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Canon PowerShot A490 10 0 MP Digital Camera with 3 3x Optical Zoom and 2 5 Inch LCD

Canon PowerShot A490 10 0 MP Digital Camera with 3 3x Optical Zoom and 2 5 Inch LCD

Spark Your Imagination.
With its streamlined silhouette and smoothly-curved edges, the Canon PowerShot A490 has the compact sophistication and relaxed simplicity that make it a natural for beginners and everyone else who craves style and convenience. The 10.0 Megapixel resolution and 3.3x Optical Zoom make it easy to capture the action in dazzling color and brilliant detail. The DIGIC III Image Processor keeps it all looking sharp. A bright, bold 2.5-inch LCD makes shooting and playback a genuine pleasure.

Features

Easy to use, powerful A-Series camera has 10.0 Megapixel and 3.3x Optical Zoom makes picture taking a snap!
Smart AUTO will do the work for you by intelligently selecting the proper settings for the camera based on 13 predefined shooting situations.
Low Light mode enables great shots in dimly lit situations, while Smart Flash Exposure technology enables the user to balance the flash to avoid over or under exposure.
Large, clear 2.5-inch LCD makes taking and viewing images a breeze.
This AA battery-powered camera enables you to easily power up on the go!

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Canon Powershot A490
So far, we’re happy with this camera. It does not come with a card, so be prepared for that.

It is small and has a handy little carrying case; more lightweight than our previous Canons.

And the pictures have been fine.

1 Star works only on flash
without flash, picture and video quality is very poor, video is dull, picture colors get off, forget about taking a picture of none-still person. the picture size is big but it doesn’t guaranty good quality.

the picture quality is good with the flash, but it doesn’t last long, the “Charging the flash” message between pictures appeared after 20 shots on a new pair of battery.

4 Stars Good camera for a low price
I’ve had this camera for two weeks, and I’m almost completely satisfied.

Good:

Easy to use for basic point-and-shoot pictures and zooming

Quick to turn on

Picture quality is good

Not so good:

Several of our outdoor zoomed pictures had a noticable streak/lens flare if the camera was pointed in the same general direction as the sun.

As with most digital cameras, the instructions are skimpy and the features are indicated by cryptic little icons.

The screen seems fragile, although nothing has damaged it yet. Maybe not a problem.

Overall, not perfect, but quite worth the price.

3 Stars Well…
This camera takes GORGEOUS pictures, however, the battery life REALLY SUCKS!!! I bought the camera as a gift and my mom loves it, however, she says, “I have to carry about 50 batteries when I go out”. That part of it is sad…however, the pictures come out amazing!!!

5 Stars Never underestimate this camera’s performance by its low price.
The irony in the camera’s world is the cheaper the camera, the better the picture quality. This is true at least in my case. For years I’ve owned the following cameras in the order of their prices:

Canon A490 ($95) (5 stars)

Canon Xsi ($612) (5 stars)

Canon T2i ($849) (4 stars)

Nikon D70 ($1,000) (4 stars)

Canon 50D ($1,110) (3 stars)

Unfortunately, the order of the picture quality is just the opposite—Canon A490 being the best (5-star) and Canon 50D being the worst.

You can never complain anything about A490. Too bad I can’t post here stunningly beautiful pictures taken with my A490 that I recently purchased from Amazon.

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Photography | admin | August 14, 2010 1:42 pm | Comments (0)

Canon PowerShot SX120IS 10MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Images Stabilized Zoom and 3 inch LCD

Canon PowerShot SX120IS 10MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Images Stabilized Zoom and 3 inch LCD

– 10.0 Megapixels- 10x optical zoom with optical image stabilizer-3.0 LCD- DIGIC(R) 4 image processor-Smart auto intelligently selects the proper setting for the camera based on 22 predefined shooting situations-Easy mode takes the guess work out of the equation by determining the right shooting mode for the situation- Requires AA batteries

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Fantastic Camera for all Users
A wonderful camera, despite the user’s skill level.

Because of the size and weight, the portability isn’t exactly optimized, but it’s far better than carrying around a full size professional SLR.

Pictures are of amazing quality- don’t bother spending an extra $50-$75 for two more mega pixels! The zoom is wonderful- it’s a great camera. I’m very happy with it, and recently bought it to take it with me to a 5 week study abroad trip in London. It never let me down!

Another great feature is that the camera has a setting where the front display tells you how many pictures it has left on the memory card based on what setting you’re using.

