SO MANY FEATURES. SO LITTLE TIME.
Is it possible for a camera to make an amateur photographer better? Apparently this is Canon's goal with the S3. It provides easy access to controls that compensate for common difficult shooting scenarios. Most point-and-shoot (P+S) cameras have few buttons - relying instead on hidden menu driven options. While this may make the camera appear less intimidating initially, locating the correct setting while attempting to frame and photograph action or bad lighting subjects is frustrating. As a result, many features go unused.
By way of comparison, the S3 has at least ten more buttons than my discontinued P+S MINOLTA Dimage G500 (5MP 3x optical zoom). And many of the buttons on the CANON are multifunction depending on whether you are shooting in one of several modes, playing back stills, or movies - providing dozens of useful options.
The CANON S3 has a button for instant access to movie recording (with on-screen options for 320x240 15/30/60 fps or 640x480 15/30 fps) up to 1GB or one hour per clip. Stereo sound and zoom functions accompany movies. There are dedicated buttons for ISO, sound recording, flash, continuous shooting, macro, manual focus, display, and a customized shortcut. The mode dial on top of the camera includes settings for many typical situations such as portrait, landscape, sports, nighttime, and panoramic. There is also an AUTO[MATIC] mode. But if all your shots remain in this setting, you might as well use a P+S model.
The key benefit of the many buttons and dials on the S3 is quick access to a wide variety of useful features without taking your eye off the subject. The FUNC[TION] button can present a tremendous amount of pertinent information while the focused image is visible. Everything from remaining number of pictures and image quality to white balance and ISO feedback neatly border the subject. The DISP[LAY] button activates grids and histogram, switches between LCD and viewfinder, or reduces the amount of on-screen information. Either screen is equally informative and useful for making adjustments. The MENU button differs in that it brings up infrequently used options that temporarily replace the focused subject.
Elaborating a bit further on the impressive display of the CANON S3, it does a good job of simulating selected options. Punch up greens, blues, reds, all colors, neutralize, lighten or darken skin tones, photograph b+w or sepia and see the results before snapping the picture. It is possible to obtain untainted color even with mixed indoor lighting. In addition to AWB (automatic white balance) there are seven other settings accessed from the FUNC[TION] button. The last is custom metering. Just point at a white object in the room and press the SET button. No more green or orange casts on indoor photos!
Another common lighting problem occurs when a subject stands in front of a bright background or if frontal light from the sun washes out the highlights on faces. After a quick tap of the FUNC[TION] button, the first option in the upper left corner is exposure compensation. Use the omni selector left arrow to darken the foreground or right arrow to lighten it. If indoors or a relatively short distance away, you might also enable the flash. (For those with traditional photography background, there are also options for aperture priority or shutter speed priority on the mode dial.)
Despite efforts to write a short review, there is still much more to talk about. Image stabilization (IS) and the 12X optical zoom are significant features that work well together. In fact, now I understand why smaller digital cameras without IS typically only include 3 or 4x. The slightest hand movement is greatly exaggerated at high magnification. IS compensates for this movement. The S3 provides four options for IS: 1) continuous (constantly stabilizes preview which uses more power); 2) shoot only (stabilizes image when shutter button is pressed); 3) panning (stabilizes vertical movement only for tracking horizontally moving cars, race horses, bikers or runners); 4) off (stabilization is not necessary for tripod).
The 12X optical zoom can optionally be supplemented by 4X digital, making it possible to achieve as much as 48X zoom. A ring around the shutter button rotates clockwise to enlarge and vise versa. This brings up a slider in the viewfinder. If digital is activated, the white slider goes to a point and stops at 12X. Press it again and the slider is appended with blue as the digital zoom is progressively applied. I uploaded a picture of a bird in a a 16 foot palm tree with 21x zoom.
Panorama assist is yet another outstanding feature. As each photo is clicked, a portion slides over in preview, making it easier to align the next. Software is included to stitch the pieces together or you can use Photoshop's Photomerge under the Automate menu.
Image bracketing is also nice for difficult-focus situations; with one press of the button, three slightly different focuses are shot within a couple of seconds - a light, medium, and dark. This is not to be confused with continuous shooting (sometimes called burst mode), which shoots multiple images with consistent exposure as long as the button shutter button is pressed. This is extremely useful when photographing groups of people since it is often difficult to get everyone's eyes open and smiling at the same time. It is also great for photographing small animals with rapid movements like birds.
WHAT'S NOT TO LIKE?
There are a few annoyances that could be solved by spending more. After all, Cannon makes cameras from under $200 to several thousand. Despite big features, the S3 is, relatively speaking, on the low end of the scale. So any apparent design omissions must be kept in context.
LENSE CAP FIT: The most minor annoyance is the loosely fitted lens cap that frequently disconnects. Make certain the lanyard string is attached to the neck strap so it won't be lost. The obvious concern is smudging or scratching of the lens. While carrying, frequently check to make certain is on.
ACCESSORIES: Canon cut accessories to the bear minumum. There is no case (strap is included), no power cord, no lens hood, and only Alkaline batteries. Purchasing all the necessary options can break your budget by $150-$250 USD. Fortunatelly, some items are common enough that you may not need to purchase everything. I already had a couple of 256MB SD cards for my prior camera. You'll need to factor in the cost of a fast charger with four 2500+ mHa AA batteries (currently around $35). There is also a need for a high-capacity SD card. The included 16MB card will only store four of the highest quality images. About 90 stills can fit on a 256MB card at the highest quality setting. If you require more images per session or will be recording movies, consider a high-speed 4GB card (currently around $100). The S3 is optimized for high-speed cards.
LCD BRIGHTNESS: More of an annoyance is the limited pivoting 2" LCD screen brightness. Take comfort in the fact that some expensive DSLR cameras have only a viewfinder. Fortunately, when the LCD is not visible, the viewfinder on the S3 can be used. The diopter adjustment is handy since I may be wearing single-vision prescription shades, trifocals, or no glasses at all. The two independent brightness settings for LCD or viewfinder are a noble consideration. The LCD just doesn't get bright enough. In time, it is easy to get used to the viewfinder.
IMAGE FORMATS: A camera with so many features naturally appeals to the prosumer not ready to make the leap to a full-fledged DSLR. Though this would result in better high-ISO nighttime shots and better daylight images, the cost with multiple lenses could easy triple the price of the S3 and you'll lose some consumer-oriented features. Nevertheless, a non-compressed image mode would be useful - especially with the availability of high-speed 4GB SD cards.
