Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z3 4 Megapixel Bridge Camera

I had been searching for a light weight more versa ...

Strengths: Lightwieght, versatile,substantial telephoto, excellent preset selections,antishake works wonderfully and in low light results are very good (molten lava at night at max telephoto photographed well)

Weaknesses: Remembering to lift the flash up and low light photgraphy can be challenging.

Summary: I had been searching for a light weight more versatile digital camera. A camera that operated more like the SLR I was used to using. My first digital camera was disappointing, naturally, since there was such a delay until it registered the image as well as the limited telephoto. I have been more than pleased with the speed and accuracy with which this camera captures the image I see with my eyes and the rangeit haas to bring the images in to closer view.

It's design aids in it's stability and sureness of one's grasp of the camera. It cost $100 more than it does now when I bought it. I couldn't wait any longer due to my pending trip to Hawaii. I have not been disappointed with my choice. I am very glad I held out for the Z3 to become available and did not buy something more affordable.

I recommend this camera without hesitation and also recommend a larger SD card

The Z3 is a nice camera with loads of great featur ...

Strengths: 12x Optic Zoom. Anti-Shake mode. Non-proprietary batteries. (4)AAs have very long life. Very quick video-technology Autofocus. Easy-to-use menu/setup. Good value for features.

Weaknesses: Small LCD screen. Could use more resolution in "Optic" LCD. No focus assist light for low light photos. Weak (though functional) USB cable port.

Summary: 2004-09-30 09:03:46 The Z3 is a nice camera with loads of great features and a couple of weaknesses. I believe the positives far outweigh the negatives. The 12x Optic Zoom is unsurpassed in the market, especially at a little over 400.00. You won't need add-on lenses to zoom to distant objects. The photos are of very good quality, acceptable, though I expected a bit crisper details from this camera. Another plus is the very long battery life. The camera takes 4 AA batteries. Two sets of rechargeable NIMHs are more than ample for a full day of shooting. Investing in a quality charger and eight (at least 2100 mAH) batteries will keep you and your Z3 happy.

I have used the camera for sports, especially my kids' baseball, football and soccer. The results have been very good, as the quick autofocus usually works well and the progressive mode allows you to snap a series of shots, capturing the shots you are unable to get with other digital cameras.

The Anti-Shake feature is a huge advantage also on this camera -- and it works well even at full zoom. At times, the autofocus has taken extra time to "search" to lock in on the subject, but generally it has worked well. The camera is very fast, as far as metering, etc.

The quick, quiet zoom is a great help also -- and you can zoom even in the midst of taking (nice vga quality) video with sound.

The camera is fine indoors, though you have to remember to raise up the flash manually, but once you are set - it does a good job. One drawback is no low light focus-assist, and the low-light photos suffer a bit due to this.

If you need the quick-action shot, the super-fast autofocus helps greatly, as I have been frustrated in the past with other digitals. Whether on young children in the house or in the yard ... or someone playing on a large baseball or soccer or football field, this camera will help you to get the shot you want.

I strongly suggest getting the faster ultra II SD card, which noticeably speeds up the write/cycle time, especially if you are going to use the continuous or progressive modes. In summary, the Z3 is a good camera with excellent features for the price. The menu system is quite easy to use. Most of my photos were done in the auto mode or sports mode. I would purchase the Z3 again as this is the digital camera I have been waiting for. The photos are of very good quality, sometimes not as sharp as with my Sony V1, but its combination of excellent battery life, long zoom, quick focus and shutter response time, anti-shake floating CCD (works wonderfully in still AND video modes), very fast continuous and progressive modes (the SD ultra II card makes a huge difference in utilizing the camera's full capabilities)... the list goes on. I have scoured the digital photography ratings sites, and this is my fifth digital and the best by far because of all of the above features and the affordable price. There are a couple of other cameras worth considering in this range, but for the type of photos that I take, I believe the Z3 was the best choice for me.

Continued use update.

Strengths: Body design. Quality anti-shake system. Excellent macro mode. Very versatile for the price.

Weaknesses: Low light focus sometimes difficult. Accessory and card doors vulnerable to early damage. Diopter adjustment stiff.

