Just a quick comment on this lens compared to the Zeiss 35-70mm. i'm more a landscape user with those, so I tested them closed down. They are both very very impressive around F8. Matching if not surpassing some primes. And surely competing with all the most expensive 28-70mm F2.8 at >2000.
The Zeiss is a bit better at 35mm, while the Minolta is a bit better at 70mm. I'm talking purely about sharpness here. At F8, both them can be considered as sharp, corner to corner, all focal lengths, on a full frame sensor. Razor sharp in most cases. Then about the quality of the bokeh, micro contrast, colors, CA, flare, character, I didn't test them side by side. The Minolta is maybe more prone to flare, without the same character as the Zeiss, but in any case, it's an amazing value for the money. You can't go wrong with this lens if you are looking for a lightweight small lens for landscape photos.
timballic wrote:
I have both, and use on A7.
The C/Y really is top dog, optics wise.
However, the C/Y feels awkward, as it's a trumpet style zoom, and heavier, but the results are unsurpassed. (On my 5DII it felt very well balanced)
The MD feels a lot better on the A7, being lighter and two ring control, but the corners at the wide end aren't brilliant. That said, the MD is the next best 35-70mm to the C/Y that I've found.
I haven't tried the Leica, (the F/4 version) which some people say is very close to the C/Y. (The F/3.5 version is an adaption of the Minolta)...Show more →
I have the Leica 35-70/4 that I like a lot.
It works well with the TechArt Pro (TAP) autofocus adapter on the Sony A7rII.
Haven't tried it yet on the a6300 or the A9.
I looked through this thread and found the following lenses (including some typos) mentioned:
I hope someone can help me,
I just picked up a mint MD 35-70mm 3.5 macro, but Im not sure how to engage the macro. There is a little blue button but not sure what to do with it. There also seems to be another black button, more rectangular, that I dont know what to do with. Can someone tell me how to engage the macro and what that other button is for? Is there an online users manual for this lens? Thanks!
To use the macro function, set the focal length to 70mm by rotating the zoom ring until it stops. Then press the round blue button. Now the zoom ring can be turned further to the right and the tube moves out further in the macro position 1:7 to 1:4.
The black square button can be pushed towards the image plane when the aperture is set to 22 (green lettering). In this position, the automatic shutter control of earlier analogue Minolta SLR cameras such as the XD7 works. Due to the nature of the system, automatic shutter control is not possible when using MD lenses via adapters on digital mirrorless reflex cameras such as the Sony A7 models.
