Mini Minolta

shadowfox

shadowfox

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I like small and compact cameras. Within the small pocket of SLR within the RF community here, I'd expect to find many like-minded folks 🙂

That said, please meet the Alpha 5, quite rare outside of Japan, since this is the Japan only version of Maxxum/Dynax 5:

2942313982_0abb5b0741.jpg


This thing is *small* (the picture above includes its battery grip), it claims to be the smallest AF SLR back then.

Next to an EOS 1N, it looks like a toy, but it's not, the focusing and metering system is very sophisticated and it handles charmingly.

Too bad I don't have a nice Minolta glass to use with it ... yet. Any recommendations?
 
The 70-210/4 "Beercan" is a must-have. I had mine (MD mount) for 13€50 but I don't know how much the AF costs. Leica picked the design up and turned it into the 70-210 vario-elmarit R... A nice 50/1.7, and if you can afford it, the zooms (28-80/2.8) Zeiss made for Minolta...
 
Stephane, the AF version of the beercan is now very overpriced. I had a 35-70mm zoom once and it was very nice albeit slow (f3.5-5.6 or somewhere thereabout).

Did Zeiss make lenses for Minolta before? I thought they only recently make them for the Sony Alphas?
 
i have the european version that i didnt use for long.
The battery pack helps a lot - otherwise the camera is a bit too small,actually.

i have a tokina at-x 17mm lens for it, that is funky wide and nice..
and a sigma 24mm superwide ii, that lets you go close to the subject and use the cool perspective (and it is sharp!), the af on it rattles though real loud.

The minolta 50mm's are all pretty good.

Oh and a 135/2.8, that lens is tiny and very very good.
 
yes, shadowfox, autofocus; it's a lens that is similar in width and less than 2x longer (like dimension) than the 50/1.7 AF and can be had for 130-150 euro (at least it WAS possible when i got mine) but it is not too often for sale.
Has beautiful bokeh too, LOL
 
Hi Will,

the 2,8/135 is an AF lens and will fit.

You can use all Minolta, Sony and Zeiss-AF-lenses for the Minolta-/Sony-Alpha mount. Of course there are also Sigma, Tamron and Tokina lenses for Minolta/Sony AF.

Minolta manual focus lenses will not fit.

Here you can find informations on all Minolta-, Sony- and Zeiss lenses for the Alpha-mount.

Rainer
 
Pherdinand said:
yes, shadowfox, autofocus; it's a lens that is similar in width and less than 2x longer (like dimension) than the 50/1.7 AF and can be had for 130-150 euro (at least it WAS possible when i got mine) but it is not too often for sale.
Has beautiful bokeh too, LOL
Click to expand...

Looks neat, thanks for the 'bay HU, I'll keep an eye on it and hope it doesn't get ridiculous.

I am finding that next to 35mm, I like 135mm a lot. It has enough reach so I don't have to be next to the subject, and the DOF range is just large enough for me to be able to control the bokeh.
 
RainerV said:
Hi Will,

the 2,8/135 is an AF lens and will fit.

You can use all Minolta, Sony and Zeiss-AF-lenses for the Minolta-/Sony-Alpha mount. Of course there are also Sigma, Tamron and Tokina lenses for Minolta/Sony AF.

Minolta manual focus lenses will not fit.

Here you can find informations on all Minolta-, Sony- and Zeiss lenses for the Alpha-mount.

Rainer
Click to expand...

Rainer, thanks for the refresher, I was bummed because I can't use my MC/MD manual lenses without that stupid glass adapter.

Now the Zeiss ZA lenses, that would be sweet 🙂
 
why didnt minolta ever make a pancake lens for that :bang:
mines nowhere near as cool as that.


I want the 28/2 and the 35/2, both sharper than thier counterparts that are still made.:bang:
the sony 135 STF is the GOD of bokeh, buy it if you like 135mm. its manual focus only, but unique.
 
Man, I just realize that good Minolta AF lenses are roof-busters price-wise.
I saw two 135/2.8 sold for above $300 🙁

The STF sounds like a very good performer, but again, the price ... (sigh)
 
RainerV said:
You will forget the price of the STF once you use it.

It is just great and unique!

Rainer
Click to expand...

i think its priced what its worth. i never see used ones turn up.

anyway my favourite lenses for this system are the 50/3.5 macro, the 35/2, the 28/2 the 100/2.8 macro and the 135 STF. sorry but zoom lenses never appealed to me. i have the 500/8 but its hard for me to use.
 
Well,

I finally was able to get two Minolta lenses that I can use with this little gem. One is the 35-70mm/3.5~4.5, the other 70-210mm/4.5~5.6. And here's some pictures (from the 70-210mm):

3111509608_c4b1b7aab0_o.jpg


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Extremely sharp, below is a crop:

3111510438_4f0b8ae14f_o.jpg


Check out this last photo below, the fall leaves' brown colors does not pollute the whites at all. No post-processing done in scanning or after. Now that's a superb coating that can produce neutral color balance 🙂

3111511582_6d182ef331.jpg


For the longest time I could not understand why some Minolta AF lenses remains expensive, they are generally on the slow side.

But after seeing these results, even from the supposedly more "commoner" part of the lens-family, I begin to get a clue...

To tie this to RFF, this camera is so small, even with a large-ish lens, it still is rather inconspicuous.
 
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fdigital said:
Thats a sweet lookin little SLR. Could you post up a picture of it compared to a few others for a size reference?
Click to expand...

Sure thing, for the sake of completeness...

3116462850_9371e95920_o.jpg


If I put on the battery grip on the Minolta, it'll roughly be as tall as the 1N.
 
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I've been looking for one of these little alpha 5's recently and all I can find is the silver maxxum/dynax version. Was Japan the only country to get a black version or something?
 
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