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G7 Significant Shutter Lag

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vincentnyc said:
surprisingly, the SD800IS is 0.4 seconds faster!!

please check it out and opine!
Click to expand...
Huh? I don't see these numbers at all. I see the total time for the G7 to be 0.5 sec. and for the SD800IS to be 0.4 sec. That a differential of 0.1 sec. And these seem to be full autofocus shutter lag estimates, and not with flash. Or am I looking at the correct page?

Please post the page you are looking at for the 0.4 sec faster number.

--mamallama
 
Since when do we trust CNET to make accurate measurements? And as mamallama says there is a difference of 0.1 s not including flash... By going to manual in the G7 you can get very close to no shutter lag using flash (but I don't get that every time. don't know what happens there...)

-- tobias
 
I made some tests yesterday too, but with a macro of a white object and I ended up in manual to get a decent exposure. The first time the metering has failed my like this... But I guess that is what the manual mode is there for. The exposure was finally what I wanted :)

-- tobias
 
Mr Ralf said:
It's all right for you if you only pull your cam out once a year
for the annual vacation time...
Click to expand...
Don't be so presumptuous nor so arrogant, you have no idea how often I and others use our cameras.
 
Eric Jacobs said:
I just bought a G7, and I'm really surprised at the amount of
shutter lag that it has when using the flash. It's like a camera
from the last decade. On the other hand, my SD700 has almost
instantaneous shutter responsiveness even with flash. What gives?
I've seen other posts about this, but has anyone posted a solution?
I find this unacceptable in a camera that is relatively expensive
(but is great in other respects). The lag seems to be about a half
second. The reviews I've read say that the G7 has minimal shutter
lag. Haven't they tested it with flash?
Click to expand...
Yes Simon tested it. In Simon's just released G7 review he notes that the shutter lag of the G7 with flash is about half a second. Apparently it's for the E-TTL preflash. That's quite significant, buy few seems to care.

--mamallama
 
4-8-4-Northern said:
The shutter lag is yet another "retro" feature of the "G"7.
Click to expand...
Flaw or not, that much shutter lag IS VERY ANNOYING. It's about the same on my Olympus C-8080 and I cannot time the shot for the precise moment with flash shots. I need to anticipate and guess and my hit rate is very low.

OTOH with my Sony H5 with the red-eye preflash off, it's much faster and my hit rate is quite high.

I don't think it's an implementation flaw, it's a E-TTL design flaw.

--mamallama
 
mamallama said:
OTOH with my Sony H5 with the red-eye preflash off, it's much
faster and my hit rate is quite high.

I don't think it's an implementation flaw, it's a E-TTL design flaw.

--mamallama
Click to expand...
It is not an E-TTL design flaw, because when you use the same EX flash units with either Canon's 35mm or digital SLR's there is no lag. When I used a 420 and 550EX flash unit with my G5 a while back the delay between the pre-flash and actual exposure was significant and annoying. With the SLR cameras the two flashes are instantaneous.

There are more annoying incompatibilities between Canon's G-series and EX flash units other than that too. Indoors AF performance would be SO much better if the infrared AF assist light on the flash would work on the G series. It was designed with the G5 for that not to work and my guess is it does not on the G7 either. Hopefully the built-in AF assist light on the G7 is MUCH improved, especially in the tele range indoors in lower light because it totally sucked on the G5.

One of the ways I like to shoot is to put the camera in manual mode, set my own shutter speed and aperture and turn the flash on and let it work in TTL mode, which is what happens with Canon's SLRs. Mount an EX flash unit on the G5 and set the camera to manual and the flash goes into manual mode, too...no TTL, not even non-TTL automatic. How good is that? How does it work on the G7?

There's no reason why Canon can't make the G series more compatible with their own flash units.
 
mamallama said:
If I'm not mistaken, it's a basic characteristic of the Canon E-TTL
flash metering system.

--mamallama
Click to expand...
Nope, you are mistaken. The two flashes are instantaneous in Canon's DSLR's and 35mm SLR's. There's no reason why Canon could not have made this better. It's been the same going back to at least the G5.
 
If you look at the timing page on Simon's review, he says that the lag goes from 0.12 to 0.5 seconds when using live LCD view and flash. (See the footnote.) However, there is no footnote for the timing of lag when using the optical viewfinder. That lag is shown as 0.05 seconds with no mention of flash or no flash. I haven't tried it yet, but Simon seems to be saying that the lag due to flash should be eliminated when using the optical viewfinder.

