copladocus

Hi Hogs, As some of you may remember, I work with an auction group setting up auctions and taking photographs for them. The one I am currently working on has a pretty good selection of Minolta 35mm film cameras and lenses. There are two Maxxum 9 cameras (circa 1998), both with motor drives and about ten Minolta A-mount lenses many by Sigma. Stored without batteries in anything but everything is dirty from field work and poor storage conditions. My questions are these.

I believe the A-mount lenses will work directly on Sony cameras, am I right in this?
Also, the A-mount lenses will work on Canon and Nikon DSLR's with an adapter???
Would these Sigma lenses be by the same company that now makes well regarded DSLR lenses?
Are there camera/lens technicians or services who can clean up/refurbish such equipment?

I know there is a renewed interest in film photography, perhaps not here, but reading up on the Maxxum 9, I was pretty impressed by the reviews. The pricing for them is very affordable on the current market. I am not here to sell the equipment but if you are interested in bidding when these do come on line, drop me a PM and I will provide you with the equipment details and bidding site info. In the mean time I would appreciate any and all answers to my above questions. Thanks all.
Tom

rook2c4 Loc: Philadelphia, PA USA

Keep in mind: If you are planning to sell the Minolta cameras, it will be much harder to find interested buyers if lenses are not included. Although some film cameras do sell well as body only (Leica rangefinder cameras, for example), Minoltas generally do not!

repleo Loc: Boston

The Minolta lenses will work directly on a Sony 'A' series camera like the A99. To use them on a Sony E-mount camera like any of the A6xxx series or the full frame A7xx series you will need a Sony adapter which will run a couple of hundred dollars or a manual only adapter which you can get for about $15 on ebay. Sigma make very good lenses now, but that was not always the case. Older Sigma lenses may not be worth the cost of having them professionally cleaned or refurbished.

classic320

The lenses will work on some of the Sony line, as noted above. I use several myself with my A77. As to sales of film cameras, the market greatly prefers mechanical over electronic cameras, whatever the brand.

lnewcome

Not a reply but a question. I have a Minolta 3000i maxim that I loaned my daughter several years ago and believe, she dropped it on the lens. It never worked after that. Is there a place to get these repaired. It took absolutely beautiful film pictures. Linda

JPL

Probably the lenses will work on Sony A mount cameras.
They will probably also work on Sony E mount cameras with the right adapter.
They will work well on all mirrorless cameras with adapters as manual lenses if they have aperture ring.
Using them on Canon or Nikon dslr is maybe possible with an adapter but surely not practical in any way.
The usability of the lenses depends a lot on if they have aperture ring or if the aperture is controlled from the camera only.
Yes, the Sigma company that made those lenses is the same company as is making very good lenses today.
There are probably some people who can provide service for those lenses.

As far as I know the kit lenses for Maxxum 9 did not have aperture rings. That will limit the use of those lenses to Sony only if I am correct. Other lenses than the kit lenses may have aperture ring and be easily adaptable to various mirrorless cameras.

JPL

I am sure you can have it repaired somewhere but it will be much cheaper to buy a replacement camera on Ebay. You can get them for $20-30 with lens.

Don W-37 Loc: Bangkok, Thailand

Minolta lenses will work on Sony alpha 100, alpha 700 and alpha 77 digital A mount cameras. I owned all of those cameras and used lenses from my Minolta Maxxum 7000 on them without any problems.

CHOLLY Loc: THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE!

To expand on what has already been said:

It depends on the lenses.

MOST early Sigma Lenses for the Minolta A mount WERE REVERSE ENGINEERED. That means the electronics will work for the cameras they were designed for... BUT NOT NECESSARILY CAMERAS THAT CAME AFTERWARDS.

Additionally, the original Minolta AF lenses were EXCELLENT both in terms of their optical qualities AND their build quality. This was true up and down the entire line-up. HOWEVER, by 1998 the financial status of the company had taken a HUGE hit due to a copyright infringement settlement with Honeywell and build quality was hit or miss across the board.

Design and innovation was there... but the execution in many cases left a lot to be desired.

The MINOLTA AF lenses CAN be used on any Sony A mount camera. They can also be used on Sony's E mount cameras provided the LAEA-2, LAEA-4 adapters are used. Of COURSE what I said earlier about Sigma lenses holds true in this situation as well.

I have NO knowledge of A mount lenses being adapted to either Canon or Nikon cameras. The Maxxum 9 was an EXCELLENT camera... still is in the right hands provided you get a good copy. It was a professional camera with a LOT of features that neither Canon nor Nikon offered at the time.

Please send ME the list...

THANKS!!!

JPL

Yes, you are right about that. But do you know if the Sigma lenses would also work on the newer digital cameras? I know that some Sigma lenses made for Nikon from the same years do not work on Nikon digital cameras. That is not a mechanical problem but a problem with the lens chip. I do not know if Sigma lenses for Minolta have such a problem.

Don W-37 Loc: Bangkok, Thailand

To clarify, I had the original Minolta lenses that I bought with the Maxxum 7000 camera. As I recall, that was about 1985. It was the first widely available camera with autofocus and I bought it to take photos of waterskiing on Lake Mead. My daughter is still using those lenses today. I have no info regarding their mfgr.

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

If I remember right the lenses cannot be easily adapted to Canon EOS cameras due to the flange to sensor distance. Similar issue as FD lens types.
The lenses of Minolta brands would be desirable but the Sigma ones not so much.

FalconChase Loc: Canton,Ohio, USA

I have two Sigma Minolta Mount AF lenses form my Maxxum film cameras; they work very well on my Sony a580 and A77ii A Mount cameras.

CHOLLY Loc: THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE!

^^^As stated earlier, it depends on the specific lens......

lnewcome

Thank all of you for your suggestions. Sometimes, it's not always wise to loan your children expensive equipment. Linda