IMAGE STABILIZATION is a life saver- especially for a traveller- and nearly guarantees a great picture every time. Easy to use camera- you turn it on and within seconds you know how to use it.

3 Stars Very pleased with picture quality – until it broke!
This camera produced some beautiful pictures for me…but then it broke after less than two weeks of heavy use. So it gets three stars.

Despite it’s early demise, this camera and I took about 600 pictures at different settings and got to know each other quite well.

Dislikes:

- Bulky and heavy. There is no way to comfortable carry this camera around and still have it readily available, unless you hang a case around your neck or on you belt. Compared to other digital cameras, this puppy is huge!

- No decent dynamic range compensation. If you’re background is very bright, don’t try to take pictures of dark subjects. Also, I found it impossible to take good pictures of people wearing baseball-style hats in bright sunlight, because the camera either the face was too shadowed to recognize or the highlights were completely blown out.

- In program mode, the camera always defaults back to the ‘center averaged’ exposure control setting, which sucked when taking high-contrast photos. Using ‘spot metering’ was the only way I could get acceptable shots of people and bright backgrounds.

- No zoom during video. I’ve owned other a-series before, and this has always been an annoyance. I was able to take some good video of a helicopter as it landed, but it took about six tries. Also, camera shake is pretty bad during the video without having some kind of object to stabalize your hand on.

- No wide angle lens. Really missed this during group shots.

- Durability. After less than a month of ownership, the camera simply froze. I couldn’t get the screen to turn on or the lens to retract. This is the second time a canon has done this to me, and the last time I will be buying one for the foreseeable future. To be fair, it did experience some hot and dusty conditions, but my Panasonic has been through similar conditions and three years later still works just fine.

Likes:

- At its best, this camera took pictures to rival a DSLR. Seriously, I took pictures alongside another person with a Canon Rebel, and our pictures came out very similar. We even switched cameras for a bit and the only real improvement I noticed was the almost instantaneous focusing speed of the rebel. Reviewing the images, I also noticed that the rebel produced a very nice background blur for portrait shots, while the background remained sharp for the A120IS. But at a $800 price difference, I was very happy with my camera. Also, its smaller size meant that I caught more spontaneous shots than her because I could carry my camera with me everywhere.

- AA batteries. I spent two weeks with no electricity and never had to worry. This camera ate a set of batteries every day and a half, but I brought about a million AA’s so it wasn’t a problem. It also accounts for most of the bulk of the camera, but it was worth it to be able to take as many pictures as I wanted.

- Fast. From sitting in my helmet on the ground, to taking a very nice picture of a fire truck speeding by was just a few seconds. I never missed a shot because the camera wasn’t fast enough.

- Long zoom. With the lens fully extended, this camera picked up on slightly more details than I could see with my naked eye. There was also no distortion at all.

- Decent low-light photography. This camera had a hard time with multiple fast-moving subjects under florescent lights, but that is very forgivable. Otherwise, it performed relatively well in dim lighting conditions.

Overall, I was very happy with this camera. For a very low price, it took some gorgeous pictures. It’s definitely fighting above it’s weight class. Yes, you make some trade offs, but if you’re looking for something cheap, AA battery powered that still takes good pictures, I would highly recommend this camera to you.

I would say this camera’s ideal use is as a back-up camera or as a vacation camera. Just don’t expect it to last.

5 Stars I LOVE THIS CAMERA!!!!!
I just received this yesterday. Was out yesterday and today testing it out. Replaced it with an old canon s400 which was great so I figured Canon was the way to go. The Zoom works great and the pictures in high resolution are lifelike. Can’t comment on battery life yet but I have taken a couple hundred pictures at least on the original batteries that came with camera. Went and bought the Sanyo Eneloop 4 Pack AA NiMH Pre-Charged Rechargable Batteries w/ Charger from amazon since battery life seemed to be lacking from previous reviews. All I can really say is this is the best camera I have ever used and I thank God that I was born at a time of such great technological advances.

3 Stars Doesn’t replace Powershot S2 IS
I purchased this PowerShoot SX120IS to replace my Powershot S2 IS, which functioned very well for me but started using batteries at a prodigious rate. The “upgrade” was less than satisfactory.

1) Shape & size: The shape and smaller size of the SX120 do not allow me to get a firm and comfortable grasp of the camera with my left hand.

2) Weight: I prefer the additional weight of the S2, suspecting that I had less camera shake.

