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Minolta Dimage 7Hi

Minolta updates their revolutionary five-megapixel electronic SLR with an external flash sync connection, faster continuous mode, an "extra fine" JPEG option, and increased color space flexibility.

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Page 7:Shutter Lag & Cycle Time Tests
Review First Posted: 10/15/2002

Shutter Lag/Cycle Times
When you press the shutter release on a digital camera, there's usually a lag time before the shutter actually fires. This time allows the autofocus and autoexposure mechanisms to do their work and can amount to a significant delay in some situations. Since this number is rarely reported by manufacturers or reviewers, and can significantly affect the picture-taking experience, I routinely measure shutter lag and cycle times using a custom electronic test setup I designed and built for the purpose.

Minolta Dimage 7Hi Timings

Operation Time (secs) Notes

Power On -> First shot 3.2
Time from power-up to first shot. Fairly fast.

Shutdown 2.4
Time to finish writing average large/fine file to the CF card. Fairly fast. No lens to retract though, so you can put the camera away as soon as you turn it off.

Play to Record, first shot 1.4
Time until first shot is captured. Pretty fast.

Record to play (high/low res) 1.5/1.4
First time is for immediate switch after pressing shutter, second is time to display image from quiescent state in capture mode. Top numbers for high res, bottom for low. Pretty fast.

Shutter lag, full autofocus
(Area mode) 0.64/0.65 Longer time is for telephoto, shorter for wide angle. Very fast, much more so than most competing models.

Shutter lag, full autofocus
(Focus Point mode) 0.64/0.83 Note that the Focus Point AF mode slows the camera's response when the lens is set to telephoto focal lengths.

Shutter lag, manual focus 0.184 Very fast.

Shutter lag, prefocus 0.055 Blazingly fast, as fast as high-end pro SLRs in this mode.

Cycle Times 1.16/12.3
1.34/1.85

2.67/15

1.9/9.8
First row is for large/fine files. First number is for first 6-7 shots, until buffer fills. Second is after buffer fill, with fast CF card. Second row is small/economy (~21 shot buffer capacity). Third row is time for TIFF files with fast card. (3 shot buffer capacity). Fourth row is for RAW format files. (5 shot buffer capacity) Overall, very good speeds and buffer capacities.

Cycle time, continuous mode
0.8
(1.25 frames/sec) Continuous mode can capture 7-9 frames at this speed, before having to wait for the memory card. Once the buffer is full, you can snap additional shots as the buffer memory empties. With a fast card, it empties in 30 seconds or so, but can take over a minute with a slow one.

Cycle time, UHS continuous
0.140
(7.14 frames/sec) Ultra High Speed continuous mode forces the resolution to 1280x960, but the frame rate is pretty amazing. Maximum sequence length is also a pretty amazing 80-90 frames.

Overall, the Dimage 7Hi is a pretty fast camera. The 7Hi uses the same faster autofocus system we first saw in the Dimage 7i, so shutter lag is quite a bit faster than average, even in full autofocus mode. Manual focus is also a good bit quicker than average, and prefocus shutter delay is positively blazing. Shot to shot cycle times are also very good, helped by the roomy buffer memory that can handle 6-8 high resolution images at a time. Compared to the 7i, the 7Hi now supports TIFF capture with it's buffer memory as well, allowing rapid-fire acquisition of up to 3 uncompressed TIFF images before you have to wait for the buffer memory to clear. The newly-added RAW file format also takes advantage of the buffer, allowing up to 8 shots to be captured quickly in that mode. With an appropriately fast memory card, buffer clear times are quite good. Of all the prosumer digicams I've tested, the D7Hi is one of the best suited for sports and other fast action, with its faster than average shutter response, short cycle times, excellent continuous mode recording options, and long, sharp lens.

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Minolta Dimage 7Hi Timings
Operation	Time (secs)	Notes
Power On -> First shot	3.2	Time from power-up to first shot. Fairly fast.
Shutdown	2.4	Time to finish writing average large/fine file to the CF card. Fairly fast. No lens to retract though, so you can put the camera away as soon as you turn it off.
Play to Record, first shot	1.4	Time until first shot is captured. Pretty fast.
Record to play (high/low res)	1.5/1.4	First time is for immediate switch after pressing shutter, second is time to display image from quiescent state in capture mode. Top numbers for high res, bottom for low. Pretty fast.
Shutter lag, full autofocus (Area mode)	0.64/0.65	Longer time is for telephoto, shorter for wide angle. Very fast, much more so than most competing models.
Shutter lag, full autofocus (Focus Point mode)	0.64/0.83	Note that the Focus Point AF mode slows the camera's response when the lens is set to telephoto focal lengths.
Shutter lag, manual focus	0.184	Very fast.
Shutter lag, prefocus	0.055	Blazingly fast, as fast as high-end pro SLRs in this mode.
Cycle Times	1.16/12.3 1.34/1.85 2.67/15 1.9/9.8	First row is for large/fine files. First number is for first 6-7 shots, until buffer fills. Second is after buffer fill, with fast CF card. Second row is small/economy (~21 shot buffer capacity). Third row is time for TIFF files with fast card. (3 shot buffer capacity). Fourth row is for RAW format files. (5 shot buffer capacity) Overall, very good speeds and buffer capacities.
Cycle time, continuous mode	0.8 (1.25 frames/sec)	Continuous mode can capture 7-9 frames at this speed, before having to wait for the memory card. Once the buffer is full, you can snap additional shots as the buffer memory empties. With a fast card, it empties in 30 seconds or so, but can take over a minute with a slow one.
Cycle time, UHS continuous	0.140 (7.14 frames/sec)	Ultra High Speed continuous mode forces the resolution to 1280x960, but the frame rate is pretty amazing. Maximum sequence length is also a pretty amazing 80-90 frames.