Minolta Maxxum 4 test at the Booker T. Washington National Monument

[PFMcFarland]

The Maxxum 4 was one of the lesser models in the range, and came with either a 50mm f1.8, or the 28-80mm f3.5-5.6. These were all taken with the latter, but the lens has some problems. The AF won’t work past the 60mm setting, and the front element group is a bit wobbly, so I planned on shooting it in manual mode all the time. Luckily, the Maxxum 4 remembers all settings when you turn the camera off, so I didn’t have to worry about forgetting to turn off the AF.

With the camera sporting a load of Kodak BW400CN, I took off to nowhere in particular, winding up at the Booker T. Washington National Monument in Franklin County, VA. It is on the plantation where he was born into slavery, and nine years later was freed by the Emancipation Proclamation. He went on to build the Tuskegee Institute, and become a strong voice in the struggle for equal rights.

Below is a sampling of the test photos.


Memorial Bust by P F McFarland, on Flickr
In front of the Visitor Center.



Split Rail Fence 2 by P F McFarland, on Flickr
These divided the land into pasture and growing fields.



Kitchen Cabin Exterior 2 by P F McFarland, on Flickr
B T Washington’s mother was the cook for the whole plantation, which consisted of the Burroughs family, and about ten slaves.



Cash Crop by P F McFarland, on Flickr
Tobacco was grown on only five to ten acres of the 207 acre Burroughs Plantation.

See all the rest of the photos at
https://flic.kr/s/aHskgxdLb4

PF

[minoly]

Good coverage of the Booker T. Washington Site, Phil. I liked the b&w photos a lot and I was pleased to see that they came out of the Maxxum 4-- that's a favorite of mine. Sorry to hear about your 28-80; it did well the way you used it. The "D" version is a very usable lens and available for not much money. If you get a chance to try the Maxxum 4 with the 50mm 1.7 lens, I think that you'll like it as a compact and competent companion.

Bill D.

[PFMcFarland]

Thanks, Bill. I already have the D lens, which came with the Maxxum 4. The plain 28-80 came on a Dynax 505si, along with a 75-300. I shot those lenses in my previous test.

There's not a lot of difference between the 4 and the 505si, but ergonomically I prefer the 505si. I'm looking to get some of the AF primes later on.

PF

[Dustin McAmera]

That last message is spamming for an online casino.


Good set!

[melek]

Thanks! Time for the spammer to bite the dust.

Message is deleted, so the message above isn't about the message above that. It's for a message that no longer exists.

Make sense?

[PFMcFarland]

Thanks, Dustin.

And Thank You, Mike, for kicking spammer butt!

PF