gabriela_muj Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 I am looking for a 24mm lens for my Minolta XD5. I found a nice Vivitar and a Sigma. Could you advice me which to choose? I am also open to other suggestions. Do you know an online photo shop that would ship to Europe, ᮤ not have too big prices? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivan_dzo Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 You don't want either of these lenses but the minolta original which is much better. Buy on Ebay in europe. Loads of them in Germany, happy to ship to you. I often buy germany to UK with no problems. Very small prices! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivan_dzo Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 You don't want either of these lenses but the minolta original which is much better. Buy on Ebay in europe. Loads of them in Germany, happy to ship to you. I often buy germany to UK with no problems. Very small prices! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bacsa Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 Actually, the "sigma 24/2.8 superwide II" (it exists in manual Minolta mount too)is quite good. But i agree, ifg you find a good deal on the rokkor, get it (although they tend to be a bit expensive). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_accetta Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 I just bought a Vivitar 24mm MF lens for my Minolta bodies and it's difficult to mount on my XG-9 and X-370. Fits just fine on my SR-T 101, though (see my previous lens mount thread in this forum). It appears that some third-party lenses may not be *exactly* up to Minolta specifications. I agree with the other posters - try to stick with Minolta's own lenses if you can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manuel_garcia5 Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 Go to Minolta's online store. The are selling 24mm referbs for $120 US. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMWright Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 Like the others say, I'd say stick with Minolta. I have the 24mm MD and it is a great lens. The 28mm is even better if you don't need the extra angle of the 24mm. But if you look at 3rd party lenses, consider Tamron as well. keh.com is another good place to find used lenses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thomas_odwyer Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 <p>I have the 24mm Sigma f2.8 and have been quite happy with it. The B&W photos located here <a href="http://www.tpo-consulting.com/public/stakey/index_2.htm">http://www.tpo-consulting.com/public/stakey/index_2.htm</a> were taken with it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taner Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 You want a truly great 24mm lens? You do not have to pay a lot: Sigma 24mm f/2.8 is your lens. <p> Photodo rates it '4', and I have made tons of photos that proved this to me; '4' is higher than what some Canon and Nikon 24mm primes get by the way. It is really well built - I should know since I own various Minolta MC, MD Rokkor-X, and MD lenses... <p> What is truly remarkable about this Sigma lens is its close focus distance: 18cm! I cannnot begin to tell you how important that is for even-wider-than-24mm-looking shots and fantastic near-far compositions. 18cm with a 24mm means .25 magnification, 1:4 macro in other words. The Minolta 24mm/2.8 cannot compete with that. <p> No rotating front element means you are going to be using polarizers and ND grad filters without difficulty. If I were to choose between my Sigma and Minolta alternatives, I would - without hesitation - choose the Sigma. <p> I am quite aware of the fact that I am going to piss a lot of manual Minolta fans off, but someone has to say it out loud: rotating front element is a definite no-no in lens design... I mean come on, lens design has moved on since the early 70s... <p> Buy the Sigma, and do not buy into an historic myth... <p> My favorite lens amongst all my autofocus Canon and Minolta manual lenses? Minolta MC 35mm f/1.8 - so no anti-Minolta bias here. <p> <img src="http://www3.sympatico.ca/askintaner/photonet_post/Untitled-17working.jpg"></p> Sigma 24mm f/2.8 (Fuji NPZ 800) <p><img src="http://www3.sympatico.ca/askintaner/photonet_post/junta-humberbay-9.jpg"></p> Sigma 24mm f/2.8 (Fuji Reala 100) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivan_dzo Posted February 4, 2005 Share Posted February 4, 2005 The sigma 24mm f2.8 that i have is very unimpressive optically compared to the minolta. The build quality is worse too. Stopped down to f8 its good but wide open up to f5.6 the minolta (particularly towards the edges of the frame) is hugely sharper. I too was happy with the sigma until I tried the minolta. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gabriela_muj Posted February 4, 2005 Author Share Posted February 4, 2005 Thank you all for detailed, useful answers!!! Three times 'thank you'! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted February 4, 2005 Share Posted February 4, 2005 The Minolta 24 is probably the best 24mm lens out there, but they tend to be pricey here in the UK. If you can get one for an affordable price, don't think twice, buy it. If they are out of your reach go for the Sigma - almost as good and a lot cheaper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bacsa Posted February 4, 2005 Share Posted February 4, 2005 ouch askin, that's a weird picture!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dw fletcher Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 In reply to Manuel's reply, I went to the online store and they're a little more than $120.00. I bought one, though, and I'll let you guys know how the refurb works out. I've never bought a refurbbed anything before. I've heard bad stories, but I figure buying directly from Minolta couldn't be so bad. Like I said, I'll let you know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rokkor fan Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 I got my 16mm refurbed from Minolta - it was like brand new, in box with with manual - the works! I can't fault it, and I don't think they would sell it if they considered it to be less than perfect. Cheers, Antony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMWright Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 Late in the game for this topic, I know, but I want to address the rotating-front element issue. Not all Minolta lenses rotate. The early MC Rokkor lenses that I (or family members) owned did not have rotating front elements... at least the fixed length lenses. Also, the later MD lenses generally had non-rotating front elements. There was a period of time between, however, that did have quite a few with rotating front elements. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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