Minolta AF Maxxum 50mm f/1.7 lens for Sony Alpha ♠307

Minolta Maxxum 50mm f/1.7 Prime Lens

A top quality Minolta prime - comes with UV filter, front and rear caps and a petal hood

Up for sale: a nice example of the famous Minolta 50mm f/1.7 prime lens (Minolta Maxxum/Sony Alpha mount). It features clean glass and a solid, metal, heavy, Made in Japan feel. It is amazingly sharp, takes excellent pictures--as you can see below--and works nicely on the Sony Alpha digital cameras. Comes with an aftermarket petal-style lens hood. Many people feel that the built-in hood on this lens was inadequate. With this lens you get a nice new aftermarket petal hood. It screws into the filter ring.

As professional photographers know, it is not the camera but the lens that determines image quality. If you are serious about your pictures, you owe it to yourself to get a standard prime to see what your camera is really capable of. This 50mm f/1.7 is a great lens for both film and Sony digital cameras (I've used it on both). The low aperture lets in lots of light, and combined with anti-shake on the digital cameras you can shoot hand-held indoors with no flash and still get usable shots. Sony doesn't make a 50mm f1.7, only an f/1.4, and that sells for $350 (I bought one recently, and that was the best price I could find). There is very little difference between the f/1.7 and the f/1.4 versions of Minolta and Sony's 50mm lenses. I know because I tested them extensively head to head. The f/1.7 is about 95% to 98% as good as the f/1.4, and you can have it for less than half the price!

Buying a lens on eBay can be a bit of hit or miss. Most listings do not show you enough detail in the pictures for you to determine the condition of the lens, and many sellers do not know cameras very well. I inspect every lenses I sell more carefully than almost any buyer will, and describe the condition and all flaws fully. Every lens I sell is fully tested. I even post a test shot taken with the actual lens you are buying, so you can inspect the lens' image quality. And all the images below link to the full sized original photo (10 megapixel) so you can inspect the lens up close. All this adds up to my "no surprises" guarantee. If you buy a lens from me, you will know in advance exactly what you are getting. Beware of one-word condition descriptions. "Minty" is a flavor and "excellent" can mean a wide range of things to different people. But with good, high-resolution pictures you will know before you buy what kind of lens you are getting. Check my feedback and buy with confidence.

The glass is clean. From the day it was new it has been protected by an original Minolta UV filter (included). I removed the filter and checked the lens very closely front and back with a flashlight and found only one flaw, a tiny mark from improper cleaning on the rear element. It is so small that it doesn't show up on the photos below. There are also some dust particles inside the lens. Neither the dust nor the mark affects image quality. The aperture is snappy and free of oil. The barrel shows minor signs of wear (see pictures below) This is a used but completely functional lens that takes incredible pictures.

Below: Another image taken with this model lens (but not this particular one). Click to see full size jpeg. You can read the EXIF data on the images to confirm the lens details. Camera is the Sony Alpha A700.

This Camera is USED. It has been tested and is guaranteed to function properly. You have three days from when you receive it to notify me if it is not functioning properly, and you may return it for a full refund. Shipping charges are not refundable. Check my feedback and bid with confidence.