I’ve been thinking of buying a new camera as a companion to my old Canon PowerShot G6, the camera I’m currently using for all images on this blog. Canon has discontinued this model following the production of the G7 and G9. Will there be a G10?
Anyway, I want the new camera to be able to do what the G6 couldn’t.
I wanted to upgrade to a digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera but it is going to be expensive. I don’t think I can afford them.
A DSLR would be too expensive
I may be able to afford an entry-level DSLR like the Canon 450D but definitely not the photographic set I had in mind because I would want a good flashgun, a macro lens, a fish-eye lens, a 2x tele-converter, a fast telephoto lens — all of which are worth nearly a year of my salary. Sigh!
So I’m now thinking of another point-and-shoot or point-and-click camera to accompany the G6.
What I want in a point-and-shoot camera
1. The ability to take macro shots in two modes — macro and super macro, and with a possible option of mounting an additional macro lens, which the G6 is capable of doing, and with good photographic result that can almost rival those of the entry-level DSLRs, which the G6 is also capable of doing.
2. The ability to take wide angle shots, which the G6 isn’t able to do as its zoom lens starts at a narrow 34mm.
3. A camera with a telephoto zoom, which my G6 severely lacks as it only has 4x optical zoom, with another 4x digital zoom, but I don’t fancy digital zoom. There is still an option to mount a tele-converter to increase the G6′s optical zoom by approximately 1.5 times but, it is still not enough for my need.
3. High-speed continuous shot, of about 3fps, but is there a point-and-shoot camera out there which is able to do that at full resolution?
4. AE lock feature as well as the usual modes — auto, programme, aperture priority, shutter priority, manual and a host of other pre-programme modes.
5. The most important is the image quality. I want a point-and-shoot camera to consistently produce clean, sharp and crisp images throughout the zoom range. I don’t expect the images to be as good as those of the DSLRs but if I can have the G6 picture quality on an ultra zoom camera, I will be a happy man.
6. High ISO capability, which my G6 isn’t able to perform. Even at ISO 200 the digital noise is visible on the G6. I’ve never shot anything at ISO 400 with it because I hate the grain. I want a camera that able to take at least ISO 800 with minimal noise. I don’t expect a point-and-click camera to be able to perform beyond that even though some claim to have the capability of shooting up to ISO 6400.
7. Fast start up, minimum shutter lag, split-second focusing ability.
8. Flip and twist LCD screen. I find this feature extremely useful when taking picture at an awkward angle; and this has been one of the reasons why I can’t part with the G6. I don’t mind about the LCD screen size. Any size will do for me.
9. This is optional but is has become increasingly needed — the ability to capture smooth video, possibly at 32fps.
But if there are point-and-shoot digital cameras out there which have all the features above, I have yet to find it.
Is Olympus SP-565UZ any good?
However, with the release of the Ultra 20X optical zoom (26mm-520mm) Olympus SP-565UZ, I may have finally found not a replacement of the Canon Powershot G6, but a companion for that trusted old camera. The problem is, I’m a Canon as well as a Nikon guy, but I guess I can embrace Olympus if the product is worth it.
The SP-565UZ has an ultra wide angle of view of 26mm — though not as ultra as I would want it to be; one day I hope to see a sub-20mm wide angle lens from a consumer camera — and a powerful “dual image stabilizer” that combines sensor-based as well as digital-based image stabilisation, which I think is a first for the super zoom camera segment.
According to Olympus:
The SP-565UZ’s powerful 26mm wide angle to 520mm super telephoto zoom range represents a culmination of Olympus lens-making expertise. [...]
By combining the power of the 20x optical zoom lens with the digital zoom function, users can enjoy up to 100x zoom (2600mm) that is powerful enough to capture frame-filling images of the moon. It also offers a massive focal length equivalent of 4420mm with 1.5 teleconverter and 5x digital zoom.
Offering 26mm wide angle capability, the SP-565UZ enables users to take even more dramatic landscapes, group photos, and interiors, and its 1 cm close-up shooting capability enables them to explore the world of macro shooting. With the wide zoom range, the SP-565UZ packs all this performance into a single camera.
It also has macro and super macro modes, with focus distance of 0.1m (wide) and 1.2m (tele) in standard mode and 0.1m (wide) and 0.2m (tele) in macro mode. In the super macro mode, the closest focusing distance is 1cm.
High ISO. An auto ISO 80 – 1600 is also automatically selected and it also boasts of high-speed 13.5fps sequence shooting although at a reduce resolution of 3.0 megapixel.
What say you Canon or Nikon?
The SP-565UZ does look like an ideal companion for the G6 but there is still no proof yet of its image quality.
If it is good, then I might as well go for it. That is, if either Canon or Nikon is not already thinking of outdoing Olympus in the 20x wide-angle to ultra telephoto zoom segment. What say you Canon or Nikon? Are you already working on something or are you still reinventing the super zoom wheel?
