Review: Minolta AF 200mm f/2.8 Apo G 1. Introduction
The 200/2.8 lens is my favourite travel lens. The 2.8 aperture makes it good to use in low light and the 200mm focal length allows for handholding the lens in most situations. I have used this lens on several trips to Africa and Asia. A summary of my thoughts on the lens follows. Remember, this is a subjective review and your opinions might be different. This review is based on my experience with one lens only and sample variations might occur. But anyway I hope you find it useful.
2. Different versions First of all you should be aware of the following. There are two different versions of this lens. The first was released in 1986 and the second in 1988. Optically the two versions are the same, but the redesigned ’88 version, called the G version, features a faster focusing gear and a new IC ROM to enable faster focusing with the i, xi and si series cameras. External changes include one AF lock/lens function buttons and “High Speed AF Apo 200mm” decal on lens shade. There was possible to have the old version upgraded so that it is equal to the G version except for the focus hold button but I am not sure if Minolta still does this.
The lens featured in this review is the second version with the focus hold button. 3. Teleconverters
Performance with converters:
Differences between the original Minolta tele converters and the Mk II version: 4. Lens data
5. Appearance and Handling This lens is one of the smallest and lightest 200mm f/2.8 auto focus lenses on the market. Weighing only 790g and with a diameter of 86mm and length of 134mm it easily fits into a small camera bag making it the ideal travel lens. I have used the lens together with the Minolta AF 28-70mm f/2.8 G lens, the Minolta AF 1.4 teleconverter II Apo and the Minolta Dynax 9 on several trips. This combination offers excellent optical performance and fits into a small camera bag like the Tamrac Explorer II. The design of the lens dates back to 1988 and consists of 8 elements in 7 groups, including 2 expensive AD glass elements to give the lens a tight control on the chromatic aberrations. This assures high quality and less trouble with colour fringing. The filter thread size is 72 mm and a 72mm clear protective filter comes with the lens together with a soft case. I always use the filter to protect the front element. The soft case however quickly found a place in the closet and has stayed there ever since. The customary golden ring, designating a G construction, is placed at the front end and a tiny read-out window for the distance scale with depth-of-field indications is placed next to the AF-lock button. The lens barrel itself has a smooth white paint finish, which looks nice but unfortunately does not withstand wear that good. The lens itself is very well built with a metal barrel and mount.
The hood is permanently attached to the lens. When you are not using the lens, just turn the hood a little and it will loosen and slide down the lens barrel making the lens easier to store. The hood is shorter than on similar lenses from other manufacturers but it works fine on this lens. The design makes the size of the lens small and it is easy and fast to pull out and fasten the hood. I really like the design of the hood on this lens and it is one of key features in making it the perfect travel lens. The inside of the hood is covered with black velvet to eliminate reflections and the front has a rubber edge for protection. The focusing ring is slightly recessed in the barrel with a metal cover that you can slide over it. This prevents you from interfering with its movement in auto focus mode when the focusing ring turns. The focusing ring is a little thin when using the lens in manual focus but it is not a big problem. The near focusing range of the lens is 1.5m. The lens also has a step less focus range limiter. By loosening a small knob on the lens you can turn the focus limiter left or right and thus limit the focus range on the far or near side. To allow the lens to use the entire focus range again, just loosen the knob and the focusing barrel can move freely through the entire range. I must admit I have never used the focus range limiter on this lens, however on the longer lenses it is very useful for making the auto focus faster. The lens focuses by moving the lens elements by a shaft. A motor in the camera drives the shaft, making the focusing speed dependent on which camera model the lens is coupled with. I have tried the lens on the Minolta Dynax 700si and the Minolta Dynax 9. On the Dynax 9 the auto focus is very fast, on the 700si it is a little slower. Some hunting occurs but not so much that it is a problem. The lens is also compatible with Minoltas own teleconverters as well as all third party converters with Minolta A mount. With the Minolta AF 1.4x teleconverter II Apo the auto focus is a little slower because of the reduction gearing in the TC and light loss but it is still good. With the AF 2.0x teleconverter Apo the auto focus is slow and hunting in low light. This makes it better to switch to manual focus when using the 2x converter if the light level is low. In total I find the focusing speed of the lens very good and on the Dynax 9 the lens focuses just as fast as the Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 IS L USM on the Canon EOS 10D despite what some people might say. However even though I have never missed a shoot because of the auto focus performance on this lens I still would prefer SSM focusing because of lower noise and less hunting. And maybe the focusing with a 2.0x converter would be better. The lens does not have a tripod collar, which has not been a big problem for me as I mostly use it handheld. If you have a sturdy tripod and a good tripod head I find that a tripod collar is not necessary when using only the lens. However if you attach a converter the camera becomes very front heavy and a tripod collar would certainly be preferable. But in total I don’t see this as a big problem. 6. Optical Performance
I have tried to summarize my findings when shooting a resolution chart with the
lens to test its optical quality in the tables below.
The ratings are as follows:
Illumination was even across the entire frame at f/2.8, so corner light fall-off was absolutely negligible. Geometric distortion is non-existent. The graph below is the Minolta MTF graphs for the lens.
The graph 7. When the image is out of focus The word bokeh is of Japanese origin and relates to the fashion in which the out-of-focus areas of the image are rendered. A sharply focused subject set against a pleasingly silky smooth background characterizes a good bokeh. The transition from in-focus to out-of-focus should occur gradually. A large number of aperture blades give a more circular opening when the lens is stopped down, but this in itself is not sufficient to give a good bokeh. Another feature of the lens that affects Bokeh is the degree of spherical aberration correction. Spherical aberration is when the rays of light from the middle and from the outside edges of a lens do not focus to exactly the same point. The 200mm f/2.8 Apo G have a very pleasing image rendition, in fact, the images show an attractive bokeh up with the very best of lenses.
8. Flare and ghosting Since light reflects off glass surfaces, lens flare usually increases with the number of glass elements in the lens. The problem is compounded with backlit subjects. With the 200mm f/2.8 Apo G lens flare and ghosting has not been a problem. 9. Summary and Conclusions This lens may be expensive but it certainly offers the results you've paid for. It is already a legendary Minolta lens, offering excellent optical performance that does its job in a truly professional manner. In my opinion one of the finest lenses on the market and a very good reason for choosing a Minolta system as no other manufacturers offer this performance in such a small package. The perfect travel lens. Pros
Cons If Minolta would include SSM focusing and a detachable tripod collar on this lens without reducing the optical quality or changing the size it would be unbeatable. With the new Dynax 7 Digital with in body Anti Shake this lens become an amazing 300/2.8 equivalent with image stabilization weighing only 790g. 10. Magazine lens tests
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This lens is part of the Minolta AF G – Series that are Minolta’s high
performance class optics designed to give the highest optical quality. So let us
see if the engineers at Minolta have done their job.
