- Easy to use automatic mode (what can I say - point and shoot...)
- Manual mode accessible, and once you get comfortable with the controls, you have a fair bit of lattitude with how the camera takes pictures.
- spot metering is nice, seems to work well.
- good shutter speed range (I didn't get anywhere near the extremes on either end, no matter how I pushed it...)
- good aperture range, though I wish it would go a bit lower (down to 2.8...)

- I just don't like plastic cameras.....
- flash is weak
- remote control for shutter is expensive (54 CAD)
- a bit awkward for manual focus

Came with 28 - 80 Zoom + filter, and in very good condition.

My experience with film cameras is largely with manual cameras ie: you've got to set the f stop, shutter speed, focus, zoom, etc. Up to now, I though automatics were for wimps :)

I purchased this camera on Ebay as an emergency backup, as my digital died along with my two film cameras, one a minolta SLR and the other a point and shoot. I ran two rolls of film through it (Kodak Ultra 400 and Kodak Gold 200) to see how this camera would perform.

In well lit areas, no problems: autofocus works fine and the color balance seems to be good.

Indoors, under artificial lights, the color balance changes and is noticeable even if you use the flash, though this is something that any film camera would have to contend with and may be a comment more on the film. The flash range is short - 8 feet maximum. Taking pictures without a flash and using an equivalent f stop and shutter speed, I had the impression that the meter is a bit conservative - I'm tempted to go one stop lower or one shutter speed lower to overexpose the film by one point according to the camera.

The controls are usable once you get used to them though the "spot" button and the manual focus buttons both seem a bit awkward to use at the start. PASM modes are easy to get to. If this camera is like my digitals which died (that's another story....), don't cheap out on the batteries!!!!

Recommended film by a certain camera store rep: Fujifilm 400 for general purpose (you do have up to 1/2000 of a second for a shutter speed) and Fujifilm 200 for outdoors. I'm testing that now and will comment once I get the prints back.

Overall, a good camera if you have two people using it: one a technophobe and the other a technophile.....

Customer Service

Can't comment, though Henry's gave a 27 month warranty on it....

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My other cameras:
Yashica 44
Minolta SR1 (yes, I am an old timer)
FujiFilm A120
Kodak E8xx (8 megapixels, not a bad point and shoot, though it didn't take kindly to being dropped :(

Light (even though heavier than the newer Dynax 5) Inexpensive Full-auto to full-manual Many features for the price

Autofocus both slow and inaccurate at low light Trigger-happy to use auto-flash (so I always had it switched off) Apart from that, none for such a low-priced camera

When I decided my zero-function P&S was to go, I had only a limited budget to buy an SLR. The only competition for the Dynax 404si was the Canon EOS 300, but as I recall the Minolta had several features the Canon lacked, and still was cheaper. I bought a kit (the Dutch way) that included the Tamron 28-105 lense instead of the Minolta 28-80 - a choice I never regretted. As has been mentioned before, the 404si is ideal for beginners who want a camera to grow with during their first years with an SLR. It has all the fully automatic functions to make it an advanced P&S and that give you very good pictures in most of the situations. Later on I found the weaknesses in especially the AF, which always is slow and in low light becomes almost impossible to use - I missed a fair amount of shots due to the AF searching in vain. By that time, you can switch to manually focussing and using aperture or shutter priority to start and create special shots. All this is easily achieved by simple control dials and switches. Before I left the whole lot at a bus stop never to see it back, it had taken me hundreds of good and dozens of great pictures. Just know what the weaknesses of the camera are and avoid them, you'll not be disappointed. The price advantage this camera held is diminished with the availability of the clearly better Dynax 5 at reasonable second-hand prices (get one of these instead if you have the choice), but it still is a great beginner's camera. Just because it isn't all that good, it forces you to get better yourself.

Customer Service

Not needed

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Dynax 5

Great in bright sun, on manual focus, in manual mode(as long as you know about fstops and shutter speeds).

Absolutely horrible in autofocus mode, especially in dim light. If you attempt to use Aperture priority mode and the light is dim you will end up with what seems like a full second worth of exposure and a print that looks like you had caffeine jitters. The auto focus searches like a blind man in the dark.

Received this Camera with 28-80mm lense as a birthday gift after expressing some interest in getting an SLR. Initially the novelty of having a 'real' camera wore off and I started getting roll after roll of bad pictures back from lab. Since the camera has so many stop-gaps and dummy-proof features I was never sure if I was messing up or the camera was using its 'brain'. I decided that I wanted to know i was in full control so I bought a Nikon FE fully manual camera. Recently as a favor to friends I acted as a supplementary photographer at their wedding. I used my Nikon with a 28-200, Reala rated at 80iso and a polarizer as my main camera, but took my Stsi with the same film, and a polarizer as a test. I shot 10 rolls on my Nikon, and would at various times shoot with my Stsi on full auto(one roll with Stsi). The Nikon photos turned out as well as I would expect with my experience level, the Minolta photos turned out either out of focus or blurry. I have read about and looked at the Pentax 'Ist', for the value it seems to be a better choice. Also the Nikon N65 or N50 seem to be better cameras as well. If you are set on having auto focus invest in another brand, or an older higher level camera. If you want to learn to learn the basics invest in an older Nikon FE, FM, F2 or a Minolta XD-11 or XD-7. They are roughly the same price and a better build quality.

great outdoor shots perfect for the learning photographer easy to use PRICE

The camera is lost indoors The flash is at amature night

This was my first SLR and I loved it. from fully auto to fully manualm this camera really helps you to learn the basics of photography. Everybody seems to agree that the price is a great attribute. This camera takes some great outdoor shots and does a good job metering. Indoor is another story, the autofocus is pretty picky and the built in flash gives many pictures a disposable camera look, but is solved with a larger, after market flash. I do miss the Depth-of-Field preview, and wish this camera had one. Obviously your choice of film is 1/2 of the equation for a good sharp picture, but this camera does its half pretty well...outside.

