Why did you buy the A1?

[Craig]

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

 

[JM Porter]

JP wrote:

Here are a few differences, no dusty sensor on the A1, no anti-shake on the Rebel, more ruggedly built body and lens on the A1, 28-200 equivalent zoom lens on the A1,only 44-83 on the Rebel,live viewfinder on the A1, no live viewfinder on the Rebel. Shall I keep going, this is enough to convince me to look strongly at the A1. JP

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

 

[Andy62252]

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

Not entirely true. I bought an A1 for GBP639. 300D is £750 body only. Add the lens and it's £850.
My Reasons:

Size - it's small enough with a lens to be carried wherever I want to go. Not so with a DSLR once you consider lenses etc.

The Lens - Very High quality GT lens - to get that quality on a Canon Lens you are talking Hundres=ds of pounds, not to mention the fact that you need two lenses to cover the focal length. If you include the Image stabilisation as well, you are talking a lot of money to get 28-200mm equiv IS (or AS as minolta call it).

I have 2 very active kids who are my main subjects, you can't really say "hold on while i change lenses" to a 2 year old.

History - I have been very happy with my D7UG, and saw no need to upgrade it to an I or a HI series camera. However, the A1 is enough of an advance for me to do it (and cheap for the features as well.) The only issues I had with it were the speed of the autofocus and the battery life. Believe me when I say both have been sorted for me in the A1.

I have a lot of accessories (TCON17 and 5600HSD flash) which fit the A1 as well as the D7UG.

I don't shoot much high ISO stuff, but when I do Neatimage cleans it up nicely.

The noise at Iso100 does not worry me at all. To be honest on prints up to A4 you can't even see it withough a Loupe.

Anyway, those are my reasons

Andy

 

[Rainer Pawellek]

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

Not entirely true. I bought an A1 for GBP639. 300D is £750 body
only. Add the lens and it's £850.
My Reasons:

Size - it's small enough with a lens to be carried wherever I want
to go. Not so with a DSLR once you consider lenses etc.

The Lens - Very High quality GT lens - to get that quality on a
Canon Lens you are talking Hundres=ds of pounds, not to mention the
fact that you need two lenses to cover the focal length. If you
include the Image stabilisation as well, you are talking a lot of
money to get 28-200mm equiv IS (or AS as minolta call it).

I have 2 very active kids who are my main subjects, you can't
really say "hold on while i change lenses" to a 2 year old.

History - I have been very happy with my D7UG, and saw no need to
upgrade it to an I or a HI series camera. However, the A1 is enough
of an advance for me to do it (and cheap for the features as well.)
The only issues I had with it were the speed of the autofocus and
the battery life. Believe me when I say both have been sorted for
me in the A1.

I have a lot of accessories (TCON17 and 5600HSD flash) which fit
the A1 as well as the D7UG.

I don't shoot much high ISO stuff, but when I do Neatimage cleans
it up nicely.

The noise at Iso100 does not worry me at all. To be honest on
prints up to A4 you can't even see it withough a Loupe.

Anyway, those are my reasons

Andy

I have not the A1 neither the Rebel, only 7i (when it's not at Minolta for repairing) but I just read the result of a "fight" A1 against 300D in the very serious french magazine, Chasseur d'images, and the result was "0", equal.
--
Regards, Rainer
http://perso.wanadoo.fr/rainer.pawellek
http://www.pbase.com/rainerp
http://www.deviantprints.com/~rain1man

 

[per o christiansen]

Hmmm,do you not see the noise in the A4 pictures?? I see a lot of color fragments in great color eareas,and lines in shadows like "gromsy" cotton lines In A3 I would not try to exsplain it.....look.

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

Not entirely true. I bought an A1 for GBP639. 300D is £750 body
only. Add the lens and it's £850.
My Reasons:

Size - it's small enough with a lens to be carried wherever I want
to go. Not so with a DSLR once you consider lenses etc.