3) Viewfinder: I have never had a camera until now without a viewfinder. I thought I could adjust to its lack in the SX120, but this is like waking up in the morning with my right arm missing. Well, perhaps a touch of hyperbole.

4) LCD monitor. The larger LCD monitor on the SX120 is fun, and makes messages easy to read. The monitor on the S2, however, could swing out and swivel up or down, making it ideal for shots in a crowd with the camera above the head or a horizontal shot in the wetlands at ground level.

5) Neck strap: The S2 had two eyelets for a neckstrap, which was ideal for the way I used the camera–hands free until I needed the camera, but the camara immediately accessible. The SX120 has only one eyelet for a small hand strap, requiring one hand to hold the camera, or requiring the camera to be tucked into a case.

6) User manual: I referred to the substantial user manual for the S2 often enough that I packed it in the camera case. The user manual for the SX120 is only online.

The functions for the two cameras are similar but not identical, and the ways of accessing them are sufficiently alike that the transition from the S2 to the SX120 was smooth. The Easy mode of the SX120 is a handy way for another family member to use the camera without giving detailed instructions.

I’ll get along with this camera, but for things that are important to me, this is a downgrade. I wish that I had researched this purchase more thoroughly.

5 Stars Canon PowerShot SX120IS 10MP Digital Camera
DEMASIADO BUENA LA CALIDAD DE LAS FOTOGRAF

Photography | admin | 8:56 am | Comments (0)

Canon PowerShot SX20IS 12 1MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 2 5 inch Articulating LCD

Canon PowerShot SX20IS 12 1MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 2 5 inch Articulating LCD

With the classically stylish PowerShot SX20 IS, you can produce magnificent HD movies and dazzling photos. Loaded with features, it’s got a high-powered 20x Wide-Angle Optical Zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer, 12.1 Megapixels, a big 2.5-inch Vari-Angle LCD, Blink Detection and more.

This high-powered 20x Wide-angle Optical Zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer reduces camera shake so you achieve magnificent images whether you are up close or far away.
Provides flexibility to use the optical zoom while shooting superb 720p HD movies with stereo sound so you can fully capture those fun, memorable moments, with an HDMI output connector for easy playback on your HDTV.
Improved Smart AUTO intelligently selects the proper settings for the camera based on 22 predefined shooting situations.
This classically styled DIGIC 4 Image Processor, 12.1 Megapixel camera is a perfect device for any shooter!
Large 2.5-inch Vari-angle LCD enables easy viewing.
This AA battery powered camera enables you to easily power up.
View Sample Images

Powerful Zoom, True-to-Life Imaging.
This high-powered 20x Wide-angle Optical Zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer reduces camera shake so you achieve magnificent images whether you are up close or far away.

The PowerShot SX20 IS is equipped with a 20x Optical Zoom lens with a focal length of 5.0 – 100mm (35mm equivalent: 28 – 560mm) that allows you to shoot any scene from wide-angle to telephoto. The camera uses a VCM (Voice Coil Motor) for high-speed, quiet, energy-efficient lens movement with precise control. Focal length is conveniently indicated on the lens barrel.

The lens is optimized to fully exploit its zoom length and wide shooting angle in concert with the camera’s high 12.1 Megapixel resolution. UD glass effectively suppresses chromatic aberration, while enhanced negative refractive power ensures that distortion at the wide-angle is also corrected. Further aberration is controlled with the in

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Canon PowerShot SX20IS delivers great pictures
I have a PowerShot S5 and so was already familiar with the Canon features and workings. The PowerShot SX20IS delivers great pictures, great DVD quality video, great audio, and does it all in about the same size and weight as the PowerShot S5. The 20X zoom is really great. The wide-angle zoom provides a very wide fiedl of view with very little edge distortion. In most cases, I was able to stitch together panoramas using the wide-angle lens photos without a problem. Coupled with the anti-vibration feature, you can take great telephoto shots. The only thing I wished it would do that it doesn’t is to allow longer than 15 second exposures. Otherwise, it does everything I want and much more.

5 Stars Review by amateur
I bought this camera because I wanted the terrific zoom lens, a variable angle LCD, jpeg photos, and a viewfinder. I previously had a Canon so I figured the learning curve would not be too steep. The camera is more than I expected, actually, and now I’m interested in learning about it. It’s a shame that Canon is too cheap to include a Users’ Manual. Someone has written a book for the Canon Powershot SX20 with good ratings on amazon (but for $30), so I’m going to buy that, although it irritates me to have to do so.

