The Long Zoom digicam market segment has long been dominated by Olympus and Fuji, but Konica-Minolta is quickly taking the lead in this rapidly growing and very popular marketing niche. The new Konica-Minolta DiMAGE Z3 has been completely re-designed to provide improved performance, a raft load of useful features, and the longest zoom lens currently available, a whopping 12X optic. The Z3 also incorporates the groundbreaking anti-shake image stabilization technology from K-M’s more expensive prosumer “A” series.

The Dimage Z2 (the first digicam to wear the Konica-Minolta brand) was very popular with consumers who loved its remarkably broad feature set. The Z2 was very user friendly and simple enough to make casual photographers ecstatic while simultaneously sophisticated enough to appeal to more demanding shooters. The new Z3 actually raises the usability bar substantially when compared to its older sibling, making it one of the best options around for neophyte photographers who want a long zoom digicam they can "grow into" as their photographic capabilities evolve and develop.

What’s Different – How does the Z3 differ from the Z2?

The Z3’s most impressive feature is its inventive K-M Anti-Shake image stabilization system. The Z3 also sports a “class champ” 12X zoom (the Z2’s zoom stopped at 10X). Finally, the combo “Switch” finder of the Z1 and Z2 has been dumped in favor of a standard EVF (electronic viewfinder) and separate LCD screen. On a negative note, the Z2’s movie mode provided a “best in class” 800x600 video clip resolution setting, but the Z3 is limited to 640x480 (VGA resolution).

NUTS & BOLTS

Viewfinder/LCD

The first thing anyone familiar with K-M’s “Z” series will notice is that the goofy “Rube Goldberg” switch finder (the eyelevel viewfinder was enabled via an internal mirror reflex system that reflected the LCD screen image upward to the tunnel style eyepiece) from the Z1 & Z2 is gone. In its place is a fairly standard EVF (electronic viewfinder). The EVF is fluid, color accurate, and the resolution is high enough from normal framing and composition (but not for critical focusing). The EVF has a relatively low eye point so eyeglasses wearers will have difficulty seeing the entire image frame through the viewfinder, but the Z3 does provide a diopter adjustment knob so vision challenged users may be able to use the EVF without their glasses.

The Z3’s 1.5” Real Motion LCD screen is very small, which seems strange, given the Z3’s size (this digicam is compact, but it is certainly not in the micro cam class). The Z3’s LCD screen is reasonably fluid, fairly bright, and hue accurate – but resolution is a bit low, making critical focus and image review more of a chore than necessary. I’m a bit puzzled since smaller LCD screens are generally brighter and sharper than larger LCD screens. A 1.8” LCD screen with noticeably higher resolution would have been more in keeping with the rest of the Z3’s capabilities. The Z3’s LCD screen shows almost 100 percent of the image frame and the brightness level can be adjusted. The Z3 provides a live histogram display for fine-tuning exposures before the shutter button is tripped and the EVF and LCD screen boost gain automatically in low light.

Zoom Lens

The most obvious difference between the Z2 and the Z3 is the Z3's new f2.8-f4.5/35-420mm (35mm equivalent) 12X optical zoom. The Z3’s new zoom is computer mated to its 4 megapixel CCD so optical performance is surprisingly good. The lens is relatively fast at the wide-angle end of the range, but the relatively slow f4.5 maximum aperture at the telephoto end of the zoom range makes the anti shake image stabilization a welcome addition.

This monster optic provides enormous versatility in framing and reach plus above average color and contrast. Zoom operation is smooth as silk and very fast. As expected, with a lens this complex, chromatic aberration (purple fringing) is present at slightly above average levels. Chromatic aberration increases exponentially as optical complexity and focal range increase, so longer zooms consistently (everything else being relative) have higher levels of chromatic aberration than shorter zooms. Barrel distortion is above average and noticeable at the wide-angle end of the zoom range. Pincushion distortion at the telephoto end of the zoom range is very well controlled. Corner softness is visible at maximum aperture (especially at the telephoto end of the range) but I didn’t notice any vignetting (dark corners). Overall, the Z3’s 12X zoom does an exceptional job.

