Minox 110S
(Research material for this particular article was
drawn from a number of sources, including data and commentary published on the
web sites of Martin Tai and Gerald McMullon, as well as material graciously
provided to me by Minox, GmbH…my thanks to all, and particularly to Gerald who
so kindly donated the colour photographs that illustrate this page!)
The Minox 110s stands out as one of the two finest
110 film format cameras ever made: only the Canon 110ED 20 “outguns” it on a
few features. Most 
notably, the Canon includes a standard hot shoe for the ultimate in
flash flexibility, a faster lens, date imprinting and availability of a snap on
close up lens for ultra close photography down to 1 foot. However, the Minox
110S pioneered other features that no other camera previously had, and some
that were never duplicated. It’s lens has been rated as the sharpest ever put
on any 110 camera, and it’s innovation, precision manufacture and elegant
styling served to rank it as one of the most expensive premium 110 cameras ever
made, second, perhaps, only to the Rollei A & E 110 series.
Minox was not one of the first manufacturers to rush
out with a 110 camera in hand when the floodgates opened in 1972 after the
introduction of the Kodak Pocket Instamatic line of cameras. It was 1974 before
they finally introduced the Model 110S, designed by Karl Lange, the chief
designer of Balda, the company Minox actually contracted to manufacture the
camera to their exacting specifications. The time taken in carefully assessing
the market for, and capabilities of, the new line of cameras paid off
handsomely when Minox made the decision to proceed, because they understood
what was lacking in the current crop of cameras available. Being Minox, with
almost 50 years unique expertise (at that time) in producing the tiniest
ultra-precision cameras commercially available, they knew that they could
produce a camera that would fill in the gaps in truly useful and highly
desirable features, one that would would set a such a high standard that very
few other 110 cameras would ever meet, let alone exceed.
The 25mm Minoctar lens is composed of 4 elements, adjustably focusable
from 2 feet to Infinity. The all glass lens design is superb, producing some of
the very sharpest photographs ever to come out of a 110 camera. Protected by a
plate of optical grade glass, the lens is deeply recessed in a beveled frame,
providing a highly effective lens shade. The lens, actually the entire front
fascia of the camera, containing the viewfinder, rangefinder window and the CdS
metering cell window is elegantly and effectively protected by a built in set
of horizontally split "barn doors" that spring open when a small
slider bar on the underside of the camera (which also doubles as a battery
check switch) is activated...when open, the top door provides an even more
enhanced lens shade, something that would be noted and appreciated by the professional
level and serious amateur photographers Minox was aiming at with the
introduction of this camera. The doors could be closed by sliding the battery
check/door activator lever towards the rear of the camera, or even by just
gently closing them with finger pressure on the doors themselves. Ensuring that
the maximum functionality was obtained from every control, Minox had the camera
designed so that with the doors closed, you could perform a battery check, set
either/or focus and aperture and even advance film to the next shot - however,
all other functions (such as shutter release) are locked until the doors are
opened again.
The aperture ranged from F/2.8 down to F/16, as selected by the
photographer - the shutter speed would then be automatically and steplessly set
by the CdS exposure meter from a range of 1/1000th of a second down to 4 full
seconds. When you consider that this camera was one of the first advanced
models 
to automatically key itself
to the presence of either ISO 100 or the (then) brand new ISO 400 film
cartridges, you can see that it was designed to be a wonderful low light
shooter. Interestingly, although not available to the shooter for manual
selection, when Magi-cube flash cubes were used (the camera can NOT take the
older, electrically fired flash cubes without being damaged), the automatic
flash/aperture adjustment system could actually provide an aperture of F/22 if
needed. Also very interesting is the fact that the automatic flash range (3 -
25 feet with X- or Magi-cubes, 2 - 15 feet with the proprietary, accessory F110
electronic flash unit) system would maintain the same flash ranges regardless
of whether you were using ISO 100 or ISO 400 film: this was done by a small
blue filtre that swiveled into place in front of the lens when the flash system
was activated and ISO 400 film was sensed by the camera.
Setting proper exposure was simplicity itself: simply rotate a ridged
aperture selection wheel on top of the camera to select the desired aperture.
On putting the camera to your eye and lightly depressing the large, round red
shutter release button half way (the threaded cable release socket is located
directly to the right of it), you might see a red warning arrow pointing right,
indicating overexposure, or, you might see a yellow arrow pointing left,
indicating underexposure. With your eye still to the camera, you could simply
continue to rotate the aperture selection wheel in the direction indicated by
the warning arrow until the lighted arrow went out, indicating proper exposure.
If the
yellow indicator lights up, the automatically selected shutter speed would be
longer than 1/30th of a second. If rotating the aperture wheel all
the way to the left (F/2.8) failed to extinguish the light, you have two
options: brace the camera firmly or mount it with the thoughtfully provided
tripod socket for long time exposures by available light, or use flash
photography.
Flash photography is activated by turning the aperture wheel past the
click-stopped F/2.8 position until the lightning flash symbol shows (BEFORE you
attempt to mount a flash cube – the 110S doesn’t allow you to mount a flash
cube without the aperture wheel being set in the flash position – nice touch!),
indicating that the shutter is set for a speed of 1/40th of a
second, and that the automatic flash exposure system is engaged, the focus and
apertures being 
linked now for proper, fully automatic flash exposure. Insert a
flashcube with at least one unfired bulb left on it (the 110S won’t allow you
to shoot a picture with a fully expired flash cube in place: the shutter
release button locks – another
nice touch!) or the companion F110 electronic flash gun.
