"From The Mind of Minolta"

Who doesn't remember that advertising slogan from the 80's and 90's? At that point, the originally created firm of Nichi-Doku Shashinki Shoten (or Japanese-German Camera Shop) was at their peak having surpassed both Canon and Nikon to become number 1 in the critical American market during this time! They were riding high. The company had been innovative for quite some time, being the first Japanese manufacturer to adopt the bayonet mount as well as full aperture through-the-lens (TTL) metering. Then in the late 70's being the first "multi-mode" SLR camera manufacturer with the XD-11 (U.S.) that is now the standard "PASM" (Program, Aperture, Shutter, Manual) modes that's seen on virtually every "advanced" camera on the market today. They were considered so advanced at the time, that it was Minolta whom Leitz turned to in the 70's when they felt the need to integrate electronics into their equipment, and the "Leica CL" was even made by Minolta in Japan. Something unheard-of at that juncture paving the road for future German-Japanese cooperative efforts such as the Sony-Zeiss, Kyocera-Zeiss/Contax, Matsushita (Panasonic)-Leitz, and Cosina-Zeiss/Voigtlander cooperative efforts seen today. 

So, what happened? I'm not going to get into all the details, but let's just say that arguably the most advanced of the Japanese camera/electronics (Laser printer, copiers, etc.) companies didn't move as quickly as the other major players (Nikon, Canon) in the transition to digital photography. Even the 2003 merger with another industry major player, Konica failed to revive it and ultimately ended up with the 2006 sell-off of most of Minolta's photography assets to Sony. But we're not here to discuss the demise of Minolta, but what it means to the frugal photographer of today.

If you are a photographer of a certain age, you've probably owned a Minolta (maybe even have one sitting up in a closet somewhere). Whether it was one of the famed SR-T series or one of the market dominating Maxxums, you know that they were eminately useable pieces of equipment and top notch optics. So questions concerning the brand have nothing to do with quality. 

.....which brings us to the Konica-Minolta Maxxum 7D (what a mouthful) of 2005/6. This camera was essentially a digital adaptation of the Maxxum 9i, 35mm film camera. In the world of early 2000s, it was a highly thought of "system" camera just short of the professional Nikon and Canons. What we would today call "pro-sumer" equipment. Again, I'm not going to do a review, for which I'd recommend dpreview.com, I will say that it was very well thought of at the time. There were many excellent optics available as well as other systems equipment, but the really innovative feature was the very first application of sensor-shift technology to ameliorate ever-present camera shake. Although generally considered to not be as effective as in-lense reduction as used by ,Panasonic, Canon and Nikon, it tends to be less expensive and applicable across the board on any lens attached. As such it has been commonly adopted by virtually all other makers of advanced, interchangeable lens cameras. 

This camera was not only advanced, but; as the British would say, "a serious bit of kit"! Like other top level DSLRs there's a magnesium chassis, and controls to beat the band.

If you don't believe me; take a look at the back! This is what I'd imagine Batman's camera to look like (including all the rubberized control surfaces). Virtually all the contemporary reviewers of the day commented that it looked intimidating, but extraordinarily easy to learn and operate since the plethora of buttons keeps the user from having to delve into the menu system to operate it. This is pretty much the opposite from the norm for most cameras of today.

Although this camera was very advanced and the center of an elaborate and proven system it was ultimately unsuccessful in the marketplace. First of all, it was a top level prosumer camera aspiring to be the equivilent of the Nikon D200 and Canon 30D at time when those that level of equipment had moved on to 8Mp sensors. However, it's pricing (due to it's build) put it squarely in the upper range in cost of production. Really the "little brother" 5D was better positioned to be successful. Unfortunately, it's late arrival to the game also put them behind the proverbial 8-Ball since many had already bought into a "system" and therefore were not pre-disposed to switch after investing in a particular lens mount. Worse yet, by the time that this camera came to the marketplace in any numbers, it wasn't the D200 and 30D that it was competing against, but the looming introduction of the 12Mp D300 and 40D which came on the seen in first half of 2007! So, with the handwriting on the wall, and the situational of being more than one generation behind, Minolta made the inevitable decision to sell off to the only company with the resources to catch up.....Sony.

What caused all the retrospective examination of the Minolta and the Maxxum 7D? "$275 OBO", that's what! As always, I was scanning the local Craig's List ads to see if there were any good deals out there in my area. And down the in the Photography and Video section was an ad for a Minolta Maxxum and two Sigma lenses. Of the Sigma lenses (18-125, 70-300) of that generation, the less said the better, although the 18-125mm should be OK. I guess someone could use the other one until they can afford something better, the generic lenses of that type and age whether they be the original maker (Tamron, Sigma typically) or an importer such as Quantaray, aren't very good. But, back to the original thought: really, this advanced of a camera, of this build quality, with lenses so that you can use it immediately for........$275 OBO!!! I'd bet that the "OBO" means that he'll take $250. If you are the least bit concerned with the 7D's 6 megapixels, you guys know that my stance is that 6Mp is perfectly useable, especially for entry level. Remember that for our Alaska trip a few years ago, I took a 6Mp Nikon D70 and was very happy with the images it gave me (when I did my job).

A couple of last thoughts. No; it was not a "one-off" situation. I checked eBay and the mid-$200s pricing is in fact what that camera is selling for right now. Also, if you are the slightest bit concern at buying into a "dead-end" system, remember that it wasn't killed off, but taken over by Sony, so not only can you buy brand new Sony lenses, flashes etc., but even upgrade to using legendary Zeiss glass that are now made for that mount!

If I had random extra money, I'd have already snapped this thing up!