Practically not many Minolta lens left......

[blurblock]

Hi.
I've never used the minolta system B4, & would like to ask some newbie qns.

Are there any minolta lenses whereby the quality is as good as Canon L series?
Is the focusing fast?

Not trying to starta flame, but wanna know more about minolta.

Focusing speed largely depends on the body ..... try D7 ......

Quality wise seem ok, compared with the "L" lenses I used to own. Colour not as rich, but heck, I don't like rich colours .

 

[blurblock]

So lets say a pro has a pro SLR body, & many L lenses.
And if he is to switch to minolta, can he get the same type of performance, in terms of AF speed, picture quality?
Assuming $$ is not of a concern.

Sure .... if $$ is not a problem, ask that pro to get the "G" Lens series .... the quality will not be anywhere inferior to N or C (Any C, may it be Ca or Co). AF Speed, I am quite sure I can compare D7 AF Speed with C and N. Picture Quality largely depending on the lens, and JFI, no other Macro lens come close to Minolta 50mm f/2.8 Marco

 

[blurblock]

I do sympathise with Minolta users in Singapore......

Over in Asia, Canon and Nikon are really the brands to own....not that people
are blind and are followers, the merits for using them are really for practical reasons....cheaper support, availability of parts, lenses etc, easier to source / sell, and not forgetting good camera / lens performance.

I have pondered on buying Minolta on several occasions and each time have
decided to let it pass, even though they produce excellent high-end stuff, beginning with Dynax 7 upwards and APO lenses. On the digital end, the 7Hi
was good stuff but also lacking support to build on the system.

The main reason is that of tech support, lack of support from retailers in buying stuff and re-sale market.

If there is anyone out there from Minolta reading this, please do something about it.... Minolta has good stuff (even scanners) but little is done to shout about it. It would be a pity when they eventually reach the stage of Ricoh or Contax.....

For the remaining users of Minolta out there, please continue to take gr8 pictures to inspire the rest of us...

Cheers

Hey Darklord .... u heard this plead from NikLeica right ..... come bring him to the Darkside

 

[yinkhoon]

Minolta offers flash sync speed up to 1/4000s even on a low/mid-end model like the Dynax 5, if you buy their flash units 3600 or 5600. Very useful for outdoor portraits with big apertures for fill in flash. Try find that on a Nikon F80 or Canon 300v haha.

Frankly, although I use the Nikon D70 now, I still miss the high speed sync. 1/500s on the D70 is ok, but still not as good as Minolta's. When the Minolta 7D comes out, with high speed flash sync and image stablisation on body, hmm...

But I will hate having "Konica Minolta" logo instead of just Minolta. Phew!

 

[blurblock]

But I will hate having "Konica Minolta" logo instead of just Minolta. Phew!

I second that ..... Chances are tat would be the only flaw on 7D, I guess .....

Just think, what will happen at Dpreview ..... "In conclusion, the whole package of the new Konica Minolta is excellent, comparable on all and exceed in some functions and quality in areas of similar range product of other manufacturers, with a slight weak point, the logo is just damm ugly" :bsmilie:

 

[forbytes]

Quality wise seem ok, compared with the "L" lenses I used to own. Colour not as rich, but heck, I don't like rich colours .

Does that imply that the colour from Minolta optics not rich, I beg to differ. In fact, people from C and N always so astound when they see my pictures. They will always say "Ah, you must have used a polariser", the fact is I didn't.

The true strength of Minolta optics is not just value for money, the lens were design and built with different purposes: colour and bokeh. Downside, sharpness maybe loss slightly with other brands at widest (aperture largest). No offence to blurblock :embrass:

 

[blurblock]

Does that imply that the colour from Minolta optics not rich, I beg to differ. In fact, people from C and N always so astound when they see my pictures. They will always say "Ah, you must have used a polariser", the fact is I didn't.