I do wish the lens cap was attached. I’ve already lost mine and will have to get another.

4 Stars Looking for a “bridge” camera? here you go…
I got this camera about a week ago and have been satisfied with it so far. I bought it for a trip to Australia later this year. am new to photography and wanted to get my feet wet with something more than a pocket point & shoot, but less bluky and cheaper than a DSLR or even a mini DSLR like the Rebel. aside from the bulk of carrying lenses, i wasnt quite ready to make the jump to a $700-$1000 camera.

As far as bridge cameras go, this seems to be a great way to go. the picture quality is quite good and photos come in nice and sharp when properly exposed. having said that, this camera is not a point and shoot. it is also not a DSLR. if you are expecting a substitute for a $2000 camera, you will be left wanting. I also find it the make some questionable exposure settings when i leave it on AUTO. it is fairly good size, not something that i would be able to put in my pocket. but it could fit into a midsized purse or a day pack fairly easily for a trip when you know you will be taking pics.

back to the point that this is not a DSLR. this camera cost $360! it is not a replacement for a full size, interchangeable lense camera with a full image sensor. having said that, the lense is quite amazing. at the wide angel, you get the full 28mm (35mm film equiv) and at full zoom, you get the equivilent of 560mm. and that lense offers surpirsing image quality over the whole spectrum. it does slow down (allow less light to reach the sensor) to F5.7 at 560mm, but it offers a steller F2.8 at full wideview. the image stableization also workes wonders on this lense.

the sensor chip on this is not the full size offered in DSLRs, this camera does have some low light noise. i found that on AUTO or P, the ISO would go up to 800 on a well lite indoor subject. i manually brought that down to 200, and still ended up with well lit photos without the noise. i cannot speak for the low light performance compared to other cameras in this class, but i have found little fault so long as you are prepared to dabble in the manual settings. just dont expect it to be as clear in low light as your D5.

The manual modes all seem straigh forward. you can switch between apature and shutter speed with a flick of the thumb, and both are readily controled by the central wheel. ISO is also easily accessable on the main wheel and the majority of the buttons are laid out with at least some amount of common sense. the menu is also easily navigated and offers a number of settings from flash strenght to power settings.

the flip screen is nice, although it seems like more of a novelty than anyhting else, i usually just flip it back to “normal” against the back of the camera view. the resolution of the image is quite good. which is fortunate because the smaller eye viewfinder is of relativly poor resolution. this is one of my gripes with this camera. if you are going to include a viewfinder, at least give it as good of resolution as the main screen. it is pretty much worthless for determining focus or fine picture taking.

I strongly recommend that you spend the $12 on the aluminum 58mm lense thread adapter. this camera does not come with one and while i do little in the way of filters, i do like having a clear UV filter to protect my lense.

This camera also has a hot shoe for those of you who will be doing anything that requires a finner tuch than the built in flash. i would by one if i were to do pictures for anything like a wedding where the built in would be to direct.

The 4 AA batteries were one of the buying points for me. It is good to always be able to get batteries and since i currently live in italy, and i travel alot, being able to carry or buy spares is important. on that note, i have taken about 200 pics, many with flash and about 8 min of HD Video (looks and sounds great BTW) and the batteries are still going strong.

over all i am happy with my purchas and think that this camera is going to end up being a good camera at a good price. I will provide more of a review after i get to use it more on my trip.

5 Stars 3rd Canon of this type
Just a brief review of the 3rd Canon I have purchased. I started w/ the S5IS, then the S10IS and now the S20IS. I bought this one because it recorded video in High Def. The extra zoom and extra pixels are nice for cropping and the pop up help captions reviewing the manual functions were very useful. I am not an expert photographer, however based on the comments of many who review the pictures I keep they are amazed. I kept with the canon’s because all of the accessories are compatible, very little learning curve. I never run out of fresh batteries, and the other family members love when I upgrade. It is an awesome point and shoot camera. I made the decision that we will look allot more at stills than sitting down to watch videos. So I concentrated on the picture taking and I am glad that at any second I can push the video record button and almost as much control of the video, zoom etc., as a real video camcorder. The video is more than good enough for family movies and fun caught on the spot. So if you like taking allot of pictures and your family isn’t interested in learning all of the manual controls associated with this camera, this would be a great buy. I have tinkered with many of the manual settings and have caught many awesome pictures. My only beef is that the lens cap isn’t connected. I fixed that myself.

