Aperture: f7.1 shutter speed: 1/6 sec.
+ 1EV exp. comp.
The Minolta Dimage Z1 is Minolta's
first 10X zoom compact digital. It has stirred up a great deal
of interest, in no small measure because of its attractive price.
Called the Switch Finder,
the system is an ingenious mechanism that tilts the LCD screen
back internally, redirecting its image with mirrors to the viewfinder,
while hiding the process from view by closing a curtain over
the LCD monitor's rear window.
The drawback to the Switch Finder, in our opinion, is the potential fragility
of such a mechanical system. It is likely to get a lot of use since any
image playback can only take place when the LCD screen is facing the rear
of the camera.
Aperture: f5.0, shutter speed: 1/500 sec.
Aperture: f7.1, shutter speed: 1/8 sec., +1 EV exp.
comp.
However, the Switch finder is
not the main attraction of the Z1, it's 10X zoom lens is. Covering
a range equivalent to 38 to 380mm, the zoom is able to magnify
any distant subject greatly.
The photo at left shows the filed of view captured by the wide angle end
of the Z1's zoom, and the small rectangle outlines the field of view of
the lens at the maximum power of the zoom (see photo below).
As can be seen in these photos,
a 10X zoom is powerful, but by the same token, the magnification
the lens provides at the full telephoto also amplifies the slight
movements of the photographer, a phenomenon commonly referred
to as "camera shake". Therefore, unless the weather
and light conditions are ideal, the camera often needs to be
stabilized on a tripod to prevent camera shake from blurring
the image. Regrettably, the tripod screw mount of the Z1 is made
of plastic, which means users will have to be careful not to
damage its thread.
Aperture: f7.1, shutter speed: 1/6 sec. +1 EV exp.
comp.
Aperture: f5.0, shutter speed: 1/400 sec.
Outdoors, the Dimage Z1 yields
very good photos that show only a bit of barrel distortion at
the wide angle end of the zoom, and there is no observable distortion
at the telephoto end. Similarly, the default multi-segment metering
pattern, which takes into account 256 segments in the frame,
generally yields well-exposed images that show detail in both
shadowed and brightly lit areas of the frame.
Under sunlight, the Z1 captures vibrant images, with particularly strong
blues.
But under a heavy overcasts, such
as can be the case in late Fall or Winter, colours are more muted
and images can occasionally be a touch too dark, requiring some
exposure compensation (+ 0.3 or +0.7EV) to brighten up photos.
In use the Dimage Z1 is quick, ready to shoot
in about 3 seconds, a time which includes the zoom's deployment.
Likewise, because of the 16MB buffer memory of the Z1, 13 photos can be
captured in rapid succession — at about a 1 second interval — in
the single shot mode before the camera starts to slow down slightly while
it is saves shots in the background.
Aperture: f5.0, shutter speed: 1/160 sec.
Although the Z1 does not offer
an uncompressed mode, the compression used for the Fine mode
does not create artefacts, nor does it degrade the image sharpness
too much.
Without a doubt, the Minolta Z1 deserves the attention it has been getting.
Economically priced, the Z1 offers a 10X zoom; a reasonable image size;
and a very good image quality. Features that are counterbalanced by its
Switch Finder system, the absence of a image stabilizer and a relatively
lightweight construction. Interested parties will have to weigh the pros
and cons to make their decision.
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