Sony LA EA5 Adapter

Last week, I ordered a LA EA4 adapter after doing a considerable amount of research about the five different E to A Mount adapters that Sony has offered over the years. These adapters are used to adapt older Sony and Minolta A-Mount lenses to modern Sony E mount mirrorless cameras. The first few iterations were clunky and the autofocus was slow. After doing a bit of research, I ordered the LA EA4 adapter. It arrived on Tuesday. When I got off of work, I peddled home in a hurry to discover to my horror that after waiting a week for the treasure, it turned out to not be supported for my camera, the Sony A7cii.

I put it on the camera, along with an A-mount lens that was supported by the adapter and nothing. I could adjust the aperture, but I could not get auto focus to work. I did more digging and discovered on Sony’s Japanese website that the LA EA4 is no longer supported and would not work on my camera. So, I disappointingly packed it back up and processed the return with Amazon. Once that was done, I ordered the LA EA5 adapter, which is cheaper and is supported on my camera and older ones.

It arrived yesterday, and to my incredible excitement, it actually worked like a charm! The great thing about the 5 over the 4 is that it doesn’t have a translucent mirror used for focusing, which means that all the beautiful light streaming through the lens hits the sensor directly without any interruption. I eagerly put a few of my favorite lenses on it, and to my delight, it worked seamlessly with each of them. Even better, the EXIF data transferred over perfectly as well, making the whole experience even more satisfying.

Early this morning, I headed down to Green Valley Park with the camera, the adapter, and a Minolta 35-70mm f/4 macro lens. The lens isn’t fast, but it is very versatile and a macro to boot. The lens is sharp and the autofocus, although not as fast as a native lens, is fast enough for what I do. I had a great time shooting with this lens and using autofocus. The subject recognition in the Sony A7cii does work through the older lenses. I had it on Animal/Bird, and it recognized a Great Blue Herons eyes and the subject. The autofocus is a little noisy compared to modern lenses, but for photography work, it is great. I will be taking the 70-200mm f/4 beer can lens out tomorrow to test it.

Thus far, I am incredibly happy with the performance of this adapter and the lenses used that I already have. This little adapter will save me thousands of dollars, and that, ladies and gentleman, is of the utmost importance. You can buy these old A mount lenses for pennies on the dollar compared to their native new counterparts. There are a few photographs below for your enjoyment. I could not get too close to the heron with a maximum range of 70mm. What are your thoughts on these adapters?