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Rent NowThe Minolta 50mm f/1.4 MD Rokkor-X is a fast manual-focus standard prime lens designed for Minolta’s SR-mount 35mm film SLR cameras, part of Minolta’s respected Rokkor optical lineup known for strong build quality and classic color rendering. As a “Rokkor-X” branded lens, it was the North American market naming used from 1974 onward for lenses previously sold as simply “Rokkor” elsewhere.
Optically, the lens offers a 50mm focal length with a maximum aperture of f/1.4, delivering a natural, standard field of view along with strong subject separation and shallow depth of field, along with excellent low-light performance for a lens of its era. The optical construction consists of 7 elements in 5 or 6 groups depending on the specific production version. Wide open, the lens renders with a distinctive soft glow and lower contrast, a character often praised for portraiture, while stopping down to f/2.8 and beyond yields sharper, higher-contrast results comparable to more modern lenses.
As a fully manual lens, focus and aperture are controlled entirely by hand via the lens barrel, with no autofocus or electronic communication with the camera body, consistent with the manual-focus Minolta SR-mount SLR bodies it was designed to pair with. The MD version improved on the earlier MC Rokkor 50mm f/1.4 by shedding some weight and reducing the minimum focusing distance from 50cm to 45cm.
Build quality is excellent and largely metal-and-glass construction typical of Minolta’s Rokkor lens lineup, with a focusing ring that travels smoothly across its range and only the aperture ring and name plate incorporating some plastic components on certain versions. The lens has a minimum focusing distance of approximately 0.45m and uses either a 55mm or 49mm filter thread, depending on the specific production variant.
As an SR-mount lens, the 50mm f/1.4 MD Rokkor-X is compatible with Minolta’s manual-focus SR-mount film SLR bodies, and can also be adapted to modern mirrorless cameras via an appropriate mount adapter for manual-focus use.
Key Features
– 50mm f/1.4 standard prime lens (MD Rokkor-X) for Minolta SR mount
– 7 elements in 5 or 6 groups optical construction
– Fully manual focus and aperture control
– Soft rendering wide open, sharper when stopped down
– Metal-and-glass construction typical of Minolta Rokkor lenses
– Minimum focusing distance of approximately 0.45m
– 55mm or 49mm filter thread (varies by production version)
– Compatible with Minolta SR-mount 35mm film SLR cameras
