According provided by Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO lens (for cameras with Sony A / Minolta A / Konica-Minolta A mount) many thanks the store ProFotoSalewhere you can find many new and used lenses for different systems, including similar lenses for Sony A.
Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO. increase.
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- In short
- History
- Main Specifications
- Assembly
- Focusing
- Image quality
- Sample Photos
- My experience
- All original lenses for SLR cameras with APS-C sensor for Sony A mount (Minolta A, Konica-Minolta A)
- Results
- User Comments
- Add your review / comment or question on the lens
In the review, I will call the Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO lens for short - Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6.
Very important: the Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 lens was based on an older lens Konica Minolta AF Zoom DT 18-70mm 1: 3.5 (22) -5.6 (D) MACRO... In fact, they are one and the same lens under different names.
Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO
In short
Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 is a versatile lens for Sony cropped SLR cameras. This is a rebranding of the older Konica Minolta AF Zoom DT 18-70mm 1: 3.5 (22) -5.6 (D) MACRO lens. It went as a stock (kit) lens for the first Sony Alpha cameras, for example, such as Sony A100... Nowadays, it is considered obsolete, replaced by whale solutions in the person Sony 18-55 / 3.5-5.6 SAM II и Sony 18-135 / 3.5-5.6 SAM.
Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 is an inexpensive lens for all occasions with a very convenient set of focal lengths and the possibility of pseudo macro photography. Optically, it has disadvantages, but overall it is quite good.
Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO
History
July 15 2005 lens was presented Konica Minolta AF Zoom DT 18-70mm 1: 3.5 (22) -5.6 (D) MACRO.
July 31 2006 the Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 lens was introduced.
These lenses use the same optical design and are only slightly different in appearance.
Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO
Main technical characteristics of Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO:
| Review Instance Name | Near the front lens: 'DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 0.38m / 1.3ft MACRO ø55 mm'
On lens barrel: 'Sony 3.5-5.6 / 18-70' |
| Basic properties |
|
| Front Filter Diameter | 55 mm |
| Focal length | 18-70 mm EGF for Sony cameras with APS-C sensor is 27.5-105 mm |
| Zoom ratio | 3.88 X (may round up to 4X) |
| Designed by | for digital cameras with Sony A mount and APS-C sensor |
| Number of aperture blades | 7 rounded petals |
| Tags |
|
| Diaphragm |
|
| MDF | 0.38 meter, maximum magnification ratio 1: 4 at 70 mm focal length |
| The weight | 237 grams (measured) |
| Optical design | 11 elements in 9 groups, including 1 aspherical element and 1 ED element
Image of optical circuit clickable |
| Lens hood | Bayonet, plastic, ALC-SH0006 |
| Manufacturer country | China (Lens made in China) |
| Production period | With 2006 year |
| Price | About $ 60. Prices for modern Sony lenses can be viewed here. |
Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 gives a very comfortable EGF, equal to about 28-105 mm. This range is very popular for full-frame cameras.
Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO
Assembly
The assembly was carried out in China. The lens is pleasant enough to the touch, without obvious flaws.
Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 uses small 55mm filters. Plastic thread for light filters. Narrow plastic focusing ring.
Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 uses plastic mount... Due to the abundance of plastic, the Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 is light enough.
The zoom ring is large, rubberized and easy to use. When the focal length changes, the lens trunk moves in waves: it decreases from 18 to 35 mm and again lengthens from 35 to 70 mm, this behavior is typical of other similar lenses. The most compact dimensions of the Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 are available at 35mm focal length and at infinity focus.
As the focal length changes, the rear lens moves in the middle of the lens barrel like a pump - drawing in and out air. This behavior of the rear lens can increase the amount of dust that accumulates in the camera. The lens trunk does not spontaneously move under its own weight.
The diaphragm consists of 7 rounded blades and forms a regular heptagon.
In general, the build quality is typical of inexpensive kit lenses. There are no significant defects in the assembly.
Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 does not have additional body seals and is not a protected lens.
Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO
Focusing
There is a noticeable noise during autofocus.
The focusing motor is located in the camera. Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 will auto focus on all DSLR cameras from Sony or Konica Minolta:
APS-C (with cropped sensor):
- DSLR: Sony a100, a200, a230, a290, a300, a330, a350, a380, a390, a450, a500, a550, a560, a580, a700 + Konica Minolta Dynax / Alpha / Maxxum 7D, Konica Minolta Dynax / Alpha Sweet Digital / Maxxum 5D
- SLT: Sony a33, a35, a37, a55, a57, a58, a65, a68, a77, a77II
Full Frame (with full frame sensor):
For autofocus on Sony E-mount mirrorless cameras, the Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 lens must be used with the original adapter. You can use the Sony LA-EA2 crop lens adapter or full frame lens adapters Sony LA-EA4 or Sony LA-EA5. It's important: Sony LA-EA1 and Sony LA-EA3 adapters will not allow autofocus with this lens.
