New entrants from the Canon fold have yet to fail the multitude of trigger happy “fancy and capture”, point and shoot entrants and enthrall and enchant them. The Canon Powershot A2100 IS comes after setting to rest the earlier A2000 model.

The experience is exhilarating especially what the Canon Powershot A2100 does for you with minimal fuss (meaning controls). But it is behind the lens ( or scenes ) activity where the A2100 takes pains to let you point and shoot that is truly narration worthy.

DIGIC 4 Processor

The A2100 is truly an intelligent compact. The A2100 is equipped with the versatile DIGIC 4 processor that manages for you all the nitty gritty details so that you can remain only trigger happy. Firstly it manages all the controls, the speed of processing the images. Then the integrated circuit has the Ai AF and iSAPS. Both these in conjunction tell the camera the mode and the type of scene that fancies you and have the algorithm to work out the right settings the white balance, shutter priority, auto focus, noise reduction, ISO sensitivity, exposure compensation etc by the time you shoot.

Image Stabilisation

In addition they have face detection, tracking , motion detection for continuously adjusting the focus parameters and Image stabilization, adjusting your image for that nimble handling of yours which unsteadies the camera during the shoot there by introducing a blurring of the picture, also keeps the image steady in case of a displacement of the A2100 from the vertical and horizontal plane.  The IS or Image Stabilisation mode has 3 settings- The continuous mode, it works all the time and “shooting”, it works when the shutter remains pressed and  “panning” works when the moving object is being tracked. The stability of the image is probably achieved by taking the reference frame of a image and then smoothen out any abrupt changes that occur in the output of a sensor by smoothening the output. For a moving object this process has to be continuous because each time you take a reference frame then compare the next frame for any abrupt output from the sensors smoothen them and increment it as the next reference frame. All this has to be done while the focus and other parameters are being calculated and implemented.

The A2100 comes with a lens that has a 6 x optical zoom and a focal length of 36-216 mm. The images can be viewed on a 3″ LCD monitor that has a resolution of 231KP. The A2100 is a very agile camera needing only 1.5 secs to be ready for a shoot, 0.5 secs to commit an image to memory and 3 secs for its optical zoom to acquire and focus on to an object. The A2100 can continuously shoot at 1.1 fps.

Image management

The acquire images can be played back on the LCD monitor and reviewed by scrolling through. Digital magnification of 10 x can be applied to the image and they can be selected for rotation, deletion and resizing. Red eye correction and contrast can be applied after recording an image. Settings parameters of the selected image can be displayed and a histogram is available for evaluation of parameters.

The sleek and stylish A2100 comes with minimal fuss and fewer controls. It is comfortable and exudes style when it is held and carried and can take excellent pictures to which touches can be added by existing softwares to glamorize them and make the images look enchanting. Video movies can be recorded at 640 x 480 resolution and the memory capacity to hold them is 4 GB or up to 1 hr.

In the end Canon Powershot A2100 exudes form and style and lets you shoot with minimal fuss and displays some quality pictures for you to sit back and ponder upon.

The positioning of Canon’s offering, Canon Powershot SX 200 IS is a rather delicate one. It  no doubt is in competition with the 12 x zoom capable “fancy and capture” or point and shoot compacts with all the intelligence that you expect your compact to have – making a decision of the right settings for the 18 scene modes that the SX 200 IS has, face detection and tracking with self timer, anti shake or Image Stabilisation mechanism that compensates for both still photographs enabling long shutter times including digital anti shake that compensates for night photography and subject tracking that compensates for shake during videos. The Canon Powershot SX 200 IS also comes with HD video capability.

The point of positioning of Canon Powershot SX 200 IS I was trying to make is not about the intelligence of the camera but of identifying you at an entry stage if you are some one who would rather leave all the decisions and nuances of settings to your camera and rather not burden your self with detail or are you the one who is evincing interest and have the wherewithal to turn into an enthusiast meaning you want to experiment with manual controls at the point and shoot stage itself.

Frankly the Canon Powershot SX 200 IS is offering you best of the both worlds. It provides with all the intelligent inputs that you expect from a point and shoot camera. It is providing you with some controls to test you if you are ready to be an enthusiast and remember it is only now that the enthusiasts are getting to shoot videos on their entry level DSLRs.

