Sony a77 and Minolta lenses?

I might as well sound in. If you like the Minolta AF 28-135 F/4-4.5 and don't mind APS-C; you'll like the SAL18135, similar in layout with the focus ring at the back. If Full frame is your jam the Konica Minolta AF 17-35mm F/2.8-4 (D) should satisfy.

Personally, I have and use a SAL1650 and never liked it. Too heavy, too short, Too cumbersome. I have and use the SAL1680Z on my a77II, never had a problem with the lens, I like it. The Minolta AF 24-105 is a nice lens on APS-C and a favorite on my A850.

Edited by LAbernethy - 27 September 2021 at 03:01

I have the 16-50, bought a good used copy from a member here on Dyxum. It's a good lens, just flares a bit. A UV filter makes the flaring much worse. I love my Minolta macros, but use this lens when I need something wider on my a77ii. I also have a Tokina 11-16 f2.8. It's a crop lens and soft in the corners wide open, but a good UW lens.

Hi, there.
For a compact medium-FL zoom I'd recommend the Minolta 24-105mm f3.5-4.5 which is a very useful range on APS-C, and useful on FF too if you can stand the dark corners at full aperture.
I'd second the 18-55mm SAM2 which is a brilliant zoom and gives much better sharp close-ups than you have any right to expect. In fact all the 'easy choice' Sony DT lenses are brilliant performers. the 55-200mm is easily the best APS-C tele, faster and sharper than most others if you don't need the 300mm end.
As I mention on another thread, the A-mount APS-C zooms have much better close-up performance than FF lenses and are worth trying, though dedicated macro lenses are better and quite cheap now. I'd pick any of the Tamnron 90mm f2.8 variants myself and an MC7 TC for bugs.
I'd also recommend either one of the Sigma 10-20mm ultra-wide zooms. I am confident you will be blown away by the images you get and that it will change your photography for ever.

If you want to stick with Minolta lenses for now, there are many choices with their own pros and cons. The 70-210mm zooms are okay, the 100-300mm APO is excellent, and the smaller medium zooms have their uses. The 35-70mm f4 is exceptionally sharp close-up and works with a TC, the cheap plastic 35-70 is very soft but can give dreamy 1970's portraits. See my lens reviews - or QuietOCs - for more detailed comments.

Edited by Miranda F - 29 September 2021 at 13:00

Frozenpixels wrote: So hunting for some of the lenses you all were so helpful to suggest, I located an a99 for sale with a grip and with a Sigma 10-20 on it. Since I don’t have a good APS-C lens and a pile of a mount minoltas, my money might be better spent on switching to the a99. But alas, now I’m wondering if I should wait and hold out for the a99 ll. Choices...

The 10-20 will work nicely with your A77, but the A99 will be firing at around 10MP - it's an APS-C lens.

I've noticed this a few times recently, full frame bodies on sale with crop frame lens - odd.

The Sigma 10-20mm is useable to a degree on FF, but on my f4-5.6 the corners may be either dark or soft with CA outside of the APS-C frame. Occasionally that doesn't matter, but it's pretty easy to use it on FF with a 1.4x TC that gives you proper corners and an FF-equivalent 14-28mm. The Sigma doesn't tell the camera to take crop mode automatically like Sony lenses do, so you might be able to leave the lens on the TC and just swap the pair without fussing with the crop settings. I get much better results than with the 19-35.

To everybody who has helped me out here, thank you very much.
As per a few people’s suggestions, I just picked up a 16-50mm 2.8 to play with. So far it looks pretty cool. I haven’t uploaded any shots yet. I must say for a size the darn thing is very heavy! But it makes my old Sony 16-55 kit lens look like a dollar store toy. I’ll probably pick up a wider APS-C wide lens to mess around with also.

If I feel that what I’ve got is making me happy I might just stick with the a77 and keep the Minolta lenses for whatever is useful or maybe even try film until I feel an a99 is warranted/or in my budget.

Miranda F wrote: I wouldn't disagree with Addy, except that many of the reviews (though interesting and useful) are essentially worthless as comparative tools.

The strength of the lensdatabase is the number of different experiences. That is why you should read ALL the reviews of a lens you're considering. IMO your reviews are also useless as comparative tools as your use differs from mine. And in several cases my experience in my use differ massively from your and QuietOC's reviews. I sometimes wonder whether you ever use the lenses in the real world or just test them. You never share any of your pictures. At least QuietOC participates in some challenges.