Summary: 2007-01-09 20:56:06 Did a lot of searching to find a digital that was close to the features of an SLR. Believe this camera came the closest for a reasonable price, especially with the anti-shake system. Super macro to 12x optical and movies besides. You can hold on to this camera in rough conditions and still run the controls as compared to the flat side cameras. Excellent super macro mode. Because it is a very versatile camera you have to learn the manual to enjoy all of it's features but it also functions very well in AF mode right out of the box, point and shot. Watch out for the card door on the bottom. It opens very easy but does not snap back shut. Also check Konica Minolta's web site for the current firmware version 1.02u download. A card reader to download your photos will save you a lot of time.

As described above and in my opinion, this camera is still a very good buy. And especially with the 2GB card. Be sure and download from the Konica web site the upgrade to handle the card.

Purchased through Staples on a price-match at $419 ...

Strengths: 12x zoom Image stabilization Fast response time Quality movie clips Feels good and easy to hold stable

Weaknesses: Flash not accurate on many indoor scenes Battery life indicator - seems to indicate low batt earlier than necessary Size - cannot fit in most digicam bags Memory door weak Battery door does not lo

Summary: Purchased through Staples on a price-match at $419.

I've used the Z1, Z2, and Z3 cameras for about a year now. I've had the Z3 for approximately 2 months. I've been able to take excellent photos with the camera. Outdoor exposures are mostly accurate, and the image stabilization definitely aids getting sharp photographs with the longer focal lengths. I haven't used the movie modes much, but movie clips are easy to produce, and the zoom can be used when shooting movies.

I have had problems with flash exposures, particularly with relatively small subjects on a dark background. Many of my flash pictures come out underexposed and I have not found a way to compensate successfully. Low-light focus is also problematic--the camera often does not focus in a dimly lit but not overly dark room. The viewfinder does not amplify unless in the fully automatic mode, making focus and framing difficult in low light.

Manual focus is difficult, and I end up using the distance settings rather than trying to see when an image is in focus. I miss the old Fresnel type focus screens in SLR cameras!

Image stabilization rocks! I took a picture of a license plate 40 feet away using full 48x zoom and got an only slightly blurred image - very readable. I do not recommend the digital zoom - it deteriorates the quality of the image and it is better to crop the final image in your digital processing software.

Noise is not a significant factor at ISO 50-100. At 200, it begins to creep in and is very high at 400. I use the camera mostly on auto-sensitivity, and have had good results. However, this means that I don't know when the camera is choosing a high ISO value and I will get grainy photos. When in doubt, I select the sensitivity.

White balance seems accurate, even on the auto-white balance setting. When in doubt, I preset a white balance point on a sheet of white paper.

There is only one customizable function button, so most settings must be accessed through the menu. I use the function button for white balance. I wish there was an additional button or two that could be set on ISO and flash mode. Flash mode is on the third or fourth menu page, so it is a pain to access.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoy the features and manual overrides available on this camera. The zoom is great, and the stabilizing is very helpful. The night photo situation is problematic. I would recommend this camera.

This is a wonderful camera - easy to hold in the h ...

Strengths: Very fast, nice handling, good price, easy menus

Weaknesses: Not great in low light conditions, and a learning curve

Summary: This is a wonderful camera - easy to hold in the hands, light, fast, and relatively simple to use (but a learning curve to access and use well all the features). The concerns I have read in other reviews - noise, flimsy sd cover - are really not a problem (noise only comes in, so far in my tests, with low light conditions or very dramatic contrasts in light/dark conditions, and the sd cover is just fine). I highly recommend the camera.

"People pictures" are super sharp. Light weight ...

Strengths: good use of battery power; awesome resolution; light weight

Weaknesses: motor drive of lens is slow

Summary: "People pictures" are super sharp.

Light weight of the camera body makes use easy.

Backlighting problems are virtually eliminated with no adjustments required by user.

The anti-shake feature saves some shots that might have had to be deleted.

I bought this camera primarily for the 12X zoom an ...

Strengths: Light weight, fast, 12X optical zoom, full manual control, image stabilizer, good grip

Weaknesses: Buy more memory! 16mb gives you 6 images at the best setting.

