Canon PowerShot S45 4MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Optical Zoom

Other products by Canon

Product Details

Product Manual [3.31mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 2.3 x 4.4 x 1.7 inches ; 9.3 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 4 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B00007F8UQ
• Item model number: 8117A001AA
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (61 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,270 in Camera & Photo (See Bestsellers in Camera & Photo)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: January 6, 2003

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

Following up on their S40, Canon's Powershot S45 offers the same aesthetically pleasing metallic chassis with the powerful innards to go along with it. With a 4 megapixel CCD, images taken with the S45 were deeply detailed and could be easily printed out at 8 by 11 and larger without any loss of resolution.

Although the 3x optical zoom is average for mid-range cameras and above, it still let us get in a bit closer to our subjects when snapping shots. Improving on the S40, the S45 now captures video clips--complete with audio--of up to three minutes in length (although you'll probably want a larger storage card than the 32 MB CF card the S45 ships with). There are also easy-to-use video playback and editing controls on the camera itself.

A unique design, the metal lens cover of the S45 serves as the on/off switch--slide it open and the camera turns on, slide it closed and it powers down, with the lens folding out or back into the frame of the body respectively. You can't put any accessory lenses onto the S45 because of this design, but you'll also never try to take any pictures with the lens cap on.

The rechargeable batteries lasted for well over 200 shots before needing to be plugged in. And that's with the LCD on--Canon promises a life of over 500 without the LCD. Speaking of, the bright and large 1.8-inch LCD took up nearly half of the back of the S45 and followed the lens quickly while using it for framing shots.

While it weighs a solid 11 ounces, the 4.4-inch by 2.3-inch by 1.7-inch camera is compact enough to slide into a pocket, making it easier to take on day trips than bulkier Powershot models. --J. Curtis

Pros:

• Enhanced movie mode
• Compact design
• Well priced

Cons:

• No accessory lenses
• Average optical zoom

Product Description

Coupled to a 4.0-megapixel CCD is Canon's high-performance DIGIC processor to ensure enhanced color reproduction, fast continuous shooting and a long battery life. Every image is captured through a crisp 3x optical zoom lens combined with a digital zoom for 11x combined optical and digital zoom. This results in high-resolution prints of up to A3. An Intelligent Orientation Sensor recognizes how you're holding the camera when you take a shot, as well as more accurate metering this also rotates the image on the LCD screen so the picture is always the right way round.Flexizone AF/AE lets you move your auto focus point around when composing. Focus bracketing, especially useful in close-ups, takes three shots of a subject, changing focus between the three; ideal for macro shots. With a metallic body, the PowerShot S45 has a beautifully balanced, compact, ergonomic design. The camera's 12 shooting modes are organized into three Zones (Creative Image Zone, Programmed Image Control (PIC) Zone and Auto Image Zone). They allow more photographic control so that you can achieve just the result you're looking for. A dedicated range of accessories helps you make the most of every photographic opportunity. For instant prints you can simply connect to a Direct Print-compatible printer, select your image and print - no PC required. PowerShot S45 is compatible with the complete range of Canon card photo printers and Bubble Jet Direct printers.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

141 of 142 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Feature-packed, but a little bulky, December 15, 2002

By	A. Block (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I recently picked up the S45 in Japan. I own a Nikon Coolpix 2500, which I love for its compact size and rotating lens/flash unit, but wanted a camera with resolution to match my photo printer, a Sony DPP-SV77.

My requirements for the new camera were: 4 megapixel, optical finder along with an LCD, 3x optical zoom, and a very compact size (roughly equivalent to the Coolpix).

After reviewing the available options, the S45 seemed to be the best fit. Now that I've owned it for a week, I can say definitively that is an outstanding camera, with more features than most users will ever take advantage of.

