Konica Minolta Maxxum 5D

I bought my KM 5d in late February after hearing KM were withdrawing. I was tempted by the reviews. I was also attracted to the KM5d in over the Nikon equivalent (50D) largely because of the Anti-Shake which I feel has proved useful but not a magic wand.

The camera came with 18-70 kit lens but I have been able to add longer lenses cheaply from Ebay which suite my liking for birds and animals. My only prior experience of cameras is basic point and shoot so I was pleased to find an Auto mode setting which seems to work well.

The scene modes for landscape, sport action, and sunset are useful as well. There is no 'macro' mode which is perhaps a pity. 3 months in, I'm starting find some of the cameras more serious features useful such as Aperture mode and Exposure bracketing. I'm having alot of fun with it and getting alot of pictures I could never have achieved before.

I am not qualified to say how well this camera would suite an expert but I am very pleased with it in particular as it seems able to work with my limited skills and experience and constantly open up new possibilities for me.

It seems a solid piece of kit and reliable. No worries about workmanship.

I recommend buying grey-market spare batteries due to price differentials but they should last a day of heavy use from freshly charged.

Lots of good, old, cheap lenses about from people that have sold up Minolta film cameras in favour of Canon/Nikon dslr's. THANK YOU ALL. ;)

I'm not sure if I should not have waited for the new Sony A100 replacement with 10mp instead of 6mp but depending on price.

Jessops have been helpful.

Well, I finally broke down, after much deliberation, and bought a digital SLR. I have had plenty of time behind SLR's in the past (all canon...almost diehard fan). I have a Rebel Ti and an elan 7e. I learned on an F1. You get the idea. Well I started looking around as the prices dropped on DSLR's and the price of my film and developing was becoming a little out of control. This is what I found. First I looked at all things canon. The rebel, which this camera "compares" with is built to about the level of the old rebels (before mine) not very well. The lens that comes with this camera is the lens that has been the backbone for all reasonably priced canon SLR's for years. The lens is light, great for hiking, and tossing it about like a football,but thats really about it. The camera body would also feel better for people with small hands but with my big mits, it felt unstable and hard to opperate. So, I moved on to nikon. I liked the look and feel of the d50 and d70 much better. Still a little small but better menu and control layout and a better lens. The d50 doesn't have near the user control I was looking for though. I would recommend this camera to anyone who wants fairly superb pictures and doesn't really have to think to get them. The ultimate soccer mom camera. The d70 was the same with wider parameters, and remote flash capability. The pentax was never in the running. Way to small and just weird (I know I just offended a lot of diehard pentax fans...sorry). Then I came across this camera. The body is designed with people like me in mind. Large and stable with more weight than any of the other above mentioned cameras, more lens right out of the box, and a delightfully ingenious idea; image stabilization in the body.

Where to begin? How about the defining feature of this camera, image stabilization. Have you ever been in a camera store and seen a body with a sweet looking IS lens on it? It looks so nice just sitting there, but there is a reason it has dust on it, look at the price tag. Or don't if your prone to heart failure. Wow, I payed less than that for the camera I just bought. Well put IS in the body and look out EVERY LENS IS NOW STABILIZED! Get the idea? I took a pic of the ferry on a dock to the side in 12" high chop. Crystal clear. Looking forward to some great wakeboarding shots this summer...from the boat. Ok what else? I like buttons. This camera is much more button driven (vs menu driven) than any of the other cameras. So many in fact, that most a are dedicated. What about pictures you ask? Crisp, clear, and more white balance options than you could ever want (I don't remember 35mm having this???!!!). So here's the verdict: This camera is the ultimate affordable digital SLR for those people who have experience with SLR's and photography in general. Not you? That's fine, I won't hold it against you let me recommend the nikon d50.

The only things that come to mind with this camera are that there is not as much aftermarket support as with other cameras, and the menu system is not quite as user freindly as the others. The other issue is of course the buy out. I think it would be very foolish however, for sony to drop production of lenses and stuff, I just don't see it happening.

All Canon, all the time

This camera is a joy to use. It simply works the way a camera is supposed to work. The Anti-Shake feature is priceless and continually surprises me. As an ex-Canon user, I feel like I found a treasure--using wonderfully made, yet inexpensive Minolta glass. And built-in wireless flash to boot! I know what the Canon equivalent would have cost me if I were to purchase their IS lenses and wireless adapter. What a bargain the KM is!! I feel like I've somehow cheated and got away with it! The camera is light, yet has a pleasantly substantial feel. The buttons and knobs are very intuitive. Though the menu lacks the same intuitive nature, you'll learn every setting in no time--especially the settings that are important and often-used. The custom white balance is brilliant. There is virtually nothing that I miss from the Canon XT or 20D when it comes to ergonimics and the sheer pleasure of actually using the camera. Most importantly, the pics from the camera are first-rate. I continually hear this refered to as an entry-level DSLR, but that doesn't do this sweet little camera justice. It's a fine photographic tool--in many ways unique.

- Great ergonimics - Superb picture quality - Anti-shake technology - Wireless flash - Great Minolta glass. Kit lens much better than Canon's (actually useful) - Just plain fun to use - A great bargain

- No battery grip available. The only thing I miss.

Canon Digital Rebel Canon 10D Canon Digital Rebel XT Canon 20D

Not necessary yet.

Recently KM got out of the camera business and turned everything over to Sony. I had been wanting a KM 5D for a long time and this move essentially forced my hand to get one of the few that were still on the shelves. Initially upon receiving the camera my first impression was just how big it was. Compared to my old camera (Minolta HTsi+ 35mm SLR), the 5D feels about 4 times as heavy and twice as large. Not neccesarily a bad thing, but I wasn't expecting it. Both of my old lenses worked without a hitch on the 5D. I am giving it a 4 for value because I could have paid $100 less if I had bought about a month or two before I did :(

One of the cheapest dSLRs around (or was, Pentax has since undercut it). Anti shake can be a life saver, good performance throughout the ISO settings although 1600 and 3200 will require post processing to clean things up. Fast write times even with a regular CF card, however I do not demand high speed bursts either. Very comfortable in my hands and all the buttons are in just the right place.

No longer manufactured :( I don't consider the menu layout to be the most logical, but once you get used to it it becomes workable. The battery securing latch isn't strong enough and I have actually had the battery pop out a few times when I set the camera down on my desk.

Minolta HTsi+ 35mm SLR

Best digital SLR at any price. Before purchasing a camera system, I compared many prints taken with the Minolta 5D against the Canon 20D. The images from the Minolta are better. The colors have more depth, and the image stabilization produces sharper images.

Image, Image, Image

Not as good as the Canon above 800 iso

Canon 20D