Отзывы о Цифровой Фотоаппарат Canon PowerShot SX160 IS

Great camera but don't expect it to last more than a year or so, battery door broken,dark burn spots against bright backgrounds, the video function is a novelty, lens sticky, sloooow especially w flash, all the markings have worn off but I plan on replacing it with another Canon point & shoot, my old Sony Cyber Shot is built like a tank, still works like new and takes crappy pics....

We went to the beach with a Canon Powershot. In the past with other digital cameras, there has always been a delay. But with
this one, my son threw up a handfull of goldfish to the seagulls, and I got pictures of the gold fish in mid-air with the
seagulls zooming toward them. No delay!!! Love it!!!
(This purchase of the Canon was my 2nd Canon Powershot A1000IS....I dropped the 1st one off a balcony at a magic show, and
could not recover it....so immediately raced home to get online to find the EXACT same one I dropped....Thank you for having it!!!) Robbie Vekselman

I bought this camera/camcorder hoping that because of its portability I would actually take more pictures and video of my family. (and I am!) in the past I was reluctant to drag out my considerably larger camcorder. this takes very nice pictures. I have a video of my daughter singing on youtube if you search under "emily sings at keikos recital" you can see the video quality. during the recording I decided to use the camera feature but there is a clicking sound
on the video because of this. I am hoping that I can
find a way to remove this sound from future videos. Also when taking a picture the video stops briefly.
the size of the camcorder/camera is very nice and I
haven't had any trouble understanding how to operate it. did a lot of research before purchasing this and overall am very pleased with it.

The Canon A580 an excellent camera for my needs as a normal family "snapper", plenty of features are available if required or the camera will look after itself in the "simple" mode,ideal for youngsters to use.

I have had this camera for 2 1/2 yrs. I purchased primarily because of great reviews at the time. I wanted a camera that took quick pictures of my grand kids, had good zoom function and was light-enough to be carried in my purse. This camera has exceed my expectations. I have learned to shoot in aperture priority, change the white balance and ISO as indicated by setting and subject. Overall pictures of grand kids as well as vacation scenery have been terrific. We have been pleased with the video---though having a zoom for it would be a plus.

Canon PowerShot SX1 IS Digital Camera - Black (10MP, 20x Optical Zoom) 2.8" LCD

Having just had our first Baby, we decided that it was high time to get a decent camera. However, we were stuck betwen getting a decent SLR or a decent HD video camcorder.
After a modicum of research, we came to this - the Canon Powershot SX1 IS, which bridges both worlds ery nicely.

It's a ProSumer camera, so therefore has a fixed high quality Powerzoom lens - (20x optical to be precise), and lots of manual and automatic options. It also allows you to shoot 1080p HD video and use the super-quiet zooming function on the lens - just as if it were a real camcorder.

The resulting images are impressive, colourful without being over-saturated, and there is nary a hint of whiteout on brighter photos.

If there was a downside it would be that the lens cap is not tethered to the body, so you need to buy one separately (though they are only a few pence or pounds - depending where you get them from), plus you have to keep buying batteries. (get some rechargeable - I have some 2900mha AA batteries from Uniross - they last forever and with the right charger can be charged in around 15 minutes)

It has a good solid feel, with a large metal ring around th lens . Although it appears to be threaded to accept accessories, none are available and ou certainly cant add any filters without someone desinging a 3dd party add on.

Overall, I'd thoroughly reccomend this to anyone not quite ready to make the leap to full SLR - or does not want to lug about dozens of expensive lenses, but wants more than just snapshots.

I am a novice to this type of camera. My older camera is a Canon A80 which I like. Naturally I found this Canon SX10IS to be a little confusing and intimidating. However, I found the cure for this was, and is, practice and study.

I first tried pictures of the moon which were disappointing. The focus was not good (just a fuzzy yellow ball) and the digital zoom was set "on" from the factory. This meant that the zoom was 80X. Even with a tripod it was difficult to keep the moon in the camera sight. I set the digital zoom to "off" and I recommend that it never be set to "on". If you want a closer image you can crop the picture later. This is all the digital zoom does but which a lot more fuss. I then set the focus to spot and got a great picture of the moon.

