opinions on canon s3IS

[jann1033]

I have heard many who love the s2 but not so much about the s3...anything you love or hate about yours or maybe pos/negative things you heard about it? trying to decide what to get for hubby
thanks

 

[Sanka]

I have heard many who love the s2 but not so much about the s3...anything you love or hate about yours or maybe pos/negative things you heard about it? trying to decide what to get for hubby
thanks

Just bought the s3 last week and love it. I don't think there were any major enhancements between the s2 and s3, other then it's a 6 megapixel rather then a 5, and it's black instead of grey.

There are probably a few other things, but those are about the only 2 I can think off of hand.

 

[SplshMtn99]

I'm loving mine so far. Its been about a month.

Only results that are less favorable than last camera are really low light photos. But I might be pushing it a bit. I was trying to take pictures of black cat in a dark room that was lit only by the light from a lowly burning pellet stove. I was playing with all the auto or scene modes, then started on bumping up the ISO manually. I finally got a shot or 2 where I can actually see the cat. lol The fire was no problem to see. I guess I really should read the manual & look into learning basic manual settings for this one.

But I can see where similar shots will be a problem at WDW -- dark rides like PoTC.

I came from a camera with 10x zoom without IS, so the 12x zoom doesn't make me jump up & down with glee since I'm used to it. But, the IS is really working nicely for those long shots. DH (Mr Shaky Hands himself) even took a full zoom photo of neighbors cat in our garden from our 2nd story window. Nicely focused. He couldn't have done that before.

And like anything else, there is always a learning curve. Past 2 Olympus cameras always "pre-flashed" in red eye mode. This camera doesn't seem to do that. So I've had to adjust to framing cat shots differently to reduce "green" eye / red eye in cats. My nephew Kyle will be the true test. That kid gets red eye like no one I've ever seen.

 

[ndelaware]

Jann the S3 was really just a minor upgrade to a great camera.


Here what dpreview said:


"Overall conclusion

Where the S2 IS offered a huge performance leap over its predecessor, the S3 IS is in reality a minor upgrade, and with good reason; there was a lot less that needed improvement. Aside from the newer sensor, the welcome addition of a direct ISO button, sports mode and marginally bigger screen, the biggest change is the paint job, which has produced a camera that looks a lot less toy-like than the S2 IS.There is a slight improvement in image quality; a bit more resolution and much nicer looking ISO 400 output (though as noted in the review, ISO 400 on the S3 is nowhere near as sensitive as ISO 400 on the S2), but to be honest I think you'd struggle to see any real difference in a normal sized print.

Comparisons with it predecessor aside, the S3 IS Image quality is very good - certainly on a par with most of its competitors - though the results are still a bit on the soft side, something the fairly high default sharpening doesn't really help. Again, experimenting with the in-camera parameters and a little sympathetic post-processing means that in the right hands it can produce images every bit as good as anything else in its class. The ISO 800 mode is probably too noisy for anything but 'emergency' use, and there are occasional exposure problems, but generally speaking the output is pleasing enough to satisfy the majority of the intended market.

But ultimately, like the models that came before it, the appeal of the S3 IS goes beyond simple pixel-peeping; it has a class-leading feature set, a very reliable image stabilization system (the benefits of which cannot be overstated) and superb handling. It's well-priced, incredibly versatile and - above all - highly enjoyable to use. Despite the long lens and speedy operation it's not the ideal 'sports' camera (the focus at the long end of the zoom isn't fast enough and does hunt a little), but for sheer shooting pleasure and versatility the PowerShot S3 IS still takes some beating.

And so to the rating. There was a part of me that felt slightly disappointed that the S3 IS was such a minor upgrade, and that the new high ISO mode added so little. But there are some subtle but important improvements, and the S2 IS was a worthy recipient of its Highly Recommended rating. There are cameras out there that offer slightly better image quality (certainly in terms of sharpness), and I'm pretty convinced that the Panasonic image stabilization system is slightly more effective, but taken as a whole there is nothing out there that offers the feature set, handling and sheer fun factor of the S3 IS, and so it still - just - keeps hold of our top rating."

 

[01Sweetpea]

I have my S3 about a month now. It is a HUGE improvement over my Kodak EasyShare CX7525. I'm still learning, mostly doing point and shoot, but have enjoyed testing the special scenes and the sports mode.

 

[jann1033]

i had read that is was kind of a minor updating to the s2 but wondered about the new sensor esp. and if it was an actual "improvement" can't decide if it's worth the extra $$, from the s2, was set to buy it when dell had it for 319 but missed it naturally so back to should i or shouldn't i...also contemplating the canon 7000 and 8000 but can't find them so maybe being marketed under another name? see the 700 and 800 but don't know if they are the same plus they lack( from what i see) the is and 12x...if i sink 300 into a p&s i want to be able to benefit other than husband's occasional before and after work pics.