Anti-Shake Image Stabilization

The Z3’s most impressive feature is its genuinely unique approach to image stabilization. K-M’s engineers developed a creative new anti-shake system (for the prosumer “A” series) that neutralizes camera shake by stabilizing the CCD imager, instead of the lens. This system works by analyzing input from motion detectors embedded in the camera body and producing a precisely equal and opposite shift in the CCD to counteract camera shake/movement.

Konica-Minolta claims that users can shoot at shutter speeds up to 3 stops slower. For example if a shutter speed of 1/125th of a second is required to avoid the effects of camera shake --- the Z3 can capture a sharp image at 1/15th of a second. The Z3’s Anti-Shake system is enabled automatically, whenever the shutter button is pressed. Users can opt (via the setup mode) for either the Disp Exp mode (users can see the anti-shake effect displayed on the LCD screen) or the Exp mode (kicks in immediately prior to exposure so there’s no LCD screen confirmation), which cuts power drain and improves battery life. Z3 purchasers will immediately notice the benefits of the anti shake image stabilization system; sharper handheld action-sports/low light images even at the telephoto end of the zoom range. The Z3’s anti shake system produces dependably sharper images at shutter speeds that would normally generate blurry pictures. Does it work? Yes, but power consumption is quite high (especially in the Disp Exp mode) and K-M’s Anti-Shake technology is only effective for minor movement/shake, it won’t counteract sharp or violent movement or reduce the blur caused by moving subjects.

Auto Focus

The Z3 uses Konica-Minolta’s 5 point Video AF system. The camera’s default AF mode is based (P&S style) on a fairly large central focus area. More experienced users can enable the Spot (Focus Area Selection) AF mode which bases focus on any one of the five AF points. The Z3 provides a full-time AF mode that continuously adjusts focus even when the shutter button is not pressed, a Predictive Focus Control function (to track action), and manual focus capability. Consumers often complain about how slow most monster zooms are to focus, but the Z3’s 12X zoom dependably, smoothly, quickly, and accurately snaps into focus. In Manual focus mode the Z3 enlarges the center of the LCD screen 3X and displays a distance scale to facilitate accurate focusing. There’s no AF assist beam for low light focusing. The Z3’s AF system is consistently quick and accurate.

Flash

The Z3’s multi-mode -- Autoflash, Autoflash with red-eye reduction, Fill-flash, Fill-flash with red-eye reduction, and Slow sync -- built in flash is a very well designed unit. Minolta claims coverage out to 13 feet, which appears to be fairly accurate. Flash output can be adjusted +2/-2 EV (in 1/3 EV increments). The Z3’s built in flash is well placed (in relation to the zoom), so red-eye shouldn’t be a problem. The Z3 also provides a dedicated hot shoe (for Minolta flash units only) that allows users to mount Minolta Maxxum Program 5600 HS, Program 3600 HS, and 2500D speedlights. The Minolta Macro Twin Flash 2400 and Macro Ring Flash 1200 close-up lighting units can also be used.

Image File Storage/Memory Media

The Z3 (like its predecessors) stores images to SD/MMC memory cards

Image File Format(s)

JPEG

Connectivity

USB 2.0, A/V out, and DC in

Power

The Z3 (like its predecessors) draws its juice from four universally available AA batteries. Rechargeable (1600-2100 mAh) AA’s are good for 200-400 (average about 300) exposures, depending on Anti-shake mode, flash use, and review frequency. Alkaline AA’s should be good for about 100-200 exposures, depending on anti shake mode, flash use, and review frequency. That’s very good power management for a camera this complex and power hungry. Most users will need two sets of rechargeable AA’s and a charger.

EXPOSURE

The Konica-Minolta Dimage Z3 provides a wide range of exposure options including: Auto, Program AE, five preset Scene modes, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and a full Manual exposure mode.

