![\"Minolta](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Minolta_MC_50mmf1p4-1.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
There is an abundance of manual 1.4\/50 lenses available, is there anything which makes the Minolta MC 1.4\/50<\/strong> special? That’s the question I try to answer in this review.<\/p>\n Images are linked to the full resolution, just click on them.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Minolta MC 50mm 1:1.4 usually sells for around $40-80<\/strong>\u00a0at ebay.com <\/a>(affiliate link).\u00a0<\/em> The Minolta MC 1.4\/50 was released in 1973 and remained in production until 1977.<\/p>\n The mechanics and optics remained unchanged but\u00a0minor cosmetic changes happened.\u00a0In 1974 on the north American market ROKKOR became ROKKOR-X in orange and at the same time the index was changed from a painted red dot to a red plastic bead in all markets<\/p>\n (Thanks to\u00a0Maury Jacks for additional information.)<\/em> It’s successor was the MD 50mm 1:1.4 which is 65g lighter and a bit shorter.<\/p>\n Typically for a Minolta MC lens built quality is great<\/strong>, it doesn\u2019t get much better than this. The lens is made of nothing but metal and glass (well and some rubber for the focusing ring but it has aged well).\u00a0All markings are engraved.<\/p>\n The Minolta MC 1.4\/50\u00a0is about as large and a little heavier than\u00a0your average 1.4\/50. It is well balanced on the Sony a7 but it feels like a substantial lens.<\/p>\n The focusing ring is a pleasure to use\u00a0<\/strong>because it has just the right resistance and travels about 90 degrees from 0.5m to 1m and a further 80 degrees to infinity.<\/p>\n The metal made aperture \u00a0ring\u00a0<\/strong>of the has a good\u00a0resistance<\/strong> and distinctive stops. There is no \u00a0stop between f\/1.4 and f\/2, then it stops down half steps to f\/16.<\/p>\n The 55mm filter thread is made from metal.<\/p>\n The front of the lens does not rotate.<\/p>\n At f\/1.4 vignetting is significant, at f\/2 it is reduced but still noticeable and\u00a0from f\/2.8 a no-issue.<\/p>\n Typical for a Minolta the MC 1.4\/50’s flare resistance is nothing to write home about.<\/p>\n Ghosting isn’t hard to provoke:<\/p>\n Veiling flare is rather strong and robs the image of contrast: The lens shows a small amount of barrel distortion.<\/p>\n There is a little bit of lateral CA. I would say the performance is\u00a0average for a 50mm.<\/p>\n There is quite a lot of longitudinal CA. Again an average performance for a 50mm. But also much more expensive 50mm <\/a>lenses struggle in this aspect.<\/p>\n The Minolta MC 1.4\/50 doesn’t have the smoothest bokeh but it isn’t bad either.<\/p>\n At f\/1.4<\/strong> there is a pretty strong outlining effect and the cat’s-eye effect is prominent as well: Here is a worst case scenario: At f\/2<\/strong> the outlining effect is much less annoying but still visible, especially outside of the center. My preferred aperture is f\/2.4<\/strong>. Here\u00a0oof highlights are rendered quite smooth and the shape of the aperture isn’t too obvious.<\/p>\n At f\/2.8<\/strong> the hexagonal shape of the aperture is pretty obvious and a bit annoying.<\/p>\n Of course bokeh depends a lot on the background, in scenes of low contrast and with backgrounds farther away you can get smooth bokeh\u00a0even at f\/1.4 and especially at f\/2.0.<\/p>\n The Minolta MC 1.4\/50 only has 6 aperture blades so sunstars only produce 6-pointed stars. From\u00a0f\/11 they are reasonably well defined \u00a0but they don’t come close to the nice sunstars of lenses like the Zeiss Loxia 2\/50<\/a>.<\/p>\n You can find the full resolution test images in the Minolta MC 1.4\/50 flickr set<\/a>.<\/p>\n f\/1.4:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0Good resolution in the center, still decent midframe area and bad in the corners. Contrast is quite low.<\/p>\n f\/2:\u00a0<\/strong>Performance is much improved and f\/2\u00a0is my go-to aperture for portraits.<\/p>\n The center shows good sharpness but there\u00a0sharp area is quite small.<\/p>\n f\/2.8:\u00a0<\/strong>Any\u00a0softness is gone, contrast and resolution are excellent\u00a0in the center and midframe region, the corners only improve a little.<\/p>\n f\/4:\u00a0<\/strong>A significant improvement in the midframe region and further, corners are better but still rather soft.<\/p>\n f\/5.6:\u00a0<\/strong>Excellent across the frame, only the extreme corners are a tad softer.<\/p>\n f\/8:\u00a0<\/strong>Excellent across the frame.<\/p>\n f\/11: <\/strong>A little softer due to diffraction.<\/p>\n For me the most important stops<\/strong> are:<\/p>\n The Minolta MC 1.4\/50 has a close focusing distance of 50cm\u00a0which results in a reproduction ratio of about 1:8 which is a little below average for a 50mm lens.<\/p>\n The Minolta\u00a0does not feature floating elements so performance suffers quite a bit\u00a0at shorter distances. \u00a0You won’t reach the same level of performance as at longer distances, no matter the aperture you are using. Results are good enough from f\/2.8 but the level of CA is quite high, even in the center. My Minolta MC 3.5\/50 macro performs much better here.<\/p>\n A full aperture series can be found in my Minolta MC 1.4\/50 flickr set<\/a>.<\/p>\n Minolta MC 1.2\/58<\/a>: <\/strong>Quite a bit\u00a0smoother bokeh and 8, not just 6 aperture blades make it a superior lens when bokeh is important. Sharpness is similar, the 1.4\/50 might be a tad better. It also costs about 6 times as much and is nearly 150g heavier.<\/p>\n Minolta MC 1.7\/55<\/a>:\u00a0<\/strong>Not as sharp at wider apertures but it has nicer bokeh and is a bit smaller.