Looking at a A55 or A57 to adapt Minolta AF glass

[Edom31]

Greetings.

Simply I am trying to use my Minolta AF glass on digital. Are either of these camaras up to the task?

I come from a Pentax background, quite active at the Pentax forums. I also have a 6.3 MP Canon D60 that I use solely for one lens...

 

Anyother recommendation? I honestly wish to spend about $150 at most.

 

Thanks

 

Ed

[Alejandro]

You didn’t say which is the Minolta AF lens (glass as you say) that you have, but it ought to work on any digital Sony A-mount camera fine enough, depending on how good the lens itself might be.

Kurtmunger (at kurtmunger.com) has reviews on many Minolta lenses which he tried mounted on a Sony digital camera. You might find your lens among the reviewed ones.

I have and had (some of the lenses I had were recently stolen from me) a few AF (A mount) Minolta lenses (not the ones with an MD or SR mount of course) which I have been using with a Sony A-230 (also stolen from me) that I had, and with a Sony A-580, and they work fine and are capable of delivering sharp and good photos. Some, might be better than other Sony newer lenses that I have or had.

I also tried those lenses on a mirrorless full-frame Sony a7 (again, recently stolen from me) using a mount adapter, and the results were fine (though I had to focus manually)

There are some very fine Minolta lenses.

Edited April 27, 2021 by Alejandro

[XKAES]

Minolta started making cameras and lenses in the 1920's.

Minolta created the A-mount in 1985 for their new auto-focusing MAXXUM line of cameras.  They did not change the optics of their existing lenses.  They just ADDED auto-focusing to their already extensive, superb lines of lenses.

But just as their PRE-A-mount lenses (called ROKKOR) changed over time, their A-mount lenses evolved, as well.  For example, many of their original A-mount lenses do not display the camera-to-subject distance.  Soon after, they added a window on the top of the lens to display the distance and the depth-of-field.  But the optical formula stayed the same.

In 2003, Minolta and Konica merged, and the lenses changed again -- but not the optics.  The lenses now have a new label -- "Konica Minolta", like the cameras -- the rubberized grips were changed, faster focusing, etc., but the optics were the same.

In 2006, Sony bought Konica Minolta, and the lenses changed again -- in appearance and some features, but not the optics.

Over all this time, some lenses were dropped, some new ones emerged -- like the Konica Minolta 17-35mm zoom -- but using older Minolta and Konica Minolta AF lenses can save you money.  Look at the features of the lenses, and let that be your guide -- not the name.

AND there are lots of other lenses to consider -- from Minolta's older ROKKOR & CELTIC lines, where you might need an adapter and have to focus manually -- to other auto-focusing lens manufacturers that offer lenses that Minolta, Konica Minolta, or Sony never did.

[thebeardedgroundsman]

I love my Minolta AF 500mm mirror lens on my A-mount cameras. It gives me the long "reach" of 500mm but is the lightest lens in my kit!

I believe it is the only lens of this type to be AF and like a number of Minolta lenses got re-branded for Sony A mount.

Good luck if you can find a55 / a57 in your price range, in Britain I'm only finding bodies like the a700, a200 in that range.

[XKAES]

My 500mm f8 CAT is a Spiratone Minitel (NOT Minitel-M). 

Why Spiratone?  Because it is actually a superb Yashica 500mm f8 CAT (which is actually a Tomioka lens -- http://www.subclub.org/Tomioka.pdf) -- just sold by Spiratone. 

The Minolta costs around $200 in good shape, but I paid less than $50 for mine.  I can use it on my Sony & Maxxum cameras with a glassless adapter because it focuses past infinity.

It's the same size and weight as the Minolta Rokkor 500mm f8 -- and they both have 77mm front threads.  I assume the Minolta Maxxum, Konica Minolta, and Sony 500mm f8 CATS are slightly heavier.

Edited April 27, 2021 by XKAES