Canon G3X Review

Overview

...and then there were three! With the launch of the Canon G3X, a camera whose development was first revealed in February 2015, the Japanese camera giant finally has a camera that competes head-to-head with the Panasonic FZ1000 and the cameras which created the category in the first place, the Sony RX10-series. That's huge news for Canon fans who've been hoping for a far-reaching superzoom camera with an enthusiast-grade image sensor and support for Canon's ecosystem of accessories!

Sitting alongside the G1X II at the top of the company's enthusiast-oriented PowerShot G-series lineup, the Canon G3X provides a lot more zoom reach than that camera, at the understandable expense of some sensor size. Its 1"-type, 20.2-megapixel image sensor is actually shared with the PowerShot G7X (and now the G5X and G9X as well), a pocket-friendly compact that is both a whole lot smaller and more affordable, but which, again, lacks anything even remotely resembling the impressive telephoto reach of the G3X.

But it's against the Sony RX10-series and Panasonic FZ1000 -- both of which have a similar form-factor with the same sensor size and resolution -- that the most direct comparisons can be drawn, and we'll be doing just that throughout this review. In some respects, Canon bests its rivals right out of the gate, and in others it trails them by some distance. Which camera is right for you is going to depend very much on your specific needs.

One glance at the Canon G3X tells you that it's simply in a different ballpark than its rivals when it comes to telephoto reach. All three cameras start from roughly the same wide angle: 24mm-equivalent for Canon and Sony, and 25mm-equivalent for Panasonic. But the Sony RX10 and RX10 II hit their stops at a 200mm-equivalent telephoto, and the FZ1000 at 400mm equivalent, where the Canon G3X will take you all the way out to a 600mm-equivalent telephoto. If you want a large, enthusiast-grade image sensor and the maximum possible zoom range, you're likely reaching for your wallet already!

But there is plenty more to the lens story. Sony's cameras have a constant f/2.8 maximum aperture across the whole zoom range, and the Panasonic FZ1000 only falls from f/2.8 at wide-angle to f/4.0 at telephoto. The Canon G3X, by contrast, starts at f/2.8 at wide angle, but arrives at f/5.6 by the telephoto position. Of course, that's understandable given its much greater telephoto reach.

While all three cameras include image stabilization, only Canon and Panasonic claim five-axis stabilization. (For the G3X, stabilization of roll is achieved electronically. Offhand, we're not certain if that's the case for Panasonic as well.) The Canon G3X and Sony RX10-series lenses do best the FZ1000 by including built-in three-stop neutral density filters, however.

Despite its powerful lens, the Canon G3X is actually more compact than all three of its rivals. Compared to the FZ1000, that difference is stark: It's a full half-inch less wide, 0.9 inches less tall, and one inch less deep. Even compared to the Sony RX10 and RX10 II, the difference is significant enough to be noticeable: Sony's cameras are 0.2 inches wider, a half-inch taller, and just 0.1 inches less deep.

All of this is doubly impressive when you consider that not only is the Canon G3X's lens much longer, but its magnesium-alloy body is said to include rubber seals that provide the same level of dust and moisture-resistance as the EOS 70D DSLR. By contrast, spec sheets for the mag-alloy bodied RX10-series cameras only vaguely hint at dust and moisture-resistance, without mentioning any physical sealing, and the plastic-bodied FZ1000 lacks sealing altogether.

Despite its trim proportions, the Canon G3X comes positively packed with external controls that help keep you out of the menu system. (And photographers who are used to Canon's EOS-series will be pleased to find a user interface more reminiscent of their DSLR than the typical PowerShot-series camera.) But the G3X's relatively compact size is achieved in part thanks to a feature omission relative to its rivals. Where the Sony RX10-series cameras and the Panasonic FZ1000 all include built-in electronic viewfinders, the Canon G3X instead opts for a separately-purchased electronic viewfinder accessory.

It's the same EVF-DC1 unit used with the G1X II, and while it has the advantage of only being there if you actually want it, and being adjustable for tilt as well, it has a couple of drawbacks. First, its hot-shoe mounted design precludes use with external strobes. (It looks like the internal flash should just clear the EVF accessory though, thankfully.) It's also too easy to get complacent and leave your viewfinder at home with a removable design, leaving you trying to shade the LCD when an unexpected photo opportunity appears under harsh light. Perhaps most significantly, though, it's rather pricey. If you plan on buying the viewfinder, Canon's price advantage against the Sony RX10 II is erased, and it's actually quite a bit more expensive than either the original RX10 or Panasonic FZ1000.

Canon does best Sony's cameras with a 3.2-inch high-resolution 1.62M-dot tilting LCD monitor, and for extra bonus points it's a touch-screen type. Neither the RX10-series or FZ1000 screens have touch-sensitivity, making them rather less versatile. Nor can the Sony cameras' screens face forward for selfie shooting, something the Canon G3X's screen can do. However, while it trails a bit in resolution and size, Panasonic FZ1000 provides the most versatility here with a side-mounted tilt/swivel screen that can be seen from most any angle, or even folded inwards to protect it from minor bumps, scrapes and smudges.

One area where the Canon G3X does look set to trail its rivals by some distance is in the performance department. While its sensitivity range of ISO 125 to 12,800 equivalents fairly closely matches the standard, non-expanded ranges of the other cameras, it won't keep up with them in terms of burst-shooting speed.

Canon specs its DIGIC 6-equipped camera for a rate of 5.9 frames per second with focus locked from the first frame, which is barely half the 10 frames per second of the Sony RX10. And the other two cameras are even faster -- 12 fps for the FZ1000, and 14 fps for the RX10 II. In fact, Panasonic's spec even with autofocus enabled between frames is a swift 7 fps, suggesting that Canon still has its work cut out in this area. (Of course, we need to note that these are all manufacturer specs. See our Performance test results for how the G3X actually performed in the lab.)

And it's a similar story in the video department. Canon does offer up both a headphone jack for levels monitoring, and clean HDMI output for use with external recorders, features Panasonic lacks. However, both the Panasonic FZ1000 and Sony RX10 II offer some future-proofing with 4K video, as well as support for high frame-rate video that can be adjusted to provide slow-motion playback. The Canon G3X feels a little dated in this respect, providing at best 60 frames-per-second Full HD (1,920 x 1,080 pixel) video.

Speaking of connectivity, smartphone users -- and who isn't, these days? -- will be pleased to know that like both of its rivals, the Canon G3X serves up both Wi-Fi wireless networking, and an NFC radio for quick-and-easy pairing with Android devices.

Available since July 2015, the Canon G3X has a list price of around US$1,000 in the US market. The Canon EVF-DC1 electronic viewfinder accessory is already available, and has a list price of US$300.

In the Box

The Canon PowerShot G3 X retail box includes (may vary by region):

• Canon PowerShot G3 X digital camera
• NB-10L Lithium-ion battery pack
• CB-2LC battery charger
• NS-DC11 wrist strap
• Lens cap with strap

Recommended Accessories

• Large capacity SDHC/SDXC memory card. We recommend 16GB as a minimum capacity. Speed Class 10 or higher is required for recording Full HD movies, and UHS-I type cards are supported.
• Extra NB-10L battery pack (~US$40)
• EVF-DC1 electronic viewfinder (~US$300)
• PSC-6200 soft camera case (~US$70)

Want to compare the Canon G3X against the competition and its enthusiast-compact siblings? Find side-by-side comparisons at the links below:

Canon G3X vs. Panasonic FZ1000 • Canon G3X vs. Sony RX10 II
Canon G3X vs. Sony RX10 • Canon G3X vs. Canon G1X II
Canon G3X vs. Canon G1X • Canon G3X vs. Canon G7X

Optics

Lens

Zoom
A very generous 25x zoom ratio, with good optical performance.

The Canon PowerShot G3X's 25x zoom lens covers the equivalent of about 24-600mm on a 35mm camera, offering a very generous and useful zoom range. Maximum aperture is a relatively fast f/2.8 at wide angle though that drops to f/5.6 at telephoto, already at about 170mm equivalent.

The following table reflects the maximum and minimum apertures as reported by the camera at various focal lengths:

Focal length (eq.)	24mm	28mm	35mm	50mm	70mm	85mm	170mm+
Max. aperture	f/2.8	f/2.8	f/3.2	f/4.0	f/4.5	f/5.0	f/5.6
Min. aperture	f/11 at all focal lengths

Sharpness is quite good across most of the frame at full wide angle and f/5.6, but corners are touch soft, likely because of the strong distortion correction applied (see below). Little chromatic aberration is visible as it is effectively suppressed in JPEGs, though some minor flare is evident around the bright white elements of this shot. At medium focal length (~48mm eq.), far-field performance appears to be very good at f/5.6 with excellent sharpness and contrast, and flare doesn't appear to be an issue. Results at full telephoto and f/5.6 seem pretty good, with good sharpness and contrast across the frame, though this subject doesn't work well for evaluating the performance of long zooms. (This series is meant primarily to show zoom range -- see below for lab test shots.)

The G3X also offers digital zoom up to 4x, and what Canon calls "digital teleconverter" at preset magnifications of 1.6x and 2.0x available at any focal length. That means you may be able to shoot at a wider aperture than optically zooming to the equivalent focal length, should you prefer the extra light over the loss of detail inherent with all digital zooms. See above for an example of 2.0x digital teleconverter.

Macro
A larger than average macro area, with very good detail in the center. Flash worked well at full telephoto.

The Canon PowerShot G3X's lens captured a larger-than-average minimum macro area of 3.45 x 2.30 inches (88 x 58 millimeters), and the minimum focus distance at full telephoto (85cm) produces roughly the same magnification ratio as the minimum distance at wide angle (5cm). Sharpness is very good in the central area of the frame, though corners and edges are very soft from field curvature even at f/8. (Most cameras have some softening in the corners in macro mode, but usually not this much.) There's also some vignetting in extreme corners. The Canon G3X's built-in flash throttled down well at the telephoto end's closest focus distance, producing a slightly dim (with reflections likely impacted flash metering), but fairly evenly lit exposure though vignetting is even more noticeable. The G3X's large lens will probably interfere with the flash at wide angle though, likely casting a shadow at the closest distance.

Distortion
Lower than average distortion in JPEGs; very high at wide angle in uncorrected RAW files.

In-camera JPEGs
Barrel distortion at 24mm eq. is about 0.2%
Barrel distortion at 600mm eq. is less than 0.1%

JPEG: The Canon G3X's 0.2% barrel wide angle is very low compared to the average digital camera, especially considering its generously wide 24mm-equivalent focal length (see below for the explanation). The less than 0.1% barrel distortion at the telephoto end is very low and not the pincushion type of distortion we normally see at telephoto. This is the tendency for the lens to bend straight lines outward (like a barrel -- usually at wide angle) or inward (like a pincushion -- usually at telephoto).

Uncorrected RAW
Barrel distortion at 24mm eq. is about 4%
Pincushion distortion at 600mm eq. is about 0.5%

Uncorrected RAW: When converting G3X RAW files using dcraw (no corrections applied), we see that actual barrel distortion at wide angle is very high, at about 4%. Also note how the image circle does not cover the corners of the sensor at maximum wide angle, leaving them very dark. Uncorrected distortion at full telephoto is about 0.5% pincushion, so the in-camera JPEG was overcorrected slightly. Canon's bundled Digital Photo Professional and Adobe Camera Raw automatically reduce geometric distortion, producing distortion measurements similar to in-camera JPEGs.

