Montana500

Opinion: I purchased the S2 before heading on a trip to Montana. I would be out there for a month in a tent so I needed something that was built well, something with AA's, and something that could take a bit of video as well. The AA's really saved the day. I could not imagine being stuck with having to recharge proprietary batteries while tent camping/hiking. So a big thanks to Canon for not using the dreaded proprietary battery. I found the long zoom a joy to use. The camera itself is incredibly easy to operate and move around in., You can really fly through the menus and there are lots of hard buttons which decreases the time spent in the menus. The flip out/twist LCD is amazing. I get the feeling I wont be able to go back to fixed LCD cameras after this one. The video mode is nice. Note however that the video quality is best when the camera is resting on a surface or a tripod. The sound quality in video mode is excellent as well.

After a couple of days of shooting, I noticed that what I was seeing in my hptos and on the LCD was not really what my eye was seeing. I went into the function mode, and theninto custom mode. From here I was able to make some adjustments, like turning contrast down, setting sharpness to medium, and turning saturation up. With these settings, I noticed the photos were much closer to what my eye was seeing. However, there was something else to switch as well. It seems the S2 likes to overexpose - ALOT. The Auto mode simply is not worth using IMHO, and Canon needs to address it immediately. I would suggest using P-mode, setting the ISO to 50 (to reduce noise), and setting the EV to -1/3rd. This greatly increases your "good photo" count. You will get noisy, blown out, overexposed and flat pictures using Auto. How Canon released a point and shoot with such a bad AUTO mode amazes me. But, it is easily fixed with some simple tweaks and using P-mode.

The photos I took in Montana were mostly landscape shots and wildlife shots. I coul get VERY close with the s2 which was great. Howver, what was not so great was that pictures you thought were in focus when you took them sometimes are not at all, especially in the long end of the zoom. Unless you have full daylight, do not expect to use the S2 as a wildlife cam. It can't focus well in shadowed areas, even in daylight. You need heavy contrast to get it to focus, And even when you get that to lock, getting an animal in proper focus is difficult. If you have full, bright daylight it should notbe a problem. But when you start getting into forest areas, shadows even on sunny days it can be problematic.

Many of the landscape shots I took I as incredibly pleased with! Colors were rich and true to life. The S2 really nails colors well, especially with saturation turned to high. It is easy to see different layers of colors in your landscapes using the S2 - whereas cameras I have used in the past simply did not do as good of a job. I am pleased with the landscape shtos I was able to get. The S2 did agreat job here. I think if Canon released some firmware that helped out the fous in the S2, that it would be the perfect wildlife cam.

One feature that is amazing on the S2 is the panorma feature. If you dont have a wide angle this can be incredibly helpful, helping to create some really cool wide angle landscape shots.

Battery time is simply amazing. With a pair of good quality Nimhs, this camera can run forever. I got 500+ shots on my batteries - which is fantastic for camping/wilderness hiking.

the S2's response time is also very ,very fast. Everything is on in an instant and ready to go. If not for this respone time, I would have missed several shots.

The S2 does have some noise issues at ISO 100 and above, but it's not that big of a deal IMHO when you have great free resources like Neat Image to help reduce noise. I don't see a problem with noise at ISO 50.

Purple fringing can be a problem. I have gotten it on bird beaks, tree limbs etc. But for the price I paid (350$), and the features I suppose it is a small price to pay. It is something that IMHO doesn't show up that often in prints.

Overall, I am happy with the S2. It is fast, is easy to use, takes nice video, takes good photos, batteries last a long time, and the flip out twist LCD makes it alot more fun than it should be. I simply could not have gotten some photos if I did not have the twist out LCD. The S2 makes a perfect companion to something like the D70. It really is a great camera to use, and I highly recommend it. My only real issue with it is the soft focus. If that can be resolved in firmware this may be the perfect camera, no joke.