Minolta was a japanese camera manufacturer which were in many aspects at the front of the industry. While their photography division was sold to Sony and much of their legacy still lives on, they are definitely less recognized as something like Nikon or Canon when it comes to SLR cameras of the last century. But that also means that these amazing cameras and their first party lenses can usually be found at great prices. My Minolta SR mount cameras and lenses are definitely my most used equipment and for good reason.