Test shots of straight-up blue sky in large "fine" and "super fine" modes both exhibited pixelization when examining up close. In fact, super fine is slightly more pixelated in large areas of SOLID (perhaps due to sharpening?). This may be considered simulated film grain. There is more color averaging with fine mode producing a smaller, visually smoother images. The "large" image setting is 6 megapixels so the anomalies I reference when zooming in 400 percent in Photoshop are not visible on typical prints. When the composition includes many different color changes and fine DETAIL (landscapes, architecture), the super fine mode is much better. Otherwise the detail becomes muddy.
I developed a Photoshop action called Smooth Pixels. Though not always necessary, it provides moderate smoothing on 6MP images to reduce pixelization in large areas of flat color. It can also be used to minimize artifacts occurring as a result of saving a JPEG image with too much compression. If you have Photoshop experience these settings may be familiar to you. Opacities can be increased as much to as much as 60% with minimal loss of detail. (A screenshot of the Action palette has been uploaded.)
1 Make snapshot
2 Duplicate current layer
3 Smart Blur (Radius: 1, Threshold: 12, Quality: High, Mode: Normal)
4 Set current layer (Opacity: 40%)
5 Duplicate Background
6 Gaussian Blur (Radius: 0.5 Pixels)
7 Set current layer (Opacity: 40%)
8 Flatten image
RAW, LZW TIFF (compression usually requiring a PostScript level 3 printer for decompression) or standard TIFF options would be appreciated by those concerned about consistent pixels within continuous color with no artifacts surrounding high contrast colors. It should be noted that each time a JPEG is opened and saved (even with no edits) in an image editor application, there is slight degradation of image quality. This does not occur with TIFF or RAW.
WIDESCREEN LIMITATION: I was fooled by the boast of widescreen pictures. This applies only to STILLS. The WS stills are about 25 percent smaller than the maximum 6MP images. The viewfinder adds black bands to help frame WS pictures. Don't expect a low-cost HD WS movie function from the S3.
FLASH OPTIONS: The manual pop-up flash could be a bane or boone. It is reasonably strong and there is a three-option dedicated button to 1) always enable the flash, 2) automatically flash only when required, or 3) disable flash. If you forget to lift the flash, automatic doesn't lift it for you. Conversely, lifting the flash when the user option is set to never flash results in no extra lighting. One could look at this as a benefit since less flashing preserves the batteries. It would make more sense to me for the flash to pop-up if needed in automatic mode. Get used to the icon in the viewfinder that indicates the status of the flash (which is grayed when the flash is not up).
The S3 has also been criticized because it does not have a hot-shoe connection for a replacement flash. (A handheld flash farther away from the lens is the true solution to red eye.) Canon's less than optimal answer is to provide an optional slave flash that can be used as a supplemental bounce flash positioned closer to the subject or mounted onto the camera using a bracket that connects to the tripod thread. (I have a much less expensive non-digital Canon T-50 SLR with multiple lenses with a hot shoe so adding one to the S3 is possible.)
TRIPOD THREAD: A plastic tripod thread is never appreciated. Be careful not to damage the threads or consider using a tripod quick-shoe attachment.
ABERRATION: Though improvements are being made, digital cameras (particularly less expensive ones) suffer from aberration, sometimes called purple fringing, surrounding high-contrast areas where a pixels along edges are discolored. The S3 is not exempt - more notably a few pixels of red (NW) and green (SE) misregistration. This is most apparent on photos with very light objects next to color away from the center of focus - particularly on overcast days when the sky is white instead of blue. A 6MP image is scaled down so much for standard prints that the aberration is not usually noticeable. For large prints this may require additional image editing.
UPGRADE FROM S2: Owners of the Canon S2 will not find the S3 a significant upgrade. This camera appears to build on prior success with a few additional features to keep it competitive with other brands. In doing so, Canon has left room for even more improvements in an S4. Differences between the S2 and S3 are summed up below.
* New sensor (6MP versus 5MP)
* Higher maximum sensitivity (ISO 800)
* Bigger LCD screen (2.0-inch versus 1.8-inch)
* New Sports mode
* Record live Histogram
* Widescreen shooting mode (stills)
* Fractionally larger and heavier
* Dark gunmetal (gray) as opposed to silver body
The difference between 5MP and 6MP is not perceived in standard size prints (both have far more megapixels than necessary). The extra pixels in the 6MP are useful for retaining more detail when cropping small areas of a photo with image editor software. High ISO (400+) is used for dark scenes when no tripod is available. ISO 800 is largely symbolic in the S3 since results are too noisy (aberrated pixels) to be useful. The 2-inch screen has the same amount of pixels as the 1.8 but it's scaled up a bit. The histogram is an animated graphic that indicates whether the framed subject is under- or over-exposed; this should also be apparent in the viewfinder preview image. Of course widescreen images can be cropped in post-production if it's only an occasional desire.
CONCLUSIONS
It will take some time to become familar with all the CANON S3 features. If results are too noisy or blurry, it is likely because the correct setting was forgotten. The CANON S3 is not perfect but, in its price range, includes a very good combination of available technologies with slight image quality sacrifices. Professional photographers may be inclined toward an entry level DSLR (perhaps CANON DIGITAL REBEL XT, CANON EOS 30D, or SONY ALPHA). The S3 is a nice alternative to a dedicated digital camcorder; it can even zoom and shoot high-resolution stills without exiting movie mode. For the best quality stills, movie recording is sacrificed in higher-end cameras.
If this review seems like too much to read then the S3 is not for you. There is much more to read -- beginning and advanced manuals for the camera itself in addition to manuals for the software. Prosumers that invest time reading can be rewarded with greatly improved image quality from the S3. Of, course composition is still up to the photographer. ([...]) The prior S2 model may be a better bargain for the cost conscious unless some of the new S3 features listed above are absolutely essential. The typical no-frills consumer might be put off by the plethora of options and prefer a compact P+S with less buttons (CANON POWERSHOT S80, SD500, A540, or A520).
(See uploaded pictures of bird in palm tree and building exhibiting aberration. Because the Amazon image processor scales down images as much as possible, there are more image artifacts on samples than on original photos.)