The software in the camera is extremely well thought out. The viewfinder display is clear and comprehensive (but with an option to reduce the complexity by eliminating unnecessary icons), and the various exposure modes are so complete that the S45 easily rivals the new generation of 35mm SLRs in terms of metering and exposure options. This includes aperture- and shutter-priority, the ability to change exposure values instantly even in Program mode, a range of ISO equivalents, EV compensation, and of course a fully manual option.

Of course, the digital-only goodies are here as well, including a 15 fps video mode (with sound and *in-camera editing*), a panorama stitching feature that is extremely cool, and voice tagging of the still images.

Image quality is excellent, with only a hint of that traditional digital low contrast that seems to be prevalent in all but the ultra high end (6mp) cameras. (Intriguingly however, you can store pictures in RAW [rather than JPEG] mode and change the contrast and brightness in PC software after the fact without quality loss.)

My only complaints are minimal: first, I love the fact that my Coolpix shows up as a removable drive directly in Windows Explorer; with the S45 you have to use Canon's included software (which is excellent) to transfer images from the camera. Second, the lens cover (also an on/off switch), while it feels solid, doesn't always close firmly, which makes me worry a bit about its durability. Finally, the camera is somewhat thicker and heavier (denser-feeling) than the Coolpix, which is the trade-off you make for far far more features (at an admittedly higher price).

I limited my brand choices to Nikon, Canon, and Sony, and I think that in this form factor there is no camera that even comes close to the S45 (except perhaps the older S40). If you are a sophisticated amateur (or even a pro looking for a backup digicam), you won't be disappointed.

92 of 95 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Like Re-discover Photography Again!, March 3, 2003

By A Customer

After over a month experimenting with most of the function/settings, have to admit I'm pretty impressed on both built/picture quality of the Canon newly improved S45. Even at auto mode you can hardly produce a bad shot, provided that I'm a die-hard manual SLR fan of NIKO FM2 for nearly twenty yrs.

Rarely need to use photoshop to polish/adjust pics taken by S45, unlike my previous digital camera which I have to spend lots of time to correct digital noise, redeyes..etc.

When shopping for digital camera, don't get too obsessed with megapixels or spec. 'number', what's more important are the software/chips which make the camera provide precise light sensing & focus accuracy as well as flexible tweaks when you want your pics to have optimum result at any given changing shooting environment. This point is well taken by users of Sharp's 4mp digital camera which uses Canon G2 equivalent lens but produces far inferior pics than Canon's even though Sharp's camera cost 40% less (so is the quality...).

For S45, a large capacity CF card & a spare battery is always a must if you do indoor flash shooting & prefer to store pics at high resolution(which gives you stunning result), costco's website do provide a package deals that include above mentioned extras at reasonable price.

LCD comes with a clear plastic cover that gives you enough protection, or you can buy those LCD protection sheets for PDAs then cut to desired size for less than five bucks. Exterior of S45 is a nice brushed metal finish which provides enough protection for its lens.

No comment on the software since I installed the camera's driver only & use photoshop to polish when needed. Twain driver is quickly recognized by most 3rd party graphic & photo album softwares when hooked up with PC.

Upon comapring Canon's G2,G3,S230 & S45, S45 provides the best combination between size/function/pic quality criteria & one can hardly go wrong with any of them.

53 of 54 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars little risk in purchasing a S-45, December 17, 2002

By	Frank S. Kalich (Lawrence, KS United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The adamfblock (from SF) review above was just about perfect. Everybody likes this camera. But nobody thinks any camera is perfect, a rating should be given relative to peers, meaning in this case 5 stars. If you research this camera you will find no strong argument that any camera in its class exceeds the S-45 in quality/features. The G3 is a better camera, but too big for my purposes. I would miss all those spontaneous surprise shots if I ony had a G3, because I would not have it with me. And while size of aternative really tiny cameras is nice, everyone agrees that the loss of features/quality in those is rather significant (at this point). The S-45 is small enough to carry around most everywhere, I got the little leather container that can be worn on your belt like a pocket knife, that is nice. If you only have one camera, and want to avoid any driving desire to replace it in the next 5 years, this is a good bet.