Minolta's Maxxum 7 is the MAX

Author's Rating:

Pros: Comfortable, Professional Quality, Quiet, and Durable

Cons: Minolta's flash shoe limits the choice of flashes that can be used.

The Bottom Line: 
This camera is the best choice for an amateur or a professional. It has all the features for a pro and all the assistance for an amateur.

Author's Review
I spent almost a year searching for the perfect camera at the perfect price. I had been using a 3Xi for over 10 years and after comparing every brand and every model, I still chose another Minolta. For the price, it was an excellent deal. I really like the large information screen on the back of the camera, and was surprised not to see it on the more expensive Maxxum 9. The Maxxum 7 camera can definitely be used professionally. It may be difficult to use for a beginner, however it does work great on "program" as well.

I love the ease of use for all of the manual settings. The camera is a good weight, and offers a superb range of shutter speeds up to 1/8000. I was surprised to see the camera's wide variety of custom functions and exposure bracketing.

The viewfinder information is well placed and very informative. The selectable focusing is pretty awesome as well. I chose this camera over Nikon's F-100 and canon's EOS-3. The feature I am missing by not going with the EOS-3 is the film advance speed it offers, with Minolta's being only 4 Frames Per Second.
I wish they had designed this camera for a motor drive to advance the film faster. I am still amazed at all of the high-end features on this camera, including mirror lock up, fast auto focus and exposure memory. This is still the best camera for the money.

It's a comfortable camera, with all settings and dials easily accessible while shooting. This is one of the only items I have purchased in my life and not thought about a different product I "should have bought instead" later on; six months later and I still love it!