Canon PowerShot Pro 1 8MP Digital Camera with 7x Optical Zoom
By: Canon Average Rating: 4.0 Total Reviews: 56
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 On: 2008-07-04
To start, I would like to note that I had purchased this camera in 2004 and took over 70,000 images so far with it. Back those days nothing better existed on the market. Still no one beats the unique combination of features this camera provides: small and light-weight, L-lens with 7x zoom (and as the result - amazing quality of images), video recording, flipping Life-view screen, durable aluminum body, top LCD, etc. It took Canon over 4 years to integrate some (but not all) of the Pro1 features into the latest DSLR. Sure, this camera is useless for night-photography but other then that - this single unique device can satisfy any and all needs as a walk-around camera delivering uncompromising image quality, something you can get only by investing at least 3-5K in to DSLR.
 On: 2007-12-06
Recently, I inherited this camera at my job, to use for conferences and job fairs, and Ive been forced to use my personal $250 Nikon to get decent pictures. The only good news is that I didnt pay for this Canon. Not having image stabilization really hurts this camera when used in low light situations - all shots are blurry. Fiddling with aperture and other settings helps only slightly. Ive studied the manual cover to cover, fiddled with more settings, and no go. Of course no one believes me - that a camera that costs this much could take such terrible pictures, (it must be Operator Error!), so I let others snap some shots - then they see the light. Dont buy this camera!!
 On: 2007-05-13
Canon made a masterpiece at that time, it is a very well thought and designed camera. Though it may look outdated now, but even now no one will match its potential. All in one camera, I am not ready to leave it at any cost.
On: 2007-05-12
Canon made a masterpiece at that time, it is a very well thought and designed camera. Though it may look outdated now, but even now no one will match its potential. All in one camera, I am not ready to leave it at any cost.
 On: 2007-01-10
Ive used this camera pretty heavily for about a year, mostly for travelling. Ive used it for candids, landscapes, action, and wildlife. Previously, my photo experience has been with Canon point and shoot digicams and Nikon film slrs. Its a bit unfair reviewing this now that its almost 3-yr old technology, but I noticed that people are still selling this camera for over $1000 on this site.
For a "pro" camera, it has a large number of critical flaws (listed in order of how much they bug me):
1) slow focusing esp in low light. This renders the camera almost useless for action, and difficult to use for wildlife and even candids, where capturing the moment is everything. The focusing may be faster in continous mode, but then its always focusing and you have to keep the subject centered-- I like to not be looking in the viewfinder unless Im about to take a picture. I dont own a canon accesory flash so I dont know if their focusing aids help. The manual focusing on the EVF display is too slow and cumbersome to use routinely.
2) slow shutter lag. Even on manual focus, with problem 1 taken out of the picture, there is a bit too much delay to consistently capture the shot Im looking for.
3) Dust gets _inside_ the lens. I have read that this is a problem with this camera. Canon was good enough to rectify this when I sent it in, and they even said they sealed the lens to prevent the problem from happening. My brother has the same camera and this happened within 2 weeks of a trip to Europe-- not especially dusty. Unfortunately his is out of warranty so I dont know if they will do the same.
4)) hi noise at ISO 200 or 400. I think with commercially available noise reduction software this is a bit repairable. To be fair, the grain of most 400 speed color film can be as unattractive as the noise of this sensor at ISO 400. Since digital SLRs with less grain at ISO 1600 are now available, I dont think anyone should be selling this camera for $1000.
5) bayonet mount on front of lens scratches filters when used with included 58mm adapter. My $50 polarizer is now dedicated to use with this camera since with other lenses the scratches are in the optical axis.
6) built in flash pics are harsh. This is a problem with any built-in flash on any camera. Again I have no canon accessory flash to compare, so I cant really comment on this as a negative for a pro camera.
On the plus side, the camera does some things amazingly well:
1) super macro is quite impressive, even though 8mp or raw isnt possible.
2) the regular macro works pretty well.
3) its a pretty compact solution for a 28-200 lens equivalent. The equivalent SLR is a lot bigger, though maybe not much heavier. I dont know how the lens quality of the pro 1 "L" lens compares to the non-L SLR lenses. You definitely wont find an affordable f2.8 SLR zoom lens for an attractive price (not a Canon at least). The lens is pretty good-- little distortion except at 28mm and little chromatic aberration. A hint of vignetting at 28mm as well.