5 Stars only camera you’ll ever need
Got it a couple days ago…Made in Japan!! Bought the Adapter and a Extreme 3#10 SD card…8GB….So far I’m very happy with this camera….Hope to pu small bag on Sat….Had a good UV filter left over from SLR…Perfect with adapter….Had some eneloop Batt as well….Oh yeah….Bought lens cap holder…..My 58mm cap is much better fit…..Like I said….Made in Japan…..

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Photography | admin | 5:32 am | Comments (0)

Canon PowerShot SX210IS 14 1 MP Digital Camera with 14x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 3 0 Inch LCD Black

Canon PowerShot SX210IS 14 1 MP Digital Camera with 14x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 3 0 Inch LCD Black

Feature-rich for All Around Value.

Decidedly slim and sleekly refined, the PowerShot SX210 IS packs a feature set that reads like a wish list. The 14.1 Megapixel CCD joins a 14x 28mm Wide-Angle Zoom for imaging power to spare. Frame your shots in the bright 3.0-inch widescreen PureColor System LCD, with the Low Light mode for sharp images in dimly-lit situations. It also captures stunning HD movies with Dynamic mode for enhanced image stabilization when shooting movies using wide-angle settings. Capture smooth HD video (720p) with stereo sound for a truly natural, high-quality HD experience. The PowerShot SX210 IS not only goes wherever you do, but takes your photography and video to a whole new place, too.

Features

Powerful 14x Optical Zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer.
Improved Dynamic mode for enhanced image stabilization when shooting movies using the wide-angle setting.
14.1 Megapixel resolution will generate 16.5″ x 23.4″ prints.
28mm Wide-Angle Lens to capture more in your frame.
Large 3.0-inch wide PureColor System LCD with high resolution (230,400 dots) and wide viewing angle.
HD shooting capability at 720p with stereo sound plus HDMI output for easy playback of video and photos.
DIGIC 4 Image Processor with evolved Face Detection Technology tracks the faces of moving subjects and lets the shooter enter the frame seamlessly with Face Detection Self-Timer.
New scene modes for more creative shooting (Fisheye Effect creates a circular fish-eye appearance and Miniature Effect creates a graduated blur on outer edges of the subject).
Smart AUTO mode (22 Scene) intelligently selects the proper settings for the camera based on the shooting conditions of the scene as well as Face and Motion Detection.
Servo AF/AE continues to focus and track subject while pressing the shutter button halfway.
Smart Flash Exposure produces natural looking photos when using the flash to photograph subjects in strong s

User Ratings and Reviews

3 Stars No HDMI cable
Just got the camera, and so far so good. nice quality photos and innovative features. But it reacts a little slower than I hoped for – my 7 year old Sony is about the same speed – albeit 1/3 the mega pixels. But I’m a little disapointed that a camera touting HDMI output requires me to get cable separately (they include an analog style red/white/yellow cable like what you used with a VCR) So I will have to wait for the accessory cable to arrive to see how my photos and videos look on the 50″ plasma. I skipped the canon brand $40 HDMI and ordered a $4 no name brand. Keep in mind this is mini hdmi to hdmi. I jut feel that for the price $329 they could include the cable that takes advantage of HD video and HDMI output offered on this model.

BTW my charger is a nice compact unit with a built in plug – nice to avoid yet another charger cable.

3 Stars Good camera, only if you know what you’re getting
This review is my personal opinion. I bought this camera elsewhere, but Amazon is still perfectly safe. The SX210IS has a wide screen LCD. This is great is you like to take a lot of movies. If not, the screen is just too big for the pictures that it takes. I bought it mistakenly thinking that it could take shots in the same shape as a print, that is 4 by 6. But this camera does not do that. It takes 4:3 shots and 16:9 shots (as in standard and wide screen TVs). Most folks will want 4:3 and for this, the screen is too wide. The camera has what reviewers call “heft.” I call it heavy. Too heavy for my shirt pocket. On the plus side, it takes very decent pictures and has a number of settings usually found on SLRs, such as Aperture and Speed priorities. In short, if you want a mini-SLR and you don’t mind the default 4:3, than this camera will work great. On the other hand, if you want a second camera, one to just throw in your purse or carry in your pocket, then look for something lighter.

5 Stars Great Camera!
The picture quality is great and the size and weight are perfect. I wanted a camera small enough to carry around in my purse but that also created great quality pictures and that is exactly what I found in this camera.