The 20X zoom is especially nice. I live at the ocean and can photograph fishing vessels just off the coast or seagulls sitting on a post in the harbor. Distant mountains are drawn up and the foreground foreshortened. This can produce very wonderful pictures that you cannot get with a lesser zoom. A tripod helps to keep the camera steady on many occasions.

I tried the "SCN" setting (on sunset) for the first time and got dramatic results. I tried the same picture with the normal setting and it was just okay. With the SCN setting some people said that I should sell the picture commercially.

Pictures in the camera can be viewed without turning the camera on as it to photograph. This may seem like a small thing but I found it to be useful and battery saving.

The camera uses 4 AA size batteries. I believe that prior versions of this camera used the speciality lithium battery which is a major reason I didn't buy it before. I have known too many people whose photography during a vacation was cut short by a depleted battery. AA batteries can be purchased anywhere in the world and in my limited experience so far battery life appears excellent.

I am enjoying the camera. It is just darn fun to use and try new things. I can get results in it that I never could get with my Canon A80.

Without doubt the best camera I've had out of the 5 I've used over a 6-year period. Given that 3 of them have broken down or gone faulty in some way (a Fuji Finepix, a Casio, and a Canon PowerShot A640 which has had so many faults I've now given up on it)- I must say that as I've only had this Ixus for 4 months I suppose it could still go the same way as all the others, but I can't see into the future!
The build is solid, the startup is quick, there's very little shutter-lag, it handles all types of light (for some portrait pics indoors I've got some great results by deselecting the flash because it can wash-out skin tones), locks its focus on quickly, has good manual controls that I've yet to use to their limits, nice clear screen AND the option of using a viewfinder (which in really bright sunlight is a bonus), the 14.7 megapixels give crisp image and colour and although it seems an excessive number of pixels, even cropped images come out great because of the tight quality of image, similarly on digital zoom beyond the optical, there's still plenty to play with. It has image stabiliser, good battery life on a full charge, and does fantastic quality video.
All this in something that fits neatly in hand or pocket; it is a joy to have. I really can't fault it, so as long as it doesn't go wrong on me I'm a happy man. I sometimes need to "point and shoot" on auto for stuff I do for a newspaper, and it stands up well. No doubt the pro photographers may sniff at such a small unit, but I can have this little beast in my pocket just in case, whereas they have to struggle around all day with massive-bodied cameras and humungous lenses.
If I'm by any chance near the next tsunami or volcanic eruption or plane crash I also know I'll be able to get hours-worth of excellent quality video on my 16 GB card and still have space for loads of stills! Steve Riches.

I upgraded to this from a simpler Powershot A70 (if I recall the model correctly) that "fried" after 2500 photos on a study tour at desert archeological sites last year. I wasn't ready for carrying and swapping multiple lenses and larger bags whether climbing through tight quarters in ancient temples or over slippery rocks and trails in rain forests. So the SX10IS was a logical move with the easy for a non-power-user interface, what was the most powerful zoom at the time for the price range, and 10MP. So far the photos have been pretty good, with only a few blurred. Colors appear clear and bright. Battery life appears to be pretty good. And I like the movie mode that runs as long as I have power or memory left. However, it has two flaws a new buyer should consider. The lesser is the very blurry optical viewer. It is only good for aiming the camera at an object and trusting the auto-focus to get the shot. It usually does a good job of focusing if given enough time for the autofocus to engage. The digital viewer works great though. The bigger issue is with the time it takes to refresh in between shots. If you need to take a series of shots within 3 seconds, forget it. Refresh rate is very slow. Use the movie mode instead. I am adjusting my tactics to get the images I want around these two flaws and overall I still like the camera. The pluses outweigh the minuses for my use. But be informed before making your decision.

This is simply a great camera to get whether you are buying a digital camera for the first time or the fifth time. Why? Because you get all the Canon quality and features for a very good price. At this price you can afford to even gift it to a teenager who wants to learn a little more photography as it offers a little more than just point and shoot.

