Canon PowerShot SX1 IS User Review

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Two weeks, I think, is enough a time to be able to understand a point-and-shoot camera even one as complex, albeit easy to use, as Canon PowerShot SX1 IS.

After taking the camera for a photohunt in Borneo – shooting tonnes photos and trying out most of the features during the two-week period – I am now ready to take back some of what I have written about the camera on Dec 21.

I am not sure if I had misled any of this blog’s readers into changing their minds about buying the camera after reading that particular entry which I wrote less than 48 hours after I got hold of the SX1 IS. There is a reason for my seemingly “harsh” evaluation of the camera, chief of which is my high expectation of Canon’s first ever CMOS-sensored compact camera.

In that entry, I had mentioned that even with the shiny SX1 IS in my hand, I would still be flogging my old camera, the Canon PowerShot G6, to perform special tasks.

While that is still true today, they are now limited to only a few tasks like shooting in RAW, which I rarely do, and using the intervalometer feature where I can set the camera to take a series of pictures at several seconds or minutes intervals.

This is not to say I have no complaint about the camera but let me save the best criticism for last.

What I like about the SX1 IS

Image quality: … is good and at times, can be very good for a compact camera. I do not have the necessary “photographic vocabulary” to describe the quality except to say that I am satisfied and pleased with it most of the time.

But I shall just let the photos here – post-processed notwithstanding – do the talking.

I have had a pleasant experience with the G6, a camera touted by several reviewers in 2004 to be able to produce images which sometimes equal those of DSLR cameras, and I am glad that I am now having almost the same pleasant experience using the SX1 IS although I do have some issues over the quality of some of the images I have taken.

Image parameters: I also like the fact that I can choose to shot in vivid colour, neutral, sepia, black and white, positive film, lighter skin tone, darker skin tone, vivid blue, vivid green, vivid red and set my own image preference using the custom colour function.

Opps.. this snail photo is by the G6. Should’ve taken one with the SX1 IS

Under the custom colour, I can change the in-camera image setting, namely its contrast, sharpness, saturation, skin tone as well as enhance the colour blue, green and red and save them as custom colour.

Wide-angle, and widescreen mode: One of the things I wish the G6 had was a wide-angle lens. Starting at 34mm, the G6 is good only for ordinary photo-taking. However, with the lens starting at 28mm in the SX1 IS, I can now shoot landscapes and group photos with ease.

The widescreen mode or 16:9 aspect ratio, which can be turned on at the push of a button, allows me to take even wider images although there will be a crop in the height.

Continuous shot: The 4fps rate, which can be achieved only in “normal” shooting mode, is useful and effective, especially in shooting fast-moving objects in outdoor environment where there is enough light.

The 4fps burst is one of the features that made me decide to go for this camera instead of the cheaper SX10 IS and this is also the feature that converted me from a SX1 IS skeptic into a believer in its flexibility.

Macro: I have had a pleasant experience shooting macro photos with the G6 and the camera has become a sort of benchmark for me as far as shooting macro is concerned. In fact this blog is inspired by the G6’s superb macro capability.

I am a bit disappointed, therefore, that I will not be able to zoom while using the SX1 IS’ super macro mode, but with its ability to shoot super macro at 0cm distance, there is really nothing else – to state the obvious – standing in the way between the camera and the object, except the lens, that is.

The result is good, clean and sharp. In good hands and depending on the subject, the SX1 IS can produce stunning macro shots.

Face detection: Works like magic. This is my first experience with this function, so I can’t say how effective it is compared to other face-detector cameras, except to say that it is indeed effective.

High Definition video: HD video recording can be achieved by pushing two buttons.

First the widescreen mode button and then the red record button. While taking videos, you can also take photo but the shutter sound will be audible, that is if you enable the shutter sound.

There is also the 640 x 480 video mode. I just wish I had the option to shoot at higher resolution.

ISO performance (see also what I hate, below): Having a high ISO performance is rare in point-and-shoot cameras. I do not expect, therefore, that a point-and-shoot camera can perform well at ISO 1600. I do hope, however, that with the CMOS sensor, the SX1 IS can perform above average at ISO 400.

While the SX1 IS performs better than the G6 at ISO 400, the old camera is no match for the SX1 IS in terms of producing silky-smooth, noise-free images at lower ISO.

