I'm really wanting to buy the old Minolta Beercan lens. It's well built, pretty sharp, good in low light and has a decent range. Once I have it in the bag I'm pretty much covered for most occasions.
Of course a friend had told me to buy the camera body only. That once I'd sniffed out a decent old Minolta lens I'd sneer at the included Sony Kit lenses - with their lightweight construction and use of plastic. I bought the kit lenses anyway - they were part of a deal that meant that they were very close to free... but he was right. I have two Minolta lenses at the moment and I'm looking to add a third.
They have great color. The build quality is good. And they're faster than the included Sony lenses, while being a lot cheaper than G series or Zeiss lenses. This will be the last lens for a while and I'm currently trying to outsmart the people in E-Bay in a bidding war that's pyschological as well as being about being willing to pay more.
It's a big old lens. And it's heavy. But it would be the last one that I needed. And in a world were size and weight are second only to provenance it will buy me acceptance - or at least end the questioning.
6 hrs to the end of the auction... how high should I go? Prices are through the roof at the moment - part reputation, part Sony DSLR taking off, part rarity, part seller greed, part buyer stupidity. I'm just too late for bargains, but just the right side of investment.