4) Its ultra quiet. When I mute all the sounds, it makes only barely perceptible aperature noises.
5) the rotating lcd allows for true WYSIWYG composition from different angles, allowing for some stealthy shots and also good for macro stuff.
6) really great depth of field (I havent objectively tested this so I dont know if the 7.2mm objective actually has better depth of field than an effective 28mm on an slr)
Taking into account its strengths and weaknesses, I use the camera for travelling and taking landscapes when I dont want to carry around a big slr for the super wides. Its smaller and quieter than an slr and better for the surreptious candids, esp with the rotatable LCD. Itd probably be a good macro-specific camera but I havent used the macro flash. For most uses, it cant possibly be worth it if fast-handling, low noise SLR with equivalent lens is available for the same cost or cheaper. I got it as a gift before lightweight travelling so it was great for that, but Im looking to buy an SLR now.
On: 2007-01-09
Ive used this camera pretty heavily for about a year, mostly for travelling. Ive used it for candids, landscapes, action, and wildlife. Previously, my photo experience has been with Canon point and shoot digicams and Nikon film slrs. Its a bit unfair reviewing this now that its almost 3-yr old technology, but I noticed that people are still selling this camera for over $1000 on this site.
For a "pro" camera, it has a large number of critical flaws (listed in order of how much they bug me):
1) slow focusing esp in low light. This renders the camera almost useless for action, and difficult to use for wildlife and even candids, where capturing the moment is everything. The focusing may be faster in continous mode, but then its always focusing and you have to keep the subject centered-- I like to not be looking in the viewfinder unless Im about to take a picture. I dont own a canon accesory flash so I dont know if their focusing aids help. The manual focusing on the EVF display is too slow and cumbersome to use routinely.
2) slow shutter lag. Even on manual focus, with problem 1 taken out of the picture, there is a bit too much delay to consistently capture the shot Im looking for.
3) Dust gets _inside_ the lens. I have read that this is a problem with this camera. Canon was good enough to rectify this when I sent it in, and they even said they sealed the lens to prevent the problem from happening. My brother has the same camera and this happened within 2 weeks of a trip to Europe-- not especially dusty. Unfortunately his is out of warranty so I dont know if they will do the same.
4)) hi noise at ISO 200 or 400. I think with commercially available noise reduction software this is a bit repairable. To be fair, the grain of most 400 speed color film can be as unattractive as the noise of this sensor at ISO 400. Since digital SLRs with less grain at ISO 1600 are now available, I dont think anyone should be selling this camera for $1000.
5) bayonet mount on front of lens scratches filters when used with included 58mm adapter. My $50 polarizer is now dedicated to use with this camera since with other lenses the scratches are in the optical axis.
6) built in flash pics are harsh. This is a problem with any built-in flash on any camera. Again I have no canon accessory flash to compare, so I cant really comment on this as a negative for a pro camera.
On the plus side, the camera does some things amazingly well:
1) super macro is quite impressive, even though 8mp or raw isnt possible.
2) the regular macro works pretty well.
3) its a pretty compact solution for a 28-200 lens equivalent. The equivalent SLR is a lot bigger, though maybe not much heavier. I dont know how the lens quality of the pro 1 "L" lens compares to the non-L SLR lenses. You definitely wont find an affordable f2.8 SLR zoom lens for an attractive price (not a Canon at least). The lens is pretty good-- little distortion except at 28mm and little chromatic aberration. A hint of vignetting at 28mm as well.
4) Its ultra quiet. When I mute all the sounds, it makes only barely perceptible aperature noises.
5) the rotating lcd allows for true WYSIWYG composition from different angles, allowing for some stealthy shots and also good for macro stuff.
6) really great depth of field (I havent objectively tested this so I dont know if the 7.2mm objective actually has better depth of field than an effective 28mm on an slr)
Taking into account its strengths and weaknesses, I use the camera for travelling and taking landscapes when I dont want to carry around a big slr for the super wides. Its smaller and quieter than an slr and better for the surreptious candids, esp with the rotatable LCD. Itd probably be a good macro-specific camera but I havent used the macro flash. For most uses, it cant possibly be worth it if fast-handling, low noise SLR with equivalent lens is available for the same cost or cheaper. I got it as a gift before lightweight travelling so it was great for that, but Im looking to buy an SLR now.
