Canon PowerShot S500 DIGITAL ELPH Review
9/12/2004 - Updated 3/12/2006
I was looking around for a small, compact digital camera and finally
decided on Canon's PowerShot S500. It is a 5 Megapixal ultra-compact
digital camera with 3x optical zoom lens and DIGIC image processor.
I picked this camera because I have lot's of compact flash cards
(which it uses) and my previous experience with a very reliable
Canon's PowerShot S230 (2 Megapixal).
My job as a designer also demanded a camera that can capture larger
images with more detail for ads, brochures, presentations and website.
When visiting architects, or job sites, I discovered that a digital
camera is an important tool in capturing job schedules, job conditions,
architects sketches/doodles, shop drawings and, of course, people.
You may forget their names, but you have captured their faces :-) |
| What's Inside |
|
Opening the box revealed the following items :
1 - PowerShot S500 Digital Elph
1 - NB-1LH lithium-ion battery pack
1 - CB-2LS Battery charger
1 - USB Interface Cable
1 - AV Cable
1 - Wrist Strap
1 - Canon Digital Camera Solutions CD-ROM and manual
1 - ArcSoft Camera Suite CD-ROM and manual
1 - 161 page User's Guide (in English and another User's Guide
in Spanish)
1 - Registration Card
1 - 32MB CompactFlash memory card.
Just a note on the 32MB CompactFlash card. When shooting in Large/SuperFine
mode, you will only get 11 shots. I would recommend at least a
128MB, which would give you almost 50 shots.
[Specifications] |
| First Appearance |
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| Front |
Back |
Left |
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| Right |
Top |
Bottom |
The PowerShot S500 Digital Elph appears to be a solid, durable
camera. It is what I expected when I first held it in my hands.
In fact I learned that the body is scratch resistant stainless
steel. Using a metal body is unusual nowadays since plastic is
being used for most products like this. It feels like it should
last a long time, but in technology years, especially recently,
it will probably be out-of-date in a couple of years (or when the
new models come out).
The camera is fairly light at 6.53 oz. (185g), and small 3.43 x 2.24
x 1.09 in. (87.0 x 57.0 x 27.8mm). It easily fits in my shirt and
pants pockets which makes it ideal for carrying it around wherever
I go. With the built in lens cover that automatically seals the lens
when powered down, I wouldn't have to worry about replacing (or losing)
a separate lens cover. |
| Battery |
Probably the most annoying thing I find about these high tech manufacturers
is their use of proprietary batteries. Just like cell phones, the
batteries are not interchangeable with other models in their line.
As a matter-of-fact, the same applies to inkjet printer cartridges.
Well... back to the battery. It is a 3.7V 840mAh lithium ion rechargeable
battery. On a fully dead battery, it charges in about 3 hours. There
is a red LED on the charger indicating that the battery is charging
and it turns green when the battery is charged. The battery compartment
is located on the bottom of the camera. Sliding the battery door
(it's plastic) outward, and lifting exposes the cavity. The battery
can only go in one way, so no mistakes can be made here (hopefully).
According to the specs, with the LCD on, occasional zooming, and
25 percent use of the flash, you should get about a 190 shots. With
the LCD off, about 440. In my experience, I find these numbers to
be somewhat overrated. On a fully charged battery, with LCD on and
flash usage about 1 out of 4 shots, the number of shots I get varies
tremendously. On cool days, around 50°F (10°C), I can sometimes
get 60 to 70 shots. On warmer days, 80°F (27°C), I'm lucky
to get 120 shots. With the LCD off however, daytime shooting and
no flash, I've managed to get about 400 shots.
The battery charger is well designed, compact (same size as the camera)
and lightweight. There are no cables or bricks to mess with and when
plugged into a dual wall socket (only the upper one) you still have
access to the other socket. Very nice. |
| Memory Card |
Canon provides a 32MB CompactFlash card with the camera, which
is, in one way, nice of them. Considering when you buy a film camera,
you do not get film, or some digital single lens reflex, you'll
have to buy the memory card separately.