The true strength of Minolta optics is not just value for money, the lens were design and built with different purposes: colour and bokeh. Downside, sharpness maybe loss slightly with other brands at widest (aperture largest). No offence to blurblock :embrass:

No prob What I mean is Saturation of colours ..... but frankly speaking, I still like Minolta's nearer to neutral colour then the 17-40L, where red are too red (Noticed I don't really fancy red colour ), I used to own ..... believe it or not, personal view, I think my old old 28-85 f/3.5-4.5 does a better job .

But talking about sharpness, I had not used recent Minolta Lenses, all my lenses are those which can marked as antique type, I feel the sharpness and contrast of my Minolta lens outshine most of my ex-canon lenses, but it does to seems to be a bit inferior to Tokina 28-70 (just personal view, no offence).

 

[forbytes]

when I mentioned that the lens are not as sharp as others, I was actually refering to the new SSM lens in particular 70-200f2.8. The sharpness of this lens is actually lower than the 80-200APO G and other brands (C and N). But the 300 f2.8 SSM, superb.

The colours are neutral, that is the word. If any have seen outputs from other lens, 80-200f2.8 (N) or 24-135 SP (T), I really shake my head. Minolta for wedding assignment, the best. The 4 heavenly photographers, 1 of them I know personally, uses M for wedding and potraiture.

For others that want to test or compare lens of the same caliber, they should not use digital as a platform because the results are smeared (including effects of both CCD and lens). Test should be conducted using preferably the same slides to isolate the performance/quality of the lens. ;p

 

[blurblock]

when I mentioned that the lens are not as sharp as others, I was actually refering to the new SSM lens in particular 70-200f2.8. The sharpness of this lens is actually lower than the 80-200APO G and other brands (C and N). But the 300 f2.8 SSM, superb.

The colours are neutral, that is the word. If any have seen outputs from other lens, 80-200f2.8 (N) or 24-135 SP (T), I really shake my head. Minolta for wedding assignment, the best. The 4 heavenly photographers, 1 of them I know personally, uses M for wedding and potraiture.

For others that want to test or compare lens of the same caliber, they should not use digital as a platform because the results are smeared (including effects of both CCD and lens). Test should be conducted using preferably the same slides to isolate the performance/quality of the lens. ;p

Wah .... simi si 4 heavenly photograhers? never heard b4 leh .... pray tell, who are they?

 

[sulhan]

Haaa.. yeah..

I find Minolta has a weird marketing.. often just leave you alone to discover the great goodies yourselves.

Juz like the wireless flash system, if you really check out on the web, its really hard to find any good write up on using this wireless flash system,
the only two so far i can find is one by Friedman and one more by Gary Walts...

If you do find a good one....let me know...I'm actually trying to beef up my website with more info on wireless flash thingy and hopefully it materialise....
that explain the lightbox project that i just post....its actually to use it with my two wireless flash....so hopefully can come up with some nice photos for a website...

rgds,
sulhan

 

[deslim27]

Haha~! They're marketing is like Apple in the good old days.

Anyway, I think there are quite a few places trying to clear 3rd party lenses for Minolta. In fact, just gotten a sigma 28mm/1.8 at a cheap cheap price. But, the situation does look kinda bleak!

Sigma 28 f1.8? how much huh? Was hoping to find a 28 f2.0 at cheap cheap price also..

 

[deslim27]

Juz like the wireless flash system, if you really check out on the web, its really hard to find any good write up on using this wireless flash system,
the only two so far i can find is one by Friedman and one more by Gary Walts...

If you do find a good one....let me know...I'm actually trying to beef up my website with more info on wireless flash thingy and hopefully it materialise....
that explain the lightbox project that i just post....its actually to use it with my two wireless flash....so hopefully can come up with some nice photos for a website...

rgds,
sulhan

Hi Sulhan,

Good stuff on your lightbox project! :thumbsup:

http://forums.clubsnap.org/showthread.php?t=75410

Just some idea to share, to produce a softer and more even light, the flash 1) can face backward to let the light bounce of the walls, or 2) insert additional half size white cloth between the flash and the white cover, a commerical light box usually have that too. But prepare to lost more stops .

 

[yeocolin]

I mentioned this before, but I thought I'll contribute my 2 cents again.

