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Minolta Autocord MXS

The Autocord MXS was the first of the famed Minolta Autocord line of TLR cameras. It was introduced in 1955 and immediately set a new bar for the twin lens reflex excellence, comparing very favorably to the German Rolleicord TLR but selling at a lower price.

The Autocord series is noted for the crank film advance mechanism (as opposed to a knob advance) that also resets the shutter. The Autocord cameras also have excellent 75mm f/3.5 Rokkor lenses. They are really beautiful lenses.

Autocords also introduced a different way of focusing. A lever protruding from under the taking lens is adjusted left or right to achieve focus. It is a wonderful design in that it allows focusing without adjusting one's hands from where they naturally hold the camera, always ready to fire the shutter. The pointer finger of one hand can rest on the focus while the other pointer finger sits poised on the shutter button and each thumb can sit on the shutter and aperture adjustment wheels. The one downside to this focusing mechanism is that it is moderately vulnerable to impact and the metal has proven to be somewhat brittle. It is possible to bang the focusing lever into other objects and have it snap off. Be careful.

Specifically, the Autocord MXS had an Optiper MXS shutter that tops out at 1/400th. The Autocord MXS only accepts 120 film.

Elegant, compact, as easy on the hands as it is on the eyes, the Autocord remains one of our all time favorite TLR cameras.

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Minolta Autocord

We don't see Autocords as much as we would like. We have long had a fondness for these cameras. A big part of the reason we love them is their Rokkor lenses. These lenses are stellar and so much fun. They really do render beautifully. See the images we have included as evidence of that.

You know what else we really like about Minolta's Autocord? The focusing. Autocords have a lever protruding from the chin of the camera, under the taking lens. This lever is positioned perfectly for the fingers of the left hand, while allowing your right to stay poised above the shutter button; all the while, encouraging you to cradle the camera close with both hands. We pay a lot of attention to how cameras encourage our hands and the Autocord promotes such wonderful handling. All this may sound a bit silly to some of you but, if you know, you know. Holding a camera should be more like a warm embrace and less like an awkwardly stiff pat on the back.

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Good Morning Minolta Autocord

Good morning film photographers!⁠

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One of the things we love about spring time, with sunrise coming a bit later each day, is that our morning commute is flooded with such gorgeous light. It gives us extra incentive to make sure we have that favorite camera, thrown over our shoulder, before heading out the door for work.

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Minolta Autocord with Fezzik

Sometimes we marvel at the cosmic serendipity that, of all the cities in the world, we chose to call Portland, Oregon home. Granted, there are many fine cities out there, and no offense to any of them, but if you are a quirky, all-film camera store looking for a good place to call home and build a community of like-minded analog photographers, you might be hard-pressed to find a city better suited for such a mission than Portland... make all the hipster jokes you want, they are mostly true anyway.⁠

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Portland is one of those cities where you can walk around town with a Hasselblad and stand a good chance of bumping into another Hasselblad. You can go out with your Canon AE-1 and strike up a conversation with someone using their Pentax K1000. You can even take your Minolta Autocord to the Guilder Cafe, built in homage to The Princess Bride, and get a portrait of it with a lifesize Fezzik.⁠

So this is our opportunity to take a moment to recognize what this hometown means to us and how big a role it has played in the growth and continued existence of Blue Moon Camera. So shout out to you Portland - we love you! It's just inconceivable to imagine ourselves anywhere else.

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Minolta Autocord

Are you one of the many fascinated by the Vivian Maier story and wanting to try a TLR but cannot lay hands on a Rollei? This is an excellent second option. The lenses on these cameras have such a wonderful quality to them. Plus, this one has been refurbished and reskinned in gray, making it unique. There isn't likely another Autocord out there done up in gray like this fellow.

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Cara Farnell and her Minolta Autocord

Here is a self portrait made by Cara Farnell with her Minolta Autocord.⠀

Cara sent us this photo in response to a call we made to our customers, asking for them to share out their favorite self portraits. We wanted to share these photos as a way to spotlight the connection between the photographer and their camera. Fostering this connection is one of the most important aspects of what we do. It's not just about the camera and it's not just about the photographer. It's a union between the two that makes our photographs what they are. Capturing an image of you and your camera, with your camera, is a great way to encompass the connection that means so much to each of us.⠀ ⠀

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