The 3.2-megapixel Dimage Z1 marks Konica Minolta's foray into a new range of digital cameras for photography enthusiasts.It's the first in a series featuring Single Lens-Reflex (SLR)-like handling, but at much more affordable levels than the Dimage 7 series. Armed with a new 10x optical zoom lens and outstanding auto-focusing speed, the Z1 is definitely a new digital contender to watch out for.
Arguably, the most eye-catching specification of the Dimage Z1 is the sheer optical zoom range--a focal range of 5.8-58mm, equivalent to a 38-380mm 35mm camera lens. That's not factoring in the 4x digital zoom function, which stretches the focal length to a mind-boggling 38-1,520mm (on an equivalent 35mm lens). The lens also features a fast F2.8 to F3.5 aperture, allowing for faster shutter speeds for sports or natural light photography. All these and more are encased in a compact, stylish form that would fit comfortably into a small waist pouch or backpack, without any real need for additional accessories.The Dimage Z1 is equipped with the newly designed and quite unique Switch Finder. This system allows the camera's LCD monitor to be viewed directly or through the viewfinder, using a shutter mirror that closes over the 1.5-inch color LCD and redirects the image up to the eye-level finder. It has full dioptric adjustment and 98 percent field-of-view coverage. Although this would probably take a bit of getting used to for traditional digital camera users, it's fairly easy to adapt to. However, one potential pitfall of this is that battery life is shorter since the viewfinder will technically use the same amount of power as viewing on the LCD. The Real Motion LCD monitor uses a 60-frames-per-second frame rate, which allows "live" action to be viewed smoothly. An automatic monitor amplification function also brightens the panel under low-light conditions so the subject is always visible.
Another outstanding feature of the Dimage Z1 is the use of Rapid AF technology to ensure sharp images with minimum delay. Rapid AF uses a passive AF sensor to instantly estimate the distance to the subject and the camera's CCD to determine the precise focus point. A high-speed drive focuses the lens quickly and smoothly, and when coupled with the 60-frames-per-second sampling rate (twice that of most digital cameras available today), results in possibly the world's fastest AF among digital cameras with a built-in 10x or greater optical zoom. The macro mode also allows close-ups to be taken from as near as 1.6 inches (about 4cm) from the lens.
Focusing is also simple and easy--simply place the subject anywhere within the focus frame and an AF sensor will indicate if the focus has been locked and confirmed. The new Progressive Capture drive mode is also highly touted, especially for action photography. When the shutter release button is pressed and held down, Progressive Capture begins saving images in the buffer memory.
Other aspects of the Dimage Z1's performance have also been pumped up. Startup time is a very respectable 2 seconds and shutdown time is 2.4 seconds. After the focus has been locked, the shutter release time lag is a mere 0.06 seconds, which is almost on par with that of a conventional 35mm SLR camera. The Minolta will be ready to capture another image in 1.2 seconds after the exposure.
The Dimage Z1 looks like something out of a cheesy sci-fi movie, sporting a silver-and-black body casing that's built around the large lens element and zoom. Despite its exotic appearance, the Z1 is actually very comfortable to handle, with a large handgrip for a solid hold. The rest of the body houses the 3.2-megapixel CCD sensor and Minolta's most powerful flash built into a digital camera yet (guide number of 39). A large dial situated on the back panel manages the main controls, and the interface is generally user-friendly in keeping with the Z1's aim of reaching less tech-savvy audiences. Using four AA-size batteries for power, the camera weighs slightly over 400g with the batteries and SD card loaded. This lightweight factor is greatly aided by the use of plastics in the housing, but which lends an unfortunate plastic feel to the Z1.The picture-taking modes here are also fairly versatile, offering a wide range of options including Auto, Program AE, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and Manual modes. There are also five preset scene modes and a movie mode available. This means there is ample automation for novices to handle the camera without much learning, while the Manual mode allows for complete control over the exposure for more experienced shooters. For longer exposures, the Z1 features a noise reduction setting (optionally activated through the Setup menu), which uses dark frame subtraction to reduced image noise resulting from longer exposure times. The five Digital Subject Program modes include Night Portrait, Sunset, Landscape, Sports Action, and Portrait modes for shooting in frequently encountered situations.
Most digital cameras with long zooms suffer in terms of image quality, but the Minolta engineers seem to have overcome that tendency. Images from the Z1 were generally sharp and well-exposed, largely due to better optical elements and improved metering technology. Colours and contrast were commendable as well, even without much post-processing. The 3.2-megapixel CCD delivered files that would allow images to be printed up to 8 x 10-inch sizes without interpolation, which is probably within reason for the average user.The Dimage Z1 will probably carve for itself a decent portion of the consumer market, with its funky good looks, comfortable handling and superb focal length. All in all, when coupled with some accessories such as an external Minolta-compatible flash, tripod and perhaps a tele-converter to extend the focal range even further, the Z1 will probably be capable of almost any sort of photography. The retail price is also highly affordable and its compact size is a major draw for those wanting to travel light.
Minolta Dimage Z1
Company: Minolta
Price: ~AU$799
16%
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What kind of plactic have been used in the
construction of this camera?