High distortion is quite common at wide angle in small and/or fast lenses these days, and most RAW converters will automatically correct for it. There is however going to be a loss of resolution as well as possible interpolation artifacts as a result of such strong correction, because pixels in the corners of the frame are being "stretched" to correct for the distortion. And in the case of the G3X, the image circle does not cover the entire sensor at wide angle (we also saw this with the Canon G7X and G1X II), requiring even more interpolation back to full 20-megapixel image dimensions. If you look closely at the corners in the G3X's wide-angle JPEGs, they are soft and detail is a little rough with straight edges in the resolution target looking jagged. Obviously, a lens that doesn't require such correction and is also sharp in the corners to begin with would be preferable, but relaxing constraints on distortion brings other benefits in the lens design, such as a compact, lower-cost design.

Chromatic Aberration and Corner Softness
CA is low to moderate in the corners of JPEGs. Mild to moderate blurring in the corners of the frame at both ends, but corners improve when stopped down.

Maximum Aperture
Wide (f/2.8): Lower right CA: Moderately low Softness: Moderately soft	Wide (f/2.8): Center CA: Very low Softness: Sharp
Tele (f/5.6): Upper left CA: Moderate Softness: Fairly sharp but with doubling	Tele: (f/5.6): Center CA: Low Softness: Fairly sharp

Chromatic Aberration. Lateral chromatic aberration is moderately low in the corners at wide angle, but not very bright and there's very little CA in the center. At full telephoto, lateral chromatic aberration is moderate in the corners, and low in the center. We have however seen some relatively bright purple or red fringing around bright objects in real-world shots. See below for examples of uncorrected C.A. Chromatic aberration is a type of distortion visible as a slight colored fringe around the objects at the edges of the field of view on the resolution target.

Corner Softness. The Canon G3X's lens produces moderately soft corners at full wide angle when wide open. Blurring is about the same in all for corners, but softness doesn't extend very far into the frame though there is some loss of definition, but the center is quite sharp. Rough edges and much of the softness are due to the strong geometric distortion and CA correction taking place at wide angle. Corners at full telephoto are are a little sharper but not as contrasty and they show some minor image doubling. The center wide-open at full telephoto is fairly sharp, but not as sharp as at wide angle.

Corner Shading. Vignetting is noticeable but reasonably low at either end of the zoom when wide open.

Aperture: f/5.6 (W), f/8 (T)
Wide (f/5.6): Lower right CA: Low Softness: Slightly soft	Wide (f/5.6): Center CA: Very low Softness: Sharp
Tele (f/8): Upper left CA: Moderately low Softness: Fairly sharp	Tele (f/8): Center CA: Very low Softness: Fairly sharp

Stopped-down. When the lens is stopped-down to f/5.6 at wide angle, corner performance improves over wide-open, but they are still slightly soft. Performance in the center is very similar to wide-open. At full telephoto stopped-down to f/8, corner sharpness and contrast improve, while sharpness and contrast in the center also improve slightly, with diffraction limiting probably preventing further improvement. Vignetting is no longer apparent at either end of the zoom range.

Chromatic Aberration Correction

In-camera JPEG	Uncorrected RAW
Wide (f/2.8): Upper left CA: Moderately low	Wide (f/2.8): Upper left CA: Moderately high
Tele (f/5.6): Upper left CA: Moderately low	Tele: (f/5.6): Upper left CA: Moderately high

Not surprisingly, chromatic aberrations are much higher in uncorrected RAW files than in camera JPEGs. As you can see, the Canon G3X's DIGIC 6 image processor does a pretty good job suppressing most of the chromatic aberration in JPEGs (crops on the left) versus RAW files converted in dcraw (on the right), which does not correct for C.A. Note that most commercial converters like Adobe Camera Raw will automatically correct for C.A, as the G3X's .CR2 RAW files have a built-in lens profile.

Bottom line: Good overall optical performance for its type, and we're happy to report the lens doesn't seem to suffer from the localized flare issue we saw with the G7X and G1X Mark II.

Viewfinder

Coverage
Excellent accuracy from the LCD monitor.

The Canon PowerShot G3X's LCD monitor displayed excellent accuracy in record mode, showing essentially 100% coverage at wide angle and at full telephoto, despite the heavy distortion correction at wide angle.

The images above were taken from our standardized test shots. For a collection of more pictorial photos, see our Canon PowerShot G3 X Photo Gallery .

Exposure

Color

Saturation & Hue Accuracy
Fairly typical saturation levels with good hue accuracy.

ISO Sensitivity
125	200	400	800
1600	3200	6400	12800
In the diagram above, the squares show the original color, and the circles show the color that the camera captured. More saturated colors are located toward the periphery of the graph. Hue changes as you travel around the center. Thus, hue-accurate, highly saturated colors appear as lines radiating from the center. Mouse over the links above to compare ISOs, and click to load a larger version.

Saturation. The Canon G3X produced fairly typical saturation levels overall, with only mild to moderate oversaturation in reds, greens, blues and purples. Bright yellow, aqua and cyan were undersaturated by relatively small amounts. Mean saturation at base ISO is 112.2%, or 12.2% oversaturated, which is close to average these days, and saturation remained good across the ISO range, dropping to a low of 107.6% at ISO 12,800. Overall, the Canon G3X's images appear to have pleasing saturation levels and you can always adjust saturation using the camera's "My Colors" options. Most consumer digital cameras produce color that's more highly saturated (more intense) than found in the original subjects. This is simply because most people like their color a bit brighter than life.

Skin tones. With Auto white balance in simulated daylight, the Canon G3X rendered lighter Caucasian skin tones just a touch yellow and flat. Manual white balance produced more pleasant, pinkish skin tones. Where oversaturation is most problematic is on Caucasian skin tones, as it's very easy for these "memory colors" to be seen as too bright, too pink, too yellow, etc.

Hue. The Canon PowerShot G3X produced a few color shifts relative to the correct mathematical translation of colors in its subjects, most visibly pushing cyan toward blue (probably for better-looking skies), red toward orange, and yellow toward green. Mean "delta-C" color error after correcting for saturation at base ISO was 4.57 which is bit better than average, and it remained better than average across the ISO range. Hue is "what color" the color is.

Sensor

Exposure and White Balance

Indoors, incandescent lighting
Strong color casts with Auto and Incandescent settings, but very good with Manual white balance setting. Average exposure accuracy.

Color balance indoors under incandescent lighting was pretty awful with Auto white balance setting, with a strong red/magenta cast. The Incandescent white balance option was much too warm, with a strong yellow/orange cast. The Manual white balance setting was pretty accurate, though, but a touch cool. The PowerShot G3X's exposure system handled this lighting well, requiring a typical amount of exposure compensation (+ 0.3 EV) for this shot. Our test lighting for this shot is a mixture of 60 and 100 watt household incandescent bulbs, a pretty yellow light source, but a very common one in typical home settings here in the U.S.

Outdoors, daylight
Slightly cool colors, with high default contrast. Above average exposure compensation required.

The Canon PowerShot G3X performed fairly well in the simulated outdoor lighting of our "Sunlit" Portrait shot. Although above average exposure compensation of +1.0 EV was needed to keep the mannequin's facial skin tones bright, the number of blown highlights in her shirt and the flowers is actually not bad for a long zoom camera, and detail in the shadows is pretty good. The G3X underexposed our outdoor far-field shot a bit producing some very deep shadows, but as a result very few highlights were blown. Luminance noise is a bit high in deep shadows, however chrominance noise is well controlled. Color outdoors was good with the Auto white balance setting, just a touch cool, though the camera rendered skin tones a little too flat and yellow, so we preferred Manual white balance here for our "Sunlit" Portrait shot.

See full set of test images with explanations
See thumbnails of all test and gallery images

Resolution
About 2,500 lines of strong detail from in-camera JPEGs, a little higher from converted RAW files.

Our laboratory resolution chart revealed sharp, distinct line patterns down to about 2,500 lines per picture height in the horizontal direction, and to about the same in the vertical direction in JPEGs straight out of the camera, though some minor aliasing in the form of moiré patterns could be seen as low as about 2,100 lines. Extinction of the pattern occurred just past 2,800 lines in the horizontal direction, and at about 3,000 lines in the vertical direction. Adobe Camera Raw was able to extract perhaps 100 extra lines of resolution in the horizontal direction but the vertical direction contained a lot of false colors past 2,500 lines so resolution didn't really improve in that direction. Total extinction of the pattern was extended to between 3,000 and 3,200 lines, though. Use these numbers to compare with other cameras of similar resolution, or use them to see just what higher resolution can mean in terms of potential detail.

See full set of test images with explanations
See thumbnails of all test and gallery images

Sharpness & Detail
Reasonably sharp, detailed images overall, though with some visible sharpening artifacts on high-contrast subjects. Noise suppression limits detail in low contrast areas.

Sharpness. The Canon PowerShot G3X captures reasonably sharp JPEG images at default settings, though some edge enhancement artifacts are visible on high-contrast subjects such as the noticeable halos around lines and text in the crop above left. Sharpening isn't as overdone as some cameras, but enthusiasts might want to shoot with a lower sharpening setting and apply additional sharpening in post processing, or shoot RAW for complete control over sharpening. Edge enhancement creates the illusion of sharpness by enhancing colors and tones right at the edge of a rapid transition in color or tone.

Detail. The crop above right shows some significant smudging of low contrast detail due to noise suppression, as individual strands of hair are blurred together in midtones and shadows, but performance here is still better than average for a long-zoom camera. Noise-suppression systems in digital cameras tend to flatten-out detail in areas of subtle contrast. The effects can often be seen in shots of human hair, where the individual strands are lost and an almost "watercolor" look appears.

RAW vs In-Camera JPEGs
As noted above the Canon G3X produces fairly sharp, detailed in-camera JPEGs at base ISO. But with a good RAW converter, more detail can often be extracted with fewer sharpening artifacts. See below:

Base ISO (125)
Camera JPEG, defaults	RAW via Adobe Camera Raw

In the table above, we compare an in-camera JPEG taken at base ISO using default noise reduction and sharpening (on the left) to the matching RAW file converted with Adobe Camera Raw 9.1 using default noise reduction with some strong but tight unsharp masking applied in Photoshop (400%, radius of 0.3 pixels, and a threshold of 0).

Looking closely at the images, ACR extracts additional detail that isn't present in the JPEG from the camera, particularly in the red-leaf swatch where the thread pattern is likely treated as noise by the JPEG engine. Fine detail in the mosaic crop is also slightly improved, but as is often the case, more noise can be seen in the bottle crop. You can of course apply stronger noise reduction (default ACR NR used here) to arrive at your ideal noise versus detail tradeoff. Color was improved as well, with ACR removing the slight yellow-to-green shift in the JPEG. And, as expected, sharpening haloes aren't nearly as strong as the default camera output. Still, in-camera default JPEG processing is pretty good at base ISO, but as usual you can do noticeably better with a good RAW converter.

ISO & Noise Performance
Good high ISO performance for a long-zoom camera.

Default Noise Reduction
ISO 125	ISO 200	ISO 400
ISO 800	ISO 1,600	ISO 3,200
ISO 6,400	ISO 12,800

ISO 125 and 200 images contain a lot of fine detail but are a little soft and a touch grainy when viewed at 100%, and ISO 400 already shows some significant smudging due to stronger noise reduction. ISO 800 is a little noisier and softer from more aggressive noise reduction, and ISO 1600 is softer still, however fine detail is still fair. Image quality drops off rapidly above ISO 1600, though, with increasing luma noise, noticeable chroma blotching as well as stronger blurring from noise reduction.

