MD Tele Rokkor 300mm f4.5 IF
Minolta X-700, MotorDrive 1 and MD Tele Rokkor 300mm f4.5 IF
with gunstock - the "Minolta fotosniper"
Technical data
Angle of view: 8° 10' degrees
Min. focus distance: 3 m
Filter thread: 72mm
Diaphgram: f4.5 - f32
Weight: 710 g.
My personal experiences
This lens replaced the older non-IF MC version, and it is the only manual focusing Minolta lens offering internal focusing. It is a superb lens for hand-holdability, but the lack of the tripod collar is a major drawback - you need some kind of external support witth this lens, especially if you intend to use it with a tele converter. I used the Manfrotto long lens support. Another drawback is the lack of APO element, though there has been some information in the Minolta lists about some low-dispersion lens element (not a real fluorite element, though) being used in this lens and the two 200mm lenses, MD Tele Rokkor 200mm f4 and f2.8. This has, however, not been confirmed.My own experiences of this lens are divided: I loved it when shooting birds in flight, because of its fast focusing and easy holding (I use a gunstock and X-700 with MD-1 or XD-5 with Winder D with it - see the picture above). It is also a great lens when hiking, giving a better reach than 200mm with only a little extra weight. The drawbacks are those mentioned, no tripod collar and not so great image sharpness, especially compared to the MD APO Tele Rokkor 400mm f5.6 or Tamron SP 300mm f2.8 LD IF. There is also some light loss in the corners of the frame - visible against the blue sky, if the picture is at all underexposed. Be careful with exposure if shooting against the sky! It is not vignetting but due to the cosine law, which effects all lenses more or less. Stopping down a stop or two removes this problem.
Ryujin sent some information about slight update to this lens when Minolta moved to "plain" MD-lenses with the introduction of X-700. Here is what he wrote, and a pic of the plain-MD -version:
Scanned from Minolta Lenses brochure.
The lens is MD300mmF4.5 with no "rokkor".
Same optical design as MD Rokkor version.
Exactly same dimenstion.
About weight, the MD version is slight lighter
(5g less) than MD rokkor
version.
When you seriously compare MD version to MD rokkor
one, you'll notice a
larger focus ring on MD version, which maybe
contributes to a better holding
and a easier focusing for users.
Ryujin
Sad that there is no 1,4x tc available for Minolta MD - it would make this lens even more useable. This lens also works great with some 35-50mm extension tubes to get a little bit closer. Using the 1:1 -adapter tube of the MC Macro Rokkor 100mm f3.5 (50mm long) provides the tripod screw, though not a collar! The Tamron SP 2x converter works nicely with this lens.
When I moved to AF system, this was one of the mf lenses I intended
to keep, but after a year or so switched it to the AF Nikkor 300/4 ED IF,
mainly to be able to use a 1,4x tc and to get the tripod collar. Also,
the kind of work I use this lens most is the work where AF is at its best.
If you are buying your first long lens, I would strongly suggest getting
one of these. Skip the 100-300/5.6 zooms. To ease tripod work, a long lens
holding system like the Manfrotto long lens support (or similar) is useful,
and if you want to use this lens with 2x tc, it is an absolute necessity.
 |
Male pheasant in spring
Minolta X-700, MD-1
I took this picture from the car window while driving through a small rural village in the southwestern Finland. The 300mm f4.5 IF is an ideal lens for this kind of crab shots. |
There has been some discussion about the optical quality of this lens compared to the older MC 300mm f4.5 Rokkor lens. The MC version has the tripod collar, which is the major advantage. The major disadvantage of the older lens is its conventional focusing system, which is a pain to use, compared to the IF focusing. My advaice of this lens is simple: If you intend to carry a 300mm lens with you any distance, these f4.5 lenses are the way to go. If you want to handhold the lens, this one is superb. If you use tripod, get the older one or make a home-made tripod collar for this lens, or use a third-party lens support device. But if you use a tele lens from hide or otherwise don't mind carry a heavier lens, a longer and/or faster lens with preferably IF focusing is a better choise - that is, the Tamron SP 300mm LD IF, in the case of MF Minolta.
Robin during the winter
Minolta XD-5, Winder-D
MD Tele Rokkor 300mm f4.5 IF
1/90 sec. at f4.5
Kodachrome 64
13.5.1999 Ruissalo, Turku, Finland