Although Konika Minolta stopped producing digital cameras in March of this year, they still have three digital SLR cameras on the market. And with a long history of high-quality products, these cameras remain relatively popular. The Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D, specifically, has done quite well, even inspiring the design and format (along with the Maxxum 5D) of Sony's new dSLR, the Alpha-A100.

In design and layout, the Maxxum 7D is much like the older analogue Maxxum 7. It has a 6.1-megapixel APS-C size CCD image sensor with CxProcess III technology. CxProcess III optimizes color saturation, edge sharpness, and contrast to produce as true-to-life images as possible. CxProcess III also keeps noise at a minimum when using slow shutter speeds, and provides rich textural detail for the highly realistic reproduction of skin tones, clouds, and other finely textured surfaces.

Konika Minolta claims that the Maxxum 7D was the very first digital camera to incorporate anti-shake technology and CCD shifting to reduce the blurring effects of camera shake (for which it received the European Photo Innovation of the Year 2004-2005). The anti-shake system, which may be turned on and off, accurately shifts the CCD sensor to correct for movement produced by both the camera and the users hands. Results are most obvious under low-light conditions when slower shutter speeds are used.

The Maxxum 7D has a 9-point and 8-line autofocus with high-performance predictive focus control and omni-dimensional subject tracking, making the camera ideal for almost any shooting situation, including sports photography. Four focus modes include AF-S for single-shot AF, AF-C for continuous AF, and AF-A, which automatically changes from single-shot to continuous AF upon detecting movement.

The camera also has a 2.5-inch 207,000-pixel LCD display, which, although common among brand new dSLRs, was rare when the 7D was released two years ago. The camera also has three metering systems (including a 14-segment honeycomb pattern), six exposure modes, an ISO range of 100-3200, a pentaprism viewfinder with 0.9x magnification and 95% field-of-view, built-in flash, magnesium alloy body, continuous shooting up to 3fps, simultaneous RAW and JPEG recording, and compatibility with the complete line of Konica Minolta Maxxum AF Lenses.

Key Features

• 6-megapixel resolution for photo-quality 14-by-19-inch enlargements
• The world's first digital SLR camera with body-integral antishake technology and a CCD-shift mechanism
• Full compatibility with the Maxxum system of lenses and accessories
• 2.5-inch LCD large-screen monitor with ultrafine 207,000-pixel resolution
• Simultaneous RAW and JPEG recording, plus 3 metering systems (14-segment honeycomb-pattern, center-weighted average, and spot) for fine control