Superzoom: A long zoom is what I missed all the while. At one time, I was tempted to buy the 12x optical zoom Canon S3 IS. The only thing that stopped me at that time was the fact that Olympus had earlier introduced the 18x optical zoom SP 550 UZ, and I reckoned that Canon would soon come up with its own super-zoomers.

North American consumers, who are deprived of the SX1 IS as this camera is not sold there, may now want to watch what Nikon will do next. Nikon already has the 18x optical zoom Coolpix P80 and is very likely to enter the 20x optical zoom segment in not too distance future.

With several revolutionary development in Nikon of late – think D300, D700, D3x – it would not be surprising if Nikon will equal the 20x optical zoom and throw in similarly innovative features in its own version of super-zoomers.

Back to the SX1 IS, I like the zoom range and in clear weather, it performs to my expectation, which is not very high. The only setback is, unlike its predecessors, it lacks the facility to attach a teleconverter.

Hot-shoe: I have not used any flashgun on the G6 despite the presence of a hot shoe and it is unlikely that I will use one on the SX1 IS in the near future but it is nice to know that I can always use it when I need it.

Fast operation: Start-up is fast, almost instant. Viewing and deleting images is also fast, contributing to the overall robust feeling of the camera.

Good flash range: I have nothing much to say about the flash. It is sufficient. Should I ever want a better flash, I would get me a flashgun. That said, I prefer raising the flash manually in SX1 IS as I do not want to accidentaly set the flash to auto and the flash will fire when I take a shot.

There may be times when I need to take a photo without telling everbody that I’m taking one by firing the flash.

Tilt and swivel LCD screen: I think this feature should now be made a standard in cameras like this. It is very useful when shooting in awkward angle and even in normaly shooting condition.

Olympus is taking a full advantage of this feature and even incorporate it into its DSLRs, the E-3 and E-30. I am particularly impressed with the new E-30, if you ask me, not only because of its tilt and swivel LCD screen but also its wide options for creativity.

Should I ever upgrade to a DSLR, my choice will be the E-30, which looks like an able competitor to Nikon’s D300 and Canon’s 40D and 50D.

Aperture and shutter dial: Changing the aperture in Av, or the shutter speed in Tv mode, is easy with the SX1 IS. I just need to press a certain button and use the dail to increase or decrease the aperture or shutter speed value. The same goes when shooting manual.

What I don’t like

Noise: God knows how I hate noise; it drives me up the walls when noise is visible at lower ISO. Having said that, the SX1 IS performs better at higher ISO than the G6. At ISO 80 however, the SX1 IS produces silky smooth images.

I’ve taken close-up photos at ISO 100 and someone commented about the existence of of noise in the background. Looks like I will have to always shoot in ISO 80.

Cheap lens hood: The lens hood that comes with the camera looks cheap and it looks even cheaper as it can fall off easily from the lens. I lost the hood after five days because of the sloppy “screw-in” design. It must have fallen off somewhere.

Some inconsistencies in colour reproduction: While the SX1 IS can produce superb images, I do have issues with its colour reproduction. I want colour accuracy in every single shot I take but the camera sometimes “misread” the colour green to be dark-pale green and tend to make the colour blue bluer.

What I don’t care

Jello effect: Focus hunts in low light especially at the long end of the zoom. Although I seldom zoom in low light, it will be good if I can find focus each time.

Conclusion

The SX1 IS is my third digital camera after the Nikon Coolpix 5200 (bought in August 2004) and Canon PowerShot G6 (bought in September 2004).

There is a reason why I bought the G6 less than a month after the 5200 and why there is a long gap between the G6 and the SX1 IS (bought in December 2008). Truth is, I really like the G6’s silky smooth image quality that I can afford to wait four years to buy a new camera.

At ISO 50, the G6 image quality is superb. When noise is visible in some of the pictures taken with the SX1 IS at ISO 100, it dampens the excitement of having the new camera. Image quality wise, the SX1 IS is on par with other “premium” point-and-shoot cameras.

But I am holding on to it because I find its rich features to be extremely useful. It only loses out to the G6’s almost DSLR-like image quality.

My rating: 8.8 out of 10. I just couldn’t get myself to rank it 9. Noise level in SX1 IS is already low at ISO 400 compared to the G6 but if only it can be 10 per cent lower, and the colour reproduction is accurate 98 per cent of the time, I could have given the SX1 IS 9.5 out of 10.

Tagged as: Canon PowerShot SX1 IS