And sadly, like nearly every other Minolta XD camera, the imitation leather has pulled away slightly-perhaps 1 millimeter-to expose a glue line near the seam below the shutter speed dial and elsewhere.Ī gold foil JCII (Japan Camera Inspection Institute) sticker is pasted on the right slope of the penta-prism-just below the hot shoe. The camera body is lustrous black chrome and it’s wrapped with a synthetic material that feels as soft as glove leather. To be sure, this baby was born years before Saul Bass designed the Minolta logo that was later deconstructed into the Konica Minolta logo that still exists today on copy machines. Like all XD cameras, this one wears the old logo (“minolta” spelled all in lowercase letters). It is not known exactly how many commemorative models were distributed worldwide, but it can be assumed that there were many. There is no other indication that this camera is any more special than any other XD-11.
![vintage minolta camera vintage minolta camera](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/01/02/0d/01020daf3dcbb8af301ec0e32e3314df--equipment-cameras.jpg)
A simple “50 Anniversary” (not “50th”) is painted on the right side (as viewed from the front) counterbalancing the model name which is engraved on the left side of the top cover.
![vintage minolta camera vintage minolta camera](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/39/5d/a8/395da8a207139c1698ad73fc0c25490a.jpg)
The 50th Anniversary model came complete with a 50mm f/1.4 MD Rokkor-X lens and a chocolate brown leather case (embossed “XD Japan” on the bottom) with a matching strap. It has never been loaded with a roll of film and is being unpacked exclusively for this article-more than 30 years after I purchased it.
![vintage minolta camera vintage minolta camera](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1Ir85juv1No/UA5v6czkQQI/AAAAAAABeGU/BpEV3WxYF88/s640/Vintage+Minolta+Camera+Advertising+(19).jpg)
My 50th Anniversary XD-11 is still brand new and in the box. The company had been founded by Kazuo Tashima in ’28 and was still family run. One year later, in ’78, Minolta produced a limited number of specially marked cameras to commemorate their 50th anniversary. All Photos © 2010, Jon Sienkiewicz, All Rights Reserved