Cheaper alternative of the LA-EA1

[Marcell Nikolausz]

Hi all,

I'm looking for an adapter to use my alpha lenses on NEX. The official sony adapter (LA-EA1) would be a good choice, but it's quite expensive and I don't really need the AF. I don't have any lens with built in motor and I'm not planning to buy any.

Is there any cheap alternative?? Manual focus is OK for me, but I want to control somehow the aperture (and not from my sony a100).

In the future I'm planning to use mainly nex lenses, but I would like to do some experiments with some of my old lenses (100mm and 50mm macro, a 24mm f2.8 and a 15mm fisheye). Nothing serious, therefore I don't really want to invest in a lot.
On ebay, I've found some but I don't know how good they are? Any recommendation is welcomed.

Marcell

[artington]

I got one of the China made adapters on eBay for about £18 - unfortunately it is quite loose on the camera, albeit usable. You get what you pay for I guess. The problem with the SONY adapter is that it is very expensive and AF, if available (only 14 lenses), is apparently slow. I find manual focusing with the NEX to be really good and easy so ideally would be looking for a well made third party manual Alpha-E adapter (made to the same quality the Metabones Leica M - E mount, which is excellent) but I havent found one - unfortunately Metabones dont do one.

[DrScottNicol]

The official adaptor is expensive but do remember it comes with the added bonus of aperture control and more detailed EXIF data and the AF works pretty well for the SAM easy choice primes, just a little too slow for actions shots but fine for portraits etc. I use several older minolta / non SAM Sony lenses on the NEX using this adaptor including a Sigma 70-300 OS - this lens tries to autofocus but fails to lock. However the the on lens OS works very well at longer focal lengths, a real plus given the lack of SSS in the NEX body.

[Marcell Nikolausz]

The official adaptor is expensive but do remember it comes with the added bonus of aperture control and more detailed EXIF data and the AF works pretty well for the SAM easy choice primes, just a little too slow for actions shots but fine for portraits etc. I use several older minolta / non SAM Sony lenses on the NEX using this adaptor including a Sigma 70-300 OS - this lens tries to autofocus but fails to lock. However the the on lens OS works very well at longer focal lengths, a real plus given the lack of SSS in the NEX body.

I was recommended to use this adapter:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/...s_adaptors_ET& ... 053wt_1140

Aperture control is possible but not perfect. I may give a try. I will report on it when it arrived.

Cheers

Marcell

[Marcell Nikolausz]

Let's try another link, I hope it works:
http://cgi.ebay.de/MA-Minolta-AF-lens-a ... 4cf6f1fe58

[Marcell Nikolausz]

My adapter has arrived two days ago from china. I waited for the firmware upgrade before testing it. Now I need a bit of free time and good lights. Still thinking what to shoot instead of brick walls or bookshelf.
I will post some results soon.
Marcell

[Marcell Nikolausz]

After testing the adapter, I think I will mainly stick to the two kit lens and will wait for some upcoming e-mount lens. I will buy the 30mm macro for sure if the price would be correct.
I played a bit with a 24mm sigma lens and I haven't found much advantage (image quality) over the kit zoom. In addition, the kit zoom is lighter and more versatile.
My 100mm macro adapted on nex certainly produce stunning image quality, but the whole set-up is bulky and I prefer flash supported macros instead of tripod. And the flash on nex is a kind of joke.
I will play a bit further with a 15mm sigma fisheye but I'm afraid that i would be happier with the sony fisheye adapter on the 16mm pancake lens.
Some pictures with the 24mm lens:
http://www.dpreview.com/galleries/49072 ... ex5#page=1

[David Kilpatrick]

I have to say that the wide and fisheye adaptors are a better investment, for general all-round shooting, than an LA-EA1 - unless you have a special need.

David