At a street toll of $ 400 , the Dimage Z6 is quite sensibly priced for an advanced digital camera . But a number of missing features , such as white balance bracketing and crushed ISO speed , make it a miserable pick for advanced photographic camera users who want encompassing control over their pictures .
For get under one’s skin closemouthed to the action with your camera , a long zoom is better . And the Konica Minolta Dimage Z6 has the look of a success in that respect : Its 12X ocular soar is longer than most .
The camera ’s curved case expect stylish and should stand up to rough discussion : though charge plate , it feels sturdily built and fits comfortably in your hand . The Zoom restraint fall naturally under your quarter round , and the Shutter clit under your index finger . With one hand you’re able to change Scene modes and Flash mode , go into Macro mode , and navigate the on - screenland menu ; all of the appropriate button are within reach . This is a big plus if you want to use the viewfinder without having to look at the button . The only button you ca n’t reach while using the camera with one hand are the on / off button and the one for switching between Play and Shooting mode ( which also switches between the screen and the LCD viewfinder ) . The mode dial has the common choice , including a full Manual mode and five setting modes .
Limited photographic features
The camera include a basic Exposure Bracketing modality , but it lack livid equipoise bracketing . And because the ISO speed maxes out at 320 , shooting in low light can be difficult ( most advanced cameras I tested turn over at least ISO 400 ) . likewise , the Dimage Z6 ’s maximal shutter hurrying is 1/1000 of a bit , which poses a trouble for action fans who want to enamour the moment ; most of the advanced cameras I take care at can snarl a shot at 1/2000 of a second or faster .
The camera consume its time begin up — about 3.5 seconds from when you press the On button to when you’re able to commence shooting — in part because the zoom lense has to extend . There ’s also a significant suspension ( around half a second ) between when you beseech the shutter and when it take the shaft . The auto nidus is relatively zippy in estimable luminosity , but it bog down a bit in downhearted light and at the longer zoom configurations : I chance that it often spent some time hunting for the correct focal point .
Poor image quality
The ikon quality account that the panel awarded to the Dimage Z6 for pictures taken in the PC World Test Center were the lowest of any recently try out forward-looking television camera . We saw obvious fuzziness lead to going of details , and a pregnant amount of noise even at low ISO scope . Color fringing was noticeable and got worse when we used the zoom . Colors were dense , and skin tone await pallid . The camera ’s lifelike color modality , on the other hand , went too far the other room : colour looked by artificial means bright , exasperate the noise in the images .
The battery life supported by the tv camera ’s four AA non - rechargeable batteries was also a little unsatisfying . The Dimage Z6 live through 323 shots , which is plenty for a slip of a few day ; but other cameras such as the Fujifilm FinePix S5200 ( ) , using the same character of batteries have accomplish the 500 - shot limit we implement for this test . you could replace the AA cell with NiMH rechargeable assault and battery , but Konica Minolta supply neither these nor an AC transcriber with the camera as standard equipment .
All of these issue throttle the Dimage Z6 ’s appeal . It ’s undeniably a gradation up from a power point - and - shoot ( and it does n’t cost much more than many of them ) , and the long soar is skillful . But if you ’re after advanced feature , you ’ll soon find that you want more than this camera can bid , and the average image tone is a serious drawback for those who take their photos seriously .
jury tests
Scale = Excellent , Very honorable , Good , Flawed , Unacceptable
To guess picture quality , we take a serial of shots , with and without flashgun , at the camera ’s high resolving power . We photograph a complex still life and a form using machinelike setting in Program / Full - Auto Mode to see how well each camera trance subtle color and exposure under its default setting . We then photograph the same still life and a resolution moiré chart with semiautomatic preferences using aperture antecedency , custom white-hot balance , and exposure bracketing . We piece the good shot of each of those two subjects for approximate . We also test the camera ’s capability for minimizing stochasticity using a range of ISO setting . We review the on - covert and printed exposure and ascribe simulacrum - quality scores . The image - caliber rating of the tv camera is based on five category : photo , color , sharpness , distorted shape , and overall.—Tested in conjunction with the PC World Test Center
Specifications
Macworld’s buying advice
While its 12X soar lens system is impressive and the camera is easy to handle , the Konica - Minolta Dimage Z6 ’s unimpressive image quality and missing characteristic make it a poor choice for photo enthusiasts .
[ Richard Baguley is a freelance author whose workplace has appeared inPC World , Wired , andJIWire.com . He also maintains aCamcorder blog . ]