On: 2006-09-28
I bought this camera used at a consignment shop over a year ago, my second digital camera after losing my Samsung in Mexico. Battery life is great, and the battery charger was with it. The only bad thing I could find was lens cap had no string, and not USB 2.0. Canons software package was its usuall fantastic set. Took hundreds of pics with this camera, and resolution was just awesome.
Ran over the camera with my 1965 Mustang, and still take pictures with it. Beat that with any other camera!!! I will only buy Canon, also have a PowerShot A520 and A530. Love them all.
On: 2006-08-25
I have used several digital cameras in the past including more expensive Digital SLRs but this is by far the easiest to use to obtain fantastic results WITH the ease of point and shoot.
I think the reviewers that were having problems with the cameras have not updated their cameras firmware and they also have not taken the time to read on how to best take a low light photograph or an action photo. If you want to get fancy with extra lenses and such this is NOT the camera to use. For the other 90% of the popluation, I dont think youll be disappointed in the Powershot Pro 1.
Im an investigator and use this camera on an almost daily basis in criminal cases where we use the pics for evidence and ultimately trial. At 8mp, the best quality photographs can be enlarged to poster size proportions with little degredation of the quality. Its battery life is fantastic and it has handled the daily wear and tear from frequent use quite nicely.
On: 2006-08-24
I have used several digital cameras in the past including more expensive Digital SLRs but this is by far the easiest to use to obtain fantastic results WITH the ease of point and shoot.
I think the reviewers that were having problems with the cameras have not updated their cameras firmware and they also have not taken the time to read on how to best take a low light photograph or an action photo. If you want to get fancy with extra lenses and such this is NOT the camera to use. For the other 90% of the popluation, I dont think youll be disappointed in the Powershot Pro 1.
Im an investigator and use this camera on an almost daily basis in criminal cases where we use the pics for evidence and ultimately trial. At 8mp, the best quality photographs can be enlarged to poster size proportions with little degredation of the quality. Its battery life is fantastic and it has handled the daily wear and tear from frequent use quite nicely.
On: 2006-08-13
Owning this camera, and enduring Canons atrocious customer care, was one of the worst consumer experiences of my life. They knew when it shipped that it has firmware issues: and I sent it in repeatedly for repairs. I paid $1000 for this piece of crap: and after fifty phone calls (some in tears), begging for a functional camera, and two attempts at repairing it, they finally sent a replacement to me. But it was a refurbished piece of you-know-what, too, and the upshot is that I never owned a working $1000 camera. The replacement is a lemon with the same issues: it cant focus in dim lighting (which my PowerShot G1 did admirably), and the macro doesnt work half the time.
After enthusiastically recommending Canons for YEARS, I switched to Nikon. Good move, Ms. Vice President of Customer Service, you evil Borg. I will never buy another Canon again, and dont recommend them to anyone, unless you are a card-carrying masochist who loves to be tortured with unresponsive customer service. They are the ultimate in Corporate Evil. BOYCOTT!!!!
On: 2006-08-12
Owning this camera, and enduring Canons atrocious customer care, was one of the worst consumer experiences of my life. They knew when it shipped that it has firmware issues: and I sent it in repeatedly for repairs. I paid $1000 for this piece of crap: and after fifty phone calls (some in tears), begging for a functional camera, and two attempts at repairing it, they finally sent a replacement to me. But it was a refurbished piece of you-know-what, too, and the upshot is that I never owned a working $1000 camera. The replacement is a lemon with the same issues: it cant focus in dim lighting (which my PowerShot G1 did admirably), and the macro doesnt work half the time.
After enthusiastically recommending Canons for YEARS, I switched to Nikon. Good move, Ms. Vice President of Customer Service, you evil Borg. I will never buy another Canon again, and dont recommend them to anyone, unless you are a card-carrying masochist who loves to be tortured with unresponsive customer service. They are the ultimate in Corporate Evil. BOYCOTT!!!!
On: 2006-08-09
This is a great camera for anyone that realy wants to take a very good, high resolution pix. The zoon lens is also a very good item.
I am a realtor and I take a lot of picture. With the zoom lens it is usually not necessary for me to get out of the car to take a professional picture.
I would also recomed that you purchase an additional battery for the camera. The reason being is that is is very convenent to have an additional battery to replace the one in the camera once it is low on charge.