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Compare with similar items
 | Canon PowerShot Pro Series S5 IS 8.0MP Digital Camera with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom (OLD MODEL) | Canon PowerShot SX20IS 12.1MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.5-Inch Articulating LCD (Discontinued by Manufacturer) | Canon PowerShot SX170 IS 16.0 MP Digital Camera, Black (discontinued by manufacturer) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customer Rating | (641) | (584) | (619) | (405) |
| Price | $119.99 | $94.99 | $89.99 | $79.99 |
| Sold By | 1st Web Deals | Best Of Bargains | Peacock Store | 1st Web Deals |
| Screen Size | 2 inches | 2.5 inches | 2.5 inches | 3 inches |
| Has Image Stabilization | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Includes External Memory | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Item Dimensions | 4.45 x 2.99 x 3.07 inches | 4.61 x 3.07 x 3.15 inches | 5.04 x 3.43 x 3.46 inches | 4.25 x 1.73 x 2.8 inches |
| Item Weight | 1.12 lbs | 1.21 lbs | 1.32 lbs | 0.55 lbs |
| Optical Sensor Resolution | 6.0 megapixels | 8 megapixels | — | 16.0 megapixels |
| Optical Zoom | 12 | 12x | 20 | 16x |
| Video Capture Resolution | 480p | 480p | 720p | 720p |
| Viewfinder Type | Electronic | Electronic | Electronic | None |
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Reviewed in the United States on June 25, 2006
SO MANY FEATURES. SO LITTLE TIME.Is it possible for a camera to make an amateur photographer better? Apparently this is Canon's goal with the S3. It provides easy access to controls that compensate for common difficult shooting scenarios. Most point-and-shoot (P+S) cameras have few buttons - relying instead on hidden menu driven options. While this may make the camera appear less intimidating initially, locating the correct setting while attempting to frame and photograph action or bad lighting subjects is frustrating. As a result, many features go unused.By way of comparison, the S3 has at least ten more buttons than my discontinued P+S MINOLTA Dimage G500 (5MP 3x optical zoom). And many of the buttons on the CANON are multifunction depending on whether you are shooting in one of several modes, playing back stills, or movies - providing dozens of useful options.The CANON S3 has a button for instant access to movie recording (with on-screen options for 320x240 15/30/60 fps or 640x480 15/30 fps) up to 1GB or one hour per clip. Stereo sound and zoom functions accompany movies. There are dedicated buttons for ISO, sound recording, flash, continuous shooting, macro, manual focus, display, and a customized shortcut. The mode dial on top of the camera includes settings for many typical situations such as portrait, landscape, sports, nighttime, and panoramic. There is also an AUTO[MATIC] mode. But if all your shots remain in this setting, you might as well use a P+S model.The key benefit of the many buttons and dials on the S3 is quick access to a wide variety of useful features without taking your eye off the subject. The FUNC[TION] button can present a tremendous amount of pertinent information while the focused image is visible. Everything from remaining number of pictures and image quality to white balance and ISO feedback neatly border the subject. The DISP[LAY] button activates grids and histogram, switches between LCD and viewfinder, or reduces the amount of on-screen information. Either screen is equally informative and useful for making adjustments. The MENU button differs in that it brings up infrequently used options that temporarily replace the focused subject.Elaborating a bit further on the impressive display of the CANON S3, it does a good job of simulating selected options. Punch up greens, blues, reds, all colors, neutralize, lighten or darken skin tones, photograph b+w or sepia and see the results before snapping the picture. It is possible to obtain untainted color even with mixed indoor lighting. In addition to AWB (automatic white balance) there are seven other settings accessed from the FUNC[TION] button. The last is custom metering. Just point at a white object in the room and press the SET button. No more green or orange casts on indoor photos!Another common lighting problem occurs when a subject stands in front of a bright background or if frontal light from the sun washes out the highlights on faces. After a quick tap of the FUNC[TION] button, the first option in the upper left corner is exposure compensation. Use the omni selector left arrow to darken the foreground or right arrow to lighten it. If indoors or a relatively short distance away, you might also enable the flash. (For those with traditional photography background, there are also options for aperture priority or shutter speed priority on the mode dial.)Despite efforts to write a short review, there is still much more to talk about. Image stabilization (IS) and the 12X optical zoom are significant features that work well together. In fact, now I understand why smaller digital cameras without IS typically only include 3 or 4x. The slightest hand movement is greatly exaggerated at high magnification. IS compensates for this movement. The S3 provides four options for IS: 1) continuous (constantly stabilizes preview which uses more power); 2) shoot only (stabilizes image when shutter button is pressed); 3) panning (stabilizes vertical movement only for tracking horizontally moving cars, race horses, bikers or runners); 4) off (stabilization is not necessary for tripod).The 12X optical zoom can optionally be supplemented by 4X digital, making it possible to achieve as much as 48X zoom. A ring around the shutter button rotates clockwise to enlarge and vise versa. This brings up a slider in the viewfinder. If digital is activated, the white slider goes to a point and stops at 12X. Press it again and the slider is appended with blue as the digital zoom is progressively applied. I uploaded a picture of a bird in a a 16 foot palm tree with 21x zoom.Panorama assist is yet another outstanding feature. As each photo is clicked, a portion slides over in preview, making it easier to align the next. Software is included to stitch the pieces together or you can use Photoshop's Photomerge under the Automate menu.Image bracketing is also nice for difficult-focus situations; with one press of the button, three slightly different focuses are shot within a couple of seconds - a light, medium, and dark. This is not to be confused with continuous shooting (sometimes called burst mode), which shoots multiple images with consistent exposure as long as the button shutter button is pressed. This is extremely useful when photographing groups of people since it is often difficult to get everyone's eyes open and smiling at the same time. It is also great for photographing small animals with rapid movements like birds.WHAT'S NOT TO LIKE?There are a few annoyances that could be solved by spending more. After all, Cannon makes cameras from under $200 to several thousand. Despite big features, the S3 is, relatively speaking, on the low end of the scale. So any apparent design omissions must be kept in context.LENSE CAP FIT: The most minor annoyance is the loosely fitted lens cap that frequently disconnects. Make certain the lanyard string is attached to the neck strap so it won't be lost. The obvious concern is smudging or scratching of the lens. While carrying, frequently check to make certain is on.ACCESSORIES: Canon cut accessories to the bear minumum. There is no case (strap is included), no power cord, no lens hood, and only Alkaline batteries. Purchasing all the necessary options can break your budget by $150-$250 USD. Fortunatelly, some items are common enough that you may not need to purchase everything. I already had a couple of 256MB SD cards for my prior camera. You'll need to factor in the cost of a fast charger with four 2500+ mHa AA batteries (currently around $35). There is also a need for a high-capacity SD card. The included 16MB card will only store four of the highest quality images. About 90 stills can fit on a 256MB card at the highest quality setting. If you require more images per session or will be recording movies, consider a