Review of Canon S95

[zac08]

Just a simple review of the camera's capabilities and specs

Sensor

• 1/1.7" Type CCD
• 10 million effective pixels

Image sizes

4:3
• 3648 x 2736
• 2816 x 2112
• 1600 x 1200
• 640 x 480
• 320 x 240
16:9
• 3648 x 2048
• 2816 x 1584
• 1920 x 1080
• 640 x 360
3:2
• 3648 x 2432
• 2816 x 1880
• 1600 x 1064
• 640 x 424
1:1
• 2736 x 2736
• 2112 x 2112
• 1200 x 1200
• 480 x 480
4:5
• 2192 x 2736
• 1696 x 2112
• 960 x 1200
• 384 x 480

Movie clips

• (HD) 1280 x 720 @ 24 fps
• (L) 640 x 480 @ 30fps
• (M) 320 x 240 @ 30fps
• Miniature Effect (HD, L) 6fps, 3fps, 1.5 fps

Maximum clip length

• Up to 4 GB or 29 min. 59 sec. (HD)
• Up to 4 GB or 1 hour (L, M)

File formats

• Still: JPEG (Exif v2.3), RAW
• Movie: MOV [H.264 + Linear PCM (stereo)]

Lens

• 28-105mm (35mm equiv)
• f = 6.0 - 22.5 mm
• 3.8x optical zoom
• F2.0-4.9
• Construction: 7 elements in 6 groups (2 double-sided aspherical elements including 1 UA element)

ISO sensitivity

• Auto
• ISO 80
• ISO 100
• ISO 125
• ISO 160
• ISO 200
• ISO 250
• ISO 320
• ISO 400
• ISO 500
• ISO 640
• ISO 800
• ISO 1000
• ISO 1250
• ISO 1600
• ISO 2000
• ISO 2500
• ISO 3200

Storage : SD, SDHC, SDXC, MMC, MMCplus, HC MMCplus
Power : Rechargeable Li-ion Battery NB-6L
Weight (inc. batt & card) : 193 g
Dimensions : 100 x 58 x 30 mm


More specs can be found on the main web site : Canon S95



Now for the usage reviews :

Maximum aperture of f2.0 is only available at widest zoom of 28mm. When you zoom in to the max of 105mm, you are only able to use f4.9.

And as usual, when used wide open the images are soft. But when stopped down slightly to f2.8, you should have optimal quality.

The flash is the most interesting as it rises up and down electronically as you select the flash to be on or off. You are also able to adjust the flash to be increased or reduced via the ev controls when you press the menu when you select the flash option.

There are a couple of shortcuts which you can preset. I.e. the control ring can be used to adjust aperture, ISO, manual focus, step-zoom, i-contrast or aspect ratio amongst other options.

There is also a shortcut button above the dial on the rear which can be pre-set to a quick access control to a certain shortcut. I personalised it to control the ISO speed.

The Low light mode reduces the resolution (2 megapixels) to allow for a higher ISO speed to be used (up to ISO 5000) So this choice would be used only in the worst situation where you need the shot and do not quite bother about the image quality.

The battery life is low and expected to be about 200 shots (I have not used it that much to give an accurate guage yet. I will test this portion further and report back later)

There are a couple of SCN modes which may be useful if you are shooting alone or require as little intervention from the user as possible, one is the Wink self-timer, Smile shutter and Face self-timer.

The video allows for a stereo recording with 2 microphones on both sides of the lens. And the pick-up is quite amazing.

One peeve would be the playback button on the top-right of the control dial on the rear. When you press and hold this button, the screen lights up and shows you the pictures without the camera switching on first.

 

[ed9119]

nice start Mike.... continue please thanks

 

[zac08]

Here's a picture which shows the in-camera processing of i-contrast.

Before processing


After i-contrast processing


Note that both pics have been re-sized and slightly sharpened as part of my workflow.
1/800
f2.8
iso 160


Here's another example of the landscape shots genre. I expect that this is one of the areas where PnS users love to take esp. when going overseas travelling.