On: 2006-07-31
ive been shooting for close to 30 years, had several great dependable cameras and this one has lived up to almost all my expectations. true it does have several minor quirks, but the range of performance has exceeded my demanding standards. the quality of the optics, the compact size and versatility of function have made it a great street shooting machine. if your looking for serious low light or killer speed it might not serve your needs, but i wished i had bought two for i have had nothing but great days in all weather conditions, putting this little gem through its paces on the streets of new york! two years of consistent performance!
On: 2006-07-30
ive been shooting for close to 30 years, had several great dependable cameras and this one has lived up to almost all my expectations. true it does have several minor quirks, but the range of performance has exceeded my demanding standards. the quality of the optics, the compact size and versatility of function have made it a great street shooting machine. if your looking for serious low light or killer speed it might not serve your needs, but i wished i had bought two for i have had nothing but great days in all weather conditions, putting this little gem through its paces on the streets of new york! two years of consistent performance!
On: 2006-04-15
I bought this camera slightly used on ebay for $499.00, and I love it!!!!
I still have a Fuji 3.1 Mega Pixel camera - my wife has 2 digital Kodak cameras and the pictures on this Cannon are unbelievable! I bought this Cannon camera, because I already own a Canon XL1, GL1 & GL2 camcorders (I do wedding videography - www.digitalvisionsonline.com), & the settings are very similar.
Once annoyance is the lack of a lens cap string.
Battery life is excellent.
 On: 2006-03-24
For like 2-300 more $ you can get the EOS Digital Rebel, This is also 8 mp-
NO LENSES ONLY 1 SUPER LENSE
This camera does not allow you to attach any lenses to increase quality or view! It has one built in lense that does enough though, if you are not going pro then this lense should do the trick, it does macro shots fine for me, and it does long distance shots decently.
SLOW
This is the slowest Camera I have ever used in my life, I have tried the EOS digital rebel and have seen a few others. This takes like 5-7 seconds to auto focus. I take photography at a hockey game for a local team, I am now forced to upgrade cameras because I CANNOT take good actions shots with this, I would have to know where they will be, start autofocusing on the ground hoping that it will focus intime, then finish pressing the button whent he hockey players came around... problem is, if I move, it messes up the focus, plus sometimes even just trying to focus on the ice will throw it out of focus.
OVERALL
overall its a great camera for amatuer nature shots, its a bit heavy but you dont need to carry and cant add lenses to it so in overall equipment weight you save yourself loads of pounds I guess. It does macro fine for me, it does great for still photos, or actions shots that will not move out of your view. When you turn up the ISO the shots will get VERY grainy VERY quick, it only goes up to 400, which should give sufficient light anywhere but it will ruin the quality of the picture...
Upgrade people... please, now I have a powershot pro1 that I really cannot use and is near impossible to sell for the amount of money I need... and I need 800 and something bucks to get the eos digital rebel...
Tyler
On: 2006-03-21
This camera is used for taking pictures of lab experiments, conference photos, and office activities. We are very satisfied with all uses.
On: 2006-03-20
This camera is used for taking pictures of lab experiments, conference photos, and office activities. We are very satisfied with all uses.
On: 2006-03-19
Great camera which produces superb quality digital imaging. You will find a few of the images it has produced so far in the neighbouring site.
I have a couple of gripes with the design of the lens hood/filter adapter area of this camera.
The filter adapter is made of fairly flimsy black plastic. Any filter screwed on to it - and I tried both a 58mm UV and a 58mm polarizing filter - jams on the adapter. (No, I did not cross the threading!)
Once the filter and adapter are clicked on to the lens, it is no longer possible to attach the petal shaped lens hood. Using any other off-the-shelf lens hood, for instance a circular one, intrudes on the image.
On all my cameras I use a UV filter to protect the lens from scratching - it is cheaper to replace a UV filter than an expensive lens - but in the case of the Powershot Pro, attaching the filter and adapter, mean that without the lens hood being able to be attached in their presence, any backlit images are compromised by unwanted light hitting the lens.
Canon Design team: Go to the bottom of the class for this poor design feature.
It has let down an otherwise excellent little camera. With the one adapter supplied jammed on to one filter, an adapter for each filter I use, may be the solution, but it does not solve the lack of attachment point for the lens hood, when a filter is in use...I have complained to Canon USA about the adapter quality and they must be aware of the lens hood issue.