Sony E, APS-C (with cropped sensor), Sony E Full Frame (with full frame sensor).
The autofocus speed of the lens is fast. The focusing speed is sufficient for comfortable work in most photographic tasks. Focusing speed may vary slightly depending on the camera or adapter used.
On camera Sony a700 I didn't have any particular problems with autofocus.
The focus ring rotates approximately 45 degrees (1/8 of a full turn). When the end positions are reached, the ring abuts. In auto focus mode, the focus ring rotates and cannot be touched.
During focusing, the lens trunk extends forward and rotates. Using special light filters will be difficult.
The lens does not have additional useful marks (depth of field, focusing distance scales, etc.).
The minimum focusing distance is only 38 cm and the maximum zoom ratio is 1: 4, which is a good indicator for such lenses.
Focus Features:
- Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 does not have a focus mode switch. To switch the lens to manual focus mode, use the focus mode switch located near the camera mount.
- Important: The quality of focusing Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 in Live View mode strongly depends on the used camera and / or adapter.
- The Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 has a very subtle 'Focus Breathing' effect (changes in the angle of view during focusing). When focusing towards the MDF, the angle of view decreases.
- Focus Shift (shift focus, changing the focus distance due to iris) is missing.
- The lens does not have hard stop (hard infinity mechanical stop), which allows you to accurately and quickly focus the lens to infinity under any external temperature conditions.
Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO
Image quality
The Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 is not optically brilliant, but not as bad as you might think.
On the face tangible chromatic aberrationespecially in the wide-angle range and at the edges and corners of the frame.
There is also a slight distortion, barrel-shaped in the wide-angle range and pincushion in the tele-range.
Vignetting is slight and not a major problem. Sharpness in the center of the frame is highly dependent on the focal length and the part of the frame.
In the center of the frame at open apertures, the lens is not bad, but the corners and edges often bounce back only with a significant aperture. The best resolution is seen at medium focal lengths.
Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 tolerates back and side light well.
There are profiles for this lens in popular RAW converters.
Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 was developed when there were only 6 megapixel cameras, it will be difficult to work with Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 and modern cropped cameras with a 24 MP sensor.
Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO shown on Sony a700 camera.
Sample photos on Sony a700
Examples on Sony a700 (APS-C, CMOS 12 MP).
Original RAW photos ('.ARW' 12-bit uncompressed) can be download from this link (14 photos, 200 MB).
Sample photos on Sony a100, Vladimir V. Edelev
Photo examples on Sony a100 (APS-C, CCD 10 MP) and Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 photographer shared Vladimir V. Edelev.
You can find more works of Vladimir in his Instagram.
Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO shown on Sony a700 camera.
My experience
Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 is a simple kit lens. The extra 15mm focal length at the long end makes it a more interesting solution than classic kit lenses in the 18-55 class. In all other respects, the Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 is very similar to the simple kit lenses of its time.
Usually lenses for cropped cameras with a focal length range of 18-70 mm are more advanced than lenses of the 18-55 / 3.5-5.6 class, but in the case of the Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6, nothing but an increased focal length is observed.
Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO and fix MINOLTA MAXXUM AF 50mm 1: 1.7 (22) AF LENS 50 (1985-1990)
All original lenses for SLR cameras with APS-C sensor for Sony A mount (Minolta A, Konica-Minolta A)
Original Konica Minolta DT Lenses:
- Konica Minolta AF DT Zoom 11-18mm 1: 4.5 (22) -5.6 D later issued under the name Sony DT 4.5-5.6 / 11-18 (SAL1118) [most likely taken as a basis Tamron model a13]
- Konica Minolta AF Zoom DT 18-70mm f / 3.5-5.6 (D) was later released under the name Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70mm MACRO
- Konica Minolta AF Zoom DT 18-200mm f / 3.5-6.3 (D) was later released under the name Sony DT 3.5-6.3 / 18-200 [most likely taken as a basis Tamron AF 18-200mm f / 3.5-6.3 (IF) Aspherical LD XR DiII Macro Model A14]
Genuine Sony DT Lenses:
- Sony 35 / 1.8 SAM
- Sony 50 / 1.8 SAM
- Sony 11-18 / 4.5-5.6, based on Konica Minolta 11-18 / 4.5-5.6the circuit is similar Tamron / Promaster 11-18 / 4.5-5.6 model A13
- Sony 16-50 / 2.8 SSM
- Sony 16-80 / 3.5-4.5 Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T * ZA
- Sony 16-105 / 3.5-5.6
- Sony 18-55 / 3.5-5.6 SAM
- Sony 18-55 / 3.5-5.6 SAM II
- Sony 18-70 / 3.5-5.6, based on Konica Minolta 18-70 / 3.5-5.6
- Sony 18-135 / 3.5-5.6 SAM
- Sony 18-200 / 3.5-6.3, based on Konica Minolta 18-200 / 3.5-6.3, the circuit is similar Tamron / Promaster 18-200 / 3.5-6.3 model A14
- Sony 18-250 / 3.5-6.3the circuit is similar Tamron 18-250 / 3.5-6.3 model A18, Pentax / Samsung 18-250 / 3.5-6.3
- Sony 55-200 / 4-5.6, the scheme is similar Tamron / Quantaray 55-200 / 4-5.6 model A15
- Sony 55-200 / 4-5.6 SAMthe circuit is similar Tamron / Quantaray 55-200 / 4-5.6 model A15
- Sony 55-300 / 4.5-5.6 SAM
Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO shown on Sony a700 camera.
