Canon PowerShot SX100 IS review

Average user rating

7.0

very good

Average user rating from 4 users

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Canon PowerShot SX100 IS user reviews

October 21, 2008

Posted by: The Digiman

"Almost, but not quite"

What I like:

Overall picture quality is very good indeed

What I don't like:

Flash recycling time overly long

Review:

Picture quality for me must be the over-riding factor when buying a camera. Handling issues can be irritating, but are usually adaptable.
This Canon's pictures are, in the main, spot on. Excellent sharpness, lovely colour rendition and decent exposures. Other aspects, such as noise and noise suppression appear to have been compromised somewhere near the centre of each - that is to say that at 400 ISO for example, images are noisy, but they do contain much more detail than the Panasonic TZ3/5, one of the main rivals.
In quite low light, shadowy interiors at a recent Dr. Who exhibition, I shot dozens of pictures, all at either 200 or 400 ISO, with handheld shutter speeds as low as 1/8th of a second, and my success rate was very high at some 85% - not a mean feat. Proof indeed that the optical stabiliser works a real treat. The images were sharp and surprisingly detailed, whilst the colour rendition was quite accurate and richly saturated.
My chief gripes are the lower than average LCD resolution, poor flash recycling times and lack of a 28mm wide angle. But you can't have everything, I suppose.
The only other trait is the textured skies - whether they be bright blue or dark grey - even at base ISO. Pity that, but it's not unique to Canon, and isn't that noticable.
Otherwise, a splendid camera at a reasonable price - now that it's discontinued in favour of the SX110 IS. Grab yourself a little gem.