The Lens - Very High quality GT lens - to get that quality on a
Canon Lens you are talking Hundres=ds of pounds, not to mention the
fact that you need two lenses to cover the focal length. If you
include the Image stabilisation as well, you are talking a lot of
money to get 28-200mm equiv IS (or AS as minolta call it).

I have 2 very active kids who are my main subjects, you can't
really say "hold on while i change lenses" to a 2 year old.

History - I have been very happy with my D7UG, and saw no need to
upgrade it to an I or a HI series camera. However, the A1 is enough
of an advance for me to do it (and cheap for the features as well.)
The only issues I had with it were the speed of the autofocus and
the battery life. Believe me when I say both have been sorted for
me in the A1.

I have a lot of accessories (TCON17 and 5600HSD flash) which fit
the A1 as well as the D7UG.

I don't shoot much high ISO stuff, but when I do Neatimage cleans
it up nicely.

The noise at Iso100 does not worry me at all. To be honest on
prints up to A4 you can't even see it withough a Loupe.

Anyway, those are my reasons

Andy

--
per

 

[darobin1]

Former G2 owner, tired of bad focusing and limited
lens.

Don't want to carry around a bunch of lenses (changing
the Lensmate and putting on lenses on the G2 was
a pain and the camera just looked weird).

Great focus for action shots -- I am amazed at how well
the A1 works in this category.

Great battery life -- I'm using the BP400 and the NP400s...

 

[Emmanuel54656]

I've tried the 300D in the store and found it to be very much like my old Canon IX7 APS SLR. I can achieve a lot more with the A1. In practical terms for my style of photography the only advantage the 300D has over the A1 is the larger CCD and hence lower noise (especially at high ISO). I've achieved a lot with my D7ug and D7Hi and the A1 makes life a little easier.

Emmanuel

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

--
Visit me at:-
http://www.realworldimages.co.uk

 

[William N]

Many years ago I used a Canon A1 which was a great camera in its day. I used to lug the camera, 4 lenses, power winder, flash gun etc. etc. around all over the place. Until recently I still had the stuff it had been sat in a bag for over 10 years unused. I purchased a DiMage X some time ago which has been excellent but I wanted something better. The A1 gives me the same flexibility as the old Canon A1 but all wrapped up in one package.

There has been much talk about problems, image quality etc. on this forum but I have to say I have suffered none of it. I've not really had time to take hundreds of shots but the limited number taken has produced pleasing results. Maybe I'm easily pleased!

I've posted a few at http://homepage.ntlworld.com/wnoble/ they are neither artistic or clever but they do give an idea of image quality. Beware the thumbnails link to large file size images. Luckily I have a broadband connection.

Bill

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

 

[Qsam]

For me it was between 828, 300D or A1.

828 too heavy, and swivel is too weak - 2 hands camera

300D no live preview, needs extra lens to cover 28 - 200 range

A1 perfect for me!! Played with it - love it

Waiting for arrival

 

[mark moe]

A1:The lens is excellent, the size good (I'd like it even smaller). Fast autofocus and good control make it easy to live with. The tracking autofocus and AS technology are icing on the cake.

The DSLR's are too big for me--this is how I know this: Until the A1 I've been using a high end point and shoot (film); I have a 35mm SLR and 3 good lenses and a decent flash and they stayed home 90% of the time.

On paper, the Sony 828 is one great sounding camera. However, its just too big for my taste.

My biggest fear is that the a1 is too big and I'll end up getting a small digicam too. However, I dont think the A1 will stay at home 90% of the time like my SLR system.

There has been much talk about problems, image quality etc. on this
forum but I have to say I have suffered none of it. I've not
really had time to take hundreds of shots but the limited number
taken has produced pleasing results. Maybe I'm easily pleased!

I've posted a few at http://homepage.ntlworld.com/wnoble/ they are
neither artistic or clever but they do give an idea of image
quality. Beware the thumbnails link to large file size images.
Luckily I have a broadband connection.

Bill

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

 

[sulhan182350]

Hi There.....

Here are my personal reasons.

