4 megapixel CCD (3.87 effective) for 2,272
x 1,704 pixel images
*
New 4X optical zoom lens, f/2.0-3.0
*
Auto, Scene Program, Program,
and Manual exposure modes
*
Unique tilt/swivel LCD panel
*
MANY user interface and feature enhancements.
Want to learn how to *really* use this camera?
Visit our free Photo
Lessons area!
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Manufacturer Overview
Canon U.S.A. has long been a dominant player in the film and digital camera
markets, well-known for their high-quality optics, technical innovations,
and aggressive product development. Over the last few years, they've developed
a powerful lineup of digital cameras, ranging from surprisingly feature-rich
entry-level models, all the way to the extreme high end of professional digital
SLRs. Last year, their PowerShot G2 prosumer model was one of the top two
or three cameras on the entire Imaging Resource site, a fact I attribute
to the superb job Canon did in designing and producing it. - The G2 was one
of those rare cameras that really hit all the right notes with the "enthusiast"
crowd, offering a rich feature set and excellent image quality.
Now, Canon has updated the G2, calling the result the PowerShot G3. To the
surprise of many, they eschewed the five megapixel sensors employed by many
of their competitors in high-end prosumer models, choosing instead to stay with
the proven four megapixel chip first seen in the G2. (I'm told the reason for
this is that Canon was unwilling to accept the image noise tradeoff that the
current crop of 5 megapixel CCDs require.) While the sensor has remained the
same, numerous feature and user interface enhancements (including a new 4x zoom
lens with fast f/2.0 maximum aperture) combine to result in a noticeably different
user experience. Read on below for the full story, but based on my early look
at the new model, I'd say Canon has come up with a very worthy successor to
the wildly popular G2.
High Points
4-megapixel CCD delivering image resolutions as high as 2,272 x 1,704 pixels.
(3.87 megapixels effective)
Real-image optical viewfinder and 1.8-inch, color LCD monitor with swivel
design.
4x optical zoom, 7.2-28.8mm f/2.0-3.0 lens (equivalent to a 35-140mm lens
on a 35mm camera) with auto and manual focus.
New autofocus system with continuously adjustable AF area.
Unique focus bracketing mode.
Digital telephoto as high as 3.5x.
Full Automatic, Program AE, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, and Manual
exposure modes, as well as three preset exposure modes, and two user-programmable
modes.
Manually adjustable aperture settings from f/2 to f/8, depending on zoom
setting.
Built-in neutral-density filter can be switched in via the shooting menu.
(Equivalent to external ND 0.9 filter, 3-stop exposure cut.)
Manually adjustable shutter speed settings from 1/2,000 to 15 seconds.
Variable light sensitivity: Auto, 50, 100, 200, or 400 ISO equivalents.
Evaluative, Center-Weighted Average and Spot metering modes, with an adjustable
Spot area.
Spot metering optionally tied to AF area.
White Balance adjustment with nine settings, including two separate "custom"
options.
Built-in flash with nine operating modes, flash metering is TTL (through
the lens).
External flash hot shoe.
Flash system supports full wireless capabilities of EOS speedlights, via
optional Canon wireless transmitter.
Flash system supports optional ringlight and Macro Twin Light accessory
flash units.
Continuous Shooting (normal and high-speed), Stitch-Assist, Auto Exposure
Bracketing, and Movie recording modes.
Contrast, Sharpness, and Saturation adjustment.
Vivid Color, Neutral Color, Low Sharpening, B&W, and Sepia options.
Remote control and utilities for operating the camera from a computer.
JPEG and RAW still image file formats, movies saved as AVI / Motion JPEGs.
Images saved to CompactFlash Type I or II memory cards.
DPOF (Digital Print Order Format) compatibility.
USB cable for high-speed connection to a computer.
Canon Digital Camera software included, as well as Photoshop LE 5.0.
Powered by Canon BP-511 rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack, with AC adapter/in-camera
charger included.
Changes from the Canon PowerShot G2
(And the G1, for historical reference)
As one of the most popular high-end "prosumer" digicams of the past
year, many of our readers may already be quite familiar with the Canon PowerShot
G2. The G3 is clearly based on the G2's design, with a very similar body design
and control layout. There are a number of enhancements (beyond the obvious increase
of the zoom range to 4x) that have been added though. I address all of these
in the text of the review, but for convenience, have also listed them here,
for more convenient, concise reference:
Feature
G3
G2
G1
Body Improvements/Differences
More angular handgrip for better
finger-traction, Silver-colored metal body panels. Body is more rectangular,
boxy-looking
Enlarged Handgrip, Champagne metal cover
Standard grip,
gray metal cover
Startup screen, startup sound
yes/yes
(Multiple options via "My Camera" menu)
Yes/yes
No/no
Maximum Resolution
3.87 MP (eff)
3.87 MP (eff)
3.14 MP (eff)
Resolution Settings
2272 x 1704,
1600 x 1200,
1024 x 768
640 x 480
2272 x 1704,
1600 x 1200,
1024 x 768
640 x 480
2048 x 1536,
1024 x 768
640 x 480
Filtration
RGB
RGB
CYGM
Lens
4x
35-140mm equiv.
F/2.0-3.0
3x
32-104mm equiv.
F/2.0-2.8
3x
32-104mm equiv.
F/2.0-2.8
Minimum focusing distance
No spec from Canon yet, but
it looks to be about 1.5 inches.
2.4 inches
2.4 inches
Slow shutter speed range
15 sec
15 sec.
8 sec.