high-speed 4GB card (currently around $100). The S3 is optimized for high-speed cards.LCD BRIGHTNESS: More of an annoyance is the limited pivoting 2" LCD screen brightness. Take comfort in the fact that some expensive DSLR cameras have only a viewfinder. Fortunately, when the LCD is not visible, the viewfinder on the S3 can be used. The diopter adjustment is handy since I may be wearing single-vision prescription shades, trifocals, or no glasses at all. The two independent brightness settings for LCD or viewfinder are a noble consideration. The LCD just doesn't get bright enough. In time, it is easy to get used to the viewfinder.IMAGE FORMATS: A camera with so many features naturally appeals to the prosumer not ready to make the leap to a full-fledged DSLR. Though this would result in better high-ISO nighttime shots and better daylight images, the cost with multiple lenses could easy triple the price of the S3 and you'll lose some consumer-oriented features. Nevertheless, a non-compressed image mode would be useful - especially with the availability of high-speed 4GB SD cards.Test shots of straight-up blue sky in large "fine" and "super fine" modes both exhibited pixelization when examining up close. In fact, super fine is slightly more pixelated in large areas of SOLID (perhaps due to sharpening?). This may be considered simulated film grain. There is more color averaging with fine mode producing a smaller, visually smoother images. The "large" image setting is 6 megapixels so the anomalies I reference when zooming in 400 percent in Photoshop are not visible on typical prints. When the composition includes many different color changes and fine DETAIL (landscapes, architecture), the super fine mode is much better. Otherwise the detail becomes muddy.I developed a Photoshop action called Smooth Pixels. Though not always necessary, it provides moderate smoothing on 6MP images to reduce pixelization in large areas of flat color. It can also be used to minimize artifacts occurring as a result of saving a JPEG image with too much compression. If you have Photoshop experience these settings may be familiar to you. Opacities can be increased as much to as much as 60% with minimal loss of detail. (A screenshot of the Action palette has been uploaded.)1 Make snapshot2 Duplicate current layer3 Smart Blur (Radius: 1, Threshold: 12, Quality: High, Mode: Normal)4 Set current layer (Opacity: 40%)5 Duplicate Background6 Gaussian Blur (Radius: 0.5 Pixels)7 Set current layer (Opacity: 40%)8 Flatten imageRAW, LZW TIFF (compression usually requiring a PostScript level 3 printer for decompression) or standard TIFF options would be appreciated by those concerned about consistent pixels within continuous color with no artifacts surrounding high contrast colors. It should be noted that each time a JPEG is opened and saved (even with no edits) in an image editor application, there is slight degradation of image quality. This does not occur with TIFF or RAW.WIDESCREEN LIMITATION: I was fooled by the boast of widescreen pictures. This applies only to STILLS. The WS stills are about 25 percent smaller than the maximum 6MP images. The viewfinder adds black bands to help frame WS pictures. Don't expect a low-cost HD WS movie function from the S3.FLASH OPTIONS: The manual pop-up flash could be a bane or boone. It is reasonably strong and there is a three-option dedicated button to 1) always enable the flash, 2) automatically flash only when required, or 3) disable flash. If you forget to lift the flash, automatic doesn't lift it for you. Conversely, lifting the flash when the user option is set to never flash results in no extra lighting. One could look at this as a benefit since less flashing preserves the batteries. It would make more sense to me for the flash to pop-up if needed in automatic mode. Get used to the icon in the viewfinder that indicates the status of the flash (which is grayed when the flash is not up).The S3 has also been criticized because it does not have a hot-shoe connection for a replacement flash. (A handheld flash farther away from the lens is the true solution to red eye.) Canon's less than optimal answer is to provide an optional slave flash that can be used as a supplemental bounce flash positioned closer to the subject or mounted onto the camera using a bracket that connects to the tripod thread. (I have a much less expensive non-digital Canon T-50 SLR with multiple lenses with a hot shoe so adding one to the S3 is possible.)TRIPOD THREAD: A plastic tripod thread is never appreciated. Be careful not to damage the threads or consider using a tripod quick-shoe attachment.ABERRATION: Though improvements are being made, digital cameras (particularly less expensive ones) suffer from aberration, sometimes called purple fringing, surrounding high-contrast areas where a pixels along edges are discolored. The S3 is not exempt - more notably a few pixels of red (NW) and green (SE) misregistration. This is most apparent on photos with very light objects next to color away from the center of focus - particularly on overcast days when the sky is white instead of blue. A 6MP image is scaled down so much for standard prints that the aberration is not usually noticeable. For large prints this may require additional image editing.UPGRADE FROM S2: Owners of the Canon S2 will not find the S3 a significant upgrade. This camera appears to build on prior success with a few additional features to keep it competitive with other brands. In doing so, Canon has left room for even more improvements in an S4. Differences between the S2 and S3 are summed up below. * New sensor (6MP versus 5MP) * Higher maximum sensitivity (ISO 800) * Bigger LCD screen (2.0-inch versus 1.8-inch) * New Sports mode * Record live Histogram * Widescreen shooting mode (stills) * Fractionally larger and heavier * Dark gunmetal (gray) as opposed to silver bodyThe difference between 5MP and 6MP is not perceived in standard size prints (both have far more megapixels than necessary). The extra pixels in the 6MP are useful for retaining more detail when cropping small areas of a photo with image editor software. High ISO (400+) is used for dark scenes when no tripod is available. ISO 800 is largely symbolic in the S3 since results are too noisy (aberrated pixels) to be useful. The 2-inch screen has the same amount of pixels as the 1.8 but it's scaled up a bit. The histogram is an animated graphic that indicates whether the framed subject is under- or over-exposed; this should also be apparent in the viewfinder preview image. Of course widescreen images can be cropped in post-production if it's only an occasional desire.CONCLUSIONSIt will take some time to become familar with all the CANON S3 features. If results are too noisy or blurry, it is likely because the correct setting was forgotten. The CANON S3 is not perfect but, in its price range, includes a very good combination of available technologies with slight image quality sacrifices. Professional photographers may be inclined toward an entry level DSLR (perhaps CANON DIGITAL REBEL XT, CANON EOS 30D, or SONY ALPHA). The S3 is a nice alternative to a dedicated digital camcorder; it can even zoom and shoot high-resolution stills without exiting movie mode. For the best quality stills, movie recording is sacrificed in higher-end cameras.If this review seems like too much to read then the S3 is not for you. There is much more to read -- beginning and advanced manuals for the camera itself in addition to manuals for the software. Prosumers that invest time reading can be rewarded with greatly improved image quality from the S3. Of, course composition is still up to the photographer. ([...]) The prior S2 model may be a better bargain for the cost conscious unless some of the new S3 features listed above are absolutely essential. The typical no-frills consumer might be put off by the plethora of options and prefer a compact P+S with less buttons (CANON POWERSHOT S80, SD500, A540, or A520).(See uploaded pictures of bird in palm tree and building exhibiting aberration. Because the Amazon image processor scales down images as much as possible, there are more image artifacts on samples than on original photos.)