<\/p>\n Minolta MD 2\/50<\/a>:\u00a0<\/strong>Worse bokeh but\u00a0it is sharp across most of the frame from f\/2,\u00a0very small and only weights half of the MC 1.4\/50. This is reflected in the build quality though. It is also free of lateral CA and distortion which the 1.4\/50 is not.<\/p>\n Zeiss C\/Y Planar 1.4\/50<\/a>: <\/strong>The Planar has more effective coatings which results in a much better flare resistance and higher contrast at wider apertures.\u00a0The Minolta is a lot cheaper though.<\/p>\n Canon nFD 1.4\/50:<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>The Canon is quite a bit sharper at f\/1.4 and f\/2 but \u00a0and it doesn’t feel nearly as solid. Price is similar.<\/p>\n Zeiss Loxia 2\/50<\/strong>:<\/a>\u00a0A modern lens which is sharp across the frame from f\/2\u00a0with high contrast and exif transmission. Bokeh is the only real weakness I found. Oh an the price of course.<\/p>\n Sony FE 1.8\/55 ZA<\/strong><\/a>: The Sony is super sharp from f\/1.8 and it has much smoother bokeh. Manual focus is a pain in the a** though and it is expensive.<\/p>\nSample images<\/h1>\n
![\"Minolta_MC_50mmf14_f2_SonyA7-2\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/Minolta_MC_50mmf14_f2_SonyA7-2.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC02972\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC02972.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC00142\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC00142.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n\u00a0Specifications<\/h1>\n
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\nIn Germany\u00a0you can buy it for 50-85\u20ac<\/strong>\u00a0at ebay.de<\/a> (affiliate link).
\nAlso check out my Minolta SR-mount adapter guide<\/a>.
\n<\/em><\/p>\nVersions<\/h1>\n
![\"Minolta](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Minolta_MC_50mmf1p4-1-2.jpg\")
<\/p>\nBuild<\/strong> Quality<\/strong><\/h1>\n
Size, Weight and Handling<\/strong>
\n<\/a><\/h1>\n![\"Minolta](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Minolta_MC_50mmf1p4-1-4.jpg\")
<\/p>\nLens Hood<\/h1>\n
![\"Minolta](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Minolta_MC_50mmf1p4-1-3.jpg\")
The original lens hood is made from metal, on the inside it is flocked with a velvety material. Since it is very solid and\u00a0because it isn’t too large I usually leave it on the lens and put lens the lens in my camera bag <\/a>without a front cap which speeds up operation.<\/p>\nFilters<\/h1>\n
Image Quality<\/h1>\n
Vignetting<\/h3>\n
![\"Minolta_MC_50mmf1p4_vignetting\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/Minolta_MC_50mmf1p4_vignetting.jpg\")
<\/p>\nFlare Resistance<\/h1>\n
![\"DSC05191\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC05191.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC09600.jpg\"\/)
![](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC09599.jpg\"\/)
<\/div><\/a><\/figure>\nBoth images were taken with the lens hood attached but for the second image I shielded the front lens with my hand as well.<\/span><\/figure>\nIt is not like the flare resistance won’t allow you to take any image with the sun in the frame, but you should be aware of\u00a0it.<\/span><\/figure>\n![\"DSC01856\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC01856.jpg\")
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nDistortion<\/h3>\n
Chromatic Aberrations<\/h3>\n
![\"DSC04252\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC04252.jpg\")
Bokeh<\/h3>\n
![\"DSC05187\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC05187.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC03017\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC03017.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC05186\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC05186.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC05189\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC05189.jpg\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n![\"DSC00058\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC00058.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"DSC09900\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC09900.jpg\")
<\/a> ![\"DSC05188\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC05188.jpg\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n![\"Minolta_MC_50mmf14_f2_SonyA7\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/Minolta_MC_50mmf14_f2_SonyA7.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"DSC04660\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC04660-1.jpg\")
<\/h1>\nSunstars<\/h1>\n
![\"DSC05218\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC05218.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\u00a0Sharpness<\/h1>\n
![\"Minolta_MC_50mmf1p4_infinity2\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/Minolta_MC_50mmf1p4_infinity2.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n
Close Focus Performance<\/h1>\n
![\"DSC05242\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC05242.jpg\")
<\/a>Alternatives<\/h1>\n
Conclusion<\/h1>\n
![\"DSC02687\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC02687-1.jpg\")
<\/a>![\"DSC02688\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC02688-1.jpg\")
<\/a>![\"DSC02689\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC02689-1.jpg\")
<\/a>![\"DSC00019\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC00019.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Minolta_MC_50mmf14_f2_SonyA7-3\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/Minolta_MC_50mmf14_f2_SonyA7-3.jpg\")
<\/a>![\"DSC09564\"](\"http:\/\/phillipreeve.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/DSC09564.jpg\")
<\/a>