Depending on the resolution and JPEG compression, the number of images
you can capture, on a 32MB card with the S500, ranges from 11 to
337. My uses for this camera requires highest resolution and minimum
compression, so the 32MB card is off to eBay. I already have a 256MB
card (almost 100 shots) and a 512MB (almost 200 shots), so I'll be
using those. |
| Using the PowerShot S500 Digital Elph |
|
With the battery and memory card installed, it's time to power
it on. Outdoors, when pressing the power button and taking the
first shot, it takes about two seconds. Indoors, when flash is
required, it takes just over 4 seconds. You'll know when you're
ready to shoot when you see the green light just to the left of
the viewfinder. |
| |
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On top of the camera, you'll notice some holes in the body. The
single one, towards the front is the microphone is used when recording
movies, or taking sound memos. The array of 7 holes is the speaker
which is used for audio feedback or playing back movies. However,
it does not seem to playback sound memos. Hmmm... |
| Photographs taken with Canon's PowerShot S500 Digital
Elph |
 |
| Subject: |
|
Jet contrails |
| Model: |
|
Canon PowerShot S500 Digital Elph |
| Shutter Speed: |
|
1/160 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/2.8 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
n/a |
| Focal Length: |
|
7.4 mm |
| Notes: |
|
This photograph was taken moments after the sun went
down. |
|
 |
| Subject: |
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Mallard duck |
| Model: |
|
Canon PowerShot S500 Digital Elph |
| Shutter Speed: |
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1/640 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/3.5 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
n/a |
| Focal Length: |
|
10.8 mm |
| Notes: |
|
Taking photographs of wildlife can be a real challenge.
I chased this duck all day until finally, he slowed down. I'll probably
hear from the animal activists on this one. |
|
 |
| Subject: |
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Medieval Times |
| Model: |
|
Canon PowerShot S500 Digital Elph |
| Shutter Speed: |
|
1.0 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/2.8 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
n/a |
| Focal Length: |
|
7.4 mm |
| Notes: |
|
Long exposures can result in some interesting effects. |
|
 |
| Subject: |
|
Medieval Times |
| Model: |
|
Canon PowerShot S500 Digital Elph |
| Shutter Speed: |
|
1/5 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/2.8 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
n/a |
| Focal Length: |
|
7.4 mm |
| Notes: |
|
One of the few usable indoor shots. All I had to do
was back off on the coffee consumption. |
|
 |
| Subject: |
|
Mike Emond's Willis |
| Model: |
|
Canon PowerShot S500 Digital Elph |
| Shutter Speed: |
|
1/160 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/2.8 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
n/a |
| Focal Length: |
|
7.4 mm |
| Notes: |
|
Early morning photograph. Camera was placed a few
inches from the asphalt. You will notice a pronounced barrel distortion
at this wide angle setting. |
|
 |
| Subject: |
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Church tower |
| Model: |
|
Canon PowerShot S500 Digital Elph |
| Shutter Speed: |
|
1/250 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/7.1 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
n/a |
| Focal Length: |
|
7.4 mm |
| Notes: |
|
It was a bright/warm day. Using Superfine mode helped
to minimize color fringes. |
|
| All the photographs above have been taken
in Superfine jpeg mode, and reduced 50% in Photoshop with moderate jpeg
compression to conserve disk space and bandwidth. Camera was handheld.
No color corrections, level adjustments,
sharpening or croppings were made. |
| Conclusion |
Like I mentioned earlier, this camera is small, but there are smaller
and lighter cameras out there. The PowerShot S500 Digital Elph
is about the size of a deck of cards, and about twice as thick.
The stainless steel body was one of the factors for choosing this
camera. I would think that all point-and-shoot cameras are this
easy to use. Installing the battery and memory card couldn't be
easier.
Attaching the wrist strap was probably the most difficult part in
using this camera.
From a professional (advanced amateur?) point of view, the lens
on this camera captures very clear/sharp wonderful images. Unfortunately
the images captured at the widest angle (as with other point-and-shoot
digital cameras) does display a considerable amount of barrel distortion
(think about fisheye). The distortion is less as you zoom out. Another
problem is bright daylight. Here is where chromatic aberrations is
quite noticeable. Overall, this camera is a lot of fun to use.
:-)
Gary Kawamura |
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