Canon Powershot G10 14.7MP Digital Camera with 5x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom
by Canon
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Canon Powershot G10 14.7MP Digital Camera with 5x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom
Customer Review: terrible chromatic aberration's at wide angle
Summary: 3 Stars
I have been in photography for the past 35 years. In this time period I shot both professionally and also as a hobby for my own enjoyment. I was looking for a quality compact camera that would subsidies my medium format and DSLR equipment. When the G9 canon came out I purchased one for this purpose. The G9 was a great camera and met all my requirements except for one thing, the limited and slow wide angle lens (7.4-44.4mm f/2.8-4.8) that the G9 had. When Canon replaced it with the G10 having the wider but still slow (6.1-30.5mm f/2.8-4.5) lens I thought the wider lens on the G10 was the answer to what I had been looking for in a compact camera. Nothing could be farther from the truth. I ordered the G10 and was very disappointed primarily with the performance of the G10 at wide angle photographs. The G10 had terrible chromatic aberration's at wide angle that were horrific. The lens got better as it was zoomed to longer focal lengths but this glaring problem at wide angle made the camera useless for me. I posted an actual sample of how bad this problem is in the image gallery for the G10 under "chromatic aberration's". Another annoying problem was that the diopter adjustment in the optical zoom viewfinder was more like adjusting a pair of $9.95 binoculars into focus. No matter how the adjustment was made complete sharpness across the viewing field could not be made. I realize that with the LCD screen the view finder was perhaps a secondary option. But for a camera in this price range both these faults are unacceptable. I returned the G10 and bought the Leica D-LUX 4 and haven't looked back since. Yes, Yes I know the Leica is more expensive than the G10 but it's fast (5.1-12.8 f2.0-2.8) Vario-Summicron lens is fantastic. Having used Leica range finder camera's over the years I can say the D-LUX 4 images have that unique look that Leica film cameras capture and are noted for. Also the D-LUX 4 came with a 3 year warranty and Capture One soft wear.
Perhaps I received a bad copy and this camera had unusual problems. Either way I can't see how it passed Canon's quality control. As other reviewers indicated the build quality is first rate and the many options including the control's ergonomics are good.
Customer Review: jump to an D-SLR if you want real control
Summary: 3 Stars
I have fairly extensive experience with digital cameras, usually changing cameras once or twice a year. This CANON POWERSHOT G10 is near the top of the "point-and-shoot" list and it makes a great back-up camera for pros or pro-sumers. However, it has some short-comings that may affect your decision to get this camera. So, here is the breakdown:
PROS:
- MANUAL CONTROL, giving control of exposure and aperture settings.
- RAW FORMAT is supported which is highly recommended for post-editing your images on your computer with Photoshop CS4, for example.
- beautiful large screen is pleasure to review your shots.
- SMART BLACK DESIGN feels sturdy and has rubber gripping.
- 5X ZOOM is better than the standard 3X (included on most current point-and-shoots).
- ON-BOARD EDITING to crop or rotate your photos.
- RECHARGEABLE BATTERY AND DOCK INCLUDED. a better option than using alkaline and this battery last for a long time
- 14.7 MEGAPIXELS for large-sized prints
CONS:
- ODD PLACEMENT OF MANUAL CONTROLS. it would have been nice to have dedicated dials for the exposure and aperture, rather than the ISO speeds and compensation.
- BATTERY IS SQUARE, making it easy to put the battery in the wrong direction.
- BAD LOW LIGHT RESPONSIVENESS. low-light shots are only good if you are willing use are tripod or keep very still.
- LAG. as a premium camera, it bothers me that there is lag - meaning a long time from the moment you press the shutter button to the moment the picture is written to the card.
- CONTINUOUS SHOT MODE IS SLOW. you will miss a lot of moments if you want to capture action shots.
- VIDEO IS STANDARD QUALITY, but then again, this supposed to be a still camera, not a video camera
All in all, if you don't mind the slowness of the camera, having so much control is a welcome strength in the G10 as a point-and-shoot. But I say, spend the extra $200 or so and jump to an D-SLR, if you want REAL control.
Customer Review: No Optical Zoom While Shooting Video!
Summary: 3 Stars
I needed to replace my P&S camera and after doing a lot of reading I narrowed it down to the Lumix Z28 and the Cannon G10 and SX10IS (since I could not get my hands on a Cannon SX1IS). I use a Nikon DSLR for most Important things but It is too bulky when I travel or vacation and also my wife finds it hard to use. I also wanted to be able to shoot video that was at least decent so I would only have to lug around one camera so it was a must to be able to zoom while shooting video as well.
My first choice was the Pannisonic FZ28, it seemed to have everything I was looking for however, after one day of shooting it was obvious that there were some major problems such as CONSTANTLY WONDERING AF WHILE SHOOTING VIDEO, INABILITY TO TRACK FOCUS WHILE SHOOTING VIDEO, WASHED OUT SHOTS (stills) and a few other operational and menu issues that were unacceptable.
That left the two Cannon cameras. I chose the SX10IS over the G10 due to the fact that the G10 WILL ONLY DO A DIGITAL ZOOM WHILE SHOOTING VIDEO Yes, The optical zoom does not work for video. I see this as a "deal breaker" for me since digital zooms add far too much noise to the immage to be usable. Plus, the added focal length, cost diff. and articulated VF on the SX10IS influenced me as well. Too bad about the G10 since I really want to like it. Only down side to the SX10IS is no ability to do RAW format. Hope there will be a hack to fix that in the future.
Customer Review: Controversial and promising.
Summary: 3 Stars
Bought this camera in a BEST BUY store in lower broadway here in Manhattan. That was a very silly decision of me to buy it in that store. I will get back to this a little later. I had great hope for this camera as i shoot a lot of macros of jewelry and fine watches. Previous cameras were either lost or given as a gift so i decided to buy this G10. I also considered a Canon XSI which would produce the best in-door pictures with its big sensor and sharp optics if bought seperately. Clearly i opted for this one trying to get something compact for carrying aroung in a bag on a day-to-day basis. My verdict? I`m greatly disappointed. I chose a P-mode and tried to adjust things in a camera settings. My first disappointment was when i didn`t find a Sharpness setting. That`s too bad, then i couldnt find a contrast mode... Was that for real, i kept asking myself. Ok, lets give it a try. All the pictures i took indoors came out flat, dim and ugly. Even compared to my previous Lumix fx8 that i gave to my father on a trip overseas were bad enough. Panasonic simply beats G10 by a margin. I returned the camera even though they charged me 15% of restocking fee. That was my fault, i should have bought in a dedicated camera store like Broadway 17St or J&R... I lost roughly 75$$ but still was eager to return it. Now i`m exploring reviews of Panasonic LX3, i will probably go for it.Customer Review: View finder is useless, Is 14.7MP really necessary?
Summary: 3 Stars
I wanted to get a compact digital camera with viewfinder (Leica style camera, so to speak), so I ordered G10 from Amazon.
I found out that G10's viewfinder is useless (so narrow) and shutter lag is annoying, although it is short compare to many other compact digital camera.
Cannon got other parts right - excluding useless "super zoom" lens, long battery life, dial for setting up exposure.
This camera is heavy and a larger than many other compact camera (which may not be bad thing, but it has to be noted.)
I returned the camera after a few days of use. I really liked the feel of camera - feels sturdy and dependable, but why include a useless viewfinder?
Also, 14.7MP RAW file is too big for me. (I like to take photos in RAW mode.)