In Auto (point & shoot) mode, the Z3 makes all exposure decisions. In Program AE mode, the camera selects the aperture and shutter speed, but the user is free to choose all other exposure parameters. Users can also select one of the Z3’s Scene modes -- Night Portrait, Sunset, Landscape, Sports Action, and Portrait -- and the camera optimizes all exposure parameters for the specific type of scene selected. In Aperture Priority mode, shooters select the lens aperture and the Z3 selects the appropriate shutter speed. In Shutter Priority mode users select the shutter speed and the Z3 selects the lens aperture. In Manual mode users have complete control over all exposure parameters.

Movie Mode

The Z3 provides a very competent movie mode, something that should appeal to family flick shooters. The Z3 records TV quality video clips (with audio) at 640x480 @ 30 fps. Clip duration is limited only by SD/MMC memory card capacity. For the icing on the cake, the Z3’s AF system focuses continuously during video clip capture, virtually guaranteeing sharply focused movies. Filmmakers can use the Z2’s 10X zoom lens during filming (the Z3’s lens is designed to move very slowly and quietly in movie mode, and the microphone placement is as far from the lens as possible), but lens and AF noise will be recorded. Why haven’t any of the major manufacturers figured out how to disable sound recording during zooming/AF (users zoom and sound recording stops---once the zoom stops moving and focuses---sound recording resumes) How tough is that?

Halloween, The Thing, and Escape from New York director John Carpenter perfected his filmcraft while he was growing up in Western Kentucky (using his Dad’s Eumig Super 8MM movie camera) so budding film makers may also be able to use the Z3’s superb movie capability as a springboard to fame and fortune.

Exposure Compensation/Exposure Bracketing

Very bright or very dark subjects can trick light metering systems into underexposing or overexposing images. The Z3’s base exposure can be adjusted from -2/+2 EV in 1/3 EV increments to compensate for difficult lighting and subject/background reflectance/non-reflectance problems or to compensate for environmental exposure variables.

Very minor exposure differences can affect the overall tone and dramatic appeal of an image. Z3 users can ensure that they’ll get very close to the perfect exposure with the camera’s auto bracketing function. The Z3 can capture either 3 or 5 exposures in rapid sequence (with one press of the shutter button) varying the exposure between shots from 0.3 to 1.0 EV.

In-Camera Image Adjustment

In camera image adjustment is an often overlooked but very important tool for overcoming minor exposure problems. The Z3 provides shooters with a useful range of incremental color and contrast tweaks that will help demanding photographers achieve balanced contrast and precise hue and color saturation.

The Z3’s Noise Reduction setting (activated via the Setup menu) uses dark-frame subtraction to reduce image noise in long exposures.

Metering

The Z3’s default metering system divides the image frame into 256 tiny segments (multi-segment light measurement system) and then instantly evaluates brightness and contrast in each of these areas to determine the best overall exposure. More advanced users can enable Spot or Center-Weighted metering modes for more control in tricky lighting. The Spot mode also allows users to align the center of the frame with the most important compositional element (like the eyes in a portrait) and bias the exposure on that very small area and then re-compose. Center-Weighted metering is useful for re-creating the retro look of “classic” golden age photography or ensuring that the exposure is based on a large central area of the frame.

White Balance

The Z3’s White Balance system provides TTL Auto and pre-sets optimized for Daylight, Cloudy, Incandescent, and Fluorescent lighting plus Flash. The Z3 also provides a Custom (for adjusting the color balance manually with a white card) setting.

Sensitivity

The Z3’s sensitivity can be set to TTL Auto or ISO (35mm equivalent) values of 50, 100, 200, and 400.