While high ISO performance is good for its class and much better than typical long-zoom cameras with smaller sensors, the G3X's JPEG engine does not appear to make the most of its larger, 1-inch type sensor producing somewhat soft, slightly grainy images already at moderate ISOs. Note that the G3X offers three levels of noise reduction (Low, Standard and High), and these shots were taken using the default Standard setting. Noise in the G3X's CR2 files is however competitive with other 1-inch sensor models, so for better high ISO performance, we recommend shooting in RAW format.

Of course, the impact of noise and detail loss are highly dependent on the size the photos are printed at, and pixel-peeping on-screen has surprisingly little relationship to how the images look when printed: See the Print Quality section below for recommended maximum print sizes at each ISO.

Note: We used to shoot this series at f/4 because of the relatively low light, but we now shoot it at f/5.6 for 1"-type sensors and f/8 for larger sensors, as fixed lens performance well away from center where we take the above crops is often not optimal at wider apertures. The added depth of field for a scene with this depth is also a better compromise than the potentially slightly sharper but shallower focus depth that a larger aperture would produce.

Extremes: Sunlit and low light tests
Pretty good dynamic range for its class. Very good low-light performance, capable of capturing bright images in near darkness.

Sunlight. The Canon PowerShot G3X did fairly well under the deliberately harsh lighting in the test above. To keep facial tones bright, +1.0 EV compensation was required, which led to some clipped highlights in the mannequin's shirt and flowers, but not as many as typical long-zoom cameras. Some may prefer the +0.7 EV setting for its reduced highlight clipping, but we found the face a bit too dim. Detail is quite good in the shadows at +1.0 EV, however very deep shadows are a little grainy and posterized, though chroma noise is well controlled. Very good results in harsh lighting for its class, but consider using fill flash in situations like the one shown above; and it's better to shoot in the shade when possible.

Because digital cameras are more like slide film than negative film (in that they tend to have a more limited tonal range), we test them in the harshest situations to see how they handle scenes with bright highlights and dark shadows, as well as what kind of sensitivity they have in low light. The shot above is designed to mimic the very harsh, contrasty effect of direct noonday sunlight, a very tough challenge for most digital cameras. (You can read details of this test here.)

Face Detection Examples
Aperture Priority Face Detect Off 0 EV	Aperture Priority Face Detect On 0 EV	Smart Auto 0 EV

Face Detection. The table above shows results with the default exposure using Aperture Priority AE with face detection Off and On, as well as Smart Auto. As you can see, the G3X's face detection and Smart Auto modes both increased exposure dramatically compared to the default exposure in Aperture Priority mode, going from very underexposed to bright images. Enabling face detection reduce the shutter speed from 1/80s to 1/40s to brighten the image, while Smart Auto selected a wider aperture of f/5 instead of f/8 we used in Aperture Priority, and boosted ISO to 250 as well.

Outdoor Portrait i-Contrast Series (+0.7 EV)
	i-Contrast Setting: DRC Off (Default) DRC 200% DRC Auto Shadow Correct

Intelligent Contrast. As part of the G3X's Intelligent Contrast (i-Contrast) feature, the camera has "Dynamic Range Correction" to help tame highlights, and "Shadow Correct" to bring out more shadow detail.

Above are examples of our challenging "Sunlit" Portrait scene shot with the G3X's two available Dynamic Range Correction settings, plus Shadow Correct. Mouse over the links to the right to compare, and click on the links to get to the full-resolution images.

As you can see, highlights were toned-down with the DR 200% setting but results with DR Auto were practically identical to the Off setting, perhaps because relatively few highlights were blown to begin with. Shadow Correct also worked as expected, boosting shadows without impacting highlights too much, leading to the best overall exposure for this series.

Note that Dynamic Range Correction may boost ISO depending on your current setting, so more noise and/or stronger NR may be visible with it enabled. (In our samples above, DR 200% used ISO 250, while DR Auto and Shadow Correct left ISO at 125.)

Far-field i-Contrast Comparison
Off (default)	Shadow Correct
DRC Auto	DRC 200%

Above, you can see the effect of the available i-Contrast settings on our Far-field shot. Here, DRC Auto and 200% both made a difference, but the effect was pretty subtle. Shadow Correct on the other hand made quite a difference, boosting midtones and shadows while maintaining highlights.

Dynamic Range Analysis (RAW mode)
While we once performed our own dynamic range measurements based on in-camera JPEGs as well as converted RAW images (when the camera was supported by Adobe Camera Raw), we've switched to using DxO Labs' results from their DxOMark website. As technology advanced, the dynamic range of modern high-end cameras in some cases exceeded the range of the Stouffer T4110 density scale that we used for our own measurements. DxO's approach based on RAW data before demosaicing is also more revealing, because it measures the fundamental dynamic range of the sensor, irrespective of whatever processing is applied to JPEGs, or to RAW data by off-the-shelf conversion software.

In the following, we use DxO's "Print" dynamic range results, which are scaled based on camera resolution. As the name suggests, this scaling corresponds to the situation in which you print at a given size, regardless of how many megapixels the camera might have. (In other words, if you've decided to make a 13x19 inch print, that's the size you're printing, whether the camera's resolution is 16 or 300 megapixels.) For the technically-minded, you can find a discussion of the reasoning behind this here on the DxOMark website. Also note that DxO Labs uses a signal-to-noise (SNR) threshold of 1 when defining the lower boundary of acceptable luminance noise in their dynamic range measurements, which corresponds to the "Low Quality" threshold of the Imatest software we used to use for this measurement.

Here, we decided to compare the Canon G3X's dynamic range to two competing enthusiast long zooms, the Sony RX10 II and the Panasonic FZ1000. You can always compare to other models on DxOMark.com.

As you can see from the above graph (click for a larger image), the G3X has dynamic range performance that is very similar to the RX10 II's. The Sony does however do a little better at base ISO since it offers a native ISO 100 setting whereas the G3X's lowest (and cleanest) sensitivity setting is ISO 125. The G3X's maximum dynamic range is 12.3 EV at base ISO, with a minimum of 6.2 EV at the top ISO. The Sony offers a range of 12.6 EV down to about 6.8 EV at the highest ISO, but notice that according to DxO the Sony applies some minor noise reduction to its files at ISO 6400 and 12,800, as indicated by the "smoothed" data points.

The Canon G3X offers better dynamic range than the Panasonic FZ1000 at both lower and higher ISOs, but about the same at ISO 800. At its lowest ISO, the FZ1000 scored 11.74 EV versus the G3X's 12.25 EV despite the lower ISO 80 setting offered by the Panasonic, which is just over a 0.5 EV advantage for the Canon. At ISO 12,800, the Canon again does better at 6.23 vs 5.5, a significant difference.

Overall, excellent dynamic range for a 1"-type sensor from the G3X. Click here to visit the DxOMark page for the Canon G3X for more of their test results and additional comparisons.

	1 fc 11 lux	1/16 fc 0.67 lux	1/16 fc No NR
ISO 125	1.6s, f2.8	1.6s, f2.8	25s, f2.8
ISO 3200	1/16s, f2.8	1.0s, f2.8	1.0s, f2.8
ISO 12800	1/64s, f2.8	1/4s, f2.8	1/4s, f2.8

Low Light. The Canon PowerShot G3X performed very well in our low-light tests, capturing bright images at the lowest light level (1/16 foot-candle), even at the lowest sensitivity setting (ISO 125). As expected for a 1"-type sensor, luma noise is a little high at ISO 3200, but fairly fine-grained, while chroma noise is well controlled. The G3X's highest ISO of 12,800 is quite grainy with strong blurring, but that's no surprise.

Color balance is pretty good with Canon G3X's Auto white balance setting, just a touch cool, even at highest ISO and lowest light level. We didn't notice any significant issues with pattern noise or heat blooming. We noticed a few hot pixels at base ISO, especially with long exposure noise reduction disabled (right-most column), though that's not unusual.

The camera's AF system was able to focus unassisted to just below the 1/8 foot-candle light level in our tests at wide angle (f/2.8), which is very good, though it can struggle to focus at dimmer telephoto focal lengths. And the G3X was able to focus in complete darkness with the aid of its AF assist lamp.

How bright is this? The one foot-candle light level that this test begins at roughly corresponds to the brightness of typical city street-lighting at night. Cameras performing well at that level should be able to snap good-looking photos of street-lit scenes.

NOTE: This low light test is conducted with a stationary subject, and the camera mounted on a sturdy tripod. Most digital cameras will fail miserably when faced with a moving subject in dim lighting. (For example, a child's ballet recital or a holiday pageant in a gymnasium.) For such applications, you may have better luck with a digital SLR camera, but even there, you'll likely need to set the focus manually. For information and reviews on digital SLRs, refer to our SLR review index page.

Output Quality

Print Quality
Good prints up to 20 x 30 inches at ISO 125 and 200; Nice 11 x 14 inch prints at ISO 1600; and 4 x 6 inch prints just pass the mark at ISO 6400.

ISO 125/200 images display a lot of fine detail and pleasing colors to 20 x 30 inches. Bumping up to 24 x 36 is really hitting the limits of the camera's sensor, but those sizes could be used for wall display.

ISO 400 prints show a slight drop in crisp, fine detail compared to lower ISOs, making a 16 x 20 inch print the largest size we're comfortable calling at this sensitivity. Detail and colors are still nice overall and noise is well controlled.

ISO 800 images top out at 13 x 19 inch prints, as noise-related softening is becoming apparent. Noise reduction processing, on the other hand, does well to keep visible noise and grain at bay.

ISO 1600 prints, as expected, are a bit softer than the previous ISO level and look nice up to 11 x 14 inches. Noise itself is still fairly well controlled, though some particular areas -- like our often-tricky red-leaf fabric -- are quite soft and lacking fine detail. Higher contrast detail, however, still looks nice.

ISO 3200 images definitely display noise-related softening throughout. NR processing is handling grain quite well, but an overall increase in softness makes printing larger than an 8 x 10 tricky.

ISO 6400 prints show acceptable detail up to 4 x 6 inches. Any larger and the softness simply does not look that pleasing at this sensitivity. That being said, a 5 x 7 inch print could be used for less critical applications.

ISO 12,800 images are simply too soft and display visible false colorations to make an acceptable print at any size.

Sharing the same 20-megapixel 1-inch-type sensor as the pocketable G7X, it's no surprise that its big-lensed brother does just as well in the print department. The Canon G3X does a good job at lower ISOs and pushes the sensor resolution to the max with nice 20 x 30 inch prints around base ISO. Toward the mid-range ISOs, images begin to soften, but in-camera NR does well to hold off unsightly noise and coarse grain. At ISO 1600, for example, prints still look pleasing up to 11 x 14 inches. At the very high end of the ISO scale, the G3X still manages an acceptable 4 x 6 at ISO 6400. However, printing at its maximum ISO 12,800 should be avoided.

The images above were taken from our standardized test shots. For a collection of more pictorial photos, see our Canon PowerShot G3 X Photo Gallery .

Not sure which camera to buy? Let your eyes be the ultimate judge! Visit our Comparometer(tm) to compare images from the Canon PowerShot G3 X with those from other cameras you may be considering. The proof is in the pictures, so let your own eyes decide which you like best!