• A1 is the current perfect complement to my current film system

• Though its sensor is smaller than the DLSR like the Rebel..300D...and there is no higher ISO ...1600 etc.. thie range and image quality on print suites me.

• The Anti-Shake have been great ....allowing my to take photos HAND-HELD all the way down to 1/4 shutter speed @ ISO 100 without flash indoors to cover events etc.

• Since i use it to complement my film system, i do not need to change lens on the fly.

• Lens rnage is VERY GOOD - 28-200 (Plus Anti shake)

• Video capture very long (15 mins) - great to capture my little baby girl growing up moments...

• Great MACRO which i shoot once in awhile

• Great Sunset additional algorithm...as i take lots of sunrise sunset shots

• User selectable focussing screen like the - grid and gun sight - really helps in estimating horizon and hyperfocal distances for my landscape photography....

• Can use my minolta filash system and release cords

• Build angle finder - the flipable LCD and EVF.

• Flip down LCD help for my coverage in crowded forums...(as i'm not that tall)

• Battery grip option is great for long haul photosessions - Take it off for family holiday and casual outings.

• Great Battery life.

• AF is good to my standards.......me not an AF freak though.....

• Intuitive user interface and easy to use.

• My wife likes it..... )

regards,
Sulhan

 

[Dana Nau]

Similar reasons for me. I also was a G2 user - I liked it a lot, but I didn't like the viewfinder and the shutter lag, and I was very dissatisfied with the accuracy of its focusing, particularly indoors with an external flash.

I thought seriously about getting a Digital Rebel - I've seen some stunning images from it on the 300D forum. However, from the associated comments, I gathered that getting those images often took more fiddling than I'd have the patience for. Also, I didn't like the idea of carrying around a camera that big and heavy, plus all the associated paraphernalia (lenses, flash, etc.). That plus my Powerbook plus my Treo plus the medications for my bad back would be an awful lot of stuff to take through airport security lines.

I've only had the A1 for a day or so, but so far I'm quite impressed. Its focusing is about 10 times better than the G2's, its colors are more accurate (something I hadn't expected), it has a lot less chromatic aberration than the G2 (and a lot less than the kit lens for the Digital Rebel). In addition, I really like the larger zoom, the heads-up information in the EVF, the zoom ring and manual-focus ring, and the better ergonomics (fits the hand better, and most functions are available through buttons and dials rather than having to hunt through menus).

There are a few things I miss about the G2, the main one being that its images are less noisy than the A1's - but I knew about those things before ordering the A1, and decided that under the circumstances, it was a good tradeoff.

Former G2 owner, tired of bad focusing and limited
lens.

Don't want to carry around a bunch of lenses (changing
the Lensmate and putting on lenses on the G2 was
a pain and the camera just looked weird).

Great focus for action shots -- I am amazed at how well
the A1 works in this category.

Great battery life -- I'm using the BP400 and the NP400s...

 

[lharris]

Ditto as per Dana-I also travel and some planes are small and I am lucky they let me take my purse....with laptop, dvd, some critical work, medications, glasses, some cords/chargers, valuables--it is hard to travel light.

I also loved the 7Hi and its feature set. The anti shake works better than I had hoped for. Several improvements. Better battery life, improved tilt lcd.
I am not yet very good at processing and still have a lot to learn with the
Minolta--yet get photos I can feel proud of and enjoy.

When/if I move to dslr I will be in a position to get the most out of one -- it won't be to be trendy or for status.

And of course, I don't do studio work of any kind. I think each person ahs to consider the uses that are most critical and the trade offs that matter least. This has been said time and again.

Good luck.

I thought seriously about getting a Digital Rebel - I've seen some
stunning images from it on the 300D forum. However, from the
associated comments, I gathered that getting those images often
took more fiddling than I'd have the patience for. Also, I didn't
like the idea of carrying around a camera that big and heavy, plus
all the associated paraphernalia (lenses, flash, etc.). That plus
my Powerbook plus my Treo plus the medications for my bad back
would be an awful lot of stuff to take through airport security
lines.