5 Stars Love it!
This is a great camera. It takes beautiful pictures about as well as an SLR camera! The only downfall, is the high amount of megapixels make the videos harder to download. Not a big problem and its worth it for the beautiful pictures!

4 Stars My thoughts on SX210
First off – background on me and what I was looking for: I would classify myself as an intermediate photographer. I own a Nikon DSLR which I use primarily for low light situations having learned the hardway at my son’s 18th birthday that my old point-and-shoot did a lousy job of photos in low light situations. I am planning a trip to Europe in the fall and simply did not want to lug my Nikon camera around with me along with all the other stuff – like map, dictionary, travel guide – that I would have to take with me as I wandered around whatever town I was in. So I started my search for a really good PNS camera. What was I looking for in the PNS ? My goal in picture taking is to have a terrific photo of what I actually saw. So when I got home and looked at the photo, I would say: Yes, that’s exactly what it looked like when I was there. So onto my criteria: First size. I wanted it to be small enough to fit comfortably in a pocket. Second, confidence that it would take good to great photos under normal (not low-light) conditions. Third, I liked the idea of HD videos of my trip, so I wanted that capability. Fourth and finally, at least decent performance in low light conditions as I expected to frequently want to take photos inside a museum or art gallery.

The search turned out to be much more difficult than I had expected. Frustratingly difficult I will add. No one camera is loved by all reviewers. So those of you reading this review, who are still searching, I feel your pain. I came to the conclusion that currently there is no perfect PNS that does it all. I would do hours of research on the web and then go to the local camera store to actually play with the PNS cameras that had caught my interest. In the end I concluded that there are 3 or 4 reasonably good PNS cameras out there, but all of them required me to compromise on something I wanted. So figure out what your must-haves are and sort through the available cameras accordingly.

Obviously I chose the Canon SX210. I have had it about 3 weeks now and have taken about 200 photos and about 6 HD movies. My comments in no particular order:

1. the Canon does a good but not outstanding job of taking photos under normal daylight conditions. I did play with several photos on my computer and kept zooming in on a particular point to see when the picture would deteriorate. Of course it did eventually, but again, since 8.5 x 11 is the max size I expect for any enlargement, I do not see any problem with the picture quality.

2. the HD video capability is more fun than I had expected. Again as already noted, the mic’s are located on the top of the camera. Great for recording my commentary, but not so good for recording sounds coming from whatever you are videoing. One other point: the Canon allows you to zoom in while taking an HD video. That’s great, but with 14X optical zoom, the more you zoom, the more susceptible the camera and the video you are taking is to shaking. If you zoom all the way to 14X, I found it impossible to avoid shaking when holding the camera in my hand. At no zoom, there is no problem with shake when taking a video. Bottom line: limit your zooming in when taking a video.

3. I agree with everyone else that placement of the pop-up flash and the telephoto zoom in-and-out mechanism is NUTS. What were the Canon engineers thinking ? However both are annoyances rather than deal-breakers.

4. the battery life is reasonable but not outstanding. I never ran out of battery life during a day of shooting photos and the battery re-charges in about 2-3 hours. Not bad.

5. Speed – I bought 2 Sandisk Extreme III 4 GB Class 6 SD disks. I agree with the suggestions that you have to step up to a Class 6 disk to avoid serious delays when writing the photo to the disk. I also decided against one 8GB disk since I did not want all my pics on one disk. Back to speed – I also turned off the automatic review after each photo taken, and found that improved the speed of the picture taking noticeably. You can also turn on continuous picture taking and take a “burst” of photos if so desired. Bottom Line: speed is fast enough for my needs.

6. Definitely buy a plastic shield (or cover?) to protect the 3″ LCD screen on the back. The Apple Store has them if you can’t find them cheaper any place else.

7. The camera feels surprisingly heavy to me. But solid. I guess 14X optical zoom does create some weight.

8. I set the camera on 9MP pictures since 14MP is overkill for me. I would never enlarge a photo to more than 8.5 x 11 anyway. I left the movie on HD settings however. Dumming down the photos to 9MP also improves the write-to-disk speed BTW.

9. Expect a serious learning curve with this camera. I printed out the manual from the PDF file and it is 180 pages. Not all was relevant to me and my interests, but still I have spent several hours reading and re-reading sections of the manual. Since I will not take the manual with me on my upcoming trip, I have to know how to manipulate this camera.