Performance

Image Quality

Below are crops from our laboratory Still Life target comparing the Canon G3X to its closest rivals, the Sony RX10 II and the Panasonic FZ1000, as well as to the Panasonic FZ300, Olympus Stylus 1 and Nikon J5. These last three models represent a small sensored (1/2.3"-type) long-zoom with a constant aperture lens, an enthusiast-grade (1/1.7"-type sensor) long-zoom camera also with a constant-aperture lens, and a very compact mirrorless camera with the same sensor size. (We decided to include 1/2.3" and 1/1.7" models to show the advantages of going to a larger sensor.)

NOTE: These images are best quality JPEGs straight out of the camera, at default settings including noise reduction and using the camera's actual base ISO (not extended ISO settings). All cameras in this comparison were shot with our very sharp reference lenses. Clicking any crop will take you to a carrier page where you can click once again to access the full resolution image as delivered straight from the camera.

For those interested in working with the RAW files involved: click these links to visit each camera's respective sample image thumbnail page: Canon G3X, Sony RX10 II, Panasonic FZ1000, Panasonic FZ300, Olympus Stylus 1 and Nikon J5 -- links to the RAW files appear beneath those for the JPEG images, wherever we have them. And remember, you can always go to our world-renowned Comparometer to compare the Canon G3X to any camera we've ever tested.

Canon G3X vs Sony RX10 II at Base ISO

Canon G3X at ISO 125	Sony RX10 II at ISO 100
The Sony RX10 II uses a similar 20-megapixel 1"-type sensor but produces a crisper image with lower noise and higher contrast at base ISO, and it does quite a bit better in the pink fabric while offering a smoother, more contrasty rendering of our difficult red-leaf fabric. Do note that the Sony's base ISO is a bit lower than the Canon's, theoretically giving it a very slight advantage in terms of noise, all else being equal.

Canon G3X vs Panasonic FZ1000 at Base ISO

Canon G3X at ISO 125	Panasonic FZ1000 at ISO 125
The Canon G3X's image quality is comparable to the Panasonic FZ1000's which uses a similar if not identical sensor, though the Panasonic's image is again slightly more crisp and contrasty overall, however sharpening haloes are a little more obvious. The FZ1000 does particularly well in both the red-leaf and pink fabrics, managing to resolve some of the thread pattern, but as is usually the case, the Canon does better with color.

Canon G3X vs Panasonic FZ300 at Base ISO

Canon G3X at ISO 125	Panasonic FZ300 at ISO 100
Here we've decided to compare the G3X to a long-zoom model with a much smaller (by a factor of about 4 in terms of area) but more typical 1/2.3"-type sensor. It's also a 12-megapixel sensor versus the G3X's 20 megapixels, so keep that in mind. As you can see, the G3X is able to resolve more detail in most areas, but the FZ300 holds its own and does well at base ISO. You can tell the FZ300 is working hard to smooth away noise, however it does a pretty good job of not destroying too much detail or generating too many noise reduction artifacts in the process. We'll see how this changes at higher sensitivities below.

Canon G3X vs Olympus Stylus 1 at Base ISO

Canon G3X at ISO 125	Olympus Stylus 1 at ISO 100
Here's another comparison to a long-zoom camera with a smaller 12-megapixel sensor, but this time it's a little larger than most superzooms at 1/1.7" (the G3X's sensor is about 2.7x larger in area). Again, the G3X easily out-resolves the smaller, lower resolution sensor, and the Stylus 1's noise reduction processing generates some artifacts even at base ISO. The Stylus 1 also struggles with our tricky red-leaf fabric already at base ISO, though it produces crisper detail in the pink fabric.

Canon G3X vs Nikon J5 at Base ISO

Canon G3X at ISO 125	Nikon J5 at ISO 160
And finally we come to the Nikon J5 which uses the same sized sensor as the G3X, but allows for interchangeable lenses which likely gives it a slight advantage here in terms of lens performance (we shot the J5 with a sharp prime). The Nikon J5 seems to capture just a hair less detail than the G3X in the mosaic label, though the image is cleaner and punchier looking overall. Interestingly, the J5 does much better with the pink fabric while the G3X produces a bit more fine detail in the red-leaf swatch.

Canon G3X vs Sony RX10 II at ISO 1600

Canon G3X at ISO 1600	Sony RX10 II at ISO 1600
At ISO 1600, the Canon G3X holds onto a little more detail in the mosaic crop and arguably produces a more natural looking image than the RX10 II's, however it's also a little noisier, but noise is more fine-grained and consistent. Sony's noise reduction is a little stronger but also generates more artifacts, especially in flatter areas. The Sony does however do a little better in the fabric crops.

Canon G3X vs Panasonic FZ1000 at ISO 1600

Canon G3X at ISO 1600	Panasonic FZ1000 at ISO 1600
Here, we see the Canon do a bit better in some areas, while the Panasonic does better in others. The FZ1000 manages to produce lower noise levels while holding on to slightly better detail in the mosaic crop, but the Canon does marginally better in the red-leaf fabric, though both still struggle with it. Also notice how the FZ1000's image is a bit darker, even though shutter speed was adjusted appropriately as ISO was increased.

Canon G3X vs Panasonic FZ300 at ISO 1600

Canon G3X at ISO 1600	Panasonic FZ300 at ISO 1600
At ISO 1600, we really start to see the advantage of the G3X's much larger sensor, which allows the Canon to resolve more detail as well as produce lower noise with fewer noise reduction artifacts.

Canon G3X vs Olympus Stylus 1 at ISO 1600

Canon G3X at ISO 1600	Olympus Stylus 1 at ISO 1600
Once again, the G3X's larger 1"-type sensor easily outperforms the Stylus 1's 1/1.7"-type sensor in both detail and noise. The Olympus really works hard to minimize noise, but that takes a toll on fine detail despite leaving behind more noise.

Canon G3X vs Nikon J5 at ISO 1600

Canon G3X at ISO 1600	Nikon J5 at ISO 1600
This comparison is more closely matched, and mainly highlights differences in approaches to processing and noise reduction. The Canon leaves behind more noise producing a grainier image, while the Nikon produces a smoother image yet with somewhat better detail retention overall.

Canon G3X vs Sony RX10 II at ISO 3200

Canon G3X at ISO 3200	Sony RX10 II at ISO 3200
Both cameras struggle at ISO 3200, particularly in the red-leaf fabric where there is almost no detail left. The Canon leaves behind a finer, more consistent noise "grain" which looks more natural and film-like than the Sony's rendering, but overall the image is quite soft and muddled. The Sony's image is clearer and more contrasty, but the noise "grain" is courser and there are more noise reduction artifacts.

Canon G3X vs Panasonic FZ1000 at ISO 3200

Canon G3X at ISO 3200	Panasonic FZ1000 at ISO 3200
Here again the Canon's noise "grain" is more evident, making most areas of the image quite soft and stippled compared to the Panasonic, but the FZ1000 works hard to remove noise, generating quite a few artifacts as a result. The Panasonic also generates some odd discoloration in the monk's rob which we don't see from the Canon. Overall, though, we'd still give the edge to the Panasonic here.

Canon G3X vs Panasonic FZ300 at ISO 3200

Canon G3X at ISO 3200	Panasonic FZ300 at ISO 3200
There's no contest here at ISO 3200, with the Canon's larger sensor producing a much more usable image.

Canon G3X vs Olympus Stylus 1 at ISO 3200

Canon G3X at ISO 3200	Olympus Stylus 1 at ISO 3200
Again, the advantages of the much larger 1"-type sensor in the G3X are quite obvious here.

Canon G3X vs Nikon J5 at ISO 3200

Canon G3X at ISO 3200	Nikon J5 at ISO 3200
Once again, we see different approaches to processing and noise reduction, with the Canon leaving a lot of fine, film-like "grain", while the Nikon produces a smoother, cleaner-looking image but with more noise reduction artifacts. Both struggle to reproduce fine detail at ISO 3200, though the Nikon does a little better in the red-leaf swatch, and much better in the pink fabric.

Canon G3X vs. Sony RX10 II, Panasonic FZ1000, Panasonic FZ300, Olympus Stylus 1, Nikon J5

Canon G3X ISO 125 ISO 3200 ISO 6400	Sony RX10 II ISO 100 ISO 3200 ISO 6400	Panasonic FZ1000 ISO 125 ISO 3200 ISO 6400	Panasonic FZ300 ISO 100 ISO 3200 ISO 6400	Olympus Stylus 1 ISO 100 ISO 3200 ISO 6400	Nikon J5 ISO 160 ISO 3200 ISO 6400
Detail comparison. High-contrast detail is also important, pushing the camera in different ways, so we like to look at it, too. All of the 1"-type sensored cameras do very well with fine, high-contrast detail at base ISO, but the Panasonic FZ1000 and Nikon J5 offer slightly higher contrast than the Canon G3X. The 1/1.7" Stylus 1 does reasonably well at base ISO, with the 1/2.3" FZ300 trailing in this group, more or less as expected. The G3X's image quality does however drop off more quickly than the other 1" models at higher ISOs, in both contrast and detail, though it continues to do better than the smaller sensored Stylus 1 and FZ300. Some odd discoloration can also be seen from the G3X at ISO 3200 and 6400, likely a combination of color moiré and chromatic aberration, though the Sony, Panasonics and Olympus models also show some odd discoloration.

Canon G3X Print Quality

Good prints up to 20 x 30 inches at ISO 125 and 200; Nice 11 x 14 inch prints at ISO 1600; and 4 x 6 inch prints just pass the mark at ISO 6400.

ISO 125/200 images display a lot of fine detail and pleasing colors to 20 x 30 inches. Bumping up to 24 x 36 is really hitting the limits of the camera's sensor, but those sizes could be used for wall display.

ISO 400 prints show a slight drop in crisp, fine detail compared to lower ISOs, making a 16 x 20 inch print the largest size we're comfortable calling at this sensitivity. Detail and colors are still nice overall and noise is well controlled.

ISO 800 images top out at 13 x 19 inch prints, as noise-related softening is becoming apparent. Noise reduction processing, on the other hand, does well to keep visible noise and grain at bay.

ISO 1600 prints, as expected, are a bit softer than the previous ISO level and look nice up to 11 x 14 inches. Noise itself is still fairly well controlled, though some particular areas -- like our often-tricky red-leaf fabric -- are quite soft and lacking fine detail. Higher contrast detail, however, still looks nice.

ISO 3200 images definitely display noise-related softening throughout. NR processing is handling grain quite well, but an overall increase in softness makes printing larger than an 8 x 10 tricky.

ISO 6400 prints show acceptable detail up to 4 x 6 inches. Any larger and the softness simply does not look that pleasing at this sensitivity. That being said, a 5 x 7 inch print could be used for less critical applications.

ISO 12,800 images are simply too soft and display visible false colorations to make an acceptable print at any size.

Sharing the same 20-megapixel 1-inch-type sensor as the pocketable G7X, it's no surprise that its big-lensed brother does just as well in the print department. The Canon G3X does a good job at lower ISOs and pushes the sensor resolution to the max with nice 20 x 30 inch prints around base ISO. Toward the mid-range ISOs, images begin to soften, but in-camera NR does well to hold off unsightly noise and coarse grain. At ISO 1600, for example, prints still look pleasing up to 11 x 14 inches. At the very high end of the ISO scale, the G3X still manages an acceptable 4 x 6 at ISO 6400. However, printing at its maximum ISO 12,800 should be avoided.

