Some years ago, I bought a Minox GTS camera. It's probably one of the smallest 35mm full frame cameras ever made. Pull down the flap to pull out the 35mm f2.8 Minotar scale-focus lens. Manual aperture, automatic shutter speed. Made in Germany.
I've not used it for years. I had some 'new' batteries, still on their card but bought a few years ago. So I decided to put them in the camera and run a few test rolls through it to check it out...
I had a job interview (I didn't get it) in Lowfield Heath. Once upon a time, this was a small country village. Then Gatwick Airport was built, and now all that's left is a kind of industrial estate. The only remaining building from the original Lowfield Heath is the church.
Lowfield Heath by
Antony J Shepherd, on Flickr
In the background you can just make out the radar at Gatwick. This is right on the perimeter of the airport.
The weather was atrocious on the day.
Here's another shot of the church, St. Michael and All Angels, at Lowfield Heath.
St Michael and All Angels Church, Lowfield Heath by
Antony J Shepherd, on Flickr
It is pretty much a relic of a past time.
The following day I was in central London, and had nicer weather to work out the Minox.
Very little modernity about this image, and that's deliberate.
Broadcasting House by
Antony J Shepherd, on Flickr
A few days later I had a roll of Agfaphoto Vista Plus (purchased from Poundland), and took a wander through Hyde Park.
Close-ups are a bit tricky, on another camera I'd have used a wider aperture to blur out the background a bit, but with scale focus I played it safe. I do have an old Russian rangefinder attachment I could have used to take the focus before setting the scale, but I'd forgotten it.
Physical Energy by
Antony J Shepherd, on Flickr
I do like the texture of this shot, both in the statue and in the plinth.
This one was taken by available light in the Science Museum, bracing the camera on a flat surface. I'm kind of surprised by how well this came out. It's the 'Pegasus' computer from the fifties.
Pegasus by
Antony J Shepherd, on Flickr
So yes, the Minox GTS is a really nice and versatile little camera, which is easily pocketable. In future I should probably remember to take the little Russian rangefinder to clip into the hot shoe if I want to focus more precisely.
The lens seems pretty decent,and I even have the dedicated flash that goes with it.
Kind of a shame I've neglected it for so long.