DIGIC 4

The canon Powershot SX 200 IS comes equipped with the DIGIC 4 processor that has now become a standard feature on all the Canon models. The DIGIC 4 processor is an integrated circuit that takes all the decisions for you. It has Ai AF and iSAPS technology. Both in conjunction evaluate the scene or mode you are in and with the help of the database and the algorithms incorporated give you the best possible settings of Auto Focus, ISO Sensitivity, exposure settings white balancing , shutter speed etc.,  The auto focus can be simultaneously applied to 35 faces and can track those 35 faces and also select the boss in the group of faces and make him or her more prominent. The Powershot SX 200 IS can also track moving objects and apply auto focus to the objects but not optical zoom as it is more difficult. The Image Stabilisation can protect your photographs from blurring due to vibration of the camera during a shoot.

Sensors

Canon is continuing with the 12 mega pixel CCD sensors in the Powershot SX 200 IS. It is surprising and informative that Fujifilm is opting out of the race for mega pixels with out stating so. It is treating 2 pixels as one and there by managing to enhance sensor efficiency, reduce noise and achieve a dynamic range. It would be interesting to see what Canon does with its CCD in the subsequent models. Although the photographs taken on the SX 200 IS are of excellent quality that includes night photography that requires long shutter time and macro photographs where portraits can be focused at even near 0 cms, some noise is discernible with ISO above 800. The photographs are also softer and this can be overcome with software and sharpening can be achieved. Canon has been effective in dealing with Chromatic Aberration. Red eye correction can be applied even after the image is recorded.

All in all the Canon Powershot is an excellent compact point and shoot that tests you if you are a would be enthusiast. That apart it is an excellent compact with zoom capability and many intelligent features that set it apart.

Features

The new Canon Digital IXUS 100 IS is a pint sized “fancy and Capture” or Point and shoot variety that smugly fits into your palm and mainly does not discriminate against you on your clicking abilities(not of the mouse kind)  that is, and is an intelligent companion of the unobtrusive kind.

We have to delve into its intelligence first because that is what attracts you to these gizmos that do not burden your thought process. Purists are already complaining about the disappearing controls (what else is left?) , like the UNIX programmers did when DOS and then other GUI OSs appeared on the scene.

The Canon Digital IXUS 100 IS is your HDTV ready even if your PC Monitor is’nt but your software will come handy in doing those important touch ups that are so necessary for glamour these days.

Its DIGIC 4 processor that is fast becoming a standard feature on the latest Canon models not only controls and processes information at great speeds but also performs some very intelligent functions, It comes with AiAF for auto focus that works over 18 scene modes and taking the help of the iSAPs, a database of prestored data and images and their optimum settings, and the in built algorithms the Digital IXUS 100 IS arrives at decisions pertaining to the image settings depending on the situation, like reducing noise, ISO sensitivity, shutter priorities , Image Stabilisation, optical zoom etc.

Then the Canon Digital IXUS 100 IS has features like blink detection, a baby mode, face detection, self timer, recording of 720p HD movies with play back facility and auto red eye correction.

The Canon Digital IXUS 100 IS is the sleekest of the models that has emerged from the fold of Canon. It has style and form to match the looks. The sensors are of 12.1 mp.  The lens has 3 x optical zoom and 4 x digital zoom. The LCD monitor placed in the rear is of2.5″ with a resolution of 230K pixels. There are three modes of Auto Focus, single, auto and continuous. The metering for exposure is evaluated in AF and face detection, center weighted and spot. The ISO Sensitivity is Automatically adjusted and has a range of 80 – 1600. The shutter speed can vary from  1 – 1/ 1500 of a sec. The canon Digital IXUS 100 IS has a built in flash and external flash, Canon High Power Flash HF-DC1 can be attached.

The video facility of Canon Digital IXUS 100 IS allows recording HD movies of 1280 x 720 up to 4 GB for a duration of 30 mins.

Canon Digital IXUS 100 IS (Powershot SD780 )

Canon is the best ever camera manufaturer in the present market. Canon cameras come in different sleek, power packed, high iso, various display moded compacts and digital slrs. Canon Powershot SD 970/ Is Digital Elphi or (Canon IXUS 990) is one of those canon products wher you can find the power packing in a small unit case. the design of Canon UXIS 990 is very slim and sleek and have astonishing looks specially for it and yet is a powerful 12Megapixel typical canon camera.

Technological strides are making their presence felt in what for many users of compacts started as a fancy and capture and Canon has always been in the fore front and it is unraveled in the Canon Powershot SD 970 Digital IXUS.

For a point and shoot compact the list is exhausting. The Digital IXUS 990 comes with the ubiquitous DIGIC 4 processor which apart from its speed of processing and controls is an IC that has AiAF ( is it Artificially Intelligent Auto Focus?) and iSAPS which is a database of pictures that the algorithms developed by Canon use to arrive at the correct settings of focus, white balancing, exposure, shutter control, face tracking, noise reduction and ISO sensitivity and scene recognition. Beginners can appreciate the versatility of this processor by the way the Canon Digial IXUS adapts itself with consummate ease depending on the mode of shoot. It sure does relieve you of the burden of setting selection.