Field Test

A Proven Sensor with a Powerful Lens

By Jeremy Gray · 08/26/2015

Bigger zoom ups the ante against RX10 & FZ1000

The Canon PowerShot G3 X uses a 20.2-megapixel 1-inch-type CMOS sensor and competes directly against the popular Sony RX10 series and the Panasonic FZ1000, which both use a similar (or potentially the same) sensor, albeit with different processing engines. Where the Sony RX10 series and the Panasonic FZ1000 come up short against the G3X is in telephoto capabilities as the Canon G3X's most noteworthy feature is its 24-600mm equivalent lens. With an impressive zoom range and a well-regarded sensor, the G3X packs a lot of performance into a small package. However, there are some negative aspects to the G3X, such as the absence of a built-in viewfinder and lackluster high-speed shooting capabilities.

Key Features

• 20.2-megapixel 1"-type BSI-CMOS image sensor
• ISO range of 125-12,800
• 3.2" tilting TFT-LCD touchscreen with 1.62 million dots
• 31 autofocus points
• 5.9 frames per second continuous shooting with JPEG images
• Built-in Wi-Fi and NFC
• Water- and dust-resistant body

DSLR-like usability in a smaller package

The Canon PowerShot G3 X has the usability of a DSLR camera without having the large size and weight. Although the G3X is moderately heavy at 739 grams and certainly won't fit in a normal pocket with its large lens, it's still a small camera body for its class. Despite being small, the G3X's deep front grip felt excellent and allowed me to get a good hold on the camera.

All of the G3X's buttons are easy to reach, and the use of the Quick Set menu makes it easy to adjust important settings without having to clutter the camera body with a large number of dedicated settings buttons. The G3X has a non-locking mode dial on the top of the camera, but it is practically impossible to accidentally rotate. One thing I dislike about the G3X body is the shutter button because the distance needed to press it down to a half-press and also a full press both feel unusually short.

Lack of a viewfinder is a bummer

An unusual aspect of the G3X -- especially for a camera such such a long zoom -- is its absence of a viewfinder. An electronic viewfinder can be purchased separately and attached to the top of the camera via the hot shoe, but this accessory comes with an MSRP of $299 USD. With that said, I got accustomed to using just the display on the G3X, and the lack of a viewfinder ended up not being as big of an issue for me as I expected it to be. I would still prefer to have a viewfinder, especially when shooting in bright light, but if the lack of a viewfinder contributed to the relatively compact size of the G3X, then it is a reasonable trade-off.

The large and sharp display on the back of the G3X certainly helped me quickly adjust to shooting without a viewfinder. The 3.2" touchscreen LCD is fantastic, with bright, vibrant colors. However, the display is quite glossy, and this does create some issues when shooting in bright light. The ability to tilt the display helps to deal with light issues out in the field somewhat, but a fully-articulating display would have given me more options to reduce glare when shooting in bright light. I used touch controls a lot when using the G3X but rarely had to clean the display because the display handles fingerprints well.

High quality images, especially at lower ISOs

The G3X produces high-quality image files with rich colors, good contrast and impressive sharpness. JPEG files straight from the camera look great and have good colors, contrast, and sharpness using default settings. RAW files from the G3X don't offer the same leniency for adjustments as you would find with RAW files from a larger sensor, but they still offer a lot of data for making exposure and color adjustments during post-processing. Image files at lower ISO speeds in particular are very clean with smooth tonal transitions and accurate colors.

The G3X offers some picture adjustments when recording only JPEG image files. Through the Quick Set menu, it's possible to choose dynamic range correction, shadow correction, and choose from a variety of "My Colors" image presets, such as vivid, sepia and black and white.

Top marks for the lens at most focal lengths

Optical zoom on the Canon G3X ranges from 24mm to 600mm equivalents. Click over to the Gallery Page to view the full-resolution images comprising this animation.

Across much of the focal range, images are very sharp. As is typical with many zoom lenses, sharpness falls off slightly at both ends of the lens. I found the G3X to produce the sharpest images between 50 and 400mm, with only a slight decrease in sharpness at extreme ends of the lens. Despite the large 24-600mm focal length range, distortion is minimal across the range. Vignetting is not a major problem, either, although there is some vignetting at the widest end of the lens and begins to appear again around 300mm. There is also some minor purple fringing around high-contrast fine details.

One aspect of the otherwise very impressive lens that I don't like is how quickly the aperture decreases as you increase focal length. Using the step zoom feature to see how aperture changes at certain focal lengths, only from 24 to 28mm is the lens capable of shooting at f/2.8. At 50mm, the lens' maximum aperture falls to f/4.0 and by 85mm, the maximum aperture is f/5.0. At 200mm using step zoom, the maximum aperture becomes f/5.6. In further testing when I manually changed the focal length of the lens, the maximum aperture appeared to become f/5.6 around 170mm.

Out in the Field: Mostly great, but battery is underwhelming

The G3X is enjoyable to use out in the field. It offers fast access to important photo settings, features intuitive controls and menus and performs well in various automatic modes. The G3X also has both dust and water resistance to help deal with adverse environmental conditions. The battery life is a bit underwhelming, though. The battery is rated for only 300 shots, but there is also an "eco mode" that increases the battery life to up to 410 shots, according to Canon, by dimming the display when the camera is not in use. In my experience, the battery would not last a full day of shooting. I had it fully deplete one morning sooner than I had anticipated, and also had to charge it during most shooting days.

As I touched on in the handling section earlier, the G3X has a good button layout, which allowed me to adjust camera settings quickly when out in the field. On the top right corner of the display is a button to access the camera's Quick Set menu. The Quick Set menu can also be brought up by pressing the "Set" button inside of the control dial. The menu works well with both touch and traditional controls, but I found touch controls to be a much faster way to navigate this menu. Bringing the Quick Set menu up allows the user to adjust important shooting settings such as autofocus method, image recording settings, movie recording options, self-timer, neutral density filter, image ratio, white balance and metering. When recording only JPEG files, there are also "my colors", dynamic range correction and shadow correction options available in the Quick Set menu.

Shooting modes for days, but no in-camera panorama

With a wide array of shooting modes, the G3X offers the manual control you would expect from a DSLR while still offering numerous automatic and special shooting modes. The G3X has two custom shooting modes on the mode dial, as well as manual, aperture priority, shutter speed priority and program exposure modes. For fully automatic shooting modes, the G3X has Hybrid Auto, Auto, Creative Shot, Sports, Scene, High Dynamic Range and Standard (movie) modes. Hybrid Auto is unique as it creates a "digest movie" while you're shooting still images. What this means is that the camera records a 2-4 second movie clip before each still image and then combines the clips into a movie file later. A notable omission from the G3X's features list is the ability to capture panoramas.

Within Scene mode, there is an interesting starry sky scene option as well as a star trails mode. The camera constantly processes image files as it captures them and the final composite image is ready shortly after the camera is finished shooting. The camera automatically handles all settings, you only choose how long you want the camera to capture images, up to 2 hours. In short, these two night shooting modes work well, but I'll discuss more about these modes and other low-light shooting further down in my report.

Within Creative Filters mode, I found that the High Dynamic Range filter worked particularly well. It offers a variety of different strengths and effects for HDR images, which can all be cycled through using the front dial on the top of the camera. The HDR mode takes three consecutive JPEG images and then processes them in-camera to create a single HDR file.

The G3X has a native ISO range of 125-12,800 and has an auto ISO feature. The maximum ISO speed when shooting with Auto ISO is customizable, which is great, with an allowable maximum range of ISO 400-12,800. The Auto ISO rate of change can also be selected from standard, fast and slow. Auto ISO did a good job and often struck a good balance between maintaining an appropriate shutter speed for a particular focal length without pushing the ISO speed unnecessarily high. Automatic white balance also worked well, managing to do a great job in a wide variety of outdoor scenes and lighting conditions. The G3X did a good job overall of assessing a scene and not neutralizing certain warm or cool tones that I wanted the final image to accurately represent.

The G3X has multi, center-weighted and spot metering options. Multi metering worked very well in my experience and produced the exposures that I expected. In cases where exposure compensation was necessary, the G3X offers +/- 3 stop exposure compensation. Further, the dedicated exposure compensation dial can be rotated easily and quickly with your right thumb while shooting. Spot metering can be set to the center of the frame, or it can be linked with the AF point.

Manual focus frustrating without EVF

Manually focusing with the G3X is easy and user-friendly when using a tripod, but I found it difficult to manually focus the G3X hand-held because without a viewfinder you have to hold the camera some distance out in front of you to use the display. I struggled to hold the camera at the same distance from me during the process of focusing and then capturing an image. The lens does have a wide focus ring that rotates smoothly, but there is not a built-in focus scale on the lens. Rather than a physical focus scale, there's a digital one on the right side of the display. To enable manually focusing, there is a manual focus button on the lens itself. The G3X can magnify on a selected area of the frame at 2x and 4x increments, and there's also focus peaking that can be activated through the system menu, which is useful.

While the G3X already offers impressive reach with its 600mm equivalent lens, it offers up to 4x digital zoom as well up, which equates to 100x of total zoom. Digital zoom availability depends on image recording settings as there is no digital zoom available when recording RAW files. Digital zoom decreases image quality quite a lot, as is to be expected, but it's a nice option to have for both stills and video shooting if needed. When shooting at 600mm and beyond, image stabilization is very important, and the G3X delivers in this regard. The G3X's optical image stabilization works very well, particularly when it is set to "continuous" mode. You can set the image stabilization to only function just before an image is captured, but I found that the continuous image stabilization works better at longer focal lengths while I was framing a subject. Composing shots at telephoto lengths can still be tricky even with image stabilization, so I was pleased that the G3X has a useful framing assist button on the lens that zooms the lens out while you hold the button down and then zooms back to the focal length you want to shoot at after you've framed the subject and released the button.

Overall, the G3X is an enjoyable camera to use, and it offers many features that allowed me to easily capture the images I wanted in a wide variety of conditions and situations, all without having to carrying around a bag full of lenses. The high-quality touchscreen both diminished some of the concerns I had with not having a viewfinder and also became an important way for me to interact with the camera and adjust settings quickly.

Versatile, easy to use Wi-Fi shooting & sharing

Like many cameras nowadays, the Canon G3X features built-in wireless connectivity. To start a Wi-Fi connection using my iOS device, I first pressed the "Mobile Device Connection" button on the back of the G3X. After pressing this button, I chose to connect to a mobile device. I then went into my iOS device's Wi-Fi settings and chose the SSID for the G3X from the list of connections. After the Wi-Fi connected, I opened Canon's Camera Connect application.

Inside the Camera Connect app, there are three primary features: viewing images that are on the camera's SD card, remote camera control and geotagging options. Capturing images remotely using the Camera Connect app works quite well although there are limited options available for remotely changing settings. Changing the exposure mode on the camera body isn't reflected in the Camera Connect app unless the connection between the camera and mobile device is restarted. By default, the camera won't autofocus until you press the shutter button on the mobile device, but there is an option in the app's settings to decouple the shutter release and focus such that a smaller autofocus button will appear next to the shutter button on the screen (seen above).

The app allows you to adjust shutter speed, aperture, exposure compensation and ISO when the camera is in manual exposure mode. Additionally, you can adjust some camera settings through the application, including drive mode and autofocus method. Unfortunately, you cannot adjust white balance or metering settings. The live view within the application is fairly low resolution, so it can be difficult to tell if an image is in critical focus, but otherwise the connection is consistently smooth and stable. Overall, the application works well and offers enough control for most kinds of shooting, but having to restart the connection to update changes made on the camera body is inconvenient.