Reviewed in the United States on June 25, 2006
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Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 25, 2006
SO MANY FEATURES. SO LITTLE TIME.
Is it possible for a camera to make an amateur photographer better? Apparently this is Canon's goal with the S3. It provides easy access to controls that compensate for common difficult shooting scenarios. Most point-and-shoot (P+S) cameras have few buttons - relying instead on hidden menu driven options. While this may make the camera appear less intimidating initially, locating the correct setting while attempting to frame and photograph action or bad lighting subjects is frustrating. As a result, many features go unused.
By way of comparison, the S3 has at least ten more buttons than my discontinued P+S MINOLTA Dimage G500 (5MP 3x optical zoom). And many of the buttons on the CANON are multifunction depending on whether you are shooting in one of several modes, playing back stills, or movies - providing dozens of useful options.
The CANON S3 has a button for instant access to movie recording (with on-screen options for 320x240 15/30/60 fps or 640x480 15/30 fps) up to 1GB or one hour per clip. Stereo sound and zoom functions accompany movies. There are dedicated buttons for ISO, sound recording, flash, continuous shooting, macro, manual focus, display, and a customized shortcut. The mode dial on top of the camera includes settings for many typical situations such as portrait, landscape, sports, nighttime, and panoramic. There is also an AUTO[MATIC] mode. But if all your shots remain in this setting, you might as well use a P+S model.
The key benefit of the many buttons and dials on the S3 is quick access to a wide variety of useful features without taking your eye off the subject. The FUNC[TION] button can present a tremendous amount of pertinent information while the focused image is visible. Everything from remaining number of pictures and image quality to white balance and ISO feedback neatly border the subject. The DISP[LAY] button activates grids and histogram, switches between LCD and viewfinder, or reduces the amount of on-screen information. Either screen is equally informative and useful for making adjustments. The MENU button differs in that it brings up infrequently used options that temporarily replace the focused subject.
Elaborating a bit further on the impressive display of the CANON S3, it does a good job of simulating selected options. Punch up greens, blues, reds, all colors, neutralize, lighten or darken skin tones, photograph b+w or sepia and see the results before snapping the picture. It is possible to obtain untainted color even with mixed indoor lighting. In addition to AWB (automatic white balance) there are seven other settings accessed from the FUNC[TION] button. The last is custom metering. Just point at a white object in the room and press the SET button. No more green or orange casts on indoor photos!
Another common lighting problem occurs when a subject stands in front of a bright background or if frontal light from the sun washes out the highlights on faces. After a quick tap of the FUNC[TION] button, the first option in the upper left corner is exposure compensation. Use the omni selector left arrow to darken the foreground or right arrow to lighten it. If indoors or a relatively short distance away, you might also enable the flash. (For those with traditional photography background, there are also options for aperture priority or shutter speed priority on the mode dial.)
Despite efforts to write a short review, there is still much more to talk about. Image stabilization (IS) and the 12X optical zoom are significant features that work well together. In fact, now I understand why smaller digital cameras without IS typically only include 3 or 4x. The slightest hand movement is greatly exaggerated at high magnification. IS compensates for this movement. The S3 provides four options for IS: 1) continuous (constantly stabilizes preview which uses more power); 2) shoot only (stabilizes image when shutter button is pressed); 3) panning (stabilizes vertical movement only for tracking horizontally moving cars, race horses, bikers or runners); 4) off (stabilization is not necessary for tripod).
The 12X optical zoom can optionally be supplemented by 4X digital, making it possible to achieve as much as 48X zoom. A ring around the shutter button rotates clockwise to enlarge and vise versa. This brings up a slider in the viewfinder. If digital is activated, the white slider goes to a point and stops at 12X. Press it again and the slider is appended with blue as the digital zoom is progressively applied. I uploaded a picture of a bird in a a 16 foot palm tree with 21x zoom.
Panorama assist is yet another outstanding feature. As each photo is clicked, a portion slides over in preview, making it easier to align the next. Software is included to stitch the pieces together or you can use Photoshop's Photomerge under the Automate menu.
Image bracketing is also nice for difficult-focus situations; with one press of the button, three slightly different focuses are shot within a couple of seconds - a light, medium, and dark. This is not to be confused with continuous shooting (sometimes called burst mode), which shoots multiple images with consistent exposure as long as the button shutter button is pressed. This is extremely useful when photographing groups of people since it is often difficult to get everyone's eyes open and smiling at the same time. It is also great for photographing small animals with rapid movements like birds.
WHAT'S NOT TO LIKE?
There are a few annoyances that could be solved by spending more. After all, Cannon makes cameras from under $200 to several thousand. Despite big features, the S3 is, relatively speaking, on the low end of the scale. So any apparent design omissions must be kept in context.
LENSE CAP FIT: The most minor annoyance is the loosely fitted lens cap that frequently disconnects. Make certain the lanyard string is attached to the neck strap so it won't be lost. The obvious concern is smudging or scratching of the lens. While carrying, frequently check to make certain is on.
ACCESSORIES: Canon cut accessories to the bear minumum. There is no case (strap is included), no power cord, no lens hood, and only Alkaline batteries. Purchasing all the necessary options can break your budget by $150-$250 USD. Fortunatelly, some items are common enough that you may not need to purchase everything. I already had a couple of 256MB SD cards for my prior camera. You'll need to factor in the cost of a fast charger with four 2500+ mHa AA batteries (currently around $35). There is also a need for a high-capacity SD card. The included 16MB card will only store four of the highest quality images. About 90 stills can fit on a 256MB card at the highest quality setting. If you require more images per session or will be recording movies, consider a high-speed 4GB card (currently around $100). The S3 is optimized for high-speed cards.