CONTROLS, DESIGN, & ERGONOMICS

The Z3 bears a striking family resemblance to is predecessors, despite its re-design. It's a relatively compact digicam, but certainly not small enough to drop in anything smaller than a large fanny pack or an average sized purse. The polycarbonate body seems tough enough for most non-professional uses and the big ergonomic handgrip is comfortable to hold (it also provides a nice balance for the big zoom). The Z3’s controls are logically laid out and come intuitively to hand. The menus are easy to understand and well organized for quick navigation. Experienced digicam users should be able to operate the Z3 right out of the box -- neophytes, technophobes, and first time users will need no more than a brief familiarization with the user’s manual before they can start shooting.

Technical Specifications

Resolution: 4.0 megapixels (2272 x 1704)
Viewfinders: EVF & 1.5” LCD
Lens: f2.8-f4.5/35-420mm (35mm equivalent) optical zoom lens
Auto Focus: 5 AF point Video AF system
Manual Focus: Yes
Exposure: Auto, Program AE, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and Manual
Metering: Multi Segment, Spot, and Center-Weighted
Flash: built-in multi mode and proprietary KM hot shoe for Minolta external flash units
White Balance: TTL Auto, five pre-sets (Daylight, Cloudy, Incandescent, Fluorescent, Flash, and Custom)
Sensitivity: TTL Auto, and 50, 100, 200, and 400 (ISO equivalent)
Image File Formats: JPEG
Image Storage Format: SD/MMC
In Camera Image Adjustment: Yes (Sharpness, Contrast, Saturation)
Noise Reduction: Yes
Power: 4 AA batteries

Street Price Range $399.00 to $549.00

Included

16MB SD card, neck strap, lens cap, accessory shoe cap, AV/USB cables, software CD-ROM, 4 AA Alkaline batteries, users & software manuals

Optional

ZCW-100 Wide Converter lens kit, AC-1L AC Adapter, Leather Strap, EBP-100 External High Power Battery Pack, Minolta Maxxum Program 5600 HS, Program 3600 HS, and 2500D speedlights. The Minolta Macro Twin Flash 2400 and Macro Ring Flash 1200 can also be used

In the Field/Handling & Operation

My friend (who sells new and used digital and analog photography equipment) and I both really liked Minolta’s Dimage Z2, so when the Z3 hit shelves earlier this month both of us were anxious to check it out. The first thing we did was run a simple color/white balance test (we shot colorful children’s plastic beach toys against a white background) that works pretty well and allows us to compare results from one digital camera to another. The Z3’s images showed consistently accurate hue and very good saturation. After color testing the camera we headed for Cave Hill Cemetery. The flat overcast lighting (there are no reflections or glare under overcast lighting, so colors appear more intense) was perfect for shooting fall color at Cave Hill, Louisville’s unofficial arboretum.

The grounds of the old cemetery were absolutely beautiful; we drove around the small curving roads looking for Eliot Porter style “intimate landscapes” among the hundreds of old trees. Cave Hill has dozens of varieties of hardwood trees (Kentucky is the northern most extension of the ancient southern forests and the southern most extension of the northern forests that flowed south as the glaciers melted at the close of the last ice age). Because we’ve had six weeks with no rain and then three weeks of almost daily rain the fall color peak has been really hard to gauge. In very dry autumns fall color just sort of fizzles (as it does in very wet autumns) so since we’ve had a combination of dry and wet, rather than a balance, nobody really knows what to expect. We didn’t find any expansive autumn vistas, but there were nice pockets of color and we had lots of great individual trees with spectacular displays. The Z3 performed admirably, no matter what we tried. The Z3 is completely in its element outdoors in decent light.

Sunday afternoon we took the Z3 to the Belknap Neighborhood Fall Festival. Belknap is one of Louisville’s more unique neighborhoods, sort of like a small country town at the edge of the larger Highlands and Deer Park neighborhoods. The neighborhood is clustered around the Douglas Loop, which was a stage stop on the road to Nashville during the mid nineteenth-century. TARC (Transit Authority of the River City) buses now stop where stagecoaches once picked up passengers.