Good AF, but performance dips on low-contrast & full tele

The G3X's autofocus performance is generally good, although it can occasionally be frustratingly slow to acquire focus. The G3X utilizes 31 contrast-detect autofocus points that cover a large portion of the frame. Like Canon's EOS cameras, the G3X offers both one-shot and servo autofocus drive modes. For autofocus methods, there are face detection + subject tracking and one-point methods. The G3X has macro and normal autofocus shooting range options with macro mode allowing close-focusing down to 5cm within the 24-100mm focal length range. When shooting in auto mode, the camera can automatically switch between macro and normal shooting range.

When using one-point AF in good lighting conditions and with a good amount of contrast between the subject and the scene, the G3X autofocuses quickly. The AF point can be moved by pressing the AF frame selector button and using the control dial or by using the touchscreen to move the AF point around. I strongly preferred using touchscreen out in the field because it's simply quicker than the button and control dial. Autofocus performance noticeably decreases at telephoto focal lengths, unfortunately. At 600mm, the G3X can be quite slow to acquire focus, even in good conditions. Further, the G3X had a tendency to get stuck on a background element when I was trying to focus on something small, even thought it filled the entire AF point on the display.

When using the subject tracking autofocus method, the G3X is quite good at correctly choosing the subject and can acquire focus quickly. On the other hand, like with one-point AF, the G3X struggles in low light or in low-contrast conditions. With that said, the autofocus performance was generally good when dealing with stationary subjects in most lighting conditions.

Servo AF struggles with fast-moving subjects

Servo AF performance is good when photographing well-lit, slow-moving subjects. However, subjects that are moving quickly typically outpaced the G3X's ability to maintain autofocus. When using the face detection + tracking autofocus method, the G3X also lets you tap on a subject on the display and the camera will then attempt to keep the focus point on that subject as it moves throughout the frame. During my testing, this feature worked well for slow-moving subjects, but for quickly-moving subjects it was generally better to use one-point AF and try to keep the focus point on the subject yourself. However, keeping subjects within the AF point proved difficult for me using the G3X's display. The longer focal lengths certainly made it more difficult as well, particularly trying to keep the camera steady while holding it out in front of me. With a viewfinder, I think that I would have been able to stabilize the camera much better by holding it up against my face. In addition to servo AF, the G3X can also be set to continuously focus on a subject even when not half-pressing the shutter. I liked using this setting as the camera was more likely to be ready to capture a sharp image, particularly when photographing wildlife.

Good in low light, but keep ISO reined-in if possible

The G3X's 1-inch-type sensor allows for high-quality images to be taken across a wide range of ISO speeds. In my opinion, RAW files are usable at full-size up to and including ISO 1600. At ISO 3200, image files are still usable, but I would be hesitant to use the full-size image, such as with large prints or for heavy cropping, for example. ISO 6400 image files look fine at small sizes, like for web applications, but RAW files taken at ISO 12,800 have a lot of issues, and I wouldn't use them for any purpose. When looking at RAW files, visible noise at 100% becomes noticeable to me around ISO 400, and noise becomes noticeable at smaller viewing sizes at ISO 800. At ISO 1600 visible noise becomes quite substantial. There is some false color in shadow areas, and an overall loss of contrast, as well. These issues are further exacerbated at ISO 3200.

Canon PowerShot G3 X Noise Comparison (Click images for full-resolution files)
ISO 125 (Lowest ISO Speed)
ISO 125	ISO 200
ISO 400	ISO 800
ISO 1600	ISO 3200
ISO 6400	ISO 12800

Well-balanced Noise Reduction at default level

With JPEG files and standard noise reduction applied, the story is different. The G3X's noise reduction does a good job at reducing noise levels without eliminating fine detail from an image file. The right balance between reducing noise and retaining detail is a subjective issue, but for me, the G3X does well in this regard. I find that JPEG images from ISO 125-6400 look fine for most applications, though I would probably stick with ISO 1600 and below for large prints just like I would with RAW. With that said, an ISO 12,800 image file viewed at small sizes still looks okay, and that's impressive. With low noise reduction, the G3X does preserve more detail in high ISO images, but it also leaves a lot of noise. Conversely, with high noise reduction selected, the entire image attains an overly smoothed appearance as fine details are lost. Personally, I think that the default noise reduction does the best job overall.

Canon PowerShot G3 X Noise Reduction Comparison: ISO 12800 (Click images for full-res)
Low Noise Reduction	Standard Noise Reduction (default)	High Noise Reduction

All in all, I have found that the G3X produces impressive image files at relatively high ISO speeds. RAW files retain more detail and data than JPEG images, but they also have more visible noise. As ISO speeds move beyond 3200, I would opt for just using JPEG files because I'm unlikely to use either RAW or JPEG files at these ISO speeds for more than small prints or web purposes, and the camera's built-in noise reduction works well.

A fun camera for some astrophotography

The G3X offers a few interesting features for night photography in particular. There are star nightscape, star trails and star trails time lapse scene modes available for use. The star nightscape scene mode automatically selects all shooting parameters for you, but nevertheless worked well during my testing. The star trails mode allows you to choose a length of time from 10 minutes to 2 hours, and the camera processes multiple JPEG files into a single star trail JPEG file. The star trail mode also worked nicely, although having the camera handle the entire process does mean that you won't be able to remove plane trails and other accidental lights as easily as you could if processing a batch of files on your own. The camera also doesn't keep any of the individual frame used to create the star trail image, so any issues that arise during the star trail will be in the final image. In addition to these shooting modes, there is also a night mode for the camera that reduces the display's brightness and changes the camera's color palette to red, black, and gray, making it easier to operate the camera in low-light conditions.

The G3X has a built-in flash in addition to its hot shoe. The built-in flash has a range of 6.8 meters with auto ISO and offers auto, on, and slow synchro flash modes, which can be selected by pressing right on the control dial. The G3X has +/- 2 flash exposure compensation and a flash sync of 1/2000s (the maximum shutter speed achievable on the G3X). I like that the flash has to be manually deployed rather than it just automatically popping up when the camera deems it necessary. When shooting in automatic modes, the camera will display a message to deploy the flash when it determines that the flash is needed or would be useful, and I much prefer this to having the flash pop up automatically. The flash itself works well and provides a large amount of power for its small size.

Faster processor, but sluggish burst shooting

With its DIGIC 6 processor, the G3X feels responsive and agile when shooting single images. However, when shooting burst images, the G3X feels slow, and its burst performance is underwhelming. When shooting single images, the G3X is able to display the live view on the display in near real-time in most situations. The image on the display occasionally stutters when the camera is acquiring focus or experiencing a drastic change in lighting conditions. Navigating the menus and changing camera settings is quick, as well, although the camera is occasionally slow to reflect a change in the camera's mode and changing settings when using scene modes or creative filters is often sluggish.

Continuously shooting JPEG files is capped at a somewhat disappointing 5.9 frames per second when using single shot autofocus (in IR's lab tests, the G3X managed around 7.3 fps), and single shot autofocus isn't useful for many of the subjects that I tend to photograph using continuous shooting. When using servo autofocus, the maximum frame rate drops to 3.2 fps. When recording RAW images, the frame rate drops even further to under 1 fps regardless of autofocus mode. On the plus side, the G3X has a large buffer and images can be recorded at consistent rates until card space is depleted.

Another issue that I have with the overall speed of the G3X is its fastest shutter speed being only 1/2000s. For a camera that has a 600mm lens, it's unfortunate to not be able to freeze action better, especially when photographing wildlife. With that said, the maximum aperture is f/5.6 from 200mm to 600mm, so the situations in which a shutter speed beyond 1/2000s would be feasible are limited. For times when you are shooting at f/2.8 in bright light, the camera has a built-in 3-stop neutral density filter to help dim things down should you reach the limit of the shutter speed.

G3X sports high quality 1080/60p video

The G3X delivers impressive video performance, but some of its peers offer better features. The G3X can record 1080p resolution video at 60 fps and has a stereo mic, microphone port and a headphone port. I like that the G3X has a dedicated movie record button the top of the camera, which I found easy to reach and use. When recording video, the G3X utilizes 5-axis dynamic image stabilization where three of the axes are optical and two of them are digital. There is also +/- 3 stop exposure compensation available either through the exposure compensation dial or by pressing down on the control dial and rotating the focus ring when not recording video using manual focus.

A notable omission from the G3X is 4K video recording capabilities. While 4K is not yet heavily-adopted in living rooms, there are numerous competitors to the G3X that can record 4K video. The G3X also cannot record slow-motion video or shoot at frame rates higher than 60fps. The G3X records MPEG-4 video files with the H.246 codec.

But Movie Servo AF hunts a lot

Autofocus performance while recording video is fairly good, although the camera has a tendency to struggle with maintaining focus at longer focal lengths just as I experienced with still images. Additionally, when using servo AF, the camera tends to hunt for focus. Autofocus can be locked during video recording by touching the screen when using the 1-point AF method. The G3X allows for full manual exposure control when recording video, although its automatic modes work well at smoothly handling exposure changes. Video can also be captured with My Colors adjustments and within certain Creative Filters presets, such as monochrome and super vivid.

Canon G3X Field Test Summary

A solid, versatile camera, but not without its flaws

What I like:

• The camera body is comfortable to hold with its deep front grip
• The 24-600mm lens performs well and offers a large and useful focal length range
• 1-inch-type sensor delivers high-quality image files across a wide range of ISO speeds
• The display is very sharp and the touchscreen capabilities work well

What I dislike:

• Despite the quality of the G3X's display, I still occasionally missed having a built-in viewfinder
• Autofocus performance struggles at long focal lengths in low light
• Continuous shooting with RAW images is very slow (<1fps)

The Canon PowerShot G3 X delivers high quality images across an impressive range of ISO speeds. With an excellent 24-600mm lens, the G3X offers a focal length range that its direct competitors can't match at this time. The large touchscreen display is sharp and is an acceptable alternative to a viewfinder in many, but not all, situations. The G3X does many things well and has a lot to offer, but it is not without its drawbacks. The G3X's autofocus performance excels in good conditions but disappoints in lower light. Despite having an excellent focal length for wildlife images, the slow continuous RAW shooting and less than impressive continuous autofocus hampers the G3X's ability to capture action, particularly at longer focal lengths.

Overall, the G3X is a great value and a strong performer. Its versatility and ability to deliver great images in a variety of situations and across such a wide range of focal lengths is very impressive. No camera is perfect, and the Canon G3X is no exception, but it is a camera worthy of strong consideration in an increasingly crowded bridge camera market.

Flash

Canon G3X Flash

Built-in Flash Test Results

Coverage and Range
A weak flash, with very uneven coverage at wide angle. Above average exposure compensation required.

Coverage
24mm eq.

Coverage. Flash coverage was quite uneven and narrow at wide angle (not unusual, though, especially for a 24mm equivalent lens). We no longer test this at full telephoto, as wide angle is invariably the worst case.

Exposure
Normal Flash, ISO 200 (+1.0 EV)	Slow-sync Flash, ISO 200 (+1.0 EV)

Exposure. Here with our standard Indoor Portrait scene at ISO 200, the G3X's flash struggled, producing a slightly dim image even with +1.0 EV flash exposure compensation (most cameras need about +0.7 EV for this shot). This is partly because maximum aperture at this focal length (~85mm eq.) is f/5, which is dimmer than the f/4 aperture that we normally use when available. The camera selected 1/60 second shutter speed, which is good as it helps avoid subject motion blur. Slow-sync flash mode produced a brighter, more evenly lit image using the same +1.0 EV flash exposure compensation, with the camera selecting a relatively fast (for slow-sync mode) 1/30 second shutter speed.