I've owned about 4 A series cameras in the past, along with S2/S3 series and SD series and I still recommend A series as the best value for money based on its performance. I tried this particular camera when I bought it recently for a gift. Although the size of A series cameras is bigger than SD series making them jacket-pocket cameras, the advantage is in the styling. It gives you a convenient grip on the side which helps hold the camera steady and results in less "blurry" pictures than SD. The mode selector dial on top helps you zip through selections from portrait, landscape to nightshot and special scenes. The convenience of AA batteries which are available in every corner of the world, no missing out on pictures as your battery was discharged, is a great convenience. You can buy 2NiMH batteries with a charger like I did, and never have to buy any more again. The screen is only 2 inch (up from 1.8 earlier) but it makes the camera more durable, as the design makes it more resistant to damage.

And what about the features? :

- It has an intelligent 9 point focusing system with auto red eye correction which means it can choose the focus pretty accurately, although it also gives you the flexibility to choose the focus through 3 modes. (Centered, Evaluative, Spot)

- SD card/MMC card slot - These cards are so cheap now so get the 2GB to store a whole vacation's worth of pictures.

-Pic size- You can choose from 6 sizes for the pics including a widescreen 16:9 format which can be viewed on your HDTV.

-Speed Dial: This dial on top allows fast spinning between shooting modes (night, landscape, indoors, kids, portrait, movie, auto, manual, special) so you never miss a shot. For this feature alone, I'd prefer an A series over SD as I keep missing shots on SD series while trying to change modes through the menu. With this dial even a kid becomes a pro. The SCN(special scenes) mode has Fireworks, Foliage, Beach, Snow, and Night Scene. Now even amateurs can use Canon experience to get the best shot. Fireworks is particularly amazing as it produced some great 4th of July shots. This camera does not have the Photostitch mode found on some other cameras but it does have the macro mode to take close ups.

-Special effects (B/W, Sepia, Vivid, Nuetral etc.) I've used sepia a lot when taking potraits giving them an 'old world' feel. Vivid has been helpful in special situations like a red kite against a blue sky to bring out the colors. You can do this in Photoshop later but how many of us actually get the time to do this, once a pic is taken it's over with for me! This camera does not have the color accent/color swap option which is available on some other Canons.

-You can set white balance manually on this camera or manually adjust shutter or aperture priority. It also has an optical viewfinder which is handy for very dark/very bright situations.

-You can also take videos in 3 different resolutions with this camera and edit them right on the camera.

-The zoom button shows one or many images at a time in the replay mode and you can zoom into each individual image to see parts of it closely.

- While replaying, the images auto-rotate to landscape or portrait mode to align with how you're holding the camera. It's a nice feature as otherwise you can't see the portrait shots properly in the landscape mode.

This camera makes a great first camera, with many features, and the image quality is superb. Especially if you are shooting outdoors the images are unsurpassed by any other brand, in my opinion. So go get it, at this price it's well worth getting it as a second camera for another member of your family during the vacation. You won't mind taking this one on the ride where you'd be scared to take your more expensive cameras!

i just going to keep this camera because i did realize people dont buy it
and give bAD reviews about it
but this camera makes so much nices pictures
also this camera is different and people dont want to buy it
it cost almost new in box 45 dollars
thats why am going to keep it

I have bought pocket size as well as 35-mm based digital cameras through the years. After a friend bought the Canon Powershot SX1 and was raving, as well as showing some fantastic prints she had created, I did my own research and determined the few features that were different between the SX1 and the SX10 were minute and not anything I would need for almost $200.00 difference in price. Also some of the reviews had the SX10 having less noise or graininess in the zoom shots. So, after much debate, I bought the SX10.
I am so pleased with my decision. So far, I have only just "played" around with it, but I have taken shots in low-light, bright light and distance and each one has all the quality I could ask for.
After going on vacation in July, and forgetting my Sony's battery charger (and spending quite a bit of time locating a replacement charger - finally found at a Radio Shack), it is nice having a camera that takes AA batteries. Available everywhere!
I have only just begun to examine all the features, but the real test is coming -- in December we're going to DisneyWorld! Unless you have some extreme need for the high quality video feature (I buy cameras for photos, not video) this is the best buy.

