I just got my Canon G11 late last month and would like to comment on this camera in a form of a user’s review.

It’s now my primary travel camera whenever I decide not to take along my EOS 450D or PowerShot S3 IS ultrazoom. I think that many people who purchased the G11 and vented their disappointment at the G11′s less-than-spectacular high ISO performance were probably anticipating Rebel XTi-like image quality.

Let’s face it, folks. There’s only so much a small 1/1.7″ CCD sensor in the G11 can deliver despite Canon’s marketing claims. We’re not talking about a micro 4/3rd sized sensor here, let alone APS-C format sensor.

I had this limitation clearly in mind when I bought the G11 and I knew I wasn’t going to expect miracles. The first shots I took with my G11 were night scenes at ISO 1600 and compared them to the same shots taken with my EOS 450D, also at ISO 1600 (I used the Program mode).

Not surprisingly, the images taken with the EOS 450D yielded less noise than ones snapped with the G11 – but the latter’s images were STILL far superior than the compacts and ultrazooms I’ve owned, at ISO 400 or ISO 800. The G11′s low light performance blew my old PowerShot A620 and S3 IS away hands down. So how you look at it depends whether you’re comparing the G11 to a budget dSLR or a consumer grade compact.

Is the G11 bulky? I would agree, if it’s pitted against my Cyber-shot DSC-W150 ultracompact. Compared to the EOS 450D and PowerShot S3is the G11′s size is reasonably small and handy although not exactly pocket-able.

Is the G11 heavy? Not really. If anyone’s handled the discontinued PowerShot A650 IS with a full complement of 4 AA Energizer 2500mAH NiMH batteries, the G11 is still comparatively lighter (both with batteries installed).

For a compact digicam, the A650 IS was the heaviest and the bulkiest of the A-series PowerShots. It didn’t sell very well and lived a short market life. Incidentally, the A650 IS was also Canon’s last A-series PowerShot with a swivel-out LCD. Since then Canon designed subsequent models only with fixed LCD screens, except for the SX-series ultrazooms.

Is the G11 complicated to use? YES, if you’re moving up from basic P&S cameras, especially from other makes. NO, if you’re well versed with recent A, G or S/SX-series PowerShots or Canon dSLRs. You don’t have to shoot RAW if you don’t want to (I seldom shoot RAW anyway). JPGs are fine.

I was amazed by the G11′s Smart Auto mode even though I never use fully Auto mode (I prefer Program AE) when taking pics. The G11′s Smart Auto accounts for the subject and camera movement in addition to selecting the proper Scene Mode depending on the situation. In the old PowerShots, full Auto mode attempts to force the use of built-in flash when necessary and tend hover around low ISO speeds.

The G11 also dispenses with the separate Auto ISO/Hi Auto ISO modes in the G10. There’s only one Auto ISO setting and it automatically expands the ISO speed from 80 all the way to 3,200. Takes out the guesswork whether you need normal Auto ISO or HI Auto ISO.

Is the G11 expensive? Compared to the new PowerShot S90, a Digital Elph ultracompact or current A-series PowerShots, yes it is more expensive. But it’s still cheaper than the PowerShot SX1 IS ultrazoom and let alone any Rebel-series dSLR model. I was thrilled that the G11 debut price was cheaper compared to the G10 was the latter was first introduced. The G11 is also cheaper than the old G6 (the last G-series PowerShot with a flip-out LCD and a f/2 lens) which I once lusted after but couldn’t afford back in 2004.

No f/2.0 lens like in the PowerShot S90? That would’ve been great if the G11 had it, but it would also mean the camera would be bigger and heavier than it already is. Not to mention a price increase. Inevitably people would start complaining that the G11′s price tag is unjustified! Then again, the G11 shouldn’t be directly compared to the PowerShot S90 despite sharing the same high sensitivity sensor. The S90 is a pocket camera (the G11 is not) and is aimed for the enthusiast who wants a better performing compact than any of the A-series PowerShots or Digital Elph series.

Is the G11′s viewfinder useless? That depends on what you’re comparing to. Its viewfinder is indeed inferior to any dSLR’s optical viewfinder in terms of framing accuracy or any electronic viewfinder-equipped digicam with 100% coverage.

Anyone familiar with rangefinder film cameras know that these viewfinders yield inaccurate framing at macro and long focal lengths compared to film SLR cameras. There’s (obviously) no live view LCD with film cameras and your only means of composing shots is via the optical viewfinder.

Because of the positioning of an optical viewfinder in a compact digicam, I think it’s unfair to say that the G11′s viewfinder is “useless”. If you think the G11′s viewfinder is small, try peering through the optical viewfinders of ultracompacts for size! Still, I find optical viewfinders indispensable in very bright sunny days, when details on the LCD are completely washed out by sunlight. For this reason I would never buy a compact without an optical viewfinder as a backup framing method.

Like all compact digicams with optical viewfinders, the G11′s optical viewfinder is zoom-coupled. At long focal ranges, using the viewfinder in bright situations can spell the difference between an acceptably framed shot and a completely useless one. Let’s also not forget that turning off the LCD and resorting to the optical viewfinder alone extends the battery up to 1,000 shots.

By no means the G11 is a perfect prosumer compact (there’s no such thing as a perfect digicam).

I was disappointed that its continuous shooting speed is a mere 1.1 fps, slightly slower than the G10 despite the reduction to 10.1 MP in the G11. Action sports photography is out of the G11′s league and I found its slow continuous FPS, hand-held AE bracketing for HDR images proves to be a difficult task.

AF focusing with the G11 is reasonably quick (not as fast as I would’ve liked) but it processes JPG shots slower than I had expected, even at low picture resolutions. Battery life dropped from 400 shots to 390 shots compared to the G10. The G11 is designed to work perfectly with Canon’s Speedlite strobes, but for some reason it lacks the modern E-TTL II flash exposure system found in Canon’s dSLRS. Instead the camera uses only the E-TTL flash mode.

Despite the G11′s minor annoyances, I have no remorse buying it.

G10 owners may not find any compelling reason to upgrade to the G11 (except for the articulating LCD and improved high ISO performance) but as for me, it’s leaps and bounds compared to the A80, A620, S2 IS and S3IS PowerShots I’ve ever used. I’m glad I waited for this as I almost bought the G10 sometime ago.

I really like my G11. I can use my powerful Speedlite 430EX II or the compact 270EX flash depending on my needs. It can also be triggered by the wired remote that I use with my EOS 450D for tripod shoots.

If it’s one thing I hate about my G11, it makes me want to use this camera more than my dSLR.

And lastly, thanks for reading, hope you’ve enjoyed this writeup.

http://www.samsungcamera.com/press/press_news_view.asp?ynews_uid=202

Kevin

A camera gets good reviews and its over-hyped? Apply a little retro styling and it becomes a fashion camera?

Whatever next? Innovate and make smaller – then you’ll claim it’s gimmick!

Canon haven’t broken the mold with the G11 and as previouslyy pointed out the current crop of micro 4/3s cameras look to be on par with the new G11 in terms of price and dimension with the caveat a pancake lens is mounted. In terms of performance these cameras will out-perform the G11 in every area.

It’s just another Canon attempt to sell cameras.

Also – I think the E-P1 will go down as the most over hyped camera of 2009. This is a fashion camera and it’s price is in no way connected with it’s capabilities or build quality.

I’ve written about taking pictures of book pages at the library whilst doing research: http://technologyinclass.com/blog/?p=14
I would need something light and compact for such a purpose.