Konica Minolta Dynax 5D / Maxxum 5D W/18-70MM Digital Camera

I researched long and hard before buying my first DSLR. What stood out for me when looking at the Konica Minolta Dynax 5D was its internal anti-wobble stabiliser. This costs a fortune when the mechanism is the lens, but here it comes with the camera so any lens you attach to it is stabilised. This has enabled me to take remarkable shots, for instance of cathedral ceilings, despite the low light and being hand-held.

The standard wide-angle lens is amazing, it soaks up so much detail in its huge field of vision. When friends are with me taking pictures on their snapshot digicams, they cannot believe how much of the view can fit at its widest setting (yet there is a sizeable difference when it comes time to zoom in so it's perfect for portraits and close-ups too).

A friend of mine has spent many hundreds of pounds over the years buying every new faddish digicam as it came along, but his photos have never matched what this one is capable of capturing. It's all down to the quality lens, the image stabilisation, the freedom to move from programmed settings to fully manual, the solid construction, straightforward controls and long-lasting battery!

The Konica Minolta Dynax 5D was the last in the line of DSLRs by Minolta, before the taking over by Sony, and it shows it's pedigree.

The previous model, the Konica Minolta Dynax 7D was easily one of the most eagerly-awaited digital cameras of its time, thanks to legions of loyal Minolta shooters who've been so patiently waiting for a digital body with all the Minolta know-how. The only issues with the 7D were its size and price.

With the 5D, Konica Minolta addressed both issues without the undermining 5D, by removing features likely to be important to the advanced amateur. The 5D handles very well, like a charm; looks good; feels solid in the hand; delivers usable performances up to ISO 800. The 6Mp of the 5D can seem short by today's standards - some people used to call it the «ideal» resolution - but that will be up to you to decide. Some minor issues are: the slight tendency to underexpose in scenes with strong highlights; an occasionally hesitant AF system; a tendency to loose subtle detail at high ISOs.

But the big attraction of the 5D (and 7D) is its in-camera image stabilization, extending low light shooting to nearly any lens you can mount on it, considering that this system effectively turns all your lenses into anti-shake models. A system still in use in the Alpha line of DSLRs by Sony.

The 17-80mm kit lens offers a useful focal length range, with very good optical quality, even by todays standards (in fact Sony still uses this kit lens).

All in all, the Konica Minolta Dynax 5D is still a very solid option it the class of entry-level DSLRs, and it was an opportunity to grab one of the last of its kind.

HAD LOTS OF KONICA/MINOLTA PRODUCTS BEFORE AND AS A RESULT HAD A GREAT MANY FANTASTIC MINOLTA AUTOFOCUS LENSES LYING ABOUT! SOLUTION UPGRADE TO A DIGITAL SLR AND SAY HELLO TO A WORLD OF FANTASTICALLY CONTROLLABLE PHOTOGRAPHY!
CAMERA ITSELF WAS IN EXCELLENT CONDITION; AND CAME WITH THE ALL IMPORTANT CD'S, CABLES, AND INSTRUCTION BOOKS! CAMERA FUNCTIONED PERFECTLY WITH ALL MY OLD LENSES AND WAS SIMPLY A JOY TO USE!