I have owned several A series Canon cameras in the past, as well as the Canon SD series, the Canon S series and also the S2 IS.

A series - In my opinion, the A series is best for you if you're looking for a low cost camera that gives you a wide range of features, many manual controls and great image quality. Especially if you love the convenience of AA batteries which are available in every corner of the world.

The SD series cameras are smaller and fit into small pockets but more expensive and their smallness makes some features only accessible through the menu which makes changing between modes more cumbersome. They also have less manual controls. I also find that the smallness and lightness of the SD series makes my hand shake more than when I'm holding the A series camera with the side grip. I get more fuzzy pics with the SD series and I hardly ever got any fuzzies with my A series.

The S2 and S3 have great image sensors, a great zoom and super macro function but are also more expensive and pretty bulky.

The A530 comes to you at a super low price with some great features, and at this price is an easy upgrade. At this price, it is just a tiny bit more expensive than some toy cameras and makes a great gift for a "tween" or teen who is just starting to learn about the power of the camera lens.

The A530 gives you:

- A nice sized 1.8 inch LCD screen, and 5MP resolution. Seriously, you don't need any more to for regular sized prints. The higher MP cameras also create giant files and fill up my hard disk too quickly!
- It has an intelligent focusing system AiAF and a DIGIC II processor which can give some pretty good results on auto mode
- SD card slot - cheap to buy 1 GB. You can choose from 4 sizes for the pics depending on the size you may want to store/ print.
-The controls are pretty simple too. The top dial helps you scroll through modes including the special SCN mode
-Photo-stitch - For stitching together panoramic views. I have shot countless seascapes, 'bridge'scapes, and landscapes from all my Canons using this function and stitching together 6-10 shots in one. It is really easy too with the software provided which does it intuitively!
- Portrait, Landscape and Night shot modes. The night shot mode gives great results if you can hold the camera steady with the delayed shutter response.
-Macro mode - Great for close ups of babies or product shots
- The SCN mode is great for point and shoot convenience in special situations- Fireworks, Beach, Snow, kids and pets, Underwater (with the waterproof case), Foliage and Indoor. Now even amateurs can use Canon experience to get the best shot quickly before they miss the photo opportunity while fiddling with manual controls.
-The "My colors" option allows you to choose a color you want to highlight or darken and lighten skin tones. It also allows you to capture only a particular color in a shot while the rest of the picture is black and white. So you can do a black and white portrait of your child with a red ribbon or red ball. Or you can swap out one color with the other, like change your car color to blue from red...In a nutshell, it allows for some creativity in your pictures.
-Complete Manual functions available - shutter priority, Aperture priority, White balancing, Manual focusing etc.
- Tone settings for different lighting (Tungsten, Sunlight, Cloudy etc.) which helps correct the White balance
-Special effects (B/W, Sepia, Vivid, Nuetral etc.) I have used sepia a lot when taking potraits giving them an 'old world' feel. Vivid has been helpful in special situations like a red kite against a blue sky to bring out the colors.
-You can also take videos in 3 different resolutions with this camera and edit them right on the camera. And you can create a slide show of all the images you took on the camera itself with fancy transition effects of your choice. The zoom button shows one or many images at a time in the replay mode and you can zoom into each individual image to see parts of it closely.
-Free Canon software, which though not the best in the world works well and allows you to edit images, photo-stitch images, maintain an album, change camera settings from your computer, subtitle and edit videos, upload images back to camera to transfer to another computer etc.
-It uses AA batteries which are available anywhere in the world.
A Sony Super Quick Charger (5 hours) with 4 rechargeable 2300mAH NiMH batteries is available for around 20 bucks Amazon! Charge these batteries up to 1000 times. I keep the LCD on for all my shots and usually I get 300-400 shots from each charge.

Overall, you are getting a great deal for the price you pay for this camera. With all the features available even amateurs can take pictures like pros!

