Canon SX20IS Black Friday Sales!
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Canon SX20IS Black Friday Sales!.
Product: Canon SX20IS Amazon Price: Too low to display Availability: In Stock |
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I shoot all kinds of stuff with all kinds of cameras. I am a working photographer who shoots for advertising and corporate client as well as to gain images for my occupy books about photography. Over the last two years I've been using puny cameras like the Canon G10 and the SX10 for more and more of my work. In the studio, shooting status up shots or slight products these cameras shine by dint of their easy to spend Live Opinion and increased depth of field. When I bought the SX 10 it was for the long range of the zoom lens which meant I could shoot anything from a construction location to tight shots of the cabins at the top of the construction cranes. I've done some portraits with studio lights and an SX10 and they were also very usable. I wish the SX 10 and SX 20 had raw file capability but they don't. That honest means I have to be a bit more careful about WB and exposure. I've ragged the SX10 at outdoor swim meets and found that the lens performs better than expected suitable out to the waste.
So, why the SX 20? Recently I've been asked to do more and more minute video snippets for clients and for my publisher and while I like the results from the SX10 I wanted accurate HD video for the times that a medical practice has asked for video clips for both their website AND for power point and other uses. I wanted the extra detail for the times that they exercise the clips in projected presentations. The notice point works.
I've spent a couple days testing the SX 10 and the results are very, very safe. The front mounted microphones are of very high quality and the sound for most applications is very acceptable. Would I like a mike input? You bet! Does that sour the deal? Not in the least.
The image quality of the stills is honest as first-rate as the SX 10 at indecent ISO's and about 1/2 a discontinuance better at 200 and 400. I'll chalk that up to the fresh digic processor.
All in all the obtain quality and the easy operation accomplish the camera a winner for me. These days clients are more enthusiastic in using images and video in a wide range of multimedia and the SX 20 is a mountainous tool for anything that's headed to the web. I composed possess worn DLSR cameras and utilize them but left to my acquire devices I fetch the smaller sensor cameras to be highly competent and very usable.
With an SX20 and a G10 I feel like I can handle objective about anything except shots that call for narrow depth of field. Weak photographers may not want to hear that video is becoming a required skill but that won't manufacture it go away. This camera is a cost effective draw to find your feet wet, regain your device around and come by your feet wet. I like it.
Let me launch off by saying that I'm not a professional photographer. My decision to pick the SX20 IS was based on a desire to bag an salubrious smooth shot camera, with high capacity zoom, that also had HD Video (720p) capabilities. So, I began my research and spent many hours scouring the web to get an informed decision. I had narrowed my choice to the Canon SX20 IS and the Panasonic DMC-FZ35.
Here are some of the key specs of each camera:
Optical Zoom (Canon: 20, Pana: 18)
Still image files (Canon: Not Raw, Pana: Raw)
Articulating LCD (Canon: Yes, Pana: No)
720p HD video per 2 GB (Canon: 10 min 33 sec, Pana: 15 min)
Video file format (Canon: .mov, Pana: AVCHD Lite)
Battery Type: (Canon: 4 AA, Pana: Li-ion rechargeable)
Stereo Audio (Both)
SD Card Storage (Both)
[...].
In the destroy I decided to go with Canon for a few key reasons:
#1. The articulating LCD (pull out, tilt/move) was a key factor, as I wanted to be able to shoot from many different angles. It came in handy very soon--the second time I traditional the camera--I was able to whip out the LCD and gather some decent shots at a football game when I had to raise the camera high over my head to shoot over the folks standing in front of me.
#2. The ability to easily piece video files. The .mov file format is a more widely common format, which can easily be shared (without processing/conversion) . The files are approved on sites such as You Tube. The files can be played with Quicktime and other media players (e.g. VLC) . Although the Panasonic camera uses a format which is more compressed and allows more data to be stored on an SD card, the file format is not as wide spread and not as easy to piece with others, without converting the file.
#3. Consumer Reports rankings for last year's model: Canon #1, Pana #5 (SX10 IS & Pana DMC-FZ28) . I suspect the SX20 IS will follow the same trend this year when Consumer Reports releases their test results for 2009.
#4. Canon takes AA batteries. This makes the camera slightly heavier, but you'll always be able to bag economical batteries in a pinch, without the need for buying a proprietary lithium ion battery. May I recommend Sanyo Eneloop rechargeable batteries. I bought some modern on Amazon. They are salubrious. I haven't charged them yet and I've taken 120 pictures and 40 minutes plus of 720p video. I've also played support the pictures and movies on my TV/Projector and transferred all files to my computer, using the same batteries, without charging them. And they are "..aloof going..."