They need to tackle these issues.
Postscript: Canon Service USA replied within 8 hours over the weekend to an e-mail complaining about the adapter, asking for a mailing address to send a replacement. However, more than 10 days later, there is still no sign of it, and they are refusing to deliver it to a UK address, having failed to deliver it in a timely manner to my US Vacation address - I hope someone in their Service Quality area is reading this. They need to sharpen up considerably...
On: 2006-01-10
First of all, I have had the camera about 10 months.
I am an amateur photographer and have always used Canon cameras. The camera before this was a Canon Rebel SLR and I loved it, but I wanted to see what I was shooting while I was shooting it. (Nice to know at weddings you got the shot.) This is my first digital camera, and I am overall pleased. The quality of the images is amazing. I do notice the flash washing out images if I am taking candid shots. The red eye is always there regardless of red-eye reduction. I have yet to see a camera that actually reduces red-eye. The feel of the camera is good to me. The battery life is pretty good. What I am not pleased with is having to take the battery out of the camera to charge. I work full-time doing something other than photography and have a 1 year old to chase. There have been times when I am getting everything together for a shoot in my home and the battery is dead. It takes an hour to charge completely (although 5 minutes will get you through the shoot.) Also - the battery light flashes when you have about 2 minutes of life left. Theres no "halfway gone" or anything in between. It shows either full or dead.
Other things I have liked are the tripod mount being close to center of the lens, the software that downloads your pictures is awesome, the flip LCD screen, and the many different shooting modes (vivid, sepia, b&w, etc.) This camera has been well worth the money, and bottom line is the quality of the picture, which has been fantastic.
On: 2006-01-09
First of all, I have had the camera about 10 months.
I am an amateur photographer and have always used Canon cameras. The camera before this was a Canon Rebel SLR and I loved it, but I wanted to see what I was shooting while I was shooting it. (Nice to know at weddings you got the shot.) This is my first digital camera, and I am overall pleased. The quality of the images is amazing. I do notice the flash washing out images if I am taking candid shots. The red eye is always there regardless of red-eye reduction. I have yet to see a camera that actually reduces red-eye. The feel of the camera is good to me. The battery life is pretty good. What I am not pleased with is having to take the battery out of the camera to charge. I work full-time doing something other than photography and have a 1 year old to chase. There have been times when I am getting everything together for a shoot in my home and the battery is dead. It takes an hour to charge completely (although 5 minutes will get you through the shoot.) Also - the battery light flashes when you have about 2 minutes of life left. Theres no "halfway gone" or anything in between. It shows either full or dead.
Other things I have liked are the tripod mount being close to center of the lens, the software that downloads your pictures is awesome, the flip LCD screen, and the many different shooting modes (vivid, sepia, b&w, etc.) This camera has been well worth the money, and bottom line is the quality of the picture, which has been fantastic.
On: 2005-12-23
I was not happy with the autofocus, but the firmware update I downloaded fixed the constant refocusing plus other things. Everything else is great except maybe the Auto White Balance doesnt do too good where there is a mixture of light colors. The manual setting and recalibration of "white" handles those situations. Also I use a 1GB fast memory card and it seems to get sluggish when storing images after I have a hundred or so images on it; I think this is the file management.
One big bummer: when recording videos, you cannot change zoom after you start the recording.
On: 2005-12-22
I was not happy with the autofocus, but the firmware update I downloaded fixed the constant refocusing plus other things. Everything else is great except maybe the Auto White Balance doesnt do too good where there is a mixture of light colors. The manual setting and recalibration of "white" handles those situations. Also I use a 1GB fast memory card and it seems to get sluggish when storing images after I have a hundred or so images on it; I think this is the file management.
One big bummer: when recording videos, you cannot change zoom after you start the recording.
On: 2005-10-12
I bought this camera to replace a sony 2Mb digital camera after my first daughter was born. I thought I would be able to get amazing photos. The only good photos I could get were taken outdoors. Focusing in low light is impossible, so dont bother. The automatic flash washes out all photos regardless of settings. The autofocus is so slow youll miss all good shots if taking photos of children. The macro focus capability is useless and cant focus at all on macro settings. All in all, dont waste your money on this Canon camera, try Canons other brands which are far superior, ie SD550 or better still upgrade to a digital SLR like the 20D. I cant believe Canon has not recalled this camera! totally useless.