A lot has changed since my last camera purchase in 2003.
I purchased this camera for my Vacation to Las Vegas. I wanted a High End Point and Shoot Camera.
What amazed me most about this camera was the 20X zoom and the FUll HD Video. I used the Full HD Video to capture clips that were almost impossible to capture taking a normal picture due to so much movement. I thought the pictures were amazing, but then again I had an old NIkon 4300 coolpix I paid 500 for with.
The day pictures were Awesome, and the night pictures were good. The only night pictures that came out amazing where the vegas lights on the casinos. The flash feature work great, but only in a limited area not a huge casino.

This camera comes with video cables so you can quickly show off your pictures. I highly reccomend to purchased 16gb class6 or higher memory, so You can take advantage of the video feature.

I purchased the pre rechargeable Eneeloop batteries along with the Lacross charger bc-700. These batteries can hold there charge up to 12 months with no use. The normal rechargeable batteries will die with in 30 days even if the camera is not used.

This camera marries some of the best features of the Canon S series like zoom and manual flash with the convenience of the A series. This camera is an upgrade of the SX100 and feels much more sleeker than the previous model.

Here is my take on the camera:

Strengths:
- 9MP CCD sensor with DigicIII processor, the CCD sensor is 1/2.3 inch which is bigger than the most SD series cameras resulting in better pictures
- Controls are intuitive and a separate replay start button on the back gives you the flexibility to switch on the camera for playback without extending the lens
- Feels good in the hands, battery compartment gives the camera a better grip, DSLR like black color
- Huge 3" LCD scratch resistant screen makes composing shots easy
- Great 10X optical zoom and 40X digital zoom
- Flash can be flipped up or down as needed, this camera also offers 3 manual flash settings which really helps with portraits
- Sharp pictures - Daylight pictures are excellent and zoom is great for capturing landscapes
- Many modes to shoot - night mode, portrait, landscape, kids and pets, indoors, special scene modes (fireworks, aquarium, foliage, snow, beach etc.) and custom colors too
- 2 extra buttons at the back for changing exposure in 1/3 stops and also adjust for face detection
- Macro mode results in stunning close-ups with outstanding level of detail
- Uses 2 AA batteries, can take 300-400 pics with one set of rechargeable NiMHs and if you run out of battery they are universally available

Limitations:
- Size and bulk makes it inconvenient to carry at all times, this will probably become your vacation/ special occasion camera.
- No optical viewfinder, has not bothered me but can become an issue for some especially in bright sunlight or if you want to conserve battery
- Noise is noticeable beginning at ISO 400, ISO 1600 mostly unuseable
- Cannot adjust focus or optical zoom while shooting in movie mode, you can only zoom in digitally which reduces movie picture quality
- Typical Canon chromatic aberration (common problem with P&S cameras)
- No RAW shooting mode

Overall, this is a great camera for the price if you want a camera with high zoom, especially for shooting outdoors in good light. It also offers some manual functions as well as flash reduction which helps you take the best picture.

You get what you pay for, and I evidently down-sized in some unanticipated ways from a Panasonic FZ-50 to this Canon, hoping for the added benefit of the extra zoom. Just beware of this camera's limited capabilities in low light - and without bright light - the problem of uncertainty of focus at maximum zoom. When you change the ISO to 200, you pick up discernible noise, inapparent when you check you pictures on the LCD. I should add that the "wheel" which manages ISO and other changes is cheaply made and awkward to use and that both the view finder and the LCD are - frankly - not quality. By the way, the video button, which is easy to get to, is in fact awkward to use and I find I have to push down. I will say I have no problem with the rechargeable battery solution - though its a nuisance - and an obvious way of Canon controlling costs. Do know I spent much less for this camera than for the Panasonic when it first came out, so I understand I got what I paid for. There are some interesting bells and whistles, but these compensate for the shortcomings in the basics. My hunch is that this is the case with the SI 20 as well. But with any luck Canon won't have me as a consumer again.

I'm a diligent shopper when it comes to some purchases. I've been researching buying a new digital camera off and on for about 6 months and I can say my patience has been rewarded. My two previous digital cameras were Sony's. The main reason for a new digicam was image stabilization. I've taken up kayaking and found many of my on water photos were coming out blurry, even in bright daylight.