Summary: I bought this camera primarily for the 12X zoom and image stabilization. This is the only camera I found with more than 8X, greater than 4MP, image stabilizer, and less than $400. Movie mode is easy to set and fun to use. Self-timer is set though the drive mode on the second menu, and must be reset after each use. Kind of a pain. If you're going to use the Zoom indoors, get a bigger flash. There's a hot shoe to add one. The size of this camera is smaller than I had expected, which was a pleasant surprise. You can shove it in a jacket pocket or a purse.

I think, over all, this the camera is great for th ...

Strengths: The best part about the Konica Minolta Diamage Z3 camera is its optical zoom 12X. Very few 4 meg pixal cameras will have this kind of optical lense in the price range. The non shake feature is great!

Weaknesses: There are many camera directions! One has to take a lot of time to learn all the "ins and outs" of the Dimage Z3 . I would have liked the camera to be a little smaller in size as well.

Summary: I think, over all, this the camera is great for the price, and the features it has. The non shake feature is great when taking pictures of moving objects. The zoom is outstanding for those small objects that one thinks won't come out. For the general camera user this camera has just about everything one would want. The hardest thing about the camera is figuring out all that it can do!

I've only had the camera 2 weeks and generally pre ...

Strengths: Anti-shake, easy to use, good battery life, SD card, software very usable

Weaknesses: It has somewhat of a learning curve for those of us used to automatic cameras. Still trying to figure out how to take action shots.

Summary: I've only had the camera 2 weeks and generally pretty impressed with it. This is my first digital so I can't compare to other digitals. It's very light weight, almost too much. The pictures I've taken have been good. I would recommend a tripod for night shots. I tried to take a picture of my kid's pumpkin and I absolutely could not get it. Generally, it's got good point and shoot if you don't want to read the manual. Having said that, I would recommend reading the manual to get full use out of this camera.

Not the newest camera on the block, but doesn't show it's age...

Strengths: Lens quality, manual settings, 12x zoom - fast, hotshoe, anti-shake, movie mode, AAs, image quality, nightshooting (pic and vid), 15s slowest shutter speed, 1cm super macro!

Weaknesses: Small so-so LCD, no focus assist lamp, only a couple of accessories available. Like with all dig cams, you'll need to buy case, rechargeables and charger and a big, fast SD card

Summary: This is a great camera with no technical downsides worth mentioning. I'd like to highlight some of it's main features:

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Huge, fast zoom. The Minolta GT lens is superb. The Carl Zeiss and Leica lenses are only slightly better.

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No red-eye at all - when you remember to use red-eye reduction. Very little even if you forget.

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By switching to nightshot mode (or by going into manual mode) you can get exceptional nightshots with this camera. You can set the shutter to open for up to 15 seconds! Some cameras will only open it for 2 or 3s.

If you increase the ISO, you'll get more noisy shots, but this has the same effect on film cameras - higher sensitivity means not needing to leave the shutter open for as long, which means less shake, but causes more 'grains' to show up in the shot once developed. This is a basic principle of photography.

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Color saturation is usually excellent - very naturalistic, with good flesh tones and real colors (greens, reds, yellows and blues). You can set the color setting to vibrant if you so desire - this can have great results, but be careful not to leave it on all the time.

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Exposure correction can be made on the fly - really easy to do.

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White balancing is excellent. Has no problem with grey tones either. You can adjust all this as you go in full manual mode if it is not to your taste.

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By default (when set to Auto), Konica Minolta chose to give softer pictures. This is because most people like to take pictures of friends and family with a nice scene in the background. Hard edges and punishingly sharp details do not suit portraits and close to mid-range group shots well (you see every flaw in people's skin!). This is a prosumer camera, so you can adjust the sharpness in the picture settings. If you want (and I do this for landscapes, architectural and wildlife shots), you can set it to the sharpest setting. You can also set it even softer for close up portraits (believe me, people will thank you for it).

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Barrel distortion is not visible.

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I don't see any purple fringeing.