By the way, earlier in this thread I mentioned that I couldn't see the preflash for E-TTL in the G7. I can see it now.
 
Gregm61 said:
Nope, you are mistaken. The two flashes are instantaneous in
Canon's DSLR's and 35mm SLR's. There's no reason why Canon could
not have made this better. It's been the same going back to at
least the G5.
Click to expand...
I might very well be mistaken, but I cannot perceive of TWO flashes happening instantaneously (with ZERO time elapsing between them) and not be ONE long one. As Eric says he can see the preflash means there is some time between the two flashes in my way of thinking.

--mamallama
 
Eric Jacobs said:
If you look at the timing page on Simon's review, he says that the
lag goes from 0.12 to 0.5 seconds when using live LCD view and
flash. (See the footnote.) However, there is no footnote for the
timing of lag when using the optical viewfinder. That lag is shown
as 0.05 seconds with no mention of flash or no flash. I haven't
tried it yet, but Simon seems to be saying that the lag due to
flash should be eliminated when using the optical viewfinder.

By the way, earlier in this thread I mentioned that I couldn't see
the preflash for E-TTL in the G7. I can see it now.
Click to expand...
I bet you'll see the lag is the same whether you use the optical finder or the LCD. It was on the G5 and it's one of the reasons why I never bothered with the G6. the delay is simply the way Canon has made their flash units to work on the G-series.

Anyone looking to pick this camera up as a backup or light weight alternative to a DSLR body such as a 20D or 30D, as I have seen in this forum, should know all the things that do not work the same, because it is not insignificant can be frustrating to those who utilize their EX flash units in more creative ways other than just TTL in program mode. Canon do not want those type people buying this camera, they want them buying a Digital Rebel series instead. That's the only reason I can see why they have not made anything better since the G5 in terms of flash performance.
 
mamallama said:
I might very well be mistaken, but I cannot perceive of TWO flashes
happening instantaneously (with ZERO time elapsing between them)
and not be ONE long one. As Eric says he can see the preflash means
there is some time between the two flashes in my way of thinking.

--mamallama
Click to expand...
Absolutely, there is no way they can happen at exactly the same time, BUT...if you have a G7 and not a Canon SLR (digital or 35mm), go to a camera store and mount an EX flash on the G7, shoot it and then try the same thing on the SLR. It's like two different flash units. You have to use it with both types to appreciate how an EX unit really works when used on a camera that's completely, 100% dedicated, which SLR's are and G-series cameras are not.
 
Hi,

tried flash in manual mode to avoid shutter lag but it's no good. The flash can not be adjusted in enough steps. And if the object is moving...

Mostly I got over or underexposed pics.

So there is no usable way to avoid the flash shutter lag of this G7.

I am really frustrated. I could have loved this camera. Will I keep it?
 
birdwatcher said:
I came to the conclusion from reading
other posts that I had received a lemon.
Click to expand...
From what I read in these forums, there are more than a reasonable amount of lemons across the board, just not the G7. What about other digital camera purchasers who don't frequent forums such as this one?! What a shame!

I'm really getting annoyed with Canon, despite the fact that I love the three I own.

I have no vested interest in the G series cameras. I have never owned one and, until recently, have even followed discussions about it.

But as a potential buyer, let me say, no matter how good the G7 is, it is a dumbed down version of its predecessors. To date, that hasn't happened with the S series digital cameras. Each new generation past the S1 (S2, S3)has improved upon the former with no reduction of features or lens quality (unlike the G7).

Per the dpreview review:

"Many features that made the G series stand out have been removed; fast lens, raw mode, vari-angle screen, IR remote, big long-life battery, LCD status panel "

" a feeling that Canon could have taken a few more risks rather than producing what is, essentially, a souped-up A series camera with a couple of token nods to the G series' tradition and a CCD stuffed to the gills with pixels to such an extent that it compromises image quality."

It may be a great camera but, after reading about previous G cameras in this forum, don't consider it in the class of those before it..

I was a potential buyer, but forget it! I'll stick with what I have. Maybe even look elsewhere.

--
gail ~ http://www.pbase.com/gailb
My digital camera BLOGs: Canon SD700, S2 & A510; Panasonic FZ3, Nikon 5400
http://www.digicamhelp.com/digital-camera-blogs/index.htm
 
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