Likes:
Macro is amazing with the SX110is. You can rest the cameras lens on a page and it will autofocus on the lettering. You can also manual focus in most modes. Great for catching minute details.

10x optical zoom! 40x digital zoom! It gets you up close when distance between you and your subject is required. Zoom up to 4x digitally while recording movie, although it does get grainy and you can hear the lever click on the recording.

This flash is so much better than either of my Sony's. The range is so much farther, and that's without any flash level adjustments.

The cost! A camera of this quality, with so many options at the $200 mark! Outstanding!

Dislikes:
It would be nice if the flash would automatically pop up when needed like the Sony does. Although I'll admit it made me jump while playing with one at Best Buy.

Too many options (13!) on the Mode Dial . My last Sony had 6 and the other options were software accessible. I'm just afraid all that turning is going to wear out the dial faster.

Also the control dial can be skittish while reviewing photos. It's too easy to press (select) while spinning (scrolling).

This is the second SX110is I purchased from Amazon. I think the first one was a return because it was missing the documentation tray and the little tag that was hanging of my new one. I returned it because the usb/av cover wouldn't stay closed. No problem with the new one I'm happy to say.

Overall it's a great camera. My first Canon. I can't wait to get back on the water with it. I keep it in a dry bag until I use if you are wondering.

After tinkering with this camera in some detail, here is what I found:

Image Stablization: Quite effective. I have had very few blurry pictures, even though I was constantly taking pictures with shutter speed of 1/8 ~ 1/15.

Battery: The "low battery" warning comes up prematurely sometimes, and it is quite annoying. Once I figure out that I can easily take 400+ photos on a set of Eneloop (or Rayovac Hybrid), I have learned to simply ignore the warning. I love the fact that it uses AA batteries, one less device I have to remember to charge.

Auto Mode: If you allow the camera to decide all the settings for you, you should be able to take decent pictures consistently. Good lighting produces good pictures, bad lighting produces bland pictures, on par with most other entry level cameras. Noise level at ISO 320 is not noticeable, unless you are looking for it.

Shutter/Aperture Priority Mode: Disappointing. The EV setting does not work properly when the flash is activated. And I use flash a lot in non-auto mode.

Manual Mode: Great feature. You can combine different levels of flash with proper ISO and shutter speed to get great result. Instead of bland, washed-out indoor pictures, I was able to obtain good vibrant photos. Once you get the hang of it, you are usually adjusting between flash level and shutter speed, so it's not very complex to use.

Size: It's a little too thick to fit in pants pocket, but should fit in some coat pocket fine. Its shape provides good grip, allowing better shot taking.

Flash: The recycle time is fast enough for me. I suspect it's due to Eneloop.

Reboot: The camera sometimes slows down after extended use. This is easily corrected by shutting it off, then turning it back on.

Overall this camera is very fun to play with. The manaul adjustments allow you to do so much more than a regular point and shoot camera. However, when you bring your A590 to the company party, you would wish some of these features are available in the auto mode too. As a practical camera: 4.5 stars. As a toy: 5 stars.

To date, 11/09, I have won 5 Photo of the Day awards from Canon. It is true that the image was important but I took them all with this camera. The absolute best quality camera I have ever owned, and I have owned quite a few. It is all in the lens, not the size of the megapixels. Remember that, that is the one most important thing about any camera and Canon makes some of the worlds best lens. For the money, I would put it up against any camera on the market today. And it surprised me how clear the video and sound is on this model. I have absolutely no problem recommending this model. I paid 129.00 for this and i guess they have replaced it with the a1100 because the price is now is much higher, i suppose it has been discontinued. But the a1100 is 129.00 and I would buy it. Looks to be the same but with more megapixels.

Update: As of 2/24/12 I ended up winning 13 photos of the day from the Canon website, to bad they took the site down. Although a discontinued model, it can still be found on auction sites.