Results
Sony DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6 is a stock lens with a convenient set of focal lengths and a very low price on the secondary market. Not a bad super-budget solution for every day.
10 main advantages:
- low cost in the secondary market (about $ 50)
- convenient set of focal lengths
- slightly increased focal length range compared to classic 18-55 / 3.5-5.6 class lenses.
- high speed auto focus (slightly depends on the camera)
- good maximum magnification ratio of 1: 4
- light weight
- small diameter of the front filter
- good resolution at closed apertures
- slight vignetting
- good backlight stability
10 main disadvantages:
- during focusing, the lens trunk extends forward
- during focusing, the focusing ring rotates and cannot be touched
- thin plastic focusing ring, not very convenient, with a small step
- automatic focus is noisy ('screwdriver' type of focus)
- no continuous manual focus control, no AF / MF switch
- slight air pumping effect due to rear lens movement
- there are no additional useful labels
- the optical design is not updated and is used from the older Konica Minolta DT 18-70 / 3.5-5.6
- disproportionate drop in aperture with increasing focal length (f / 5.6 narrower by 35 mm)
- tangible chromatic aberration and poor resolution at the edges and corners of the frame in the wide-angle focal length range
According provided by Sony DT 3.5-5.6 / 18-70 MACRO lens (for cameras with Sony A / Minolta A / Konica-Minolta A mount) many thanks the store ProFotoSalewhere you can find many new and used lenses for different systems, including similar lenses for Sony A.
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Material prepared Arkady Shapoval. Training/Consultations | Youtube | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Telegram
everything is so, only the red price for him is 10-15 dollars, taking into account the fact that the kit 18-55 SAM II costs 450-500 on the secondary.
here rather a question of a dying system, for which such lenses are very, very cheap. On the same ProFotoSale, which provided this lens for review, the 18-70 is cheaper than the kit 18-55.
Well, I'm talking about a whale and I'm talking about them - you can get them for 500 UAH from time to time on the same OLH, I compared them head-on - it's much nicer, it's easier to crop an image from it than to suffer at a post with a sharpness of 2mm on a subject. The fact that the system is dying is even good, I myself recommend it as a starting point precisely because of the prices for glasses of good quality, convenient EVI, to which you will still have to get used to sooner or later, and a bunch of other goodies, like a matrix stabilizer and excellent AF in video mode. As for me, all the same, both Nikon and Canon actually stop developing the mirror line, but prices for another 70-3 years will slowly fall until they reach the same figures as SonyA now.
I don’t know about olkh, but Avito has enough 18-70 with carcasses like the same a100 for 40-50 dollars in equivalent. Take it and take it off.
And about “you still have to get used to” I would not be in a hurry, no one has yet announced the termination of the production of the entire mirror line, and what has already been released for our century will be enough for sure.
Many DSLRs were released this year, some of them are very powerful, namely 1dx mark 3, d780 and so on.
Arkady, how do you feel about the review from Dzhej (Dzhejs?)? Don't you think that the attempt to combine / bring technologies from the UPC into the mirror system looks strained and this is all hopeless?)
I have a positive attitude to any reviews. As for technology, slt did not make it to the masses (and after all, it is also a hybrid of bzk and zk).
Everything is relative, depending on how they can cross bzk and zk. Perhaps there will be interesting solutions.
There are tons of excellent cheap or relatively inexpensive optics on the A mount, including those from Zeiss.
As long as there are working cameras and lenses, all this can be removed
There is also a good adapter from A to E
What kind of adapter? I can’t find all the huts
https://radojuva.com/2014/06/obzor-sony-la-ea4-adapter/
with konica-minolta: