Konica Minolta DiMAGE A2 8.3 MP Digital Camera - Black

The universal camera with very rich possibilities of management. System of stabilisation which allows to increase in most cases twice exposition at shooting from hands. A considerable quantity of accessible accessories and very rich possibilities to work with external flashes. However universality has the underside. With sevenfold change of a focal length it is difficult to objective to compete on quality to objectives with fixed focal in distance or with a smaller range of change of a focal length. This objective is the optimum decision for the given range of change of a focal length, and to expand possibilities of the camera at the expense of external nozzles it is almost impossible. Algorithm of processing of the noise, realised in the camera too difficult to name ideal. Therefore the best results can achieve, writing down results of shooting in format RAW, and being engaged in finishing processing of a picture on the computer. On my subjective view, the camera could win an essential part of the market of a professional photo (journalism only one of the trades which part is the photo, and its share at all the greatest) and would compete on equal terms to such camera as Canon 350D. Potentially it has inclinations for a victory, but absence in the complete set of the program of remote control is done by the basic trumps of this purely digital camera virtual.

I bought my A2 in 2004, wanting a digital SLR-like I could grow into.. after owning three 35mm SLRs and 2-35mm rangefinder types. The biggest draw for me is the adjustable eye view finder along with the adjustable LCD screen. Next is the manual zoom. I tried Canon, Nikon, and Olympia--their zooms are powered and can't be finely tuned. I can easily crop a picture before taking it. The A2's computer lets me compensate for a too powerful flash or low light-no flash. In the years I've had it, I still haven't used all the bells and whistles! There are SO many things you can do with this camera! DO read the manual thoroughly before using!
One annoying item is the auto-focus spped: it doesn't always focus quickly if the subject is moving or there's a "busy" background. I do wish it had an inter-changable lense. But it's worked in all kinds of situations: freezing cold, heavy rain, portraiture, kids playing, high speed action, sunrise-sunsets, long distance landscapes! Too bad K-M sold their camera business to Sony and stopped making it!

This is my 4th A-2. Unfortunately, my 3rd A2 was lost on a trip (with some valuable pictures ... a good reason to take the CF card out and carry it close, or upload pictures to the net).
I am somewhat afraid of giving the camera such a glowing review, because I will probably buy another, and it already commands a good price.
What it does well: Close-up, flash brains, amazingly easy handling, excellent manual zoom lens, shoots almost like an SLR - yet takes VGA size movies, best digital viewfinder, anti-shake, excellent subject tracking for its vintage (newer cameras have better face recognition), very good color accuracy.
What's not so good: noise starts in at low iso (200), focus delay and shot-to-shot.
What I primarily use it for: Dental Photography. Here it excels because it is the only camera that does accurate macro focusing and flashing at full zoom (200mm equivalent), right out of the box, and it is super light and easy to one-hand. Because there is plenty of light, I can set it to f-11 and iso 100, and rarely miss a shot. I keep trying to remember that I can take video too, but forget because my mind is thinking SLR.
Secondarily, I can use it for grand-child pictures if I can't take the dSLR and pocket digital, but remember: avoid the higher iso settings and low light. Just set it to subject tracking, lock-on, and shoot (you have to be more shot-selective, because longer shot-shot time than dSLR).

If a person is looking JUST for a “point and shoot” camera, then the Konica Minolta A2 is NOT the camera for you.

The Konica Minolta A2 keeps the tradition of the Minolta name in tact. It is called a prosumer (combination of consumer and professional) camera, it requires an individual to read the manual to get the full usage of all its functions. You will not be sorry. There are operations that require two or more steps to accomplish. You need to “live” with this camera to become comfortable with it. However, a person can set the camera to progam (P), point, and shoot. The camera has the feel of a 35 mm camera. It is not as large as a DSLR or a 35 mm film camera (these are much heavier - I have an old Nikon F2A) but it is not a camera that you can put in your pocket (There is a trend toward a mini-camera today). You will need a camera bag to protect and carry it around. With many of the prosumer cameras that allow you to use add-on filters, I would suggest to buy a 49mm UV filter and keep it permanently attached to the lens. It will protect your lens and keep it clean.