If you are really keen on any minolta items, do drop by the minolta centre at funan and check with the staff there. They don't sell direct. However, they could quote you a price and make a order for the item. When the item arrives, you can go to the shop (likely to be Alan Photo) and get it.

This is gleaned from past experience when my friend wanted to get an item which is not available in Singapore and how our CS member got his VC-7.

 

[The_Cheat]

Sigma 28 f1.8? how much huh? Was hoping to find a 28 f2.0 at cheap cheap price also..

Got it at $170 brand new...

 

[deslim27]

I mentioned this before, but I thought I'll contribute my 2 cents again.

If you are really keen on any minolta items, do drop by the minolta centre at funan and check with the staff there. They don't sell direct. However, they could quote you a price and make a order for the item. When the item arrives, you can go to the shop (likely to be Alan Photo) and get it.

This is gleaned from past experience when my friend wanted to get an item which is not available in Singapore and how our CS member got his VC-7.

Yo Colin,

Just thinking, having the lenses on display where you can try, touch and test is very different from order and receive. It can really stir up GAS when you see the physical thing. :bsmilie:

 

[deslim27]

Got it at $170 brand new...

Thanks! Good deal! Now I just to wait for the new range of lenses to come along with 7D.. :sweat:

 

[yeocolin]

Yo Colin,

Just thinking, having the lenses on display where you can try, touch and test is very different from order and receive. It can really stir up GAS when you see the physical thing. :bsmilie:

Hi deslim27,
You are right its different from ordering from a catalogue vs feeling the real thing. Nonetheless, there are only a few lens to choose from if you've decided:
1) what brand (ie Minolta or other 3rd party lens)
2) what budget (G vs non-G lens, prime, fast lens)
3) what purpose (macro, telephoto, wide angle)

Personally, when I'm feeling them (eg when I was in Tokyo, Bic Camera has all the lens and bodies such as D7, F100 etc to handle openly without need for a salesperson to bother you), its more for the feel of it rather than tempting me to buy them. After all, these are big ticket items and I hate to make rash decisions when I'm spending on a luxury item.

Ironically, its reading the catalogue and reviews which tempt me to buy and start that debate in me, of whether I should get that item or not. When I've decided to buy an item and done my homework, it makes no diff whether I'll buy it online or in person. The only diff is buying in person, I could personally inspect the item to ensure its not obviously damaged. Then again, we'll never know for sure until we put our item to the test by shooting a few rolls of film with it, to know if our newly bought toy can stand up to our expectations. :sweatsm:

 

[hoppinghippo]

when I mentioned that the lens are not as sharp as others, I was actually refering to the new SSM lens in particular 70-200f2.8. The sharpness of this lens is actually lower than the 80-200APO G and other brands (C and N). But the 300 f2.8 SSM, superb.

The colours are neutral, that is the word. If any have seen outputs from other lens, 80-200f2.8 (N) or 24-135 SP (T), I really shake my head. Minolta for wedding assignment, the best. The 4 heavenly photographers, 1 of them I know personally, uses M for wedding and potraiture.

For others that want to test or compare lens of the same caliber, they should not use digital as a platform because the results are smeared (including effects of both CCD and lens). Test should be conducted using preferably the same slides to isolate the performance/quality of the lens. ;p

Could you share on output from the 24-135 SP (T)? What's wrong with it?

 

[vivientan]

Does anyone own/used the AF 24-105mm f/3.5-4.5(D)? Any comments in terms of focus speed, optics etc?

About the VC-7, are you guys trying to say that it's not sold in retail outlets here? Meaning we need to make a special order for it?

I'm trying to find a 2nd hand D7 in good condition. If anyone of u has any lobang, pls let me know!

 

[YuHsuan]

I have 2 of this....

AF speed: Good. My friend put mine on his old 404si and commented that the AF is noticeably quicker than his 28-80

Picture quality: As good as it gets for a consumer zoom. Very slight vignetting at 24mm but overall very good picture quality. The lens that I use the most often.

downside: The rubber zoom ring on the lens comes lose easily and has to be glued back. Both my 24-105s have this problem.

I may sell my D7 when the 7D comes, will let you know if you are still interested then.