Canon Powershot SX10IS 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom
by Canon
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Canon Powershot SX10IS 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom
Customer Review: More fun than my old Canon A1 film camera!
Summary: 5 Stars
I haven't had this much fun with a camera since my "ancient" Canon A1. I really like the ability to switch between aperture (Av) and shutter speed (Tv) priority. And I find it's much easier to use the viewfinder than the LCD screen (so it was important to me for my digital camera to have a viewfinder). And until I looked at the differences (in the manual's appendix) between Auto and Programmed modes, I wondered why have both ... now I'm glad I looked.
One of the first things I did was to turn off most of the camera's "helpful" settings. I am a big fan of fixing things like contrast or red eye AFTER downloading the photos to my computer ... not having the camera pretending to know what I want better than I do. And I usually only want to target a portion of the image ... not the entire image that these helpful settings attempt to fix.
Others have complained that the lens cap is easy to lose ... but I got so used to putting my Canon A1's lens cap in my pocket as soon as I took it off (it didn't have a lens strap either) that I just kept following that practice with my new SX10IS.
One of the things I like the most is the fact that it uses standard AA batteries. My previous digital camera (a Nikon - because the lens is what matters when taking a photo) used a proprietary battery that was difficult to find at times (even the store where I usually bought the battery was occasionally out of stock).
The popup flash allows me to place a loose fabric over the flash to reduce the flash brightness (something next to impossible on the Nikon with its flash built into the housing). I haven't yet upgraded to the Canon Speedlight flash ... but it's nice to know that I have that option.
For me, the biggest drawback is that the shutter release button is placed a bit too far forward for my tastes ... but that's a small problem. Not everyone has the same requirements for a digital camera as I do ... but I'd say this is one of the best (unless you opt for the hugely expensive DSLRs). Read all of the reviews and see if what people say matches your requirements ... but I can say that I'd recommend this camera for anyone who is even a little serious about their photography.
You can do a lot with this camera before you run into an option you wish the camera had.
Customer Review: first real camera
Summary: 5 Stars
This purchase was an impulse buy. I saw 20X zoom and decided I wanted it. I think I made a great choice.
I've had this camera for about 5-6 months now. I think I've learned a lot from this camera, and about photography in general.
The picture quality is great in good light, and having 20x zoom is very useful. I noticed noise at ISO 200 in decent light, although that was viewing at 100%
There are a lot of settings in the menus, but the nice thing is that you can make your own menu. I have only the functions that I use often, which is a great time saver.
The swivel LCD is awesome. I can take low and high shots w/out having to be at eye level w/ the camera.
I noticed that the lens cap tends to get "stuck." This causes the cap to fall off easy. All you need to fiddle w/ the ring on the inside of the cap to make it circular (when it's stuck, it would be oval).
I don't like the wheel in the back that much. There's no tactile feedback, and moving it too slowly sometimes doesn't seem to register when using it in manual focus.
Also, be careful if you have the lens hood on backwards before turning off the camera. If you're holding the camera like you would a DSLR, you may pinch your fingers, or prevent the lens from withdrawing all the way (which may ruin the lens motor).
Although this is a great camera, I'm considering getting a DSLR for a few reasons:
1) Low light performance is a lot better
2) Changing the aperture changes depth of field...doesn't really work in this camera
3) Faster continuous burst (didn't think it was important at first)
4) Faster more reliable autofocus
5) Better manual focus (100% zoom in live view and focus ring on lens is probably (hopefully) better than the wheel on the SX10 IS.
6) More durable build
I'm still planning on keeping this camera though, as it is a small, lightweight camera that I can carry around w/ me at all times that also has a great range lens.
The reviews say that this camera is one of the best super zooms out there, and although I don't have any other camera to compare it to, I still have to agree.
Chris
Customer Review: Amazing ZOOM and Stabilization
Summary: 5 Stars
If your pictures aren't turning out, you're probably doing something wrong. Small changes make a huge difference. Especially simple things like the White Balance/changing the light source. Take a picture of a cut open watermelon and watch the red heart go from auto bland to a bright juicy red. You can even set the Red in the Colors menu. But just changing the light source makes all the diffence in the world! The most amazing thing with this camera is the Stabilization!!! You can free hand all the way into the digital zoom and have your pictures come out clearer and better than they even look through the lcd. I'm constantly amazed at how stable it is. That's what made me choose this over the Nikon with 20x optical zoom and the rest of the competition. Just zoom out in the store and watch it find and track Faces from 10' to 100'. It even seperates the Facial Recognition pic.s when you download into it's own file, just faces.
Just for the hell-of-it, when I registered this camera, I let CANON know that my 4 year old A75 PowerShot stopped working. It blurred out with purple vertical lines. They said to send it in and they'd fix it for free if it was one of those that got a bad CCD. Ten minutes ago the Fed Ex guy brought it back and it's fixed!!! FREE, new CCD and adjusted and cleaned! Amazing. Just that alone makes me glad that I picked the Canon. What other company would pay shipping and fix a 4 year old camera for FREE?! NONE!!! Very Impressed with Canon. They've made me a loyal customer for life. They probably fixed it because I just bought this SX10IS. But, they didn't have to. I never expected them to do this. I was just curious to why my A75 went bad and if it was worth fixing to use as my work camera. Anyway, I never write reviews, but no one's ever fixed a camera that's years past warranty for free and had it back in under 2 weeks!!! My next camera will be a Canon, and the one after that, and after that... When I was researching for the SX10IS, the main complaint was that the lens cap gets lost. Mine hasn't and they make caps with a lanyard for like [...] bucks! What it comes down to is, shake all you want, your pictures will still come out butter smooth, even a mile away!!!
Customer Review: Best all around "Super Zoom"
Summary: 5 Stars
I've had my SX10 for about a week and am very impressed with it's versatility. I tend to read all the user reviews I can before making a purchase and did that with the SX10. I also tested the camera with my own card in a local store and compared video and stills on the same card to the Pany TZ28. I am very interested in video and was attracted to the Pany because of its HD video. However, in testing, the SX10 was overall very superior. It has excellent color, unbelievable IS, smooth zoom, very nice stereo sound, and fool proof autofocus. I found the Pany to be weak in all those areas. I prefer the better "all around" video to the HD of the Pany.
Initially, I was spooked by the reports of a slow lens during medium to max zoom, 5.6 to be exact. I read enough reports to be convinced that the slow lens would not be especially restrictive for me due to compensation in ISO and speed setting, made possible by the excellent image stabilization. I have found the lens to be just fine, even at max zoom. I also found that the lens is fast enough for indoor non flash photography. I even tested the "ISO 3200" setting, which requires a lower mp setting. I printed these out at 3x5 and the pictures were very good.
At first, the LCD seemed dark. After I turned up the setting to bright, it was better. After using it awhile, it seems fine. The EVF is large and bright, the best I've seen.
When the professional reviews come out, there will certainly be knocks on the slow lens. In my opinion, this is more of a theoretical limitation than a practical one. If you like the camera, don't be spooked by the slow lens comments. If you're not sure, buy from Amazon with their excellent return policy.
One really solid feature is the wide angle of the lens. This was not a feature I thought I wanted or needed. Now that I've seen the wide angle, I'll never have another camera without it.
There are many other features that most will enjoy, including the dedicated video button, AA batteries, custom settings etc. I think average and very serious photographers alike will be happy with the SX10.
Customer Review: Canon Powershot SX10IS pleases
Summary: 5 Stars
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.