On: 2005-09-01
I bought this camera and it is everything I was looking for in a camera. I dont think anyone will be sorry for buying this camera. I also own a Canon G5 (5 Meg) and there is a remarkable difference in quality between the two. Excellent product for the money.
On: 2005-08-23
I have read all the reviews on this camera and after getting this I would have to say that most of the reviews are wrong about certain aspects of this camera. First off the autofocus lag has improved significantly since the new firmware was installed. While it is still not the fastest it is still very good for most shooting conditions.
Most reviews rated its battery life as a disappointment. With the new firmware the battery life is great. I got this camera back in June and I have only had to recharge it 3 times. I have filled my 512mb card about 5-6 times in the period and I use the screen and flash on about 75% of shots.
The USM zoom works better too. It is very responsive, and at first I thought that I might not like having a ring zoom but I like it now because it allows you to steady the camera with another hand and it lets you be more precise with zoom.
Overall I really like this camera, I tried out the Sony V3, the G7 and the Pro 1. In the end all of these cameras are great but this one had a good feel to it and a lot of great features. I would highly suggest this camera, not to mention the great price.
On: 2005-08-12
The reviews for this camera have generally been favorable with a few complaints here and there. I struggled with the decision to purchase this camera as a backup to my 20D I use for weddings, and for use as a nice point and shoot for home use. We are upgrading from an Elan7, a Rebel 2000, and a Sony DSC-S75 digital. My wife and I both are EXTREMELY dissappointed in how this camera functions. Every time you hold the button down half way to focus, the image freezes momentarily (both on the LCD or in the viewfinder). By the time the image starts moving again, your subject has moved and you have missed the shot! Many reviews commented on the new firmware upgrade fixing their problems with the camera. I confirmed that my camera HAS the latest firmware upgrade. I thought my Sony DSC-S75 digital camera had to be slow by todays standards, even though it does not have the resolution the Pro1 has, or the great lens the Pro1 has, it still functions FAR SUPERIOR to the Pro1.
The Canon PowerShot Pro1 is a terrible dissappointment unless EVERYTHING you shot is sitting perfectly still. Please spend your money on ANY other camera besides this one.
On: 2005-07-30
I recently bought the Pro1 with the idea of using it as an improvement over my good and reliable Powershot G2 for macro photography of (very small) wild flowers. The main problem with the G2 is that the digital zoom gives excellent magnification but causes much noise, making images grainy. In this regard the Pro 1 seemed perfect because it boasts much larger macro capabilities than the G2. But I found it very hard to focus at any range with either the macro or the super macro functions, and the images although much better in terms of color, were much worse in overall zoom-related quality and sharpness. Plus the super macro wont work at the 8 megapixel resolution, so what good is it to have it then? To make things worse, the super macro function needs to be set up digging in a menu, not by pressing a button, and if you do just about anything (short of pointing and clicking perhaps) it will need to be set up again. I thought, well then I will use the manually configured buttons in which you can store your preferred settings. But guess what, the supermacro function cannot be set up in those buttons. To make a long story short, I am in the process of returning this cumbersome camera and start over the process of finding a replacement for my G2.
On: 2005-07-18
I have owned the camera for just 6 months, and took good care of it. The lens stopped working and Canon will not give it warranty service, even though I registered the product, because I have lost the original receipt.
They claim registration is only for software updates and prodcut recalls. However, I was never informed of the cameras firmware upgrade and had to find it myself on their website.
I would not recommend any Canon camera. I have several cameras, includung digital that are much older and have received rough treatment in the wilds of Alaska. I have never owned a camera as fragile as the Powershot Pro1 and am severly disappointed in Canons failure to stand behind their products.
On: 2005-07-17
I have owned the camera for just 6 months, and took good care of it. The lens stopped working and Canon will not give it warranty service, even though I registered the product, because I have lost the original receipt.
They claim registration is only for software updates and prodcut recalls. However, I was never informed of the cameras firmware upgrade and had to find it myself on their website.
I would not recommend any Canon camera. I have several cameras, includung digital that are much older and have received rough treatment in the wilds of Alaska. I have never owned a camera as fragile as the Powershot Pro1 and am severly disappointed in Canons failure to stand behind their products.