LCD BRIGHTNESS: More of an annoyance is the limited pivoting 2" LCD screen brightness. Take comfort in the fact that some expensive DSLR cameras have only a viewfinder. Fortunately, when the LCD is not visible, the viewfinder on the S3 can be used. The diopter adjustment is handy since I may be wearing single-vision prescription shades, trifocals, or no glasses at all. The two independent brightness settings for LCD or viewfinder are a noble consideration. The LCD just doesn't get bright enough. In time, it is easy to get used to the viewfinder.
IMAGE FORMATS: A camera with so many features naturally appeals to the prosumer not ready to make the leap to a full-fledged DSLR. Though this would result in better high-ISO nighttime shots and better daylight images, the cost with multiple lenses could easy triple the price of the S3 and you'll lose some consumer-oriented features. Nevertheless, a non-compressed image mode would be useful - especially with the availability of high-speed 4GB SD cards.
Test shots of straight-up blue sky in large "fine" and "super fine" modes both exhibited pixelization when examining up close. In fact, super fine is slightly more pixelated in large areas of SOLID (perhaps due to sharpening?). This may be considered simulated film grain. There is more color averaging with fine mode producing a smaller, visually smoother images. The "large" image setting is 6 megapixels so the anomalies I reference when zooming in 400 percent in Photoshop are not visible on typical prints. When the composition includes many different color changes and fine DETAIL (landscapes, architecture), the super fine mode is much better. Otherwise the detail becomes muddy.
I developed a Photoshop action called Smooth Pixels. Though not always necessary, it provides moderate smoothing on 6MP images to reduce pixelization in large areas of flat color. It can also be used to minimize artifacts occurring as a result of saving a JPEG image with too much compression. If you have Photoshop experience these settings may be familiar to you. Opacities can be increased as much to as much as 60% with minimal loss of detail. (A screenshot of the Action palette has been uploaded.)
1 Make snapshot
2 Duplicate current layer
3 Smart Blur (Radius: 1, Threshold: 12, Quality: High, Mode: Normal)
4 Set current layer (Opacity: 40%)
5 Duplicate Background
6 Gaussian Blur (Radius: 0.5 Pixels)
7 Set current layer (Opacity: 40%)
8 Flatten image
RAW, LZW TIFF (compression usually requiring a PostScript level 3 printer for decompression) or standard TIFF options would be appreciated by those concerned about consistent pixels within continuous color with no artifacts surrounding high contrast colors. It should be noted that each time a JPEG is opened and saved (even with no edits) in an image editor application, there is slight degradation of image quality. This does not occur with TIFF or RAW.
WIDESCREEN LIMITATION: I was fooled by the boast of widescreen pictures. This applies only to STILLS. The WS stills are about 25 percent smaller than the maximum 6MP images. The viewfinder adds black bands to help frame WS pictures. Don't expect a low-cost HD WS movie function from the S3.
FLASH OPTIONS: The manual pop-up flash could be a bane or boone. It is reasonably strong and there is a three-option dedicated button to 1) always enable the flash, 2) automatically flash only when required, or 3) disable flash. If you forget to lift the flash, automatic doesn't lift it for you. Conversely, lifting the flash when the user option is set to never flash results in no extra lighting. One could look at this as a benefit since less flashing preserves the batteries. It would make more sense to me for the flash to pop-up if needed in automatic mode. Get used to the icon in the viewfinder that indicates the status of the flash (which is grayed when the flash is not up).
The S3 has also been criticized because it does not have a hot-shoe connection for a replacement flash. (A handheld flash farther away from the lens is the true solution to red eye.) Canon's less than optimal answer is to provide an optional slave flash that can be used as a supplemental bounce flash positioned closer to the subject or mounted onto the camera using a bracket that connects to the tripod thread. (I have a much less expensive non-digital Canon T-50 SLR with multiple lenses with a hot shoe so adding one to the S3 is possible.)
TRIPOD THREAD: A plastic tripod thread is never appreciated. Be careful not to damage the threads or consider using a tripod quick-shoe attachment.
ABERRATION: Though improvements are being made, digital cameras (particularly less expensive ones) suffer from aberration, sometimes called purple fringing, surrounding high-contrast areas where a pixels along edges are discolored. The S3 is not exempt - more notably a few pixels of red (NW) and green (SE) misregistration. This is most apparent on photos with very light objects next to color away from the center of focus - particularly on overcast days when the sky is white instead of blue. A 6MP image is scaled down so much for standard prints that the aberration is not usually noticeable. For large prints this may require additional image editing.
UPGRADE FROM S2: Owners of the Canon S2 will not find the S3 a significant upgrade. This camera appears to build on prior success with a few additional features to keep it competitive with other brands. In doing so, Canon has left room for even more improvements in an S4. Differences between the S2 and S3 are summed up below.
* New sensor (6MP versus 5MP)
* Higher maximum sensitivity (ISO 800)
* Bigger LCD screen (2.0-inch versus 1.8-inch)
* New Sports mode
* Record live Histogram
* Widescreen shooting mode (stills)
* Fractionally larger and heavier
* Dark gunmetal (gray) as opposed to silver body
The difference between 5MP and 6MP is not perceived in standard size prints (both have far more megapixels than necessary). The extra pixels in the 6MP are useful for retaining more detail when cropping small areas of a photo with image editor software. High ISO (400+) is used for dark scenes when no tripod is available. ISO 800 is largely symbolic in the S3 since results are too noisy (aberrated pixels) to be useful. The 2-inch screen has the same amount of pixels as the 1.8 but it's scaled up a bit. The histogram is an animated graphic that indicates whether the framed subject is under- or over-exposed; this should also be apparent in the viewfinder preview image. Of course widescreen images can be cropped in post-production if it's only an occasional desire.
CONCLUSIONS
It will take some time to become familar with all the CANON S3 features. If results are too noisy or blurry, it is likely because the correct setting was forgotten. The CANON S3 is not perfect but, in its price range, includes a very good combination of available technologies with slight image quality sacrifices. Professional photographers may be inclined toward an entry level DSLR (perhaps CANON DIGITAL REBEL XT, CANON EOS 30D, or SONY ALPHA). The S3 is a nice alternative to a dedicated digital camcorder; it can even zoom and shoot high-resolution stills without exiting movie mode. For the best quality stills, movie recording is sacrificed in higher-end cameras.
If this review seems like too much to read then the S3 is not for you. There is much more to read -- beginning and advanced manuals for the camera itself in addition to manuals for the software. Prosumers that invest time reading can be rewarded with greatly improved image quality from the S3. Of, course composition is still up to the photographer. ([...]) The prior S2 model may be a better bargain for the cost conscious unless some of the new S3 features listed above are absolutely essential. The typical no-frills consumer might be put off by the plethora of options and prefer a compact P+S with less buttons (CANON POWERSHOT S80, SD500, A540, or A520).
