Minolta AF 100-400mm F4.5-6.7 APO A-mount lens review by Ratsters

Ratsters#11887 date: Jul-1-2014
sharpness: 4.5 color: 3 build: 5 distortion: 4 flare control: 4 overall: 4.1	tested on: film camera: APS-C: 6MP; 10MP; 12MP; 14MP; 16MP; 20MP; 24MP full frame: 12MP24MP36MP42MP
ownership:	I own this lens
compared to:	Minolta AF 75-300 (Sharper then the 100-400) Minolta AF 70-210 (The sharpest, excellent for studio work)
price paid:	400
positive:	Lightweight (Border line on hand held) Cheap price Good sharpness stop down Accurate focus in good light Manual focus does the trick Good overall telephoto Very good minimum focus distance
negative:	No tripod collar mount Bokeh is disappointing from 300mm to 400mm (f6.7) Zoom creep in low light AF in low light difficult
comment:	I was looking for a lightweight, long reach telephoto lens that can be easily be carried around, at a very affordable price.... this lens delivered! It can be hand held easy but you need good light and high ISO (400 to 800), a tripod collar mount would have been great to have. I would not use this lens for birds or wild animals, it is not sharp enough and focus creeps to much, but for general purpose it's excellent, that's why I gave it a 4.5 on sharpness. Colors is another story, older Minolta coating I presume is the problem, but nothing that cannot be fix in Camera RAW. If you are not a serious wildlife photographer looking for that perfect “National Geographic” shoot.... then go for it, because the next step in sharpness are all the G telephoto lens, and THEY are expensive!