On: 2005-07-06
I bought this camera at its highest price when it first came out(around $1200.00 USD) and booooooooooooy let me tell you... I am happy with the "STILL" shots that I took with it BUT totally UPHAPPY with the speed of the shutter!!!!!!!!! If you are looking for this camera to take any type of action shots... wildlife....sports...any type of movement... FORGET IT! As one Review puts it: "...autofocus too slow for wildlife or sports..." That is exactly what I mean too!
Perhaps I am missing something with this camera???? Someone tell me now! ?? Okay, I am being sarcastic here, but, it was a huge disappointment for me when I took this camera on vacation (when I have a few others that works just as well or perhaps better),and decided to take some fun shots of the fireworks and late night shots.... DANG, I was so angry! The view-finder detects NADA at night and when you think you are going to get that perfect shot.... it takes the shot seconds later!!! Most of the time I ended up with a black picture or a picture with the top of someones head in motion!
I used to love this camera until now... My rating went down from a 5 to a 3....
On: 2005-05-18
Canon make great cameras and their optics are second to none, but when are they going to make a camera that can focus quickly? This is my third digital Canon and I wont but another. It can take up to a second and a half to focus on the subject and it starts at macro and moves out to the focus area, which can make it take longer. The purpose of a still camera is to capture a moment in time, not several seconds after the moment.
This camera takes wonderful pictures but is absolutely useless except for landscape.
Try using it for just 20 minutes and youll see how impractical a camera this is.
On: 2005-04-06
NOTE: My Pro1 has the updated firmware which stops the screen freezing in continuous mode and from what I read below, improves focussing in low light dramatically. Some of the reviews here are probably for pre-update cameras. I think anyone used to a typical point-and-shoot will be impressed by the alacrity of the Pro1s focussing.
Like many people, my first couple of digital cameras piqued my interest in photography. But because they were fully automatic, there were times when I couldnt take the shot I wanted.
BETTER THAN AN SLR?
I fancied a digital SLR to get the flexibility I wanted, but bought the Pro1 instead in the end. Why? Mainly because I wanted a variable-angle LCD screen so I could frame shots in awkward places.
DISPLAYS:
The 2-inch vari-angle LCD monitor is very good in bright light, and at 235,000 pixels, probably the highest resolution LCD available on a camera. You notice the extra resolution. The viewing angle is more critical than I would like though, made slightly worse because it snaps into certain preset positions which make tiny adjustments impossible at certain angles. I like the electronic viewfinder, which shows all the menu items and settings, shutter speed etc. and has dioptre adjustment. I wear glasses and theres no problem. Its the same resolution as the main LCD and almost always good enough.
Theres also a top mounted LCD thats nicely illuminated in orange and shows all the camera settings.
BATTERY:
You might think that the battery life would suffer on a camera with three LCDs, a myriad of blinking LEDs, a heavy lens with continuous focus and a long zoom... but Ive found the battery life excellent. You can turn off continuous focus to make the power last a bit longer, but then the screen freezes while focussing.
LENS:
I suppose the outstanding feature of the Pro 1 is the lens. At 28-200mm equivalent, this is a very flexible zoom. And because the widest aperture at full telephoto is still f3.5, its pretty usable handheld if the lights good.
An unusual feature is that you turn the ring on the lens barrel to zoom, or to focus in manual mode. I quite like this, but to me, it turns the wrong way, and I still havent got the hang of it! That may just be me though.
There is noticeable purple fringing at wide apertures, but overall, this is a splendid lens.
SPEED:
Not as responsive as an SLR, but pleasingly crisp in action. Low light focussing is the best Ive experienced on a digital camera. At the wide angle end, it seems to be able to focus in near darkness with no trouble. Manual focus gives you an enlarged central area on the display and a distance reading. But I found it still wasnt easy to tell if the focus was right. But the camera can sharpen up your manual focus attempt, which is useful.
FEATURES:
As youd expect from a camera at this level, it is bristling with features. I wont mention them all. The only one I wouldve liked that it doesnt have is a live histogram display. Movies are at 640 x 480 but sadly only 15fps and you cant zoom. You get a remote control.
ERGONOMICS:
Very important on a camera like this. The best bit is the jog wheel right next to the shutter release. Its perfectly placed and you can change shutter speed, aperture etc. You can also use it to scroll during playback. Most often used functions are on their own button, so you very rