Tested MINOLTA XL 400 Super 8 Movie Camera Cine w RARE Intervalometer w/ Box

Up for bid/sale... one extremely capable Minolta XL-400 Super 8 movie/cine camera (Made in Japan).  The camera is in working order.

Includes:

Minolta XL-400 Super-8 movie camera (made in Japan)

Collapsible Lens Hood / Hoya Filter

The lens system is completely clear (no mold, fungus, or scratches - very nice multicoated glass for high contrast imaging) and viewfinder is bright and clean, free of any major dust or debris. The camera body is in good condition - less than normal wear-and-tear for a camera that is 4+ decades off the shelf, and looks very nice. Zoom and focus rings move smoothly.

For the uninitiated, it's got a FAST f1.2 zoom lens 8.5-34mm (4x zoom), XL (eXisting Light) shutter (220 degree shutter opening allows more light to reach film per frame - better for low light conditions, and also great for normal lighting). This is one of the best super 8 cameras for existing light (potential low-light conditions, such as you might find at holiday parties, visiting with friends in the city, sunsets, foliage in the mountains, indoor parties, candlelight, filming a band playing indoors, etc.)

Obviously it works well with bright light, too (camera stops down to f32), but most movie cameras don't handle existing (low) light as well as these. It also features Auto/Manual exposure options, auto/manual zoom (plus MACRO focus option - focuses right up to the lens), AND... an intervalometer (exposes one frame at a time and you can change the interval between frames - perfect for time lapse photography!). I'll talk more about that in a moment.

This camera not only films at the standard super-8 rate (18 fps), but also does single-frame photography. That, along with MACRO capability, is excellent for stop motion work.

I would contend that the XL 400 is a superior camera to both the Canon 310 XL and Canon 514XL... Why? This camera has both auto and manual exposure - neither of the Canons have the manual option. This lens is faster than the f 1.4 on the 514, and the zoom is better than that on the 310. Finally - and this is huge - the XL-400 has an INTERVALOMETER!

Just a final note on ease of use - the camera only needs 2 AA alkaline batteries to operate! No need for a separate button cell battery to operate metering system. Just have 2 of the most abundantly produced batteries ever... the mighty AA!

Yeah, no real comparison, actually... but I do compare for a reason. Those Canons (working, tested ones, anyway) go for $300-400+ all day on eBay ($899, before tax, if you buy one through Pro8mm!!! BTW, excellent company for film, processing, and transfers... but you are better off putting the money you save with this camera into film/processing!). My point? You will be getting a superb value (build quality is just as good as Canon or Nikon, and with many more features) when it comes to quality, ease-of-use, and features if you choose to invest in this Minolta movie camera - it offers a lot more features for a lot less $$$.

The intervalometer feature is awesome - People who use have used XL 400 cameras has loved how easily they are to set up. Pop it on a tripod, switch exposure to Auto, frame your shot, choose the intervalometer variance (that is the time between frames, which ranges from one frame every 1/2 second to one frame every 60 seconds) and it's done. Great for recording things like chess, sports, setting up camp, recording a climb, family gatherings/dinners, etc.