(See uploaded pictures of bird in palm tree and building exhibiting aberration. Because the Amazon image processor scales down images as much as possible, there are more image artifacts on samples than on original photos.)
Is it possible for a camera to make an amateur photographer better? Apparently this is Canon's goal with the S3. It provides easy access to controls that compensate for common difficult shooting scenarios. Most point-and-shoot (P+S) cameras have few buttons - relying instead on hidden menu driven options. While this may make the camera appear less intimidating initially, locating the correct setting while attempting to frame and photograph action or bad lighting subjects is frustrating. As a result, many features go unused.
By way of comparison, the S3 has at least ten more buttons than my discontinued P+S MINOLTA Dimage G500 (5MP 3x optical zoom). And many of the buttons on the CANON are multifunction depending on whether you are shooting in one of several modes, playing back stills, or movies - providing dozens of useful options.
The CANON S3 has a button for instant access to movie recording (with on-screen options for 320x240 15/30/60 fps or 640x480 15/30 fps) up to 1GB or one hour per clip. Stereo sound and zoom functions accompany movies. There are dedicated buttons for ISO, sound recording, flash, continuous shooting, macro, manual focus, display, and a customized shortcut. The mode dial on top of the camera includes settings for many typical situations such as portrait, landscape, sports, nighttime, and panoramic. There is also an AUTO[MATIC] mode. But if all your shots remain in this setting, you might as well use a P+S model.
The key benefit of the many buttons and dials on the S3 is quick access to a wide variety of useful features without taking your eye off the subject. The FUNC[TION] button can present a tremendous amount of pertinent information while the focused image is visible. Everything from remaining number of pictures and image quality to white balance and ISO feedback neatly border the subject. The DISP[LAY] button activates grids and histogram, switches between LCD and viewfinder, or reduces the amount of on-screen information. Either screen is equally informative and useful for making adjustments. The MENU button differs in that it brings up infrequently used options that temporarily replace the focused subject.
Elaborating a bit further on the impressive display of the CANON S3, it does a good job of simulating selected options. Punch up greens, blues, reds, all colors, neutralize, lighten or darken skin tones, photograph b+w or sepia and see the results before snapping the picture. It is possible to obtain untainted color even with mixed indoor lighting. In addition to AWB (automatic white balance) there are seven other settings accessed from the FUNC[TION] button. The last is custom metering. Just point at a white object in the room and press the SET button. No more green or orange casts on indoor photos!
Another common lighting problem occurs when a subject stands in front of a bright background or if frontal light from the sun washes out the highlights on faces. After a quick tap of the FUNC[TION] button, the first option in the upper left corner is exposure compensation. Use the omni selector left arrow to darken the foreground or right arrow to lighten it. If indoors or a relatively short distance away, you might also enable the flash. (For those with traditional photography background, there are also options for aperture priority or shutter speed priority on the mode dial.)
Despite efforts to write a short review, there is still much more to talk about. Image stabilization (IS) and the 12X optical zoom are significant features that work well together. In fact, now I understand why smaller digital cameras without IS typically only include 3 or 4x. The slightest hand movement is greatly exaggerated at high magnification. IS compensates for this movement. The S3 provides four options for IS: 1) continuous (constantly stabilizes preview which uses more power); 2) shoot only (stabilizes image when shutter button is pressed); 3) panning (stabilizes vertical movement only for tracking horizontally moving cars, race horses, bikers or runners); 4) off (stabilization is not necessary for tripod).
The 12X optical zoom can optionally be supplemented by 4X digital, making it possible to achieve as much as 48X zoom. A ring around the shutter button rotates clockwise to enlarge and vise versa. This brings up a slider in the viewfinder. If digital is activated, the white slider goes to a point and stops at 12X. Press it again and the slider is appended with blue as the digital zoom is progressively applied. I uploaded a picture of a bird in a a 16 foot palm tree with 21x zoom.
Panorama assist is yet another outstanding feature. As each photo is clicked, a portion slides over in preview, making it easier to align the next. Software is included to stitch the pieces together or you can use Photoshop's Photomerge under the Automate menu.
Image bracketing is also nice for difficult-focus situations; with one press of the button, three slightly different focuses are shot within a couple of seconds - a light, medium, and dark. This is not to be confused with continuous shooting (sometimes called burst mode), which shoots multiple images with consistent exposure as long as the button shutter button is pressed. This is extremely useful when photographing groups of people since it is often difficult to get everyone's eyes open and smiling at the same time. It is also great for photographing small animals with rapid movements like birds.
WHAT'S NOT TO LIKE?
There are a few annoyances that could be solved by spending more. After all, Cannon makes cameras from under $200 to several thousand. Despite big features, the S3 is, relatively speaking, on the low end of the scale. So any apparent design omissions must be kept in context.
LENSE CAP FIT: The most minor annoyance is the loosely fitted lens cap that frequently disconnects. Make certain the lanyard string is attached to the neck strap so it won't be lost. The obvious concern is smudging or scratching of the lens. While carrying, frequently check to make certain is on.
ACCESSORIES: Canon cut accessories to the bear minumum. There is no case (strap is included), no power cord, no lens hood, and only Alkaline batteries. Purchasing all the necessary options can break your budget by $150-$250 USD. Fortunatelly, some items are common enough that you may not need to purchase everything. I already had a couple of 256MB SD cards for my prior camera. You'll need to factor in the cost of a fast charger with four 2500+ mHa AA batteries (currently around $35). There is also a need for a high-capacity SD card. The included 16MB card will only store four of the highest quality images. About 90 stills can fit on a 256MB card at the highest quality setting. If you require more images per session or will be recording movies, consider a high-speed 4GB card (currently around $100). The S3 is optimized for high-speed cards.
LCD BRIGHTNESS: More of an annoyance is the limited pivoting 2" LCD screen brightness. Take comfort in the fact that some expensive DSLR cameras have only a viewfinder. Fortunately, when the LCD is not visible, the viewfinder on the S3 can be used. The diopter adjustment is handy since I may be wearing single-vision prescription shades, trifocals, or no glasses at all. The two independent brightness settings for LCD or viewfinder are a noble consideration. The LCD just doesn't get bright enough. In time, it is easy to get used to the viewfinder.