Manufacturer-Specified Flash Range
Telephoto
10 feet ISO 1000, 1/80s, f/5.6

Manufacturer Specified Flash Test. Canon rates the PowerShot G3X's flash range at 6.8 meters / 22 feet at wide angle or 3.1m / 10 ft. at telephoto when using using Auto ISO and maximum aperture. In the test shot above, the PowerShot G3X's flash performed to Canon's specifications, producing a well-exposed flash target image wide-open at full telephoto, with the camera boosting ISO to 1000.

Our standard test method for flash range uses either a fixed setting of ISO 200 when a Guide Number is given, or the manufacturer-specified camera settings, at the range the company claims for the camera (at Auto ISO if so specified), to assess the validity of the specific claims.

Technical Info

by Mike Tomkins

Sensor

The Canon G3X is based around a 1"-type, backside-illuminated 20.2-megapixel CMOS image sensor, the exact same chip used in the PowerShot G7X. Total resolution is 20.9 megapixels. It's a fair bit smaller than the sensor used in the PowerShot G1X II, but the scale of that difference is offset somewhat by the fact that the larger-sensored camera doesn't actually use its full sensor resolution in any given aspect ratio.

Compared to its main long-zoom rivals, the Canon G3X's image sensor has the same basic specification, in terms of both sensor size and resolution. (Panasonic hasn't stated whether or not its FZ1000 uses a backside-illuminated sensor design, however.) We don't know the manufacturer of the chip in the Canon G3X and G7X, but it bears a striking similarity to the Sony BSI sensor which has appeared in several cameras since it debuted in the RX100 II. (And it's worth noting that we know for a fact that a variant of that chip is available to third parties at this point in time.)

Processor

Output from the Canon G3X's image sensor is handled by a DIGIC 6-branded image processor. That's the same generation as is used in many of Canon's interchangeable-lens and fixed-lens cameras since 2013, and most notably, the same type used in both the Canon G1X II and G7X.

Sensitivity

The Canon G3X's sensor and processor combine to yield a sensitivity range of ISO 125 to 12,800 equivalents. That's a similar range to that which its main rivals provide by default, although the Sony RX10 II allows users to extend sensitivity as low as ISO 64 equivalent, and the Panasonic FZ1000 can provide an extended range of ISO 80 to 25,600 equivalents.

Performance

If there's an Achilles heel for the PowerShot G3X on paper, it's probably its performance. With focus locked, Canon rates its large-sensor super-zoom camera for a maximum of 5.9 frames per second at full resolution (in the lab, the G3X actually managed 7.3 fps when shooting JPEGs). While not unreasonable compared to consumer-grade DSLRs, that trails the 12 fps of the competing Panasonic FZ1000 and 14 fps of the Sony RX10 II long-zooms by a long, long way. In fact, the Panasonic FZ1000 is rated for a greater performance of seven frames per second even with autofocus enabled, a configuration that sees the G3X plunge to a modest 3.2 frames per second. And when shooting raw files, the G3X's burst speed is downright pathetic, not even managing one frame per second in our tests.

On the plus side, if you're shooting with a UHS-I Secure Digital card in the camera and don't need raw files, Canon says that the G3X should be able to provide an unlimited burst depth. (Or at least, the depth is limited only by available card space and battery life.) However in our test results, the camera only managed 9 JPEG frames before slowing down.  

See our Performance page for details.

Lens

But where the Canon G3X trails its strongest rivals in the performance department, it really brings its 'A' game when it comes to focal range. With a 24-600mm equivalent 25x optical zoom, it's simply unrivaled if you want a 1"-type sensor and the strongest zoom possible. Actual focal lengths are 8.8-220mm.

These things are always a tradeoff, though -- everybody has to abide by the same laws of physics and optics, after all -- and so it is with the Canon G3X. Where Sony's shorter-lensed RX10-series cameras have a constant-aperture zoom, Canon takes the same route as the Panasonic FZ1000 with a variable-aperture of f/2.8 to f/5.6 across the zoom range. The G3X's maximum aperture falls more quickly, though, reaching f/5.6 already at around 170mm eq., while the FZ1000's lens is f/4.0 at 170mm eq., and remains at f/4.0 all the way to its maximum focal length of 400mm equivalent.

As in its rivals, the Canon G3X's lens is a power zoom, able to be controlled quickly with either a rocker control around the shutter button, or a fly-by-wire ring around the lens barrel.

Neutral-density filter

Like Sony's RX10-series cameras, the Canon G3X includes a built-in three-stop neutral density filter. That's a feature the Panasonic FZ1000 lacks, giving Canon a nice leg up against its most closely-featured rival.

Optional lens hood and filter adapter

To avoid flare issues, Canon has created a lens hood for the PowerShot G3X. However, unlike the Sony and Panasonic cameras, this isn't included in the product bundle. Instead, you'll need to purchase the LH-DC100 lens hood and FA-DC67B filter adapter kit separately, with a list price of US$50 for the pair.

The ability to accept 67mm threaded filters is a nice touch, but due to their larger size, filters will likely be a little pricier than the 62mm types used by both rivals. And again, those cameras don't need an adapter to accept filters. That's the price you pay for a much greater zoom range in such a compact lens, however.

Stabilization

Dealing with blur from camera shake is a pretty big consideration if you're shooting with a lens providing everything out to a 600mm equivalent, so it's good news that the Canon G3X has a five-axis image stabilization system.

Note, though, that stabilization of roll is achieved electronically, not using mechanical stabilization, so if you plan on using all five axes you'll need to live with an unspecified sensor crop. Canon says its system has a 3.5-stop corrective range at the 350mm-equivalent position.

Autofocus

The Canon G3X uses a contrast-detection autofocus system with 31 AF points, which bests the 25 points offered by the Sony RX10-series, but trails the 49 points provided by the Panasonic FZ1000. Both touch autofocus and object / face detection and tracking are available, and you can also focus with a single-point or even manually. Two AF point sizes are provided, and you can bracket focus if you're concerned about nailing the precise point you're after. An AF assist illuminator is included in the design, and the G3X's lens will focus to as close as 5cm at wide-angle or 85cm at telephoto.

Tilting touch-screen monitor

We already hinted at this with the mention of touch autofocus, but the Canon G3X's tilting, 3.2-inch LCD monitor is also overlaid with a touch-screen. Specifically, it's a capacitive type like you'd find on a smartphone.

The display tilts upwards 180 degrees for selfie shooting, or downwards for shooting over your head, but there's no side-swivel and so you can't take advantage of unusual high or low-framing angles in portrait orientation as well as you would with a tilt/swivel screen.

Resolution is a high 1.62 million dots. The pixel count isn't certain, though. Assuming three dots per color as in most LCD panels, that would be a 900 x 600 pixel array, but the same dot count could also be reached with a four dot-per-pixel 780 x 520 pixel array. (And Canon doesn't mention whether the display uses a three-dot or four-dot design. That probably implies the former, but we have no way to be sure until we look at the screen with a loupe.)

Electronic viewfinder

Unlike its main rivals, the Canon G3X has no built-in electronic viewfinder, something which seems to be quite a sticking point for some readers. And we can understand why: The optionally-available Canon EVF-DC1 electronic viewfinder accessory is a pricey US$300 list. That erases the price advantage of the G3X against the Sony RX10 II (or actually, leaves Canon trailing just slightly if you need the also-optional lens hood / filter adapter kit). And compared to the original RX10 or Panasonic FZ1000, it leaves Canon at quite a price disadvantage.

External accessory finders also have a reputation for greater fragility compared to a built-in finder, not surprisingly. Doubly so because they project well outside the confines of the camera body, making them far more likely to get knocked and bumped. And they're far too easy to accidentally leave home when you need them most, something you can't do with a built-in finder.

But there's no way around this: The lack of a built-in finder is a big contributor to the G3X's surprisingly trim proportions. And if you shoot at arm's length most of the time anyway, as the younger generation has been taught to do by their smartphones, why pay for a finder you're not even going to use? There's also one more feather in that high-res 2.36 million dot accessory finder's cap: The ability to tilt, something the built-in finders of its rivals can't do.

Exposure

The Canon PowerShot G3X offers all of the main exposure features you'd expect of an enthusiast-oriented camera, plus a selection of more consumer-friendly options.

Exposure modes on offer include Auto, Hybrid Auto, Program, Aperture-priority, Shutter-priority, Manual, two Custom modes, Burst, Sports, Scene, Creative Shot, and Movie. There are a relatively restrained total of seven scene modes -- Sports, Portrait, Smart Shutter, Star, Handheld Night Scene, Snow, and Fireworks. (Smart Shutter and Star both provide a subset of modes that raise the total count a bit, though. Smart Shutter modes include Smile, Wink Self-Timer and Face Self-Timer, while Star modes include Star Nightscape, Star Trails, and Star Time-Lapse Movie.)

Exposures are determined using evaluative, center-weighted or spot metering, but Canon hasn't disclosed the number of areas into which its evaluative system breaks down the scene. Nor is metering system working range or the availability of exposure bracketing disclosed. We can confirm, however, that both autoexposure lock and exposure compensation are provided, with the latter having a working range of +/-3EV in 1/3 increments set using a dedicated dial on the top deck.

Shutter speeds range from 1/2,000 to 30 seconds, plus a Bulb mode of unspecified duration.

A generous selection of white balance modes are provided. These include Auto (with available Face Detection white balance), Smart Auto, seven white balance presets and two custom positions.

Flash

Flash sync is possible at up to the fastest shutter speed of 1/2,000 second, and as well as a built-in popup flash, EX-series Speedlites are also supported via a hot shoe. This includes compatibility with radio and optical remote flash via optional transmitter accessories.

The built-in flash can be angled with a finger for bounce flash, although with a range of 6.8 meters at wide angle or 3.1 meters at telephoto even when shooting directly, you'll need a low ceiling and a very nearby subject if you plan on using this trick.

First or second-curtain slow-synchro and red-eye reduction flash are possible, and you can also use flash exposure lock. Flash exposure compensation is provided within a +/-2EV range in 1/3 EV increments. If you prefer, the built-in flash can be set manually to one of three power levels, while external strobes allow up to 19 levels.

Movie

Movie capture is, in some respects, another potential weak spot for the Canon G3X. Although it does include both a microphone and headphone jack, something the FZ1000 lacks, the G3X is limited to a maximum of Full HD (1,920 x 1,080 pixel) capture at 24, 30 or 60 frames per second in MP4 format. (720p30 and 480p30 capture is also possible.) By contrast, the nearest rivals for the Canon G3X both provide Ultra-High Def 4K video capture, and have high-speed capture options for slow-motion playback.

On the plus side, manual exposure, focus and audio levels adjustment are possible, including during capture. Note that there's a 29 minute, 59 second clip length limit, though. After this time limit is reached, you'll need to manually restart capture.

Wireless connectivity

Ensuring that it stays relevant in the smartphone age, the Canon G3X includes built-in Wi-Fi wireless networking technology, as well as support for Near-Field Communications technology. (So, too, do both of its main rivals.)

NFC is something that came to Android quite a few years ago, and has since become widespread on Blackberry, Symbian and Windows Phone devices too. For years, we've been calling out the fact that Apple was resisting adopting the standard, and even though it now supports NFC in its latest phones, the hardware still isn't available to third-party use, so the status quo remains.

