Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D

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Konica Minolta Maxxum/Dynax 7D
Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D with lens
Type Single-lens reflex
Sensor 23.5 x 15.7 mm CCD
Maximum resolution 3,008 × 2,000 (6.1 megapixels)
Lens type Interchangeable via Minolta A-type bayonet mount
Shutter Electronically-controlled, vertical-traverse, focal-plane Shutter
Shutter speed range 1/4000 sec - 30 sec, or Bulb
Exposure Metering EV 0 to 20 (at ISO 100 with F1.4 lens)
Exposure Modes Manual, Shutter-priority, Aperture-priority, Program, Auto, 3-Programmable modes
Metering modes 14-segment Honeycomb, Spot, Center Weighted
Focus areas TTL CCD line sensors (9-points, 8 lines with center cross-hair sensor)
Focus modes Single-Shot, Continuous, Auto, Manual
Continuous Shooting RAW / RAW+JPEG: 3 frame/s, up to 9 frames, JPEG Extra Fine: 3 frame/s, up to 12 frames, JPEG Fine: 3 frame/s, up to 15 frames, JPEG Standard: 3 frame/s, up to 19 frames
Viewfinder Eye-level fixed pentaprism
ASA/ISO range ISO 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, and Auto
Flash Built-in pop-up with hotshoe
Custom WB Auto, 6 adjustable presets, Manual, Color temperature
Rear LCD monitor 2.5" TFT LCD, 207,000 pixels
Storage CompactFlash (CF) (Type I or Type II) or Microdrive
Battery NP-400 Lithium-Ion rechargeable battery
Weight 760 g (1.68 lb) body only
Optional Battery Packs Vertical Control Grip VC-7D

The Maxxum 7D, also known as Dynax 7D in Europe/Hong Kong and Alpha 7 Digital in Japan, is a 6.1 megapixel digital single-lens reflex camera, or dSLR, produced by Konica Minolta. It was the top model of their dSLR range, with the Maxxum/Dynax 5D, a consumer-grade model, being the other.

The 7D was first announced on 2004-02-12 at the PMA show,[1] with full details released just before the 2004 Photokina show on 2004-09-15.[2] The production camera was released in late 2004. Production ceased when Konica Minolta announced their exit from the camera business in January 2006. Some people think that Konica Minolta were 'too late to market' with the 7D, regardless of its high specification (for the time) and innovative feature set. It also came with a very high price tag. The 7D was available as body only, but also with a kit lens; a 17-35mm f2.8. Like the Nikon 18-70 kit lens found with many Nikon DSLRS, this lens was regarded as high enough quality to do justice to the sensor within the body; unlike the cheap zoom kit lenses found with many DSLRS. [3] although remaining inventory continued to be sold, alongside the K-M based Sony α 100. The Sony A100 is often compared to the KM 5D with a higher specification, whereas Sony's recently announced A700 could prove to be the spiritual successor to the 7D. In terms of market position, it is expected to retail for around £1000 GBP; somewhere between the new Nikon D300 and Canon 40D.

Contents

[edit] Physical Features

The 7D features a Magnesium alloy body, plastic in the rear, and primarily external controls. The body includes external controls for exposure compensation, flash compensation, focus mode, shooting mode, exposure mode, drive mode, metering mode, white balance, focal area, ISO, and two dials that are used to control shutter speed and F-stop. Presence of the external controls for most functions encourage experimentation without having to traverse through menus.

The 7D's 2.5-inch (64 mm) LCD also doubles as the control LCD. Rather than having a second, status LCD located elsewhere like some Canon and Nikon DSLRs, it displays information such as exposure settings, aperture, shutter speed, battery life, and other miscellaneous recording information. The LCD, when acting as the control LCD, also rotates 90° based on the rotation of the camera to keep all of the information shown upright.

[edit] Anti-Shake Technology

The Konica Minolta Maxxum/Dynax 5D and 7D both come with Konica Minolta's Anti-Shake Technology. A major difference between Konica Minolta's Anti-Shake and Canon's Image stabilization is that the operation is done in the camera itself rather than inside the lens, thus making the effects usable regardless of the lens attached. In Canon's IS the lens has a floating element that is used to redirect the frame based on outside movement. In Konica Minolta's AS, however, the CCD is on a floating plane controlled by two actuators that work based on detected outside movement and create an inverse, thereby keeping the incoming image in line with the CCD as much as possible.

[edit] Firmware Issues

The factory firmware that the 7Ds initially shipped with (version 1.0) included a few issues that affected the performance of the camera enough to affect initial reviews. The next build of firmware (version 1.10) gave such a great improvement in camera performance that DPReviews revised their initial review of the 7D to retract a couple of the main negative points, citing true USB 2.0 speeds up to 25Mbit/s (up from 7.5Mbit/s), blinking highlights in the camera's built-in playback mode, the addition of a remote storage function in the transfer modes, and faster times when writing to the CF memory cards.

[edit] Konica Minolta & Sony

In July of 2005 Konica Minolta announced a partnership with Sony to research and develop camera technologies, the following March Konica Minolta announced its withdrawal from the camera business altogether and transferred all of its camera assets to Sony as of March 2006.

Sony's line of Alpha DSLR cameras have built upon the digital Maxxum line, keeping many of the features that made the Maxxum 7D and 5D popular, most notably the built-in Anti-Shake technology. All Sony DSLR cameras now support the Minolta A mount lens system which makes new Sony-built lenses compatible with Maxxum bodies and Maxxum lenses compatible with newer Sony bodies.

[edit] References

  1. ^ DPReview.com (2004-02-12). Konica Minolta Maxxum 7 Digital. Retrieved on 2007-02-03.
  2. ^ Konica Minolta (2004-09-15). KONICA MINOLTA INTRODUCES THE MAXXUM 7D – WORLD’S FIRST*1 DIGITAL SLR CAMERA WITH REVOLUTIONARY BODY-INTEGRAL, ANTI-SHAKE TECHNOLOGY. DPReview.com. Retrieved on 2007-02-03.
  3. ^ Konica Minolta (2006-01-19). Konica Minolta Announces Withdrawal Plan for Camera Business and Photo Business. DPReview.com. Retrieved on 2006-02-03.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

Konica Minolta/Sony α Digital SLR Timeline
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3
Enthusiast [1] APS-C KM 7D α 700
Entry-level [2] APS-C, high resolution α 350
Entry-level [3] APS-C α 300
APS-C KM 5D α 100 α 200
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