IMAGE FORMATS: A camera with so many features naturally appeals to the prosumer not ready to make the leap to a full-fledged DSLR. Though this would result in better high-ISO nighttime shots and better daylight images, the cost with multiple lenses could easy triple the price of the S3 and you'll lose some consumer-oriented features. Nevertheless, a non-compressed image mode would be useful - especially with the availability of high-speed 4GB SD cards.
Test shots of straight-up blue sky in large "fine" and "super fine" modes both exhibited pixelization when examining up close. In fact, super fine is slightly more pixelated in large areas of SOLID (perhaps due to sharpening?). This may be considered simulated film grain. There is more color averaging with fine mode producing a smaller, visually smoother images. The "large" image setting is 6 megapixels so the anomalies I reference when zooming in 400 percent in Photoshop are not visible on typical prints. When the composition includes many different color changes and fine DETAIL (landscapes, architecture), the super fine mode is much better. Otherwise the detail becomes muddy.
I developed a Photoshop action called Smooth Pixels. Though not always necessary, it provides moderate smoothing on 6MP images to reduce pixelization in large areas of flat color. It can also be used to minimize artifacts occurring as a result of saving a JPEG image with too much compression. If you have Photoshop experience these settings may be familiar to you. Opacities can be increased as much to as much as 60% with minimal loss of detail. (A screenshot of the Action palette has been uploaded.)
1 Make snapshot
2 Duplicate current layer
3 Smart Blur (Radius: 1, Threshold: 12, Quality: High, Mode: Normal)
4 Set current layer (Opacity: 40%)
5 Duplicate Background
6 Gaussian Blur (Radius: 0.5 Pixels)
7 Set current layer (Opacity: 40%)
8 Flatten image
RAW, LZW TIFF (compression usually requiring a PostScript level 3 printer for decompression) or standard TIFF options would be appreciated by those concerned about consistent pixels within continuous color with no artifacts surrounding high contrast colors. It should be noted that each time a JPEG is opened and saved (even with no edits) in an image editor application, there is slight degradation of image quality. This does not occur with TIFF or RAW.
WIDESCREEN LIMITATION: I was fooled by the boast of widescreen pictures. This applies only to STILLS. The WS stills are about 25 percent smaller than the maximum 6MP images. The viewfinder adds black bands to help frame WS pictures. Don't expect a low-cost HD WS movie function from the S3.
FLASH OPTIONS: The manual pop-up flash could be a bane or boone. It is reasonably strong and there is a three-option dedicated button to 1) always enable the flash, 2) automatically flash only when required, or 3) disable flash. If you forget to lift the flash, automatic doesn't lift it for you. Conversely, lifting the flash when the user option is set to never flash results in no extra lighting. One could look at this as a benefit since less flashing preserves the batteries. It would make more sense to me for the flash to pop-up if needed in automatic mode. Get used to the icon in the viewfinder that indicates the status of the flash (which is grayed when the flash is not up).
The S3 has also been criticized because it does not have a hot-shoe connection for a replacement flash. (A handheld flash farther away from the lens is the true solution to red eye.) Canon's less than optimal answer is to provide an optional slave flash that can be used as a supplemental bounce flash positioned closer to the subject or mounted onto the camera using a bracket that connects to the tripod thread. (I have a much less expensive non-digital Canon T-50 SLR with multiple lenses with a hot shoe so adding one to the S3 is possible.)
TRIPOD THREAD: A plastic tripod thread is never appreciated. Be careful not to damage the threads or consider using a tripod quick-shoe attachment.
ABERRATION: Though improvements are being made, digital cameras (particularly less expensive ones) suffer from aberration, sometimes called purple fringing, surrounding high-contrast areas where a pixels along edges are discolored. The S3 is not exempt - more notably a few pixels of red (NW) and green (SE) misregistration. This is most apparent on photos with very light objects next to color away from the center of focus - particularly on overcast days when the sky is white instead of blue. A 6MP image is scaled down so much for standard prints that the aberration is not usually noticeable. For large prints this may require additional image editing.
UPGRADE FROM S2: Owners of the Canon S2 will not find the S3 a significant upgrade. This camera appears to build on prior success with a few additional features to keep it competitive with other brands. In doing so, Canon has left room for even more improvements in an S4. Differences between the S2 and S3 are summed up below.
* New sensor (6MP versus 5MP)
* Higher maximum sensitivity (ISO 800)
* Bigger LCD screen (2.0-inch versus 1.8-inch)
* New Sports mode
* Record live Histogram
* Widescreen shooting mode (stills)
* Fractionally larger and heavier
* Dark gunmetal (gray) as opposed to silver body
The difference between 5MP and 6MP is not perceived in standard size prints (both have far more megapixels than necessary). The extra pixels in the 6MP are useful for retaining more detail when cropping small areas of a photo with image editor software. High ISO (400+) is used for dark scenes when no tripod is available. ISO 800 is largely symbolic in the S3 since results are too noisy (aberrated pixels) to be useful. The 2-inch screen has the same amount of pixels as the 1.8 but it's scaled up a bit. The histogram is an animated graphic that indicates whether the framed subject is under- or over-exposed; this should also be apparent in the viewfinder preview image. Of course widescreen images can be cropped in post-production if it's only an occasional desire.
CONCLUSIONS
It will take some time to become familar with all the CANON S3 features. If results are too noisy or blurry, it is likely because the correct setting was forgotten. The CANON S3 is not perfect but, in its price range, includes a very good combination of available technologies with slight image quality sacrifices. Professional photographers may be inclined toward an entry level DSLR (perhaps CANON DIGITAL REBEL XT, CANON EOS 30D, or SONY ALPHA). The S3 is a nice alternative to a dedicated digital camcorder; it can even zoom and shoot high-resolution stills without exiting movie mode. For the best quality stills, movie recording is sacrificed in higher-end cameras.
If this review seems like too much to read then the S3 is not for you. There is much more to read -- beginning and advanced manuals for the camera itself in addition to manuals for the software. Prosumers that invest time reading can be rewarded with greatly improved image quality from the S3. Of, course composition is still up to the photographer. ([...]) The prior S2 model may be a better bargain for the cost conscious unless some of the new S3 features listed above are absolutely essential. The typical no-frills consumer might be put off by the plethora of options and prefer a compact P+S with less buttons (CANON POWERSHOT S80, SD500, A540, or A520).
(See uploaded pictures of bird in palm tree and building exhibiting aberration. Because the Amazon image processor scales down images as much as possible, there are more image artifacts on samples than on original photos.)
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 28, 2006
