Entry level DSLR from Minolta. 6.3 mega pixel with Image Stabilisation built into body. Content and images originally posted by johnportsmouth
Reviews
lumachrome's review
This is my first digital SLR, though not my first SLR. I have found it very easy to use with many of the controls accessable directly through buttons and knobs. Those that aren't are quickly accessable through the Fn button.
The Anti Shake system is the standout feature of this camera, it means that you can hand hold even telephoto lenses at ridiculously low shutter speeds and it works with 99% of the lenses that will fit this camera.
The viewfinder is big and bright, the Nikon D50 viewfinder is small and dingy by comparison. For me anyway, the grip is just right whereas I found the Canon 350D grip too small. Build quality is good, the camera feels very solid, not plasticy like the D50 but it is heavier.
Noise levels are so low that it can be left in auto iso without worry as the range that this covers (100-800 iso) is essentially noise free. The camera has a total iso range of 80 to 3200 which is far in excess of cameras like the Nikon D50 giving more flexibility and it has special 'zone matching' modes where it stretches the curves to give more detail in high contrast shots.
The white balance controls accessable from a top plate knob are comprehensive, giving everything from auto to direct input of colour temperature.
Battery life is very good, I haven't run out on a day's shooting yet. The write speed to CF cards is one of the best, writing a 9MB raw file to the card in under 1 sec with a Sandisk Extreme III card (it's even better than the 7D).
Downsides are few, the use of the flash instead of an infra red beam for low light focussing irritates me as it is too obvious (drives the dog nuts!) but the low light focusing without help is excellent, so it isn't usually needed. The image buffer could be a bit bigger, holding 5 raw images. The 2.5" display has about half the resolution of the same sized display on the 7D, but is ok. last of all, the bundled software Dimage Master Lite is functionally well equipped and produces good results, but is so slow that it is untrue.
Pros
- Anti Shake
- low noise
- big bright viewfinder
- excellent image quality and colour
- great handling
Cons
- uses flash instead of IR for very low light focusing
- Display resolution could be better. No vertical grip (get a 7D for that)
