Canon S90

I ordered a Canon S90 graded Excellent as a used camera.  I have a Canon SL1 with several lenses, an Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark II with 3 lens.  I am wondering if anyone has tips for me in beginning to use the Canon S90.  Clearly it will be easily transportable, and I am impressed with the reviews.  I just could not buy in my budget when they were brand new.  Feel free to offer thoughts and/or special settings you like. Thank you.

I had the S95, very similar. The main tip to pass on is to shoot in RAW. Then run it through a basic edit in the computer, a program such as Lightroom or Adobe Camera Raw, or some other basic editing program. That way, using RAW,  you'll get the most depth, color range and dynamic range out of the very capable sensor in that wonderfully small camera.  The sooc jpeg's are very good, but RAW makes a huge difference.  I think it's worth the extra time.

Also, for most scenes, I set the exposure compensation to minus 1/3 stop. That way you'll preserve a lot of highlights that would otherwise get blown.

It's a wonderful little camera, capable of very good pictures indeed. With some care selecting and composing your shot, and minimal editing to optimize the image, I used to print photobooks at 11x14 inches, and could get pictures that are roughly as good as from a full frame, printed at that size. Yes, of course there's a difference, but almost no one will notice. The picture quality of the S series is excellent.

Enjoy your new used camera. It's a terrific tool, very capable. Good shooting!
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Tom B

I've had an S90 from introduction, until just recently, when I gave it to a friend.  It's OK, I still have an S95.

I have a couple of recommendations.  First, because the camera is shaped like a used bar of soap, it's hard to get a good grip on.  So go to B&H and order a Flip-bac G3 stick-on front grip.  It's a huge help in holding the camera and doesn't stick out further than the lens, so it doesn't impede pocketability.  They are about $10.

Second go to the Lensmate web site and look for a Rear Wheel Solution Ring.  Susan Doel, the founder of Lensmate cooked these up specifically for the S90.  It's adhesive backed and fits around the cluster of buttons and the little wheel on the back of the camera.  The wheel is very easy to turn, and the buttons easy to press accidentally.  The ring prevents that; but the controls are still easy to use when you want to.  Nicely engineered.  I believe Susan works for Boeing.  About $5.

As far as settings, I use JPEGs.  I recommend one or two steps of additional sharpening, and shooting most outdoor shots at -1/3 exposure compensation.  The S90 is a little soft at the factory default settings.  By the way, the S90 uses the same sensor and processor as the larger G11.

Those are great little cameras, and mine was my pocket camera on many cruises and land trips.  Enjoy.

Ed,

If you do a search on this forum for S90 or S95, you'll find lots and lots of folks that agree with us. One of the better contributors on this forum a few years back bought an S120, was disappointed with it, and went back to his S90. Newer isn't necessarily better. One of the advantages of the S90/95 is that the sensor is CCD; which a lot of folks think results in better color. I know it was one of my best cameras to capture fall color.

Here's I shot I took leaving Buenos Aires on a cruise ship. The skyline of the city is at the extreme bottom below the clouds. I set the camera to -2/3 stop to saturate the colors, and set the White Balance to "cloudy" to enhance the reds and yellows. Even though it was only a 10 MP image, when it was shown on the huge screen in the ship's theater, it held together and drew gasps from the crowd. It was a showing of passenger's images from the trip to Antarctica, and since this was at the very beginning of the cruise, it showed first.

Looking back at Buenos Aires from the River Platte.  Canon S95

As we sailed out, we were in a Martini bar with large windows. I glanced in the direction of the city and saw this dramatic sunset shaping up. I went out on deck, and this was the third shot, as I played with the settings.

You're welcome.

I've owned several S series and G series Canons.  Some of my best shots were taken with those.  I had the S50, S70, and S80.  Those (except for the S80) and nearly all the S series had an equivalent model in the G series with the same sensor and processor.  After the S80 there were no more S series for a while; but Canon filled the gap for three years with an SD series model with the same sensor and processor as one of the G series.  Those still had the 1/1.7" sensor and were the SD700, SD950IS, and SD990IS.  After those three Canon brought out the S90, the first S series with Image Stabilization, although the SD950IS and SD990IS also has IS.  So the S90 connects to the G11, the S95 to the G12, and the S100 to the G15.  The G16 corresponds to the S120.  After that they brought out the G_X models, like my G7X II with a 1" sensor.   That's a very good camera; but bigger and heavier, and quite expensive.

awesome

Ed B wrote:

asburydan wrote:

I ordered a Canon S90 graded Excellent as a used camera. I have a Canon SL1 with several lenses, an Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark II with 3 lens. I am wondering if anyone has tips for me in beginning to use the Canon S90. Clearly it will be easily transportable, and I am impressed with the reviews. I just could not buy in my budget when they were brand new. Feel free to offer thoughts and/or special settings you like. Thank you.

I had an S90 and thought it was a good little camera.

I agree with GeraldW that it needs some kind of a grip installed to keep it from slipping out of your hands because it can be hard to hold on to.

To be honest, I thought it was one of the best small cameras available at the time and I'm sure you'll like it.

When you come right down to it I doubt there's a small sensor camera made today that's much better.

GeraldW wrote:

You're welcome.

I've owned several S series and G series Canons. Some of my best shots were taken with those. I had the S50, S70, and S80. Those (except for the S80) and nearly all the S series had an equivalent model in the G series with the same sensor and processor. After the S80 there were no more S series for a while; but Canon filled the gap for three years with an SD series model with the same sensor and processor as one of the G series. Those still had the 1/1.7" sensor and were the SD700, SD950IS, and SD990IS. After those three Canon brought out the S90, the first S series with Image Stabilization, although the SD950IS and SD990IS also has IS. So the S90 connects to the G11, the S95 to the G12, and the S100 to the G15. The G16 corresponds to the S120. After that they brought out the G_X models, like my G7X II with a 1" sensor. That's a very good camera; but bigger and heavier, and quite expensive.

GeraldW wrote:

First, because the camera is shaped like a used bar of soap, it's hard to get a good grip on. So go to B&H and order a Flip-bac G3 stick-on front grip. It's a huge help in holding the camera and doesn't stick out further than the lens, so it doesn't impede pocketability. They are about $10.

Thank You ! so much for that bit of advice.

I agree; the S90 is like trying to hold a wet bar of soap.

I went to B&H and brought up the Flipbac G3 and it says "No Longer Available"

I then went to Ebay and searched and found them under the part-number FBG3; pictures of the package show them as G3; but, in order to find all possible sources, you must type in FBG3.

All that I saw available are from Japan and cost right at $12.00 with free s&h.

I now have one on the way; I figure if it prevents me dropping the camera one time that it is worth the cost.

I did not have any luck in finding the Lensmate attachment at Lensmate, Amazon, or Ebay.