Any Canon Power Shot S1 IS Owners?

[JaCkaL829]

Anybody on this forum own this camera? I would like to know your opinion of it. I`ve sold my Nikon Coolpix 3700 and now want to move up to something with a better zoom, mainly for wildlife photography. I`ve been looking at a couple high zoom cameras from Konica Minolta and Kodak, but the Canon Power Shot S1 IS seems to be a little more in my price range and it seems the IS or AS is a MUST have with a high zoom camera. I talked to my friend`s father today who is a pretty hardcore photographer and he didn`t reccomend the S1 IS for the lack of MP, only 3.2 MP. I`m curious if anybody here feels differently? I haven`t exactly been wowed by any of these cameras, it seems they all have slight flaws or are missing something.

I`ve been reading my brains out on dpreview and steves-digicams, but I would like to get some Autopians perspectives, if there are any.

Thanks!:wavey

[ScubaStevo]

I have it. I love it. I`ll post some pictures. I don`t miss the megapixels, since I`m not taking EXTREMELY large pictures. Sharpness and crispness are awsome.

[ScubaStevo]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v286/Sexpert/Card001.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v286/Sexpert/Meme.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v286/Sexpert/Blazer025.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v286/Sexpert/car.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v286/Sexpert/Outsidepractise015BIGGGGGGGGGGGGG.jpg

[ScubaStevo]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v286/Sexpert/ChristmasCanon006.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v286/Sexpert/ChristmasCanon011.jpg

[ScubaStevo]

Originally posted by MongooseGA

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v286/Sexpert/Meme.jpg



:rofl

Hahaha, ok dude, its getting old. :rolleyes:



This better?



http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v286/Sexpert/Allme.jpg

[MongooseGA]

OK, I`ll erase it.



:lol

[TW85 HHI]

If you can push the budget to $475-500 (camera + 512 MB SD card), then seriously look at the Panasonic Lumix FZ15. 4 MP, 12x optical zoom, image stabilization, manual focus, shutter priority, aperture priority, full manual controls, manual white balance, burst mode (up to infinite), AF assist lamp, Leica lens (35-420 mm equivalent), etc. It is also a larger camera so it is easier to hold for steadier shots.



The Canon S1 IS is a nice camera but it being only 3.2 MP is a drawback. I have a 3.2 MP Sony point and shoot and the difference between it and my 4 MP is quite noticeable.



Regarding megapixels, most people buy far more than they will ever take advantage of or notice a difference with. Unless you are going to enlarge your photos, 5+ is overkill and the cost for a higher MP camera could be put towards buying a camera with more manual controls.



http://photobucket.com/albums/v505/TW85/



Go to the link above and type in "autopia" for the password. All but about four pictures were taken with my FZ15, and though they are 20-30% of original size, you can see how true the color is. None of the photos have been edited, other than size, in a photo editing program.

[ScubaStevo]

Very nice shots. It looks pretty comparable to the Canon.

[JaCkaL829]

Thank You Buick Guy and TW85 for the pictures :bow

I`m pretty :nixweiss about the whole camera situation. I plan on doing a lot of research this week(spring break) and hope to play around with them in the stores. I really don`t mind spending the money on a good camera, but then you need all the accessories. Most of the higher end cameras take AA batteries :rolleyes: so rechargeables are a must. I`m also going to need a new at least a 256MB card. Then the case, tripod, etc. so it really adds up fast. I don`t want to outrule any cameras yet, but i`m thinking I should spend a little more for the 4MP. I was just looking at some other 4MP, high zoom cameras and the Konica Minolta Z3 looks pretty good. I did see the Panasonic FZ15 pop up here and there in some comparisions with other camers and it seemed people either loved it or hated. So i`m probably going to hit up Best Buy, Electronics Expo and maybe Costco to get a feel for these different cameras.

Thanks again for the information and sample pictures.

Any other info/suggestions is more then welcome :wavey

[TW85 HHI]

Read through the various articles and many reviews at dcresource.com. That website is what caused me to narrow the list down from 10+ cameras to the FZ15.

[JaCkaL829]

Well today I went to Costco, Best Buy and Electronics-Expo to get a feel for the cameras. The only camera they had at Costco that I was interested in was the DiMage Z3. It felt comfortable and the menus were pretty easy to navigate through. The zoom seemed fast, but thats what i`ve been reading about all high zoom cameras. Costco had it for $399 and there is a $50 MIR from Konica out till June 05. Best Buy was pretty much a bust. They had the Canon Power Shot S1 IS, but no power supply to it :rolleyes: . The guy trys plugging other power sources from cameras next to it to see if he can get it to work with no luck. I told him you expect me to buy a $400 camera without even trying it out. Then he tells me well you can try it for 30 days and if you don`t like it you prob won`t have to pay the 15% restocking fee, so I said peace :wavey

Last stop was Electronics-Expo. I like to *believe* these people know what there talking about but don`t let the nice clothes fool you. The guy working seemed like a crack addict, he couldn`t keep still and kept excusing himself from the desk. When asked his honest opinion on the DiMage Z3 he pretty much read of the card the main specs :nixweiss . He showed me another Olympus high zoom camera, I really didn`t consider it because xD cards are very expensive, but don`t want to come to any conclusions just yet.

All in all not that bad of a day, I got to get a good feel of the camera, the main thing I was concerned was picture quality and everybody there was :nixweiss when it came to it. So the search continues...

[ScubaStevo]

I`d still try and find a S1 IS to try. I really think its the easier of the two to use. I did like the Panasonic camera they had there too :)

[JaCkaL829]

Buick Guy, I definately didn`t rule it out yet. I actually have been looking at the reviews that TW85 referred me to, which have been the best ones i`ve found, and the S1 IS did very well. I keep reading that people have found the S1 IS to produce better pictures than other 4 or 5MP cameras. How true it is, I have no idea but I definately haven`t turned it down from my search.

BTW, with the S1 IS do you get a lot of purple fringing? This seems to be one major reoccuring problems that i`ve been reading about.

[TW85 HHI]

Purple fringing, if I remember right, plagues many high optical zoom cameras. Look at the full size photos taken with the S1 IS, especially ones taken at night.



http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/canon/powershot_s1-review/nightshot.jpg

[ScubaStevo]

I don`t know what the purple fringing is, but I don`t take many night shots. I`m trying to find one to see.