Canon PowerShot SX10 IS

Opinion: I got this camera to replace my basic point and shoot small cam. Since the very beginning I was impressed by the quality and the images and the new features I got with the Canon.

Great choice if you are a photo enthusiast and plan to step up to a more complete camera.

Opinion: I bought the SX10 back around the time when it first came out, and I've never regretted it. With the 20x superzoom lens and all of the manual controls, it's one of the closest things you can get to a DSLR without actually being a DSLR. Given that you can't change lenses, the 20x superzoom lens w/ wide angle, macro, and 0cm "super macro" features is very very handy as it gives you a range of focal lengths and focus distances that you'd normally need a DSLR with multiple lenses to get.

One of the best things about this camera, and the rest of the Canon PowerShot series, is the availability of the free (vendor unsupported) CHDK (Canon Hack Development Kit) which extends the firmware to add a tremendous number of features including the ability to save shots in RAW file format (including Adobe DNG).

I just bought a Nikon D7000 (DSLR), but I plan to keep the SX10 and will still end up using it in certain situations (particularly those which require special CHDK features, such as motion detection).

Opinion: I have not seen any negative reviews of the view finder, only one opinion in answer to my questions that was negative. Mine is quite poor. It produces a very rough view that hinders visability especially in dark areas. Looks like you are looking through a window screen. The LCD is just fine. Finally decided something was wrong with my view finder. I sent it to Canon for repair. It has been accepted. I am waiting to see what they will find. So far the repair center seems OK. They have a fast turn around, but quite a high repair price....$149.70 including return shipping. Maybe all camera repairs are high. Just think, I bought this camera for new on ebay, but Canon does not accept ebay receipts for warranty work. They require a dealer receipt on the dealer's letterhead, might even have to be an authorized dealer...Not sure about that. I now have more $ in the camera than I could have bought a truly new one from Amazon.com.

Some have complained about the lack of threads for filters....no threading...true. but it does have a neat bayonett mount on the lens. Lensmate makes an inexpensive adapter that fits this and allows for 58mm filters. Ordered mine. Some just screw a filter on anyway.

I should say that the camera makes great pictures.

Opinion: Very nice camera
Full of resources
A lot of commands

Opinion: The Camera has too many options, which a beginner cannot use it like a photo can be edited or changing color of the background. Video recording is good. Battery backup is fine.

Opinion: I have this camera since last year, upgraded from a S3 IS. I was expecting that Canon must solved some problems but not, they continue the same. Under low light conditions - if you arent under a bright cloudy day - the precision of the focusing is very weak if you are using the zoom among 10x. If your subject also is walking in/out your direction the focusing also dont works well because its slow. I noticed also a lack of sharpness on the edges of the field when using the zoom, at average power.
I like to take candid pictures and the vary angle LCD is a great advantage that this camera offers, this is the motiv I choose it and the price also. I know that we have the quality for what we pay for and for those that wish a great zoom p&s camera will have to have very patience and take many shots to choose one with suficient quality if use this camera. If you not use much zoom (till 4x ) the answer is quick and the quality of the pictures are very good.
Resuming, if you are very exigent about the quality and wishes to use much zoom I recomend think twice before choose this camera.

Opinion: Got the camera few weeks back from buydig. It is very good and handy. Had SX2IS before and feel very good compared to the previous one. Photo quality is excellent and enjoying it.

Opinion: This replaced my Canon 3is that developed a lens problem. It supplements my 40D very well.

Problems? None so far except that Canon must have worked out a deal with Sony when they switched from .WMV or .AVI movie format to .MOV. Those are some large files. Thank goodness for my video converter.

I added a Delkin shade to the LCD (had to cut away a little piece of the mounting bracket) and that helps the already low glare LCD out in the sunshine.

I also made a homemade stabilizer from PVC pipe and 2.5 pounds of lead at the bottom. Great for movies of flying airplanes.

Bottom line? Worth every penny I paid for it!

Opinion: I purchased my SX-10 IS as a back-up for my Canon EOS 400D DSLR. Previously, I had been using the Fujifilm FinePix S9600, and whilst I had no complaints, the attraction of a 20x zoom versus a 10x, and image stabilisation as well proved to be the deciding factors. Having now taken hundreds of images, under a wide variety of conditions, I can now say how well it serves.

Obviously, it is not a DSLR, and at the extremes of its capabilities it cannot compete, but it is fair to say that it performs surprisingly well under the majority of circumstances. The build quality is excellent; the use of regular, easily obtainable AA cells as a power source is a distinct plus; compatibility with my existing Canon speedlite welcome; familiar Canon-style photgraphic adjustments make it easy to swap between the 400D and the SX-10; excellent image stabilisation, permitting even hand-held shots at maximum zoom; and a reasonably useful electronic viewfinder.

The real feature though is obviously image quality. As I've remarked before, ultimately the only thing that matters is image quality. Small sensors are a prerequisite for super-zoom lens - the size of the glass you would need for the same zoom range and image quality with, say, a full-frame sensor would probably require a federal export licence! This being the case, the trade-off is sensor noise. In this respect the SX-10 IS excels. Obviously image noise is going to be present, but from ISO80 through ISO200 the artefacts are very well controlled, and at ISO80 and ISO100 they are only evident when carefully pixel-peeping. At ISO200 they are slightly intrusive, but even with A4 or 8x10 prints you would have to look very closely and at normal viewing distance these noise issues are invisible. Running the image through Neat Image Pro, Noise Ninja, or Helicon Filter can easily deal with the noise with very little loss of fine detail. ISO400 is where the noise starts to become an issue, and from ISO800 onwards everything is downhill - fast! ISO1600 and ISO3200, even at the reduced resolution of 2Mp is essentially useless. Overall, the decision to use a 10Mp sensor and careful in-camera noise reduction provides an optimised result where it matters. Compare this with the SX200 IS where even base ISO is very noisy and lacks fine detail.

The lens is not perfect - no lens is - but the geometric distortion and CA are well controlled, even at the edges of the frame. Certainly no worse than my favourite 400D lens, the 17-85mm IS zoom. Things have certainly moved on since my Fujifilm S9600 was state-of-the-art, and overall the SX10 IS is a very competent performer, capable of giving excellent results under a wide variety of shooting conditions, and in good light, compares very well with my 400D. Take the same shot at the same ISO (100) at the same focal lengths and then compare the images side-by-side using, say, the FastStome Image Viewer (Excellent all-round tool, including a competent image editor.) and there is very little difference. Print the two images, and then you really have a job to tell which is which. This is not to say that it can replace a DSLR, it cannot, the ISO flexibility and ultimate dynamic range of a DSLR will win out every time, but for many situations, and as a back-up or substitute when you simply cannot take the whole DSLR kit, the SX-10 fills the bill nicely.

If you need additional flexibility, check out the CHDK autobuild for this camera - WOW!