Belknap provides visitors with an interesting collection of restaurants, a bakery, a Graeter’s Ice Cream shop, a very popular local tavern, and an old-fashioned hardware store. During the festival the narrow streets are lined with booths selling handcrafts, household items, midway style munchies, and Kentucky crafts. The festival is always well attended and the large crowd makes for a constantly shifting collection of very interesting photographic subjects. We spent several hours shooting “street” and environmental portraits before calling it a day.

PERFORMANCE

Image Quality

The Z3’s images are consistently good with very good color (although skin tones are a bit warm). White balance is dependably accurate, handling even difficult outdoor lighting situations nicely. Resolution and apparent sharpness are also good, especially at the ISO 50 and 100 settings. We did notice a slight tendency toward overexposure in very brightly lit outdoor settings. Red-eye is very well controlled. The Z3 produces consistently well-exposed images in all five scene modes (Night Portrait, Sunset, Landscape, Sports Action, and Portrait) making it fairly easy for beginners and casual photographers to shoot striking images.

We printed out a couple 5X7’s and a couple 8X10’s with an Epson 2200 (on Epson photo paper). Detail, contrast, and resolution were very good --although one hand held shot was pretty blurred when enlarged to 8x10. At full telephoto most users will need a tripod to guarantee tack sharp focus, even with the Z3’s nifty anti shake technology. Color was accurate but a bit oversaturated (most consumers will regard this as a pro rather than a con). The Z3’s blues are just a bit too blue (which makes for impressive but slightly unrealistic cobalt blue skies) and the reds are a shade warm which makes for slightly “ruddy” skin tones in outdoor people shots. Image noise is fairly well controlled at ISO 50 and 100, noticeably high at ISO 200, and very high at ISO 400. Overall, the Z3’s noise levels are above average.

Timing/Shutter Lag

The Z3 is a very fast digicam. AF lag has always been a drawback with long zoom digicams, but the Z3’s lens snaps into focus with surprising speed. In fact, the Z3's 12X AF speed is faster than many 3X zooms (less than one second in good lighting) however, AF is noticeably slower in lower light). Shutter lag is virtually non-existent (at higher shutter speeds) with pre-focusing and less than one second from scratch. Shot to shot times are remarkably quick (between 0.5 and 1.0 seconds).

A Few Concerns

Chromatic aberration (purple fringing) is a bit higher than average, especially in high contrast color transition areas and at maximum aperture in bright light. My friend has heard some insider buzz that the Z3 can overheat and lock up when power demands approach maximum output levels, but we didn’t see any indication this was true (during two days of very heavy use). The Z3’s LCD screen is too small, a higher resolution 1.8” screen would have been better. Noise levels are much too high, especially at the ISO 400 setting.

Conclusion

The new Konica-Minolta Dimage Z3 goes a long way toward meeting the needs of both casual and more advanced photographers who want a feature rich Point & Shoot style digicam with a monster zoom and anti shake image stabilization. The Z3 should also appeal to family photographers, sports shooters, travelers, hikers/backpackers, nature lovers, and anyone else at home in outdoor venues. Users who can do without image stabilization and the 12X zoom can get most of the Z3’s nifty features and save about $100.00 (or more) by snatching up one of the remaining stock Z2’s---see review link, below.

Links

For definitive advice on How to Choose a Digital Camera please see my review:

http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-2E46-17B174E2-39A418E3-prod1

For information about similar currently available “Monster Zoom” Digital Cameras, you may find the reviews below informative:

Canon Powershot S1-IS
http://www.epinions.com/content_145477242500

Canon Powershot PRO 1
http://www.epinions.com/content_143509589636

Konica-Minolta Dimage Z2
http://www.epinions.com/content_150924725892

Konica-Minolta Dimage A1
http://www.epinions.com/content_132907372164

Konica-Minolta Dimage A2
http://www.epinions.com/content_134021746308

Olympus Camedia C765
http://www.epinions.com/content_152865181316


Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 499.00
This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Flexible Enough for Enthusiasts