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A Superb second attempt
Strengths: Effective anti-shake Very good results Fast autofocus and card writes Simple to learn and use Excellent ergonomics
Weakness: Not as broad a selection of unusual accessories as Nikon and Canon Some pixelization from 6MP sensor
I've been an advanced amateur for 35 years having used and sold cameras from Konica, Olympus, Canon, Pentax and Minolta. I started to use digitals a few years ago, but this is my first dSLR. I will admit, I'm picky about my results and, even in head to head comparison with the excellent Minolta A2, I find the 5d does not dissapoint!
Any mention of the 5d must first mention the Minolta Anti-Shake system. It continues to be a real winner and reason alone to pick this camera from among its peers. In my testing, I see at least 3 stops longer exposures possible with AS than without. Bracing myself against a porch column allowed a sharp night exposure at 1 second handheld, that's amazing!
Compared directly to the A2, the 5d's photos showed much lower digital noise and had greater retrievable detail and similar dynamic range. Colors were clear with a slight tendency towards warmth. The latter was easily correctable with the extensive white balance control this camera offers. The only failing here was a greater amount of pixilization compared to the 8MP A2. This wasn't noticible in prints but could be easily seen when screenshots were highly magnified. For example, tree branches against the sky in the distance. If Minolta was forced to make a trade-off, this seems like the best one to make.
Much has been written about the 5d's controls being more burried in menus than those on the 7d or A2. This may be true, but once I got accustomed to the camera, I didn't find this an issue in most cases. My one objection, I would prefer a faster, no-eye shift manual adjustment of shutter speed and aperature. I do alot of manual exposure work, and the 5d could make that easier.
Speaking of controls, Minolta has made alot of marketing noise over the 5d's extensive customization of white balance. It's true, but I doubt I'll ever care. I'd MUCH rather they had used the knob room for exposure control and burried the white balance two menus deep. Oh well, they can't please everyone!
The cameras controls are smooth and the ergonomics are excellent. It fits well in my hands, much better than the huge 7d or slick designs like the Canon's, that force my wrists into strange shapes. It's quite a bit bigger than the A2, but the A2 always felt a touch cramped to me.
The viewfinder is a delight, especially after the lo-res mini-TV's most consumer digitals use. I had forgotten how luxurious a mirrored image was! The information presented is minimal, but adaquate. One excellent touch is the camera shake display, which shows how much work the Anti-Shake is doing, and, so, how close to blur you are. In this time of auto-everything, I can actually use the viewfinder to manually focus the lens, and the lens doesn't fight me while I'm trying. The autofocus can be set to autofocus and then let you tweak or refocus as much as you wish.
Card writes are fast enough, even on RAW but I saw no speed advantage to the super fast CF's I had on hand.
Speaking of RAW, I don't pretend to know code, but there seems to be a subtle change in the MRW files between the A2 and the 5d. Photoshop's and Raw Shooter's RAW converters read them both identically, but Picassa gives the 5d files a slightly more muted tone on my monitor (or the A2's are overly punchy, depending on your viewpoint). Print tones are identical, however. Perhaps someone who is more computer literate can comment?
Overall, I can't imagine anyone not being thrilled with the 5d. Once you've used anti-shake, you'll never want to go without again. Attach that to a well designed system like the 5d and you have a real winner. I hope Minolta sells a billion of 'em!
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