MINOLTA G-ROKKOR 28mm (L39)

Review and Photo example of the MINOLTA G ROKKOR 28mm F3.5.

Table of contents

Gallery

The sample photo were taken with the HEXAR-RF and Unknown film

The sample photo were taken with the LEICA M8.2.

Review

The Minolta G Rokkor 28mm F3.5 is a lens for rangefinder cameras with a Leica L39 screw mount.

A lens designed for the high-end compact camera TC-1 was made into a Leica L39 screw mount with the same lens configuration and was released in a limited edition of 2000 pieces.
The lens barrel has a beautiful silver exterior, and the hood is also in the same color. When the hood is removed, it is a compact lens with a total length of about 20mm, and it comes in a luxurious package with a nameplate as shown in the photo.The cap at the end of the hood is made of the same material as the lens and is a screw-on type with the MINOLTA logo. The L39 screw rear cap was also specially designed and decorated with elaborate costumes.

The aperture blades of the compact camera TC-1, on which this lens is based, have interchangeable circular plates. However, this L-mount version has been replaced with a typical 9-blade diaphragm, which is convenient for regular use.
This is MINOLTA’s first lens for Leica rangefinder cameras since they released M mount lenses for the Leitz Minolta CL/Minolta CLE.

I see an article stating that the minimum shooting distance of this lens is 0.8m and 0.45m, but I think they are confusing this with the minimum shooting distance of the compact camera TC-1.

The GR28mm released around the same time is thought to be made of brass and is heavy at 180g, but this one is made of aluminum and is considerably lighter at 110g.
It is a lens often used on film cameras, and as you can see in the photo, when attached to ZEISS IKON or MINOLTA CLE, it looks very nice and arouses the desire to take pictures. When using with a film camera, if you take into consideration peripheral light reduction, you will hardly notice any drawbacks. I don’t have any of these systems on hand anymore, but I think just having them makes me feel happy.
For digital cameras, I used the Leica M8.2 with an APS-H size sensor, and as you can see in the photo example, the cropping is exquisite. This lens is easy to use because the vignetting and color cast that are noticeable on the 35mm full-frame sensor Leica M9 are less noticeable.
Even with a 35mm full-frame sensor, I think the color cast will be improved with the α7s and newer types of sensors, but vignetting is a characteristic of the lens, so I don’t think anything can be done about it. There are some cameras that automatically correct for vignetting, but I think that’s an excessive amount of help.

This lens does not have a bonded surface, so you don’t have to worry about the balsam breaking, which is a blessing as an old lens. With the same angle of view, the RICOH GR 28mm (the same goes for the wider-angle GR 21mm), there is a high probability that you will see some cloudy lenses due to peeling of the balsam bonding surface.

This lens was released in 1998, but new lenses were available at camera stores until around 2005. Ten years ago, there was an idyllic time when even limited edition items could not be sold immediately, and a time flow different from the present day when we are busy with resellers.
As a comparison of personal experience, I think I should have used the TC-1 as well, but I was satisfied with the GR1, a compact camera with a focal length of 28mm, so I never used the TC-1.

Specification

Item	Value	note
focal length(mm)	28
Maximum aperture	3.5
Minimum aperture	22	half stop
Lens configuration	5groups 5elements
Leaf blade	9
Minimum distance(m)	0.8	Works with camera rangefinder at all shooting distances
Lens length(mm)	19.5	Distance form mount flange
Lens max diameter(mm)	51	Excluding focusing lever
Filter diameter(mm)	40.5
Weight(g)	110
Release date	Year 1998/9
List price(Yen)	¥110,000-

Reference links

Everything about the M-type Leica – A thorough examination of the appeal of the M-type Leica body and lens (Japanese book)・Introduction on page 85
Leica lenses around the world Part 2 (Japanese book)・P98 has a review by Kiyohide Mizoguchi
- The above link is an Amazon affiliate link

Update history

2024.05.17:Update the article
2024.02.22:Update the article
2022.10.01:First draft

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