Finished the rolls in the Ricoh T500 and the Canon Z70W. Developed and scanned the films...but not yet ready to share... In the mean time, let's talk about the next 2 cameras up.
First we have the Pentax IQZoom 70. Nice hefty chunk of plastic. No apparent concern for minimizing the size or weight. No curved lines to give the impression of ergonimic goodness. Just a brick. It's got basic on/off/auto flash controls, a macro mode and a backlight button. It sports a 35mm to 70mm lens. Just the stuff you need, nothing else.
Up against the Pentax is a later model Minolta Explorer Freedom Zoom. The lens has a nice wider 28mm - 70mm zoom. All the edges are curved and it's got a good number of bells and whistles. Like the Pentax, it has a controllable flash and a macro mode and the hated data back. Unlike the Pentax, it adds a psuedo panoramic mode that just blocks off the top and bottom of the negative. Worse than useless that feature is. The Minolta feels good in the hand and is maybe 2/3rds the size and weight of the Pentax.
I gave the Minolta to my younger son to shoot with over the weekend, so that roll is about half gone.
I don't have any particularly high or low expectations for these cameras. I'm pretty certain they were both solid examples of their types and times. We'll see what shooting shows me.
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