I own Sony's original subcompact DSC-T1 (without image stabilization) as well as a digital SLR for serious amateur photography. I was in the market to replace the subcompact Sony with a compact with a minimum 10x optical zoom and image stabilization to be used for both video and photos. My choices came down to the Canon SX100IS, Sony DSC-H3 and Canon S5IS.

The Canon S5 on Amazon was only $75 more than the SX100 and Sony, for a lot more features including stereo sound for movies, a flip out screen and 12x optical zoom. In terms of bang for the buck, the S5 was easily the best deal. But it was just too bulky to easily carry to concerts, and i thought it was overkill so ruled out the S5.

So it came down to the Sony and SX 100. Both were the same price, about the same size, with similar features. Consumer Reports gave a good review to the Sony, but hadn't yet reviewed the Canon. What pushed me toward the Canon was (1) the ability to zoom while recording a movie whereas the zoom on the Sony is locked while recording movies; (2) Canon uses all forms of SD cards including the new high capacity format, while the Sony uses proprietary Memorystick Duo. But I was concerned about the battery life of the Canon versus Sony's longlife lithium rechargeable battery.

First test was at an outdoor festival concert. Still photos were absolutely superb at all zoom lengths. Note that in movie mode, you can only use the optical zoom prior to starting the recording. Once recording starts, you can continue to zoom in or out using digital zoom. I had to figure out how to focus the movies. By default continuous focus is turned off (i guess to save battery life). I eventually figured out that i should lock subject into focus at the maximum optical zoom, hit record, and then i can zoom in and out using digital zoom with everything remaining in focus. Once i figured out the focus part, the videos were crisp and clear, even using the digital zoom. The audio was totally distorted and clipped because I was standing close to the speakers, a problem that's endemic to most digital cameras which don't have microphone gain control.

Next test was an indoor nighttime concert, same artist. This time, I applied a homemade sound filter in the form of a fabric bandaid placed over the microphone. Again, the videos were great. The sound was totally acceptable, although understandably some of the high range was muffled by my filter. The photos were great with flash. I actually like the fact that the flash doesn't automatically pop up, and has to be manually flipped up. That way the flash doesn't go off at an inopportune time, since most artists don't like flashes going off while they're performing.

I recorded +/- 25 minutes of video and a handful of photos with each set of Duracell Ultra AA batteries, and changed the batteries before they ran low. I don't know how long they would have lasted if i hadn't pre-emptively changed them. But battery life has been a non-issue.

So great photos, great videos, acceptable audio, reasonably compact. 4.5 stars.

Sometimes I wonder if someone slipped me the wrong camera.

My Canon A95 was such a wonderful thing; flip and turn LCD screen, good clear shots, relatively fast speed (2.8), great for macros. But somewhere, the A630 just leaves me missing my A95 (the first camera met a salty demise in one of those camera "baggies" in the Gulf of Mexico looking for jewfish).

First I'll tell you what I did find to be pros about the camera:

-Flip and turn lcd - big and it FLIPS AND TURNS. Very nice for macros and sneaky shots.

-Quick shutter button reaction - you don't have to wait forever between pushing the shutter and actually taking the picture. It's almost instantaneously in my experience.

-You can use accessories with it - buy an off brand extension and you can put polarizing filters (i highly recommend this), a Cokin set with a ND graduated filter and your landscape or sunrise/set shots will suddenly get much greater. Even without anything on the extension, it acts like a hood and keeps glare from marring a shot.

-This is my camera of choice for macros and infrared shots (using a filter). You can get millimeters away from things. It's amazing. It's like having a microscope with 100x magnifier.
And my main camera (an EOS digital Canon camera) doesn't have the advantage of actually seeing through the infrared filter (which is a deep red/almost black), so it's difficult to frame shots. The A630 lets you see through the filter on the LCD screen.

Now, the not so hot;

-You're limited in the use of your ISO. Anything over 200 is unusable in my opinion (and 200 is not that hot either). Any ISO under 100 is unusable without a tripod or hands of steel.

-The size. Not small enough to tuck in your pocket. I really wish it were. This is supposed to be my little camera.

-Photo quality. I know this camera should take better pictures than my A95 but I'm just not convinced it does.