Here are some sample pictures taken with the SX20 IS. Maintain in mind that Flickr doesn't exhibit the stout, modern represent which was taken in maximum resolution (in auto mode) . [...].
I've taken some gigantic up-close family shots and macro shots. They ogle huge and are very detailed. I took some night/action pics (with the flash) and adjusted the shutter hasten and ISO settings and the pictures looked mountainous, given the conditions.
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I apologize for the camera jitter in arrive as I didn't have a tri-pod and I was in a tight spot in the Stadium when I took the shots.
I must admit that I am thoroughly impressed with the video quality/resolution. I shot sample video from my 1 year worn camcorder (Panasonic SDR-H40, a standard definition hard drive camcorder) and shot the same footage with the SX20 IS. The contrast in quality was extraordinary. Not only was the Canon powerful sharper, but the richness and vibrance of the colors was so distinguished better. I sold my SDR-H40 on Ebay within two days. I now will have only one camera to shoot stills and 720p HD video--the Canon SX20 IS. The videos from the SX20 IS looked awesome--on both my 32 wander 720p LCD and my 100+ high-tail camouflage via a 720p DLP projector. I connected the camera with an HDMI cable and bam, I was ready to view vast video and idea tranquil shots "on the ample shroud." Inspect the above referenced links for video footage yourself. If I were given the opportunity to glance a football game shot in standard definition by ESPN or an HD version of the same game, shot with the SX20 IS (on a tripod, without my hand jitter), I'd capture the latter in a heart beat.
No buyer's remorse here! If you are looking for an SLR type camera, that does awesome stills and huge 720p HD video (both zoomable at 20x optical), you'd be hard pressed to acquire more bang for your buck then the SX20 IS on Amazon.
One minor utter I've noticed is that when zooming in/out while shooting video, you can here a puny "click" when you begin the zoom and when you cessation the zoom. There is NO noise heard while the lens is zooming/telescoping in/out; the "click" is only heard when the zoom is initiated and when the zoom is stopped. The "click" is not that noticeable. I had to shoot footage in silence, after the kids had gone to bed, in order to distinguish the "click." In most shooting environments I don't ask it to be grand of an articulate.
Best of luck with your remove decision.
P.S. By the draw, the owner manual states that you must exercise the Canon software to transfer images/movies from the camera to a PC, else movies will not transfer (frames will be dropped) correctly and images shot vertically may be transferred in the horizontal orientation. So, don't unbiased do a copy/paste of the files them self from the SD card. Sustain this in mind as you thought sample video on the web.
I received the camera a few days ago. I wanted a wonderful quality camera for all-around, basic shooting. The main features that attracted me were the wide angle/zoom lens and the video option.
I am not an expert, or even an experienced amateur. I fair want to be able to point, shoot, and pick decent pics and some occassional vidoe.
In my notion, the best eye-pleasing pictures are those that present the vibrant colors and color variations - all other things being equal. I've experimented with various settings and taken the same shots with those various settings, and compared shots taken with Auto, Landscape, Portrait, etc. against the Foilage setting [SCN/Foilage], and the Foilage setting is by far the best for bringing out the colors (which it is meant to do anyway) . Compared to those pics taken using the Foilage setting, the ones taken in the other settings are tiring, - not that they aren't decent pictures in the other settings, fair compared to the Foilage pictures they are insensible(er) . So for basic shots, I will probably spend the Foilage setting most of the time for all-around shooting - the pictures are fair. One predicament I ask with this, is to bag to the Foilage setting, you must consume the top dial residence to SCN, then using the free-spinning dial on the support, acquire foilage. Predicament is, after taking shots and letting the camera hang against your body, the free-spinning dial may be prone to be moved to lift another setting...
One of the issues I do have, is not being able to decide to state the Auto-Focus frame to the center of the cover for many settings - such as Auto... I'm not crazy about the "sparkling focus" which chooses which subject(s) that it thinks is the main subject(s) - in my case of shooting mostly non-people so far, this "smart-focus" has been infamous. I mediate most of us non-pro photographers usually center our subject anyway, and even if we don't, we should serene have the option of keeping the AF frame in the center... One other thing that hasn't worked for me is connecting it to HDMI on my TV. I'm going to choose it to Best Retract and try it there. If it mild isn't working, I detest to send it encourage because it is a marvelous camera, but I would like the HDMI feature to work to gawk my videos in good HD.
In summary, the wide-to-zoom feature is spacious, takes very valid pictures (especially in Foilage), takes safe video. The video option is gracious - you can prefer pics while filming, and you can simply press the video button in the support to commence taking video even if you're in a picture-taking setting - very nice feature.
If you're not a pro photographer and want to have a broad all-around camera, this is definitely a sterling hold. I hope I can gather my HDMI/TV feature to work so I can support my camera...