Customer Service

Not needed

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Canon AL-1 Nikon

Takes good outside pictures.

The flash ....

I bought the STsi Maxxum on 5-9-01. At first I got good pictures. I then found out the flash did not work. I took it to Ritz Camera in the Lycoming Mall and they sent it to their repair shop. I bought three extra years warrenty on it. Good thing I did. It was returned to me and for some time it worked okay, but now the flash does not work again. I am going to take it back to Ritz agin on Monday morning. I do a lot of traveling and I will never trust this camera again.How can I get rid of this lemon and maybe get another model that I can trust. I also have the Minlota X-370. Carl F.

Customer Service

Good but they cannot be responsible for this lemon

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X-370

-excellent beginner camera -good price for value -light-weight & small -spot metering available/segment metering is ok

-a bit slow on the auto focus -no depth of field pre-view -remote cord is expensive ($40-$60?) -no all black finish, only silver

Good entry level camera. Very good for beginners who want to learn more than point & shoot photography. Images are clear and compatible with a variety of Minolta Maxxum accessories. Small and light weight, good for those who want an easy to carry camera but still full of the regular slr features.

Customer Service

n/a

outdoor photos

shutter button weak indoor photography using all auto function

This was my first manual/auto SLR. Previously I had only used all manual or point and shoots. I never used this camera for anything but a point & shoot (it was stolen before I got into it too much, but I took about 15 rolls of film in this camera). I used an entry level Sigma lens. The outdoor shots were, for the most part, quite crisp and the lighting was nearly always on target. Inside was another story. Perhaps I could have gotten better quality had I done more with the manual settings, but my cheapo Olympus p&s took better indoor photos than this Minolta. I tried several different films and pretty much had the same results. The shutter release button was troublesome with this camera. Too often it would take a couple of tries to get the camera to find its focus so that it could snap the shot. After getting used to it I normally didn't have a problem, but this made it difficult for anyone unfamiliar with the camera to take a photo. I didn't hate this camera - I have many great photos that it took. But there are better cameras in this price range. I just got a Nikon N65 and so far I am happier.

Customer Service

n/a

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manual Minolta circa ~1975 manual Pentax circa ~1988 Nikon N65

-Light weight and ergonomic even with storm weather conditions. - A good camera and the best price for the features. - Ease to use in auto mode. - The panorama feature is a plus that you miss when you don''t have it. - Amazing landscape pictures with poor light conditions. - Good definition in close-up picture in outdoor conditions at daytime. - The best camera to learn to be a professional photographer. - Very well designed.

- When take shots at night the camera don''t work well in AF mode or auto. You need to change to manual mode and correct the aperture. You need and heavy tripod and cover the mirror. - Plastic lens mount, it will be desirable a metal lens mount.(In desert zones I had to clean the mount surface for change lens many times for a well mounting adjustment. Is better with a metal surface). - Slow Autofocus and many times need 1 or 2 seconds for resolve. - Fuzzy and sharpened pictures with night lights, flash and automatic shots. - With automatic shots need cover the back mirror for a correct exposure. - Probe take pictures with and 52mm lens if you take more pictures at home. If you are an outdoor beast use the 62mm lenses. - Don''t use 200 or 400ASA film with automatic mode because the camera will try to balance the exposure and the picture will seem dark and without definition. Use a regular 100Asa film if you use auto mode the most of the time. - Expend a little more money and buy a proffesional tripod with metals part and a good weight.(Whit more than a slight wind and a light tripod the camera take blur pictures or never can fix the autofocus).

I bought this camera over internet store, the body with date an panorama mode plus a 28-80 62mm AF lens. I did a comparation of a Canon 300, Canon 500N (Rebel in USA) I found that the price was 50% less than Canon models. Before the STsi I took a lot of pictures with a point''n''shoot Canon camera. The STsi is good for the change between beginner and the next step. We make a 6200km trip from the rain forest up to the desert through Los Andes mountains taking pictures with the STsi and different kinds of films (Kodak Ultra 400, Kodak Gold 100, Kodak 200, Fuji 100 and Fuji 200)and so different conditions of light, action and subjects, so I knew almost all the blessings and sins of the STsi. Now I am thinking about get a best lens or change the camera for a Nikon. If you buy this camera take some photography lessons with a proffesional for extract the 100% of the camera features.

Customer Service

Never used

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Canon Rebel G Canon 300 Canon Rebel 2000 Canon 500 Nikon N65 Nikon 6006 Some of the latest point and shoot cameras.

-Ergonomics and weight, even though it was a little light, this camera fits perfectly in my hand. -Excellent metering -Price, very affordable -Easy to use in manual or auto mode -Layout, every knob, dial and button is easy to get to

-Only 1 fps continuous shooting -Autofocus sometimes hunts -No DOF preview -Probably wouldn''t survive being dropped on cement from waist level -Film rewind is a little noisy

This was my first camera, a great tool to help you learn the basics of photography as well as get familiar with some of the more up-to-date technologies in today''s SLR camera''s. Inexpensive and reliable.

Customer Service

Never had to use it

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Canon A-1 Canon EOS 1 Nikon FM2N Nikon F4S

-exposure times
-Low price
-metallic lens attachment
-lots of features

-small (maybe a strength also)

Good camera in its price range

Customer Service

not used

Similar Products Used:

none