Timon
11-04-2007, 05:05 PM
With my b'day and Christmas coming up dw asked me what I want as a gift. Without hesitation I said I wanted a new camera. She gave me a price range that I can live with and I've pretty much narrowed it down to the Canon S3 IS (I'd love the S5, but that's just not in the budget).
What I like about this camera:
It's price is right where I'm comfortable.
12X Optical zoom with a 2 speed motor
Optical Image Stabilizaiton
Shutter lag of 1/10 of a second (maybe I won't just miss some great shots with it)
6.0 mp
Movie feature and ability to take stills while in movie mode, zoom while in movie mode, and has stero audio
19 shooting modes
1.5 fps in continuous mode (normal) & 2.3 fps (high speed)
View Finder (Electronic)
LCD 2" monitor w/100% coverage
LCD monitor swings out and tilts
SLR "Look" (superfluos I know, but still it does look cool)
Shutter release and zoom are conveniently positioned as is the mode dial
Pop up flash is relatively powerful
On screen grid option (for those, like me, that have a problem with holding the camera to get a straight horizontal and vertical which will help in not getting those skewed shots)
Ability to move the focus point within the frame.
1.7 seconds to powerup
Powered by 4 AA batteries which will enable 200+ pix
Steve's digicams, Digital Photography Review http://www.dpreview.com/, Imaging Resource http://www.imaging-resource.com/DIGCAM01.HTM and C/net http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-cameras/ all liked it as did the vast majority of user reviews I've read.
What I don't like:
Canon has a reputation for their images to have a soft look. Can I sharpen them in post?
The screw hole for the tripod is plastic as is the whole body. The screw hole really bothers me because most tripods have metal screws and a misthread can just ruin it.
Stills taken during movie mode will cause some black frames and the shutter sound when playing back the movie.
Kind of heavy at about 1 lb. a bit different than my Olympus pocket point & shoot.
Electronic view finder (I know that I have this as something I like, but I wish it were opticle instead of electronic, but I know that's not possible at least not in my price range.)
Obviously my pro list is much longer than my con list. What I'm looking for is arguments against buying this camera, but if you're going to make that argument you've got to give me an alternative in the same price range.
I know that geffric and WDWNJ have this camera and that they're both happy with it. geffric I don't see that you've got a gallery on the site, do you have your pix from this camera posted somewhere so that I can view them? John I looked at the pix you have in the gallery here. Were they all taken with the S3 IS?
What I like about this camera:
It's price is right where I'm comfortable.
12X Optical zoom with a 2 speed motor
Optical Image Stabilizaiton
Shutter lag of 1/10 of a second (maybe I won't just miss some great shots with it)
6.0 mp
Movie feature and ability to take stills while in movie mode, zoom while in movie mode, and has stero audio
19 shooting modes
1.5 fps in continuous mode (normal) & 2.3 fps (high speed)
View Finder (Electronic)
LCD 2" monitor w/100% coverage
LCD monitor swings out and tilts
SLR "Look" (superfluos I know, but still it does look cool)
Shutter release and zoom are conveniently positioned as is the mode dial
Pop up flash is relatively powerful
On screen grid option (for those, like me, that have a problem with holding the camera to get a straight horizontal and vertical which will help in not getting those skewed shots)
Ability to move the focus point within the frame.
1.7 seconds to powerup
Powered by 4 AA batteries which will enable 200+ pix
Steve's digicams, Digital Photography Review http://www.dpreview.com/, Imaging Resource http://www.imaging-resource.com/DIGCAM01.HTM and C/net http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-cameras/ all liked it as did the vast majority of user reviews I've read.
What I don't like:
Canon has a reputation for their images to have a soft look. Can I sharpen them in post?
The screw hole for the tripod is plastic as is the whole body. The screw hole really bothers me because most tripods have metal screws and a misthread can just ruin it.
Stills taken during movie mode will cause some black frames and the shutter sound when playing back the movie.
Kind of heavy at about 1 lb. a bit different than my Olympus pocket point & shoot.
Electronic view finder (I know that I have this as something I like, but I wish it were opticle instead of electronic, but I know that's not possible at least not in my price range.)
Obviously my pro list is much longer than my con list. What I'm looking for is arguments against buying this camera, but if you're going to make that argument you've got to give me an alternative in the same price range.
I know that geffric and WDWNJ have this camera and that they're both happy with it. geffric I don't see that you've got a gallery on the site, do you have your pix from this camera posted somewhere so that I can view them? John I looked at the pix you have in the gallery here. Were they all taken with the S3 IS?