This one page review sets the expectation that the 800si is a lot of camera for not a lot of money.
#Minolta camera maxxum 5 full
It’s replacement, the Maxxum 9xi from 1992 upped the ante further with a shutter capable of a blistering fast (even by today’s standards) top shutter speed of 1/12,000, a full information viewfinder with a clever feature that would project some information such as exposure compensation within the viewable prism, and a futuristic minimalist design hiding many of the camera’s functions using buttons.
When metering, it supported spot, multi-spot, average, center weighted, highlight, and shadow modes.
#Minolta camera maxxum 5 manual
It supported a variety of automatic exposure models from manual to fully programmed modes. It had a vertically traveling shutter capable with a top 1/4000 shutter speed.
#Minolta camera maxxum 5 professional
With the Maxxum 9000’s release in 1985, it was billed as the world’s first professional auto focus SLR. Features like electronic shutters, automatic focus, extremely high top speeds, and other unnecessary but cool features were common in Minolta’s flagship models. Where Nippon Kogaku prioritized extreme build quality and interchangeable parts at the cost of innovative new technologies, Minolta embraced new ideas. Minolta rarely went head to head with Nippon Kogaku’s Nikon F-series, which considered of the original F and it’s replacements, the F2 through F6. What constitutes one model’s tier over another varies by manufacturer and even within the lineup of currently available models, sometimes is inconsistent or overlaps with other models.Įver since releasing their first SLR, the Minolta SR-2 in 1958, Minolta aimed to have a wide range of SLRs, with models in almost every segment except. In every lineup of cameras, there are the entry level “consumer” models, step up advanced consumer (sometimes called “prosumer) models, then there’s enthusiast cameras and finally flagship models. The reason for this review immediately after that one as I found the 650si to have the perfect balance of everything I needed in an advanced, yet fully automatic 35mm SLR.Īlthough I love the 650si and consider it to be one of my all time favorites, I couldn’t help but wonder if the step up (actually two steps) Maxxum 800si would be even better, so this review will be a look at what’s different between the two in an effort to see if Minolta was able to improve on what for me is a fantastic camera. This review will be very short as it is more of a supplement to the previous review of the Minolta Maxxum 650si Date that I published earlier this week. Prologue The Minolta Maxxum 650si quickly became one of my favorite automatic SLRs, so I wondered if it could get any better? +1 for the complete package, one of the most natural SLRs I’ve ever used, excellent knobs This camera originally did not sell well, likely because it was too much for the market, but at the prices they can be found today, makes for an excellent fully automatic SLR with the features and ergonomics of a modern camera. The Minolta Maxxum 800si was the top of the line in Minolta’s fourth generation of auto focus film SLRs when it was first released and it is absolutely loaded with features, including a massively large and powerful flash, an exposure data storage system, and a very flexible auto exposure system. Weight: 842 grams (w/ battery and 50mm f/1.7 lens), 659 grams (w/ battery, no lens) Speeds (auto): 30 – 1/8000 seconds, step lessĮxposure Meter: 2x Silicon Photo Diode TTL meters with P, Ps, Pa, S, A, and M metering modesįlash Mount: Minolta Hot Shoe with Pop-Up in Body Flash, 1/200 X-sync Shutter: Electronic Vertically Traveling Focal Plane Lens: 50mm f/1.7 Minolta Maxxum AF coated 6-elements in 4-groups + othersįocus: 1.5 feet to Infinity (50mm), 1 foot to Infinity (28mm) Despite including a large number of additional features from the step down 700si, the 800si wasn’t much larger, and weighed about the same, making for a compact, semi professional flagship SLR. It was also more powerful than other pop-up flashes and supported wireless sync with other Minolta flashes, bridging the gap between a built in flash and external speed light. It’s most notable feature is the huge pop-up flash which had a moving reflector that covered lenses from 24mm to 80mm. The 800si would be replaced by the Maxxum/Dynax 7 in 1999, but for a brief moment in time, was Minolta’s most advanced SLR.
When the Maxxum 800si was sold in Europe and Japan, it was known there as the Dynax 800si and the α-807si, respectively. The 800si was the flagship model in Minolta’s fourth generation of autofocus SLRs after it’s predecessor, the 9xi was discontinued. This is a Minolta Maxxum 800si, a 35mm single lens reflex camera produced by Minolta starting in 1997.