I've only had the A1 for a day or so, but so far I'm quite
impressed. Its focusing is about 10 times better than the G2's,
its colors are more accurate (something I hadn't expected), it has
a lot less chromatic aberration than the G2 (and a lot less than
the kit lens for the Digital Rebel). In addition, I really like
the larger zoom, the heads-up information in the EVF, the zoom ring
and manual-focus ring, and the better ergonomics (fits the hand
better, and most functions are available through buttons and dials
rather than having to hunt through menus).

There are a few things I miss about the G2, the main one being that
its images are less noisy than the A1's - but I knew about those
things before ordering the A1, and decided that under the
circumstances, it was a good tradeoff.

Former G2 owner, tired of bad focusing and limited
lens.

Don't want to carry around a bunch of lenses (changing
the Lensmate and putting on lenses on the G2 was
a pain and the camera just looked weird).

Great focus for action shots -- I am amazed at how well
the A1 works in this category.

Great battery life -- I'm using the BP400 and the NP400s...

 

[jtkv]

Why do people keep saying "for the same money"??

It's not the same.... you still need an IS lens for the Digital Rebel to compare to the A1... so it's not "for the same money"

Jeff

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

 

[aus_beginner]

Well it is the same money...you walk into a shop with $1999 (in Australia anyway) and you can walk out with a Digital Rebel or an A1. With the Digital Rebel you need to turn around and go back into the shop to buy a CF Card and possibly another lens. Or you can walk out of the shop with the A1 and start shooting straight away, albeit you may need to buy a bigger card to store more images but my point is both cameras cost the same! One will require further 'accessories' the other needs only marginal 'accessories' depending on what you want to do with it!

Canon have been very clever in marketing the Rebel/300D/Kiss its a kick ass DSLR for a great price BUT where they will make the extra$ is via accessories! It's going to confuse alot of potential purchasers... myself included.

I am leaning towards the A1.. for many reasons, better value for money dont need additional lens, more compact in size, AS feature, does movies and personally it will suit my needs. Seems like it will be more fun to use.

It's not the same.... you still need an IS lens for the Digital
Rebel to compare to the A1... so it's not "for the same money"

Jeff

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

 

[Keith1]

Canon have been very clever in marketing the Rebel/300D/Kiss its a
kick ass DSLR for a great price BUT where they will make the extra$
is via accessories! It's going to confuse alot of potential
purchasers... myself included.

I am leaning towards the A1.. for many reasons, better value for
money dont need additional lens, more compact in size, AS feature,
does movies and personally it will suit my needs. Seems like it
will be more fun to use.

It's not the same.... you still need an IS lens for the Digital
Rebel to compare to the A1... so it's not "for the same money"

Jeff

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

I hope you don't expect to show anyone else those movies ! You'll be very embarrassed. I took my A1 back to the store yesterday. I may have had a bad one, but it did not compare to the Fuji s7000z and I took that back also. I am very picky about the quality in both pictures and videos regardless of the price. I want both to be perfect. I am going to try the Sony f828 next.

 

[mark moe]

I don't think you'll find a digicam that makes also good camcorder. And I know that there isn't a camcorder that makes good aa a digicam either. New Canon camcorders take OK pictures and sony's take pretty bad pictures ( I own a Sony). So, I don't think your going to get a two for one on these technologies for a while.

Canon have been very clever in marketing the Rebel/300D/Kiss its a
kick ass DSLR for a great price BUT where they will make the extra$
is via accessories! It's going to confuse alot of potential
purchasers... myself included.

I am leaning towards the A1.. for many reasons, better value for
money dont need additional lens, more compact in size, AS feature,
does movies and personally it will suit my needs. Seems like it
will be more fun to use.

It's not the same.... you still need an IS lens for the Digital
Rebel to compare to the A1... so it's not "for the same money"

Jeff

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

I hope you don't expect to show anyone else those movies ! You'll
be very embarrassed. I took my A1 back to the store yesterday. I
may have had a bad one, but it did not compare to the Fuji s7000z
and I took that back also. I am very picky about the quality in
both pictures and videos regardless of the price. I want both to be
perfect. I am going to try the Sony f828 next.

