's harsh answer to a letter that I sent to Japan in the late 80s, after I had bought the 7000AF and several lenses. As you surely remember, this camera had only 1 AF field. When aiming it at horizontally repetitive patterns it often failed to find focus, or misfocus. I then sent them this letter suggesting that they should add another, vertically oriented AF field. The answer came not from Minolta, but a Japanes law firm engaged by them, asking if I hold any patents on this "invention"! It seems at this point they must already have been "extremely sensitive" to any potential patent issue, due to the case that they had with Honeywell.
ReplyDeleteDo you agree?
Thanks,
W. Schweitzer
There's now way I can offer any insight into that unexpected response. I had noticed this with my Maxxum 9000 as well, although it never caused me any problems (mostly because I never shot zebras. :-) ).Having said that, I can tell you many years passed before cross-point dual AF focus points were introduced.
DeleteI was a Nikon user latterly with an FM body. Then along came what was then an amazing camera the Maxxum which I had through a couple of iterations till Sony acquired Minolta cameras division. I was fortunate to get a Sony Maxxum for free due to a failed LCD screen in my Minolta and have stayed with Sony through to the 99-2. Never took to the mirrorless due to the changed mount and the unergonomic bodies they have. The beauty of the SLT system is that its actually easier to shoot manually and I'm pretty sure at 84 the 99-2 and 77-2 I have will be my last cameras including 3 Minolta lenes I have including one bought from your good self! I still call them Sony-Minoltas!!
ReplyDeleteJust wondering if you would like to provide this article to the Dyxum website, which is the group website of Minolta /Sony users. I didn’t want to forward it without your permission. Thanks
ReplyDeletePermission granted! The more people who read my stuff the better. Thanks for asking.
DeleteMy aunt was an avid fan of Minolta cameras and my college graduation gift from her was a Minolta rangefinder. I still have it although it doesn't get used anymore. Through the years as photography became a serious hobby and avocation, Minolta cameras & accessories were all I considered using. Now I am a Sony user and your book on the a77ii has helped me transition into digital.
ReplyDeleteReally interesting to me as an almost 50 year Olympus user whose daughter is a Commercial Litigator who tries to steer firms to negotiation, mediation and arbitration to save legal fees and court costs. What a sad story, especially if it was true that HoneywelI was so willing to licence. I loved Olympus, most especially their brilliant and amazingly durable final film slr the OM 4Ti, but ended up buying a Nikon F70, then 80 for the AF that my aging eyes increasingly needed, until their beautifully built but AF weak E-1 came out. Like Minolta, Oly always seemed brilliantly innovative but clumsy in its marketing strategies. Like Olympus, this essentially cost them their business but gave their successors brilliant springboards for much more successful products. It is the height of irony that a quarter century after Olympus essentially gave up on trying to compete in AF at the top level, and a couple of years after giving up on photography,
ReplyDeletethe OM-1 is finally generally accepted and respected as being a top tier camera.
Yes, the OM-1 is quite remarkable, and quite a comeback story from a business point of view. Who would have thought that an investment firm (who probably understood little about the market) would be able to provide such effective management? Glad to hear about your daughter's tactics.
DeleteI should also mention that I thought the OM-4 was a brilliant camera as well. Its only problem was the inconvenient placement of the ON/OFF switch on the top left deck. :-)
DeleteThanks Gary - fascinating and feeling smug now I can look at a mint SRT-101 with a Rokkor 50mm F1.2 in my camera cabinet...
ReplyDeleteI'm an old Minolta buff now living in Minnesota, and own just about every SLR model made, going back to the SR-2. As a lawyer and photo buff, I took a special interest in the autofocus lawsuit because the Honeywell side was chaired by Michael Ciresi, a local hotshot lawyer. He went on to sue tobacco companies and unsuccessfully run for Minnesota senator. (The day the tobacco lawsuit settled I went to his family's liquor store and bought the biggest cigar behind the counter. Somehow, it seemed right.)
ReplyDeleteInteresting article. I use ten(10) Minolta AF lenses with my Sony A7S, A7 III, A7R V and A6000 using the LA-EA4r (Monster) adapter. Great glass!
ReplyDeleteThank you for this write up. In 1969 I was on r&r from Viet Nam in Tokyo where I bought the Minolta SRT 101. Later I purchase an X-700. When digital came out I continued to purchase Minolta. I still have my old Minolta's but now on Sony mirrorless.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this! Bought my first Minolta, an SR-T 10, from a pawnshop in 1975. I have all the Minolta Mirrors except the first issue. I have not been able to find it anywhere.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Gary, for so much I didn't know but a fascinating read. I just love this corporate if-only history. Like so many others, the SR-T 101 that I bought back in 1975 (having found a good price in Amateur Photographer and made a long bus journey from Cambridge to Northampton) is probably the reason why I'm using a Sony A99ii now. But that's enough time sitting in front of the computer - I'm off to load the SR-T with some long-expired Ektachrome from the bottom of the fridge and get back to some real photography. Thanks again, Steve
ReplyDeleteWatch out for that old Ektachrome, Steve! The colors will be greenish and muddy. The good news is it will pass for one of those Instagram filters. 😀
DeleteYes, true enough, but I forgot to say that it's back to the computer for colour correction on the scans of the slides, which works surprising well in the circumstances. In fact, I've found that my old Ektachromes tend to go pinkish. But there's always the "cool" effect of slight unnatural colours! PS: I do splash out and buy new film, mostly Tri-X though.
DeleteFascinating Gary. I had no idea of the behind the scenes dramas with Minolta & Honeywell. Can't believe I took all my Minolta Mirrors to the charity ship when we were downsizing to emigrate! Thanks again Gary:another great blogpost
ReplyDeleteFascinating! I grew up with Minolta, thanks to my mother, and loved their gear. Always wondered why they collapsed.
ReplyDeleteGreat article, thanks Gary! Speaking of the great legacy of Minolta cameras and lenses, I'm wondering if we will ever know more about Sony's (terrible IMHO) decision to abandon the A-mount?
ReplyDeleteWell, from a business point of view it made good sense. The A-mount was crippled for video (despite the SLT mechanism bringing superior AF to video compared with all other DSLRs), compared with the E-mount, and after awhile the sales volume of A-mount cameras was dwindling, and there must have come a point where the management said, "Okay, we have finite R&D resources. In which platform shall we invest them?". Because of that the pros started to switch to Sony en masse and even because standard issue for the Associated Press photographers - an inconceivable shift just a decade ago.
DeleteThis despite the fact that they came out with the A99 II, the best A-mount ever made and still holds a solid place in my heart. But the modern E-mount bodies run circles around it in terms of subject recognition and tracking, raw machine-gun-like fps shooting, and AF during video (even at small f/stops). Too bad the new E-mount cameras don't share the A-mount's ergonomics.