All
this automation is powered by two PX625 mercury button cell batteries at 1.35
volts each. Although mercury batteries are outlawed in America now, equivalent
alkaline and silver type 625 size batteries are available. For those concerned
about getting precise voltage for proper exposure with the 110S, the Resources
section of this site lists C.R.I.S. as the U.S. distributor of Kanto Camera
Service Company (Japan) line of voltage regulated battery adapters that allow
you to use modern batteries in older cameras at the original required voltages.
The MR-9 model adapter is the one you’ll need for the 110S (two of them,
actually).
Batteries are placed in the camera by opening the film chamber door
(push the slider bar on the underside of the camera, below the film chamber
door) and noticing that, quite unusually, the door swivels open horizontally on
a hinge on the right side of the camera, as opposed to dropping down vertically
as on many other 110 cameras. Even more uniquely, with the door fully open at a
right angle to the camera body, the batteries are installed in the door itself,
and not the camera body, as you would think they would be. A small tab marked
with the battery position is near the hinge: slide this to the right to open up
the battery chamber, insert the batteries properly, and push the tab back into
place to secure the batteries. Note that clicking the shutter is not an
accurate or reliable method of checking battery status: Minox recommends that
you use the battery check light. To do this, close the lens cover doors, and
operate the film advance. Now, turn the camera over and slide the lens cover
door slider switch to the left, toward the tripod-mounting socket. The red LED
directly below the door/battery check switch should light up if the batteries
are good. It’s worth noting here that, like the Canon 110ED 20, that with
manually selectable apertures, should the batteries die, the camera is still
somewhat functional with a mechanical shutter speed that I suspect is the flash
synch speed of 1/40th of a second.
The rapid wind
film advance lever, for it is a lever and not the traditional thumb slider of
other 110 cameras, is located in an odd place: on the front left of the camera
(as you hold it in shooting position, lens facing outward). This means, in
practical terms, that you would have to turn the lens skyward to access the
lever, not something that lends itself to rapid shooting sequences. The
ratcheted lever takes two full strokes to advance film to the next exposure if
a cartridge is in place, only one stroke simply to cock the shutter if there is
no cartridge in the camera (for those times when you may simply wish to check
the functioning of the camera sans film). If a fresh cartridge has just been
loaded, obviously, you will have to thumb the film advance lever several times
until it stops before the first exposure is in place. Like all 110 cameras, the
number of shots taken is displayed in a small rectangular window in film
chamber door.
The viewfinder of the Minox 110S is remarkable for it simplicity, and in
that, it hides a sophistication that is startling for a 110 format camera:
automatic parallax correction at all distances! The entire viewfinder module is
linked to the rangefinder focusing mechanism, and will swivel on an axis as
appropriate to ensure that the field of view remains consistent at all times.
This was an engineering feat of no small significance, and stands as one of the
things that made the 110S one of the most expensive, and desirable cameras of
its type. Another remarkable feature was the display of the selected aperture
right in the viewfinder (dots indicating intermediate selections between marked
apertures). The rectangular yellow patch in the centre of the bright viewfinder
marked the coincidence rangefinder, linked to the focus selection slider bar on
the top deck, just forward of the shutter release button.
Focusing provided some additional pleasant surprises for the
photographer: the slider bar and linked distance scale on the top deck were
selectable between a display marked in metres or feet, as you desired. 
To change the scale, simply push the slider to the left until Infinity
is set against the white triangular index mark, and use a paperclip, pen point
or other small object to slide a small, slotted switch to the right of the
focus slider bar up or down until the desired scale is displayed.
One of the most sophisticated features I’ve ever seen, and one I’ve
never seen on any other 110 camera, is the fully adjusting linear depth of
field display in the distance scale window. This consists of a red indicator
bar over the distance numbers, with a small gap, or split in it. This bar is
linked directly to the aperture selection wheel, which, when turned to select a
particular F/stop, widens or narrows the gap between the two red bars. The
distances indicated in the gap between the bars represent the depth of field
for the particular aperture selected. This remarkably sophisticated visual aid
is both graphic and intuitive, and much faster to use. Incredibly, it remains
linked and still effective even when the automatic flash exposure system is
engaged!
Minox provided some very thoughtful and clever touches to the owner of
one of these fine pieces of photographic engineering, among them the ability to
utilize non-electric 4 shot flashcubes or the proprietary Minox electronic
flash unit (the flash cubes rotated automatically as the film was advanced), an
elegant wrist chain that could be quickly attached or removed via a bayonet
socket, and lovely fine leather case with spring loaded jaws at one end that
popped open to let the camera slide out, or locked shut to completely enclose
the camera in the case for maximum protection (a smaller, identically designed
case came with the F110 electronic flash unit as well); the wrist chain could
remain in place even with the camera in its case, if desired.
No other 110 camera ever combined the elegance of style and function
that Minox did with the 110S camera; with it’s superior lens and enlarged
pressure plate for increased film flatness at the film plane, the 110S produced
photographs unequalled by any other 110 camera. As indicated earlier, a 1976
MSRP of $230.00 made it one of the most expensive premium 110 cameras ever
made, but it was worth every penny of it.
These
cameras are extremely difficult to find on ebay or elsewhere, Minox enthusiasts
having eagerly bought up the few that could be had. I have seen broken ones
being offered for $50.00 recently, and am told that new ones easily fetch $80 -
$100 or more, depending on condition and completeness.
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Kodak Pocket Instamatic 20, 30 & 40 |
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Minolta Autopak 470 |
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Rollei A110 & E110 |
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© 3 February 2003, by D.
Scott Young - all rights reserved