10. The 14X optical zoom is really impressive. While that was not a top consideration for me, having that capability is very cool. You can easily zoom in to an amazing degree on something from a considerable distance away.

11. Low-light – I am still working on this one and how to manipulate the camera to get the best LL photos. In dim lighting it does OK – by upping the ISO, so you pay a price in the quality of the photo. In the black of night – it does OK if the subject of the photo is not more than 6-8 ft away from you. But I tried a photo at night of the moon shining off the Pacific ocean from my balcony and that did not work. Not a real surprise, but like I said, I need to experiment more in this area.

In summary – I would describe this camera as being a really solid good versatile PNS. You can put it on full Auto and snap away happily, or switch to one of several pre-defined settings (landscape, portrait etc), or if you are really into it, go all the way to completely manual and set everything yourself. That’s not for me – but you do have that capability. The HD Videos are great, but even a short one takes up about 80-90MB of disk space. And as noted, you are unlikely to pick up the sounds from whatever it is you are videoing. PS: I have never encountered the much discussed problem with lens shadow.

All-in-all a solid performer in an amazingly small form factor that will do what I am looking for and more on my upcoming trip to Europe.

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Tags: Angle Settings, Canon Powershot, Detection Technology, Dynamic Mode, Eye Appearance, Face Detection, Fish Eye, Image Processor, Image Stabilizer, Inch Widescreen, Light Mode, Megapixel Ccd, Motion Detection, Optical Image, Outer Edges, Proper Settings, Self Timer, Smart Auto, Whil, Wide Angle Lens

Photography | admin | August 12, 2010 10:50 pm | Comments (0)

Canon PowerShot G11 10MP Digital Camera with 5x Wide Angle Optical Stabilized Zoom and 2 8 inch articulating LCD

Canon PowerShot G11 10MP Digital Camera with 5x Wide Angle Optical Stabilized Zoom and 2 8 inch articulating LCD

The G Series Comes Full Circle.
You asked, and Canon not only listened, but delivered big-time. Advanced amateurs who have overwhelmingly embraced the G Series will be delighted with the PowerShot G11, which features RAW mode for unlimited editing options, a 28mm wide-angle lens, and a 2.8-inch Vari-Angle PureColor System LCD. Add to that Canon’s new High Sensitivity System and high-speed ISO for incredible image quality, and Canon’s top-range compact digital camera is a truly groundbreaking successor.

New 10.0 Megapixel sensor coupled with Canon’s DIGIC 4 Image Processor designed as the High Sensitivity System for improved low light image performance.
Full range of shooting and recording modes including RAW + JPEG for the ultimate creative control.
Large, bright 2.8-inch Vari-angle LCD with 461,000 dots for shooting at a variety of angles plus an optical viewfinder.
A host of optional accessories including Speedlite flashes, underwater housing and Tele-Converter Lens are available.
A high-powered Wide-Angle 5x Optical Zoom (equivalent to 28 – 140mm) with Canon’s Optical Image Stabilizer gets you up close and personal to your subjects.
DIGIC 4 Image Processor improves the overall camera performance.
HDMI output for viewing still images on an HDTV.
Improved Smart AUTO intelligently selects the proper setting for the camera based on 22 predefined shooting situations.

Image Quality That’s Better Than Ever.
New 10.0 Megapixel sensor coupled with Canon’s DIGIC 4 Image Processor designed as the High Sensitivity System for improved low light image performance.
The PowerShot G11 employs a newly-developed, 10.0 Megapixel High Sensitivity System by combining a powerful CCD sensor and Canon’s DIGIC 4 Image Processor. Thanks to this technological advancement, the G11 is dramatically more sensitive than cameras with identical megapixel counts, and delivers spectacular images with minimal noise. Increased sensitivity d

User Ratings and Reviews

1 Star Poor Sensor Quality
I will never buy Canon again. The “G” series is not as good as you think. My G9 sensor failed within 18 months. I sent it in to Canon for repair $169. Worked fine for 11 months, then the new sensor failed, with multiple dead pixels, and a phantom “line” vertically across my photos. For the price of these cameras, this is not acceptable.

Canon failed to make ANY sort of concession, they suggested I buy a NEW Canon. Right. A casual user might not notice the dead pixels cropping up, if they don’t do large prints. I suggest previous owners who have given good reviews take a “pixel-eye” view of their latest photos to see what I mean. They may be changing their ratings.

