Minolta Pro Shot 20MP Digital Camera – 67x Optical Zoom, Full 1080p HD Video, Optical Image Stabilization, Wi-Fi, 3-inch Articulating LCD Screen, 27 Scene Modes – Includes 16GB SD Card (Black)

It's a great camera and the optical zoom lens is really good at capturing clear pictures in the far off distances. easy and light to handle

This camera really shines if you want to take pictures of items outside some distance away. I got it for taking pictures when I go hiking, backpacking, trips. My other "camera" is a Pixel 7 phone (which produces pictures on par or better then iPhone/Samsung). For quick snap shots of kids, or indoors the Pixel phone works great and in many cases better then this camera, but it can't compete with a big optical zoom lens. If you want a camera that has a big optical zoom without spending a lot of money this camera is for you. I have attached two photos. The 1st photo is from my Pixel Phone of a bird in the yard behind mine. I added a red arrow so you can see how far away this bird is. Except for the arrow these photos are directly from the cameras and are completely unedited. The 2nd photo is from THIS camera zoomed in on the bird. No phone can do that! Even with max digital zoom and/or cropping the Pixel phone just produced a burly blob. With this camera you can see the bird clearly. If this is what you are looking for get this camera. I also used this camera at an air show with some great close ups of planes that where high up. As an outdoor zoom camera it's great, but not any better (or even worse) then a phone for indoor snap shots.

I have always used Canon camera's. Used to the functioning and operations. This is NOT that. The manual is less than enlightening (like a professor writing for a 5 yr old) But once you figure it out..this thing is awesome! It has so many features exactly like the much more expensive cameras and even a few more.I bought this camera for three reasons. Cost/for functions..doing time lapse (as a beginner)..and because I can't afford to spend thousands of dollars on a long lens for zooming for my Canon that would match it.As far as functions, the menu is different. Press menu, and it shows you a screen with a row of options on either side. Look carefully..and one of the items in the row on the left has a circle highlighting it. I missed it for the longest time. I'm a grandma..and bifocally challenged..so...To choose which option you want to change, press the edge of the circle button on the back of the camera up or down and press "select" . FYI it is not obvious, but when you hit the bottom of the left row, hit down again and it will skip to the top of the right side row. I assumed I'd have to press the side of the back circle to get to that row and..nope. The screen will then give you options to choose for that item function. Move the back circle left or right to choose and then press "select". Crazy different from my Canon, but once you get it, you're good to go. Practice, Practice, Practice before you go out and shoot.For point and shoot, it's wonderful. I'm not a professional but wanted to do more difficult shots so have been using M for manual more and more. If you use manual (again, not obvious) and want to change the F stop, shutter speed, and iso, etc you have to press the +/- button on the top of the camera. Weird, but... it highlights the the options in yellow on the bottom of the lcd. Press the back dial left or right to choose which setting you want to adjust. Then ROTATE that same wheel to the level you want. Simple, after you find out how. If it shuts off while you're choosing, just press the +/- again.Once you know how to do that you can actually do a custom setting. It's not difficult. I use this camera mostly for long zoom shots of birds and wildlife. They move quickly. So I set the Custom up (as an example) for f2.8 1/3200 sec and then Auto ISO. Then when I only have a second to change to catch a great shot, I just turn the top dial to CS. My Canon SL3 doesn't have programable buttons at all. Choose your settings and then turn the top dial to CS, create custom mode, yes (or something like that,follow the prompts). Then whatever you chose just previous as your go-to quick shot settings, it will remember them. Anytime you want those settings, turn the top dial to CS.RAW/Jpeg. I have editing softward that lets me do amazing things so RAW is a must. But for the life of me, I couldn't find more than jpeg or jpeg fine in the Quality choices in M mode. You'd think in M that's where RAW would be, right? Nope. I turned the top dial and eventually found that choice in the A (aperture) mode. jpeg/jpeg fine/RAW/ or RAW plus jpeg. I now get to shoot in Raw/plus jpeg. Once you choose that option it DOES retain that setting in the other modes. Just don't understand why the RAW choice isn't in M. BTW, the software is the latest version of Luminar Neo based on AI. Don't have to learn a million names, or process functions. It's all based on sliders. Hint..I'm a Grandma. Try it, like what it does, or back it off. I bought the one time version last fall and it also does HDR Merge, Photo Stackiing, Supersharp, Noisless AI, Panorama stitching and Upscale.I bought this camera because it did in-camera time lapse. Something I was interest in learning at the time. Simple to set up in the menu. When it's done, it combines all the pictures into a video. Love it. Two things. You can't get a single image to print because it turns the time lapse into a video. BUT..with the Luminar Neo Software you can fix that issue. In the Panorama stitch option, you can also upload videos from this camera or panning on your phone. I watched a video on Utube but haven't tried it out with a time lapse from this camera yet. But if you drag the video into the Video option in the Panorama tool it converts the video into stills. THEN, you can choose a single pic and print it, or make a Pano out of the whole batch. OMGShooting panoramas on this camera is simple..but you better have a tripod to hold it still (with a level/swivel built in, and and it must swivel smoothly or you'll get an error message. Left to right is best.I bought something called a z-mount (created by A Wallace and Move Shoot Move). was $39 on Amazon but not only swivels smoothly but adjusts (hence/Z) to allow you to adjust your camera from Portrait mode to Landscape with a flipper. No fussing with an L bracket. Great on the fly and also because I am learning astrophotography and want to shoot some of each direction in Milky Way Pano's . I'm not affilliated with Luminar Neo or the Zmount people. Just really like them.

Over the past 7-8 years , I have had two of these cameras. Both became defective. The first one developed problems with the focus. The viewing screen finally became so blurry I could not use it. I sent it for repair. I received an e-mail telling me it could not be repaired! Fortunately, I had purchasedthe 3-year protection plan. I received a Amazon Gift Card, so I bought another one and the 3-year protection plan. Now, only 15 months later, the second camera became defective. The telephoto lens failed and got stuck about half way. This happened in mid-July. I sent it for repair and two days ago I got an e-mail telling me it could not be repaired. Once again, I got the Amazon Gift Card covering my purchase price. Needless to say, I DID NOT buy another Minolta. I used the card to buy a more expensive , but much better camera. Due to the price and the great feature of the self-contained telephoto lens, you may be tempted to buy this camera. If you do, definitely buy the 3-year protection plan! From my experience, sometime during that 3 years, you will need to use that plan. Minolta used to be a good camera. NOT ANYMORE!!! I will never buy one again!!!

Why did you pick this product vs others?:For the non-pro that is seeking a light-weight point and shot zoom this is by far is my choice. Previously I used a Cannon 420 sx for 10 years that became my trusted companion for hiking, hunting, fishing, cycling, traveling and family photos.I thought I had bought new but checked as it arrived with a stamp "used but in good condition.” I was frantic. I checked and did buy used but this thing was exactly like new without the box but wrapped safely. It comes with one battery, a stand alone charger, strap, lens cover and I think a 32 GB ultra 1 sd card but not sure and no way top check now. I use Macro for flowers and the rest of its use I keep on live. Its not a $5000 camera so don’t expect its processes to be that equivalent. For < $500 its an absolute steal!