All in all, get it for a reallyreally good price and you should be happy. :)

I'm not sure of why Canon introduced the SX100 IS. Its most distinctive feature is a 10x zoom of the usual Canon quality. It appears intended to compete with the Panasonic Lumix TZ series. Compared to the TZ, it is larger and heavier, but it does have a pop-up flash which can offer slightly better modeling and, more important, for many photographers, a manual exposure mode. Canon apparently intended the SX100 to fill what they perceive as the "gap" between the venerable (and excellent) A series and the DSLR lookalike, but not function alike, Powershot S5, which is also excellent.

The SX100 has, in my opinion, one major design flaw. Instead of the more typical 4-way touch mechanism for function selection, the SX100 has a rotating wheel. This is, again in my opinion, a massive error since the wheel is very difficult to rotate accurately: fingers tend to slip off and either set a function prematurely or hit another button bringing up an unwanted function or, worst of all, both. Perhaps people with very small fingers and an acute sense of touch can reliably use this wheel. I cannot and see it as a major negative in the design of the SX100.

Other than that flaw - which I think of as a showstopper for many people - the camera is typical Canon, which means very good value for the money. The 8 Megapixel images are crisp. As always, except for very expensive DSLRs, noise becomes a problem at higher ISO values, in this case starting at about ISO 200. If the choice is between having no picture at all and a noisy picture, the decision is obvious.

The SX100 has face detection and it seems to work. The 2.5" LCD viewfinder is okay. There are a few specialized scene selectors, such as beach scene and portraits.

In video mode, you can capture 640 x 480 video at 30fps. Audio quality is passable. But you cannot zoom while doing video. Up to one hour of video can be recorded.

The zoom range is 36 - 360mm. I wish all the manufacturers would lop off the top end and make the wide angle wider.

Shot to shot recyling times are a bit on the slow side, but not unusual for this class of camera. Flash recyling time is just plain awful and much slower than other similar cameras.

The camera runs on two AA batteries, which I consider a plus since such batteries are available everywhere in the world. But make sure you carry extras because this camera eats batteries. Rechargeables are a must with this camera.

Overall, this is a general purpose camera with no truly outstanding features. While image quality is high - and the primary reason for the 4-star rating - the rest of the camera is kind of ho-hum. You might want to carefully consider this camera in comparison to its competitors.

Jerry

I first got this camera Christmas 2006 and it was a great camera. It has good zoom, plenty of features to choose from (I personally prefer program), and best of all, it has very good picture quality. Less than 4 years and one extra camera later, this is still the only camera so far that I ever use.

I will start with the bottom-line.... This is one excellent camera! With that said, there are a couple of things you should know when un-boxing the system. First of all, the measly 32mb memory card you receive is just about worthless. Plan on purchasing a 8gb card. They can be had for about $15 and if you take many photos or any videos you will be glad you did.

Also, my camera's video setting came out of the box in the "compact" mode, which in my option produces unusable video. Change it to the standard video/640 30fps (page 89 in the User Guide). While this still will not provide you with HD video, it is acceptable for causal shooting. However, the included 32mb memory card will only hold about 15 seconds of video at this setting.

Now for the important part. For the price point, this camera would be extremely hard to beat! The features are numerous and quite amazing. I took a picture of an object so far away I could hardly make it out, at full optical and digital zoom and the results were unbelievable. However, I must say I did enhance the photo a bit in Photoshop. You could probably do the same in just about any photo software program, even the one that comes with the camera.

I can't say I found any "cons" with this camera. Since I take causal and semi-professional photographs in my web designing business, I wanted a camera that was compact yet provided excellent results. If I wasn't concern with the size, I would have likely purchased a SX10 IS or XS1 IS, but for what I need the SX110 IS is more than adequate.

However, as others have mentioned the camera does eat a steady supply of batteries. Either buy your AAs in bulk or goes the rechargeable route. I didn't call the camera's energy requirement a con, because I like the big, bright and beautiful LCD and other power hungry features. For me, it is a reasonable tradeoff.

I would highly recommend this camera and I wish you happy shooting!