The EVF and LCD viewers are clear. These are high resolution viewers. I like how the LCD viewer tilts vertically. However, it does not flip out like many other digacams (e.g., Nikon Coolpix 5700).

The auto-focus is very fast. The camera’s memory buffer is an added plus for taking multiple shots so that the camera will not “hang” until the buffer is cleared.

The image quality is exceptional. There have been reviews that show that the quality control needs to be “beefed up.” If you are purchasing this camera (using Ebay or other venues), experiment with the camera.

You may brush a control and change a setting(s). So, examine all the controls the camera has and know their location on the camera. Secondly, become familiar with all of its menus. These are also a powerful tool.

For advanced users, you can make this a manual camera - even down to manual focusing. Since the camera provides a high definition view finder, manual focusing can be easily done.

All in all, this is an excellent product.



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My wife had one of these when we got married, and I have enjoyed using it on countless occasions. To date I have taken over 10,000 images with this camera...

As to build quality, I think that my sample is a well built unit...in fact I never use a camera case to carry it when we take trips, rather I just toss it in my backpack along with my other equipment with just a clear filter on the front of the lens for protection. Sometimes i will wrap it in a t-shirt for extra protection.

To this day it still works great and has all of its pieces.

If you can still find one, I highly suggest that you purchase the battery grip accessory for this camera. It costs $100 new and allows you to run the camera on (8)AA batteries. I find that (8) NiMH Rechargables will run the camera all day with an external speedlight, if you use the on camera flash (which I like to use to wirelessly trigger my other speedlights) then expect to get 400-500 shots out of it. Alternatly to AA batts, you can use two of the rechargables that came with the camera in the grip for extended life but i find that I get better results with my 2800mah AA batts.

I also own the 3600H Speedlight which I have found to be an execellent unit and very capable in its own right. though the on camera flash on this unit is great for close work, and more powerful than the flash on any of my canon compact units.

I like the Anti-Shake feature on this unit, and find it to be only slightly inferior to the VR of my Nikon lenses...It is as good or better than the IS on my Canon Point & Shoot.

I generally shoot with this camera set to its best quality JPEG mode as I have found little advantage to shooting in TIFF mode or in fact RAW mode as both are more trouble than they are worth. After all, I have printed images from this camera as large as 24x30 with great results that blow people away from viewing distances as close as 1 foot!

I own several other digital and 35mm cameras including a Nikon D200, Nikon F5, Canon S500, Canon A720IS, and this Minolta A2 and I have to say that this unit can hold its own with any of my other cameras.

My biggest problem with the A2 is not an image quality problem, but rather that Minolta has sold out its digital camera assets to Sony who is only offering support for these units but no longer manufacturing accessories for them.

I would love to buy the Wide angle converter and possibly another flash for mine, but I am not sure I want to put any more money into a defunct line of cameras when I have my Nikon bodies that i can move to.

It is really a shame too, as this and the A200 were really great for the price point and offered SLR like flexibility without having to cart around all the gear. These cameras have a great lens, and great electronics and I will continue to enjoy mine until it is worn out which I imagine will be several more years of hard use... I imagine I will get at least 30k to 50k images out of it before it is over.

The only reason I gave it only four stars, is that the menus can be somewhat tricky, and that you cannot shoot RAW+Jpeg only RAW+Tiff which is useless to me. Also, I would like to have seen a little faster lens (Fixed F2.8) on a camera that costs this much and does not have the ability to change lenses. I actually prefer a camera to be a little weighty so the extra weight would not bother me, as it would enable me to shoot at ISO64 in more conditions so that I could capture the great colors that this camera is capable of!!

--RMG