Image Stabilization:

Then there is anti shake or stabilization of the image for pitch and roll that is slowly making itself a compulsory feature in all the new models of cameras. It compensates for the tilt of the camera in the vertical and horizontal planes and corrects the disturbance to the image. It must be taking a reference plane for this and any deviations to the output must be smoothened to avoid blurring. Surely it must be the capacitance in the circuit.

The Canon Digital IXUS 990 IS also caters for blinking. This must not be difficult considering the focus is on the eyes of the subject and when you blink the focus value changes enabling the camera to prompt you to take the picture again. More important than the blink detection is the face detection which can simultaneously track 35 faces. It automatically selects the settings for focus, white balancing, exposure and settings of the flash. And then it is ideal for self portraits because it waits for you and takes the picture after you ease yourself into the group when it recognizes you.

Processor and hardware:

The power of the DIGIC 4 processor becomes evident in the Smart Auto mode, where for as many as 18 different scenes the Canon Digital IXUS determines the brightness, contrast, estimates the distance of the subject and white balance and color determination of the scene and then automatically makes the right choice of settings.

The Digital IXUS 990 IS can record 1280 x 720 pixel video of 720p HD at 30 frames per second on JPEG. But you cannot use the optical zoom while recording the video. Audio also can be recorded but is mono.

Sensors:

The sensors are 12 mega pixel. The lens has an optical zoom of 5 x and has a 35 mm equivalence of 37mm wide angle and 185 mm Tele photo lens. The LCD panel is a dazzling 3″ panel with a resolution of  4,60,000 pixels.

Controls:

The controls of the Digital IXUS are few and are uncomplicated and intuitive. There is a button for “Movie/Camera/ Auto”, “Zoom lever”, “battery compartment’ where you will also find the “SD memory card”. To the right of the LCD is the pad for navigating through “Flash”,”Focus”, “Exposure” and “Timer”. The ISO options can be selected by going to the “Print Transfer Button”. There are also advanced features like “Auto Exposure Lock”, “Auto Focus Lock” and “Flash Exposure Lock”. At the center of the navigation pad is the button for a sub menu that permits you settings like ‘metering”, “color”, “white balancing”, “ISO”, the shooting modes and image size and quality settings. Ports have been provided to connect IXUS 990 to a HDTV.

Extras:

Images that you have captured can be played back on the LCD, scrolled and even 10 x zoom is provided. They can also be sorted by date, category and file. The slide show lets you rotate, resize, trim, delete and set them for print and transfer and apply red eye correction. On the IXUS 990 you can add colors to achieve the effect you desire and obtain information about the settings of a photograph.

The Canon Digital IXUS 990 is an intelligent camera that captures your vivid memories and lets you appreciate the pains it goes to just let you point and shoot.

Features

We do not know if Canon is aware that it is sitting on a gold mine of Artificial Intelligence with its DIGIC IV(4) processor. Before we elaborate, DIGIC IV is the fourth generation of the “Digital Imaging Core”, an Integrated Circuit that is a proprietary development of Canon.

Apart from image processing and controls it also has AiAF for area Auto Focus which can simultaneously focus on several faces rather than keeping the subject’s face at the center. This feature selects the face to be focused even when it is not at the centre. This feature works in conjunction with the iSAPS technology, “Intelligent Scene Analysis based on photographic Space.
Coming to the gold mine of AI that Canon is sitting on. It already has built a data base for storing photographs of objects. It can analyse these objects by “Comparison” and arrive at the best selection for Auto Focus, White balancing and the most important thing is it can estimate the object distance.
The first step in AI is to be able to build a data base of objects. The second step is to be able to estimate the distance because the size and profile presented by an object changes with the distance and angle. The third is the ability to process and analyse and extract objects out from the view not just in 2 dimensions but three dimensions also. The zoom facility enables the object to be compared to be resized as per the size of the object it has to be compared to. The object to be compared then has to be rotated in 3 D and 360 degrees at each comparison step to be able to arrive at the correct posture of the object.The next and most important and logical step to which Canon is oh So near! Is object comparison which will enable the computer to recognize the objects and assign them codes which are “words”. If canon is able to analyse videos or objects in motion then it can understand “verbs”.
It is not surprising that it is a company that is involved with photography that is so near to making “Intelligent” machines and not a software company.