5 Stars Canon G11 SDHC Memory Recommendation and Features
I’ll get around to the memory recommendation in a minute. I purchased the Canon G11 and a Canon underwater housing (130′ rated) for scuba diving. The combo works very well together. The camera has an underwater preset mode which produces exceptional scuba diving photos. The G11 was a little intimidating at first but after a few hours of punching buttons and reading the manual, it was clear that the camera has many advanced features and wasn’t all that difficult to use. It includes numerous preset modes, (underwater,snow,portrait,action,foliage,etc,etc,etc)to make taking great pictures easy. I was truly inpressed with the possibilities. I have taken numerous stills (with and without enhancements)and videos. The photos and video have been impressive. It can do color swap, and color enhancements, like taking a picture of a child holding a red rose and only the red rose has color, the child can remain black and white. Very cool stuff.

Back to the memory thing….

I wanted to know what Size (GB) and Class (2,4,6,10) of SDHC card Canon recommended to optimize the cameras performance. The new SDHC cards have a Size in gigabytes and a Class. (Some cards show a Multiplier like 100x, 133x or even 400x). The Class and the Multiplier are essentially the same thing, transfer speeds. The bigger the number the faster the transfer rate.

The camera doesn’t come with a memory card and the manual doesn’t tell you what to buy. So, I sent a note to Canon and they responded within 24 hours and answered me on a Sunday. “Thumbs up” on Canon Customer Service.

Here is there response:

Thank you for writing to us regarding Memory card choices for your PowerShot G11.

While we don’t publish the internal transfer rates for our cameras, the following information may assist you in deciding on memory cards:

Some memory cards rate their speeds by a “class.” Canon cameras are recommended to be used with cards rated are class 4 for SD (Standard Definition movies) and class 6 for HD (High Definition Movies) or higher because of the large amount of data being written to the card. As long as the card adheres to the following card standards, the memory card should be compatible regardless of the class or speed rating.

The PowerShot G11 will accept SDHC memory cards with a capacity of up to 32GB.

My Comments:

The cost for the SDHC cards vary all over the place. I have used a Class 2 card and it seemed to work fine. However, I wanted to see if bigger and faster was better so I ordered a Verbatim 16GB, Class 6 ($52). I got a “memory card error” with two of my cameras and now have to return it. (It was big, fast and cheap, but didn’t work). I have two other Sandisk Class 4 cards that work fine. So go with Sandisk. A little more money, but they work. I picked up a Sandisk SDHC 8GB Class 10 for around $58, shipped. The 8GB card gives you around 2990 photos or 240 minutes of video. The larger capacity cards seem to be exponentially more expensive. The Class 10 is fast enough for good recovery time between shots and high quality video. The Canon manual lists several different type of compatible memory, but go with the SDHC card.

I hope you find this helpful…..it’s a great camera, packed with features, and if you’re into scuba diving…even better.

3 Stars Huge disappointment after loving the G9 – all pictures are washed out – poor color quality1
I had the previous version, the Canon Powershot G9, and LOVED IT. It finally stopped working so I immediately ordered the most updated version, the G11. This camera was HORRIBLE. The color is completely washed out in every picture I took on my recent trip to Alaska, and is a huge disappointment. I even adjusted many different things along the way to try and remedy the color, but nothing worked. I will now spend much time “adjusting” the color using computer programs; which should not be required, but is the unfortunate situation. Positive features are the size, and a great battery life; however, if you are interested in a camera that will portray even a fraction of the vibrant colors and landscapes that you may encounter in amazing places like Alaska, look elsewhere. In addition, I am not sure why Canon chose to both reduce the megapixel size from previous versions (G9 was 12.0; G11 is 10.0) AND reduce the zoom range!

5 Stars Great camera!
Easy to use, great features ans not too bulky to carry around. Absolutely love this camera and the photos it takes!

5 Stars Great Camera!!!!
I love photography- I have been snapping and developing my own film for years. However, it is a pain to always lug my professional camera with me; especially if I just want a night on the town with my girlfriends. Plus, sometimes I would want someone to take a picture for me and unfortunately unless someone knew about professional SLR cameras no one could work mine! So I had been looking for a professional quality point and shoot with convenience and ease that even an amateur photographer could grasp. And this was it!!!! It take gorgeous high quality shots, yet is simple to use and the rotating screen is excellent for self timed pictures or hard to see areas! I highly recommend this camera to both first time buyers and long standing photographers!

Buy/More Info

Photography | admin | 11:05 am | Comments (0)

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