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This is a prosumer camera. Most of the presets work very, very well (there could be more - some cameras boast more than a dozen, but when you have full manual control why bother with that...). I use nightshot and sports the most - but manual adjustment works best (e.g. continuous shooting for sports and higher ISOs and slightly slower shutter speeds for nightshots, with a tripod, of course). If you have problems using a prosumer, get a compact or ultra compact. The Kodak Easyshare Z30 works well - it requires no setting up at all. Fully automatic, 14 presets, 4x zoom, 5MP - and there is a 10x ultrazoom model with the same image processor and color science chip for a low price. But that wouldn't be a much fun now, would it?

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Spend a bit of time learning to use what you've bought and try to get the most from your camera. Only the Lumix ultrazoom range is slightly better - and they cost more. They take just as much learning too.

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Still, 2 years after it was first released, an excellent camera - about as close to perfection as you can get, in fact. Beats all the competition hands down at that price.

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It's a shame that the Z5 and Z6 reduced the length of time the shutter could be kept open for, because they improved the LCD screen enormously.

On the whole, this camera is a traveller's delight ...

Strengths: Fast auto-focus, great picture quality in full light, great Image Stabilization, 12x Optical zoom (largest of all digital cameras till date), Movie Shooting ability.

Weaknesses: Low quality in low light, weak documentation.

Summary: On the whole, this camera is a traveller's delight. At the right setting (Portrait, Landscape, etc), the camera intelligently chooses the right focus, apperture & speed settings. Most of the times, it will capture what you had intended to. In Full light, the pictures are fantastic.

Now, let me mention about the downsides :

1) In low light, the pictures carry high ampunt of noise unless the target object is near and flash is used.

2) Further, the the camera freezes ("hangs" in computer terminology) at times, and the only way I could bring it back to working condition was to remove the batteries and reinsert them - basically hard power off. It is shocking that this camera of such stature has such a large problem.

3) Lastly, I also wish Konika Minolta published better documentation to guide the user on some of it's manual settings.

Pls send me an email if you have any questions for me and I could help you decide on this camera.

thx,

Deepak

I asked my friend who works in is a photographer f ...

Strengths: Photo quality is generally good, though expect above average. The 12x zoom is the best. You will never find anything like this with SONYs.

Weaknesses: Noise in the pictures which sometimes gives images a soft, fuzzy look. This won't be an issue if you're just printing 4 x 6's, though.

Summary: I asked my friend who works in is a photographer for an opinion. He told me I should look at Minolta Z3. He's using Z1, by the way. I did and I like it.

This is the best investment for an affordable camera. I've recommended it to a couple of my friends. You'll love it too.

Excellent 12x optical zoom, 4 megapixel camera. I ...

Strengths: 12x optical zoom, lightweight, great manual controls, anti-shake capability, good and sturdy gripe, battery life is great if using rechargeable batteries

Weaknesses: Small LCD, no focus assit in low light, no pop up flash, lower quality lcd display pixels, hard to find case, not recommended for 1st time digital camera owners, uses 4 AA batteries

Summary: Excellent 12x optical zoom, 4 megapixel camera. I wished they came with rechargeable batteries and a charger, the batteries they give you don't last long. Recommend buying rechargeable batteries and a charge to save money. Have to read manual to get full usage of camera, not as user friendly and not as self explantory as other cameras but with practice should get the hang of it. Pictures come out too soft and doesn't work that great in low lighting situations. Need to buy a faster read and write speed SD card. Also recommend a tripod. This camera I'm still learning how to use it to it's full capacity. Overall the camera is great for less thaan $400 as compared to the Panasonics. Great cheaper version of an SLR.

Best camera outhere

Strengths: Rapid shooting, ZOOOOOM, speedy auto focus

Weaknesses: Without flash night shots are grainy

Summary: I recentially took a trip to africa and took this camera! It took pictures better than my buddies $2000 canon cmera! The Super macro makes it so you can get so close and take wonderful flower pictures! The auto focus is almost instant and the continous shooting is a blast. I am an owner of a rafting company and we use this camera to take big pictures of the clients going down the rapids. I have won 2 photo conests with this camera and have printed large canvas prints! The best camera there is!

Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z3 SLR Digital Camera is a v ...

Strengths: zoom and anti shake

Weaknesses: made with too much plastic

Summary: Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z3 SLR Digital Camera is a very good camera for people who wants to experience Little more than using compact.The best part of it is zoom 12x and anti shake! I would buy it again!