While that means iOS devices can't take advantage of the feature even now, on Android all you need do is simply bump the devices together briefly to be paired automatically. Once the devices see each other via NFC, they can then automatically negotiate a much faster, longer-range Wi-Fi connection, and the NFC tech can also be used to have the smartphone run the relevant app for you automatically, saving you launching it yourself.

Be sure to see our field test for features available for G3X shooters using the official Camera Connect app for Android or iOS. The Canon Connect Station CS100 photo/video hub device is also supported by the G3X.

Wi-Fi connections use IEEE 802.11 b/g/n connectivity on the 2.4GHz channel only, and the NFC radio has Dynamic NFC support.

Wired connectivity

As well as the wireless connectivity, the Canon G3X also supports wired high-definition video output via an HDMI Micro connector, USB 2.0 High Speed and NTSC/AV composite video output via a combined digital connector, plus the aforementioned headphone, microphone and remote control connectivity.

The HDMI terminal supports clean output for external recording, and the remote terminal accepts the same RS-60E3 remote switch used by Canon's EOS Rebel DSLR cameras.

Storage

The Canon G3X stores images on Secure Digital cards, as do almost all higher-end cameras these days. Both the higher-capacity SDHC and SDXC types are supported, and so are the higher-speed UHS-I types. Still images can be stored in 14-bit raw or compressed JPEG formats, or both simultaneously. Interestingly, the G7X produces 12-bit raw files despite using the same sensor and processor.

Power

The G3X draws power from a proprietary NB-10L lithium-ion battery pack. With a rated 7.4 volts, 920 mAh, and 6.8 Wh capacity, the pack is said to be good for 300 shots ordinarily, or 415 shots in ECO mode. The latter reduces LCD backlight levels, and switches off the screen more aggressively when the camera is determined to be idle.

By way of comparison, the Panasonic FZ1000 provides a CIPA-rated battery life of 360 shots out of the box using the LCD monitor, the Sony RX10 II for 400 frames, and the original Sony RX10 for an impressive 420 frames. That's perhaps not entirely fair to Canon, though, given that regularly racking through the entire zoom range -- something the G3X has in spades -- is part of the CIPA battery life test.

Charging

The good news is that while battery life is perhaps shorter, charging batteries is less troublesome. Unless you pay extra for an external charger, Sony's RX10-series cameras charge in-camera via USB, meaning you can't charge a second battery while you're out shooting. Like Panasonic, though, Canon gives you that option by simply including a standalone charger.

The downside is that you'll need to bring an extra piece of gear with you on trips, rather than simply sharing the same USB charger between devices.

Tech2

by Mike Tomkins

Seen from the front, the magnesium alloy-bodied, weather-resistant Canon G3X shares a similarly-angular design aesthetic with the larger-sensored Canon G1X II and, to a lesser extent, the pocket-friendly Canon G7X. It's pretty clear that all three are from the same stable, even if their overall layout varies quite a bit.

Looking at the G3X's front deck, there are no controls on this surface, although you can easily see some of those adorning its top side, and especially those at the summit of its generously-chunky handgrip. There's an autofocus assist lamp above and just right of the lens (as seen from the rear), but otherwise the front of the camera is clean and featureless. All, that is, save for the powerful 25x optical zoom lens, the aforementioned grip, and a matching leatherette trim piece which wraps around from the left side of the body.

Jumping to the top deck, there's a whole lot more going on. Again, this viewpoint is dominated by the lens, and an interesting taper as it nears the camera body is apparent. (This gives just a little more room for your fingertips on either side of the body, and the taper begins immediately behind the generous, programmable lens ring.)

From left to right, the top of the Canon G3X offers up a popup internal flash, a hot shoe for external strobes, a mode dial, power button, front control dial, exposure compensation dial and movie record button. On top of the handgrip, the shutter button sits encircled by the zoom rocker.

The mode dial contains all of the same modes found on the G1X II, plus one addition -- a dedicated Sports mode. We're pleased to see two Custom modes, as well, rather than the single mode of the much smaller-bodied Canon G7X.

One last control visible from this angle is the framing assist button on the left side of the lens barrel. This will be immediately familiar to owners of certain recent PowerShot SX-series models, and it's very handy indeed. A simple press-and-hold of the button will immediately zoom the camera to the widest extent of its lens, allowing you to quickly locate and frame your desired subject.

The previous focal length is indicated with a white box on-screen, and the zoom control still functions, changing the area covered by this box. As soon as you release the framing assist button, the lens begins to return to the focal length indicated by the white box's coverage. It's a great way to deal with a common problem for cameras with such powerful zooms -- the fact that once you drift off your subject, it can be very difficult to recapture.

The back of the PowerShot G3X is dominated by its roomy 3.2-inch LCD monitor, which has a very high resolution of 1.62 million dots. (The pixel count isn't certain. Assuming three dots per color as in most LCD panels, that would be a 900 x 600 pixel array, but the same dot count could also be reached with a four dot-per-pixel 780 x 520 pixel array.)

Almost all of the controls are clustered just right of the screen, but one sits above the LCD monitor. That's the mobile device connect button, another feature inherited from smaller-sensored PowerShot-series models. As you'd expect, it'll help you get your photos from the camera onto your Android or iOS smartphone or tablet.

Most of the controls right of the LCD monitor should be self-explanatory, but that alongside the very top right corner of the LCD monitor bears a little explanation if you're not familiar with Canon's cameras. It's the shortcut button, and in essence, it's a programmable button whose function you can tailor to your tastes. Enthusiasts will be pleased to note the presence of dedicated autoexposure lock and AF point selection buttons just right of the thumbgrip.

On the left side of the PowerShot G3X's body is but one control: You'll find the mechanical release switch for the popup flash here. Directly beneath it, a small flap covers both the microphone and headphone jacks, a location which means both can be used while shooting handheld since they won't significantly obstruct your grip.

A little further down, a white symbol marks the location of the NFC antenna. Android users can pair their smartphones or tablets quickly and easily by holding this a few millimeters from the similar marking on their mobile device. (If the smart device lacks the symbol, a little experimentation will usually locate the position of the antenna, and then you need only remember it in future.)

Finally, the Wi-Fi antenna sits beneath the NFC antenna, another smart location choice. Even if you're shooting two-handed, you'll most likely want your left hand wrapped around (or cupped beneath) the lens, leaving the antenna free to provide good range.

One more control we've not yet mentioned can be seen on the left side of the lens barrel. We already mentioned the framing assist button when we were looking at the top of the camera. A short way beneath it is the manual focus button.

The right side of the camera is free of controls. The only features you'll find here -- other than the strap lug which mirrors the one atop the left side of the body in the image above -- are those which you wouldn't want to use while holding the camera. Specifically, you'll find the high-definition HDMI video output, USB terminal and remote control terminal here.

From the bottom we can see the Canon G3X's battery/card compartment door beneath the handgrip. Next to it and offset from the optical axis is a metal tripod socket with a register pin hole, used to prevent the camera from twisting on tripod plates equipped with a video register pin. The location close to the battery/card door unfortunately means you'll probably have to remove the plate to access the compartment. An off-center tripod socket is also not ideal for shooting panoramas, but it's nice to see anti-twist video pin support on this class of camera.

Conclusion

Canon adds yet another entry to the enthusiast long-zoom camp

Here's Canon's answer to not only the Sony RX10-series but also the Panasonic FZ1000. The category for high-powered, enthusiast-grade zoom cameras with 1-inch-type sensors is heating up. Admittedly, this is a rather niche category -- big zoom, big sensor and lots of manual controls  -- but for a while the Sony RX10 was the only game in town. Now three companies populate the growing niche.

Longer zoom, but at the expense of a dimmer aperture range

While the Canon G3X and its competitors share similar 20.2-megapixel 1-inch-type CMOS sensors, the Canon here bests Sony and Panasonic rivals with sheer optical zoom performance thanks to a lens with an impressive 600mm-equivalent reach. The compromise, though, is that the Canon G3X's lens has a dimmer variable aperture, which drops from f/2.8 at wide angle to f/5.6 at full telephoto.

In contrast, the Sony RX10-series cameras remains a constant f/2.8 throughout its, albeit more limited, zoom range. The Panasonic FZ1000's lens is longer than the Sony's, but less than the Canon's at 400mm-equivalent, but its aperture stays a bit brighter with an f/2.8-4.0 range. All told, if you're looking for maximum zoom range from a 1-inch sensor camera, the G3X has you covered, but if you care more about low-light shooting or slightly thinner depth of field at telephoto focal lengths, the Sony or Panasonic models might be more up your alley.

Solid image quality, but ho-hum AF speed and slow burst rate

The image quality from the Canon G3X is very good. For a long-zoom camera, the G3X's 24-600mm-eq. lens provides good optical performance, and the PowerShot G3X captures nice images at both low and high ISOs for this class of camera -- especially when using RAW files.

Performance-wise, though, the G3X is unfortunately on the sluggish side in many ways despite the latest DIGIC 6 image processor. While startup time is quick, autofocus is less than stellar, shot-to-shot performance with RAW+JPEG is sluggish, and the continuous burst can be downright frustratingly slow (less than 1fps when shooting RAW). If you shoot JPEGs only and don't have continuous AF between frames, you can get the burst rate up to about 7fps, which outperforms Canon's specs. However, you can easily run into issues with the shallow buffer. If you shoot RAW or RAW+JPEG, the slower burst rates makes the shallow buffer less of an issue -- if at all -- and you can pretty much shoot continuously.

Solid video specs (60p, clean HDMI, peaking) but still no 4K

On the video side of things, the Canon G3X is relatively well-stocked. The camera offers Full HD video up to 60fps, which is great for fast action, sports and other moving subjects. There is a microphone input, a headphone jack for monitoring audio, focus peaking (which is quite rare on a Canon camera, let alone a PowerShot model), plus the HDMI port supports clean output. What's noticeably lacking, however, is 4K video. And to further take the wind out of its sails, the G3X's autofocus during video is only decent, as it often hunted and at times had trouble maintaining focus at longer focal lengths.

Large & boxy, but grip is comfy & controls are plentiful

Aesthetically, the Canon G3X is far from svelte, though that's par for the course in this class of camera. The G3X is more squared and box-shaped than the Sony and Panasonic rivals, however, like its competitors, the Canon has a substantial handgrip that feels secure and comfortable. The array of external controls, including front and rear dials plus a dedicated exposure compensation dial will make advanced photographers feel at home.

Lack of an EVF with a 600mm-eq. lens is a deal-breaker for some

While the tilting touchscreen LCD is very nice and responsive, the lack of a built-in electronic viewfinder is a major downside to the G3X. With a long-reaching lens, the G3X takes a lot of flack for not having an EVF built in. The camera's image stabilization can only do so much, and while the I.S. is quite good and significantly helps with framing shots at the longer focal lengths, the extra stabilization of a third point of contact from an EVF would be greatly appreciated. The camera is compatible with Canon's ~$230 add-on EVF-DC1 electronic viewfinder, however.

Against stiff competition, the G3X doesn't quite make the cut

All in all, the Canon G3X is an interesting entry into the now-hotly contested large-sensor, long-zoom camera category. The G3X offers great image quality, decent video specs and, most of all, a class-leading amount of optical zoom power. Unfortunately, it drops the ball in performance in a number of key ways. With disappointing AF speed, sluggish cycle times and burst rates with RAW and RAW+JPEG modes, as well as below average battery life and lack of an EVF to name a few, the Canon G3X leaves a lot to be desired.

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