h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hi, and thanks for a great article on a piece of continuing history!

I anxiously checked out the website to glimpse the samples. (BTW, the link for the large image of "Tile floor in Reagan National Airport (DCA)" was not working).

If I may ask, I'd have been very interested in seeing some examples of the cameras' ability to do what all the "spy" films showed it being used for, namely document copying.

Any additional information on things like minimum focusing distance? Close focus attachments? Macro? Telephoto? Filters?

Any of these may make a welcome addition to the text.

Thanks, again. Oh, and "I WANT ONE TOO!"

Blimey!

Focussing - 8" to Infinity
Filters - some of the Minoxes have green filters for use with black and white film, some don't
Telephoto - not aware of any zoom or telephoto adaptors, though there may be

They are sexy little beasts but a bugger to find processing labs for; I think there are only a couple of labs in the UK. It is much easier in Germany - there are at least a couple of shops in Hamburg where you can walk in with film and get it developed in two or three days, and there is at least one in Copenhagen. Unfortunately I don't hang out in Hamburg or Copenhagen much.

You can, of course, buy specialist darkroom equipment for Minoxes if you are taking them *really* seriously.

I love mine, but I do want to get my films developed.

B

At the time I was considering the "C" model, the reason I resisted was not the need for the special developing tanks, but the need for the specialized enlarger with the curved film-plane. (I already had three enlargers, and no room to put another.)

Thanks again, for the details.

Best source for sample photographs is
http://www.8x11film.com
Marcus Dunkmann has renewed the world wide interest in Minox cameras with providing Agfa Copex, Ilford Delta 100 and Kodak Tmax 400 films in 8x11 format loaded by Minox GmbH. Copex requires Spur Nanospeed developer to get the most out of the film and the enlargement protential is very much greater than has been seen before.

As the metal Minox cameras focus from 20cm and a copy stand is available (many samples second hand turn up for sale) the Minox cam be used to archive material. Minox have made several microfiche readers that also accept Minox negatives to enlarge full screen (2"-14" screens). A range of slide projects have been sold in the past and Gepe still made standard glass mounts for 2x2" slide projectors.

The full range of accessories made over the past 60 years can be viewed at http://www.submin.com/8x11/index.htm

The early cameras (A, B) have built in filters and two sets of clip on filters were made for the A and B cameras. A set of three filters was made for the C and BL. The LX/TLX and AX cameras only have the built in ND filter and do not accept other filters from perious models.

A binocular attachment allows the Minox to be used with telescopes, binoculars and microscopes by attaching to the ocular.

There are a number of processing labs world wide and information can be obtained at http://www.minox.de and also at http://www.submin.com/forsale/processing.htm
Labs811, Siegen now accept credit cards so is now an alternative to MPL in NY.

The enlargers were discontinued decades ago. A black and white enlarger can be obtained refurbished and checked out from www.8x11film.com. Many sold on auction have been disassembled and need some knowledge and experiance to put together correctly. www.8x11film.com also supply fresh bulbs and heeps of infomation on processing, developing and printing 8x11 film. The early cameras used a complan lens. The early enlargers do as well. The later Minox cameras (C, BL, LX) use the Minox lens and the modell II enlarger does as well. It is not necessary to use a complan lens enlarger for any negatives made with any Minox camera. The curved film plan helped the Minox A and B obtain pin point sharp negatives in the corners. It is then not necessary to have a curved film plane to print. The main reason for choosing an earlier enlarger over the later one is that all the 8x11 negative can be printed. On the later enlarger the film mask is smaller than 8x11 and a significant area of the original negative is 'lost'.

There are enlager lens suitable for Minox negatives made by Yashica, Minolta, Mamiya, Mikroma and Leitz. Minolta even supllied negative carriers for 8x11 film. Yashica of course made the Atoron and Atorn Electro which takes Minox film as well as several 16mm cameras.

The Minox daylight loading tank is discontinued but available for about £30 second hand. www.8x11film.com has obtained the support of Jobo and Minox to produce a reel suitable for 8x11 negatives. Although loading has to be done in a dark room or changing bag the Jobo reel has the advantage that several films can be developed at the same time in a multi-tank even mixing 35mm and 8x11 in the same tank and unlike the Minox tank colour film can also be developed. The Minox tank makes controling the temperature and circulation of fluid for colour processing difficult.

Minox 8x11 is alive, well and more than kicking.

Submin, if you would like to update this entry, and you obviously know a lot more about Minoxes than I did when I wrote it, then please do so. I guess Jimster is the person to notify that we / you are doing it. I don't feel any great ownership for this entry, though I am fond of it, and it is important that entries are correct.

Let me know if you'd like to update this one, and I'll drop by Jimster's space and ask him how its done.

Ben

I would be happy to update the entry.

There are many links to sites of interest on Minox and more available than for any other subminiature camera on the web.

http://www.submin.com/general/links

A prime site for information is the Minox Club. With over 500 members a magazine each year and a wealth of information at http://www.minoxclub.de

Would you want to re-work this entry, or write one to supplement it? I am very aware that this one is just an intro to the subject, and extremely non-technical.

How much do you know about how h2g2 works? If you want to write additional entries on a subject they would have to go through Peer Review. I am not sure how the updating an entry system works, but Jimster could advise.

Cheers

Ben

I asked Jimster, and he pointed us over here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/UpdateForum

Check it out, that should give instructions and advice on how to update edited entries.

Cheers.

Ben