1/320
f8
iso 80

Macro shot of a dog's eye


1/50
f2.0
iso 800

You can view the larger sized photos on thru the link of each picture.

 

[sinned79]

how about some night shoots?

 

[zac08]

how about some night shoots?

Here's 2 shots.


1/20
(-1.0ev)
f2.8
ISO 1600


1/40
(-1.0ev)
f2.8
ISO 800

 

[zac08]

And before I forget, the Canon S95 has a hotspot when shooting IR at wide angle f2.8

Have not tried other permutations yet. Will try so some other time.

 

[Wulla]

S95 can shot IR?

 

[zac08]

S95 can shot IR?

Should be possible. But will need to do a proper test with tripod and setting of correct WB before I can give you a definite answer.

 

[ricleo]

One peeve would be the playback button on the top-right of the control dial on the rear. When you press and hold this button, the screen lights up and shows you the pictures without the camera switching on first.

just a comment about the "peeve", this is actually a welcomed feature that you can review images by pressing the playback button without having the lens mechanism zoom out.

How I wish this feature is present on more cameras

 

[ed9119]

samsung ex-1 can ..... can leave lenscap on , just press play button to review and press play button again to turn off review

 

[cpuer]

Nice user review on S95.

BTW, just like S95, the long pressed Playback button on my old F31fd and my current Ricoh GRD3 can just play back recorded images in the camera without extending the lens. I like this feature.

 

[ricleo]

hehehe if only this feature is on my oly EP2 i have to switch it on and few the lens activating before I can hit the play back button to review images

 

[zac08]

just a comment about the "peeve", this is actually a welcomed feature that you can review images by pressing the playback button without having the lens mechanism zoom out.

How I wish this feature is present on more cameras

I find it both good and bad as it may also lead to you accidentally turning on the review without noticing as the rear buttons may be easily triggered, esp. if not using the hard case.

And with a poor battery performance, it may just cause you to loose out on a couple of shots which you would otherwise take.

 

[MrLens]

I have bought one unit of S95 for my wife. When we first tried out, I'm very impressed with the output of this camera. The color is vibrant and the ISO control is pretty good. The built in HDR performing very well too.

When my sis saw those photos, she just bought one unit as well, follow by a friend and my sis in law. The only setback about this camera is the battery runs low pretty fast. I would advice S95 to purchase a back up battery if they intend to go for whole day shot.

Overall S95 is not a bad performer! :thumbsup:

 

[zac08]

To add on, here's a sample clip at 640 x 480 taken during my recent holiday in Pangkor

Fishes feeding

This can also be taken as a partial review for the Digipac underwater casing which I bought to use together for underwater shots.

There is quite a bit of noise from the video clip as there was quite a few other swimmers around and I guess the splashing from near the surface may also be part of the cause. This can also be attributed to a good pick-up from the dual microphones. :bsmilie:

The Digipac casing is not a perfect fit and may cause partial vignetting when the alignment is not straight. But when fitted properly, it does afford a good protection for the shallow waters and will float as there will be some air trapped inside when you seal it. I would suggest that the provided lanyard be attached securely and around your neck when used for snorkelling or swimming.

The video is not very clear as there is quite a bit of sediments stirred up.

 

[zac08]

Here is a HD clip of about 30 secs.

[vid]xaqRK734f8E[/vid]

This was taken at Pasir Ris park and the file size is approx. 80Mb.

 

[wish4me]

nice , i on g12 i guess yours n mine r similiar check out my thread at abstract n still life ( newbie on g12 ) maybe we can take photo together

 

[+canonuser+]

Wow, thanks for the review. How useful is the knob/dial around the lens in field use?

 

[zac08]

Wow, thanks for the review. How useful is the knob/dial around the lens in field use?

Good if you like to change settings in a jiffy for the often used settings. I set mine to aperture control in Av mode and it feels almost like a manual lens on a SLR.

It's a lil stiff though, but this is good as it prevents any accidental changes.

 

[storeberry]

Hi, is the S95 good to take active toddlers? Is the shutter speed fast enough? Am a newbie but would like to get a better cam so I can captured my son's pict!!