 

[rsmedia1]

Hi guys; I have read a few of these threads and see that you have or had G2 cameras. I have a G2 and bought the Digital Rebel. The Rebel is sooo much faster in every area. With my 420ex I can shot 3 continuous flashes at a rate of 2.5fps. I added 2 lenses, a 50MkII f/1.8 and a 200 f/2.8 L prime. This camera is freakin fast with the 200mmm. Guys if you neeed a range of 28-200, just get the Canon Ef. If you can't hand hold at 200mm ,then there is a problem. I get fast action football shots with my rebel and it's easy. The standard EF lenses are better than any of the consumer lenses attached to digitals. The G2 is really hard to beat in image quality, but you should see the Rebel with a 50mm F/1.8 stopped down to 5.6. No Comparison. This plastic lens is super light.
I am sure the A1 and others are nice, but not comparable to Digital Rebel.

Emmanuel

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

--
Visit me at:-
http://www.realworldimages.co.uk

--
E-100RS_ G-2 Black & 420Ex_

 

[BJN]

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

My wife already has a Nikon SLR with some lenses. The gear is bulky and enough hassle that she rarely uses them. The A1 has a lot of capability in a small package so that (in theory) she'll be a lot more likely to carry and use. The camera that you use is better than the camera you don't.

I am just wonderin what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

See above. As a bonus, there's good macro capability and built in anti-shake, plus live LCD composition. The EVF finder suxx, but that's the price you pay.

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

You could use it for weddings and who knows what, but I don't see this as a camera for serious pro use. Maybe as a point and shoot for some serious pros at play. But then the 300D isn't a serious pro camera, and certainly not with the mediocre kit lens. I'm sure the 300D can generate bigger, nicer images and the optical viewfinder and interchangable lenses make the camera much better for serious users who want image quality and system versatility over compactness and convenience.

The A1 in raw mode can create nice images. The raw converter is very weak, unfortunately. The camera's overpriced at $1000 depending on how you look at the image quality vs. the size and features.

--
BJN

 

[Andy62252]

As I said - It doesnt worry ME at all. It's not obvious and if there are any problems at all - especially high iso, then neat image will sort it out. It's too good a camera to get too hung up on noise. All cameras with CCDs this size will exhibit some noise. People are too hung up on this. It's certainly less than the D7UG. Strange that people always find something to moan about.

Andy

For the money you could get the Rebel 6 meg digital true SLR..

I am just wondering what are the main features of the Minolta that
made you buy it instead of an SLR digiltal?

What will you be using this camera for?
Can it be used for professional use, like weddings, etc?

Craig

Not entirely true. I bought an A1 for GBP639. 300D is £750 body
only. Add the lens and it's £850.
My Reasons:

Size - it's small enough with a lens to be carried wherever I want
to go. Not so with a DSLR once you consider lenses etc.

The Lens - Very High quality GT lens - to get that quality on a
Canon Lens you are talking Hundres=ds of pounds, not to mention the
fact that you need two lenses to cover the focal length. If you
include the Image stabilisation as well, you are talking a lot of
money to get 28-200mm equiv IS (or AS as minolta call it).

I have 2 very active kids who are my main subjects, you can't
really say "hold on while i change lenses" to a 2 year old.

History - I have been very happy with my D7UG, and saw no need to
upgrade it to an I or a HI series camera. However, the A1 is enough
of an advance for me to do it (and cheap for the features as well.)
The only issues I had with it were the speed of the autofocus and
the battery life. Believe me when I say both have been sorted for
me in the A1.

I have a lot of accessories (TCON17 and 5600HSD flash) which fit
the A1 as well as the D7UG.

I don't shoot much high ISO stuff, but when I do Neatimage cleans
it up nicely.

The noise at Iso100 does not worry me at all. To be honest on
prints up to A4 you can't even see it withough a Loupe.

Anyway, those are my reasons

Andy

--
per