«

A few weeks ago, there was a discussion about the above-mentioned
Minolta 45 mm lens. Here are the facts:

It's a very good lens, but not Minolta's best.

There is no technical difference between the MD Rokkor and the
MD Rokkor-X. The '-X' just means that the lens originally was
exported to North America. In Rokkor lenses made between 1972
and 1981, Minolta made a difference between lenses sold in USA or
Canada, and lenses sold elsewhere. The difference, however, was only
in the front-ring writing. It had to do with marketing and control of
'grey,' inofficial distribution channels. The '-X' has no technical sig-
nificance whatsoever.

Of course, the MD Rokkor(-X) 45 mm 1:2 *is* multi-coated, just as
any Rokkor lens.

The MD Rokkor(-X) 45 mm 1:2 is not a Tessar type but a common
modified Gauss type, just as any 50 mm, 55 mm, or 58 mm standard
lens. It has six elements in five groups. The section diagram looks just
like that of the MD Rokkor(-X) 50 mm 1:1.7, it's just slightly smaller.
The diaphragm has five blades, the filter size is 49 mm, the closest
focusing distance is 0.6 m (= 2 ft).

Back in the early '60s, Minolta made another 45 mm lens for their SR
bayonet mount---the Rokkor-TD 45 mm 1:2.8, also known as the 'pan-
cake lens.' This was a Tessar type indeed but the modern MD Rokkor
45 mm 1:2 is a completely different thing. The old pancake lens is a
sought-after collector's item today, not because it was so good (it is
fairly good but nothing special) but due to its rarity. The modern
45 mm lens is not rare; you can pick one up off eBay every day for
a song.

Olaf