The advent of CMOS technology saw DSLRs adapting faster than the compacts. Canon Power Shot SX1 IS is the expensive cousin of S5 1S that features RAW mode and CMOS sensors.
DSLRs have long adapted themselves to the use of CMOS sensors. It has been the quest of Canon to introduce this technology into its compacts and it can safely be said that the SX1 IS is a path breaking compact in the lineage of Canon.
The main problem with CMOS sensors till now has been the complexity of the circuitry that reduces its ability to record light when the sensor size is small and therefore reduces its sensitivity. The advantages of overcoming the problem far out weighed the problem because of the ease of mass production high speed capture and video recording ability in the 1080 high definition range and in shooting continuously. The other cousin Canon Power Shot SX 10 IS uses CCD technology and is therefore cheaper. The other camera to have come out with the technology of Canon Power Shot SX1 IS is the Sony HX1.

The predecessor of Power Shot SX1 IS is the S5 IS and it had a resolution of 8 mega pixels while the SX1 IS has a resolution of 10 mega pixels. The S5 IS had a Digic 3 processor where as the SX1 IS has a Digic 4 processor. The S5 IS had a 2.5 inch LCD screen while the SX1 IS has a 2.8 inch LCD screen which offers greater resolution.

Fifth in the series of Rebel from the Canon fold, the Digital Rebel T1i is by far the most comprehensive of them all. The sensors are 15 MP which enable you to record HD video at 1080 pixels much like the previous Rebels.

Canons Noise reduction technology amplifies the signal at the pixel stage itself and unnecessary transfer of charge is avoided there by greatly reducing the noise increasing the image quality and increasing the frame speed.

The information gathered from the sensors is processed by a new technology called DIGIC circuitry, which integrates processes and commits the processed information to memory at very high rates which are optimized there by improving image quality, increasing speed and leaving the camera free to shoot while these functions are operational.

The dust protection system of the camera includes a coating of Flourine which repels accumulation of charged particles and a vibrator is provided which removes particles from the infra red filter.

The T1i has a 3 inch LCD screen with a resolution 640 x 480 pixels. The screen also has anti reflective coating and gives 170 degrees clear view for photographing even at awkward angles.

Although the T1i is like the EOS 50 D encapsuled in a body of 450 D.

The T1i has in built software for processing RAW images making adjustments to aspects like white balance, dynamic range, enables you to view auto focus application to the image and also reduction of interference.

If one is looking for a second camera for normal usage one can settle for the Canon Power Shot and the price of $500 still manages to charm you. With this Canon has entered the megapixel world. The optical zoom is only 5 X and although the wide angle equivalent for a 35 mm camera has been set at 28 mm the tele photo equivalence has been reduced to 140 mm which means it works all right for landscaping and for videos a lens can be added separately.

Favorite settings can be stored in the menu for subsequent recall. The image stabilization comes in handy for taking many shots. All the modes of shooting are available and the settings can be mastered with a little help from the manual.

At the back of the Power Shot a wheel is provided which allows you to change the settings that are displayed on the LCD. The auto focus functions well if one finds it difficult to manually focus the G 10.

The battery is as good as any other and lets you take more than 450 images.

One is advised to wait for the green signal from the focus indicator first, especially when the light is low , before firing the shutter, to get crisper images.

The colors are vividly presented during landscaping and the images are sharp but, the accuracy of color depiction needs improvement. The quality of the images is good but not as good as the other models of Canon that one has got used to.

For a camera of a small size , the zoom capabilities of Canon Powershot equal that of a 35 mm camera and are equaled only by the Olympus 570. In professional jargon it means that the lens has a wide angle of 28 mm and can accurately depict photographs of a wide ranging diversity.

The foldable screen helps in filming video pictures and also pictures from convenient angles. Protection is provided to the screen when not in use because of its foldability. The grip of the camera also houses the batteries which incidentally are not rechargeable. The four batteries provide an optimum life and work for more than 400 pictures which not many other cameras can boast of. However, it is doubtful if this arrangement will please every one.

The controls and dials are all situated on two dials – one in the rear and one on the top. The dial at the rear has all the options of the main menu. The dial on the top apart from containing the settings for zoom and focus , also has a button for flash and the microphone. The function dial can also be programmed and has settings for several scenes and video. But, the user is advised to go through the manual first to understand the dual tasking of the settings. The image when zoomed can be stabilized and focused upon.

The manual operations for shutter speed, aperture control etc., could be slightly awkward till you get used to them.

The SX 10 is over all an excellent camera which provides very good images over a wide variety of shots.