High shutter speed and aperture combinations
1/1250 - all apertures
1/2000 - f/4.0 and higher
1/640 - f/2.8~f/3.5 to f/8
1/800 - f/3.5~f/5.0 to f/8
1/1000 - f/8 only
1/640 ~ 1/1000 sec. —
f/8 only
Neutral Density Filter
3-stop cut (equivalent to ND
0.9), set via record menu.
----
---
Flash Operation
Internal: Total of 9 modes, counting all combinations of on/off/auto
and redeye plus slow sync options.
Supports EX-mode Speedlites, Ringlight, Macro Twin Flash, and Remote
Transmitter
Internal: 5 modes
Supports EX-mode Speedlites and Ringlight,
Internal: 5 modes
Supports EX-mode Speedlites only
Signal processing speed
Considerably faster than G2,
but don't have a specific spec for this.
Faster (twice as fast as G1)
---
Signal processing bit depth
12 bits/channel, through all
image processing operations.
10 bits/channel
10 bits/channel
Noise reduction
Unknown
(Awaiting production model to test)
Better
---
Battery Life
Excellent: No spec from Canon
yet, but my own measurements indicate roughly a 15% improvement in worst-case
battery life over the G2.
400 images/LCD on
1000 images/LCD off
300 minutes/Playback
260 images/LCD On
800 images/LCD off
160 minutes/Playback
Focusing Points
"Infinite"- FlexiZone
AF/AE allows positioning of the AF/AE area anywhere within about 60% of
the frame area.
3
1
Manual Focus
Focusing area magnified on LCD
monitor, numerical distance values displayed
Focusing area magnified on LCD monitor, numerical distance values displayed
---
Autofocus Bracketing
Focus bracketing option under
the FUNC button snaps three shots with minor tweaks in focus setting between
them. (First time I've seen this function on a camera.)
---
---
Metering Modes
Evaluative, Center-Weighted, Center Spot, Off-Center Spot
G3 Incorporates Canon iSAPS scene-analysis technology for more accurate
exposures under tricky lighting.
Evaluative, Center-Weighted, Center Spot, Off-Center Spot
Center-Weighted, Center Spot
Manual exposure mode improvements
(Same as G2)
Metering display when shutter button is pressed halfway; LCD monitor
remains bright even when underexposure is set.
---
Program Shift
(?)
(Didn't see this, need to check with Canon to see if it's there or not.)
Yes
No
Intervalometer Option
Shoot 2-100 shots, at intervals
of 1 to 60 minutes
---
---
White Balance Modes
8, including two separate Custom
settings for manual adjustment to standard white card.
6 including new Fluorescent H for daylight fluorescents
5
Color Effects Mode
Yes
(Now expanded to allow application of color effects (including B/W shooting)
in any exposures mode.
Yes
No
Movie Mode options and durations
320 x 240 — 180 sec.
160 x 120 — 180 sec.
320 x 240 — 30 sec.
160 x 120 — 120 sec.
320 x 240 — 30 sec.
Continuous Shooting Speeds
Continuous High: 2.27 fps
Continuous: 1.46 fps
(by actual measurement)
Continuous High: 2.46 fps
Continuous: 1.04 fps
(by actual measurement)
Continuous: 1.7 fps
Startup time, shutter lag, etc.
Much faster
(4.2 seconds startup, 0.94 second full AF lag)
Faster
(7.2 seconds startup, 1.3 second full AF lag)
---
Interval between frames in Single frame mode
1.88
(Actual measurement, not Canon specs)
2.3 sec.
(Actual measurement, not Canon specs)
1.12 sec.
(Actual measurement, not Canon specs)
Digital zoom function
True zoom up to 14x combined
digital and optical
True zoom up to 11x combined digital and optical
Digital teleconverter, either 2x or 4x for a maximum of 8x combined
Histogram display in Playback mode
Yes
Yes
No
Image magnification during playback
Up to 10x, 10 steps
3x/6x
2.5x/5x
Image erase modes
(Same as G2)
Improved (fewer steps)
---
RemoteCapture functions
(Same as G2)
Improved: Live video can be shown on attached monitor as well as computer
screen. Shutter button on camera remains functional.
Displays captured images only. Shutter can be released with computer
only. Video out does not function while RemoteCapture is active.
USB Mounter for Mac OS 9.0 ~ 9.1
Provided.
(Also supports PTP mode for Windows XP and Mac OS X conneciton with no
driver software needed.)
Provided.
No (however, software itself is compatible with G1)
Direct Print mode
Yes - Also with CP-100, S830D
and S530D Bubble Jet printers.
Yes, with CP-10
No
Cropping in Direct Print mode
Yes
Yes
---
Accessory Compatibility
New bayonet-mount lens adapter, with wider range of wide, tele converters,
now covering range of 24.5mm to 245mm equivalents.
Support for both Macro Ring Light and Macro Twin Light units, as well
as Remote Strobe Transmitter for wireless flash connection.
Same as G1 plus Macro Ring Lite MR-14EX
Wide, tele converters extend range to ~28 to 150 mm
Wide, Tele and Macro Converters
Supplied CF Card
32MB
32MB
16MB
Control Changes
Top controls mirror EOS layout more closely.
Command wheel makes its first appearance in a PowerShot. Mode dial and
power switch separated, made easier to operate. Tabbed sub-menus for FUNC
button greatly improve efficiency of user interface.
---
---
Position Sensor
Position sensor automatically tags EXIF header
for image rotation on portrait-format shots.
---
---
Post-Exposure RAW file save
You can choose to save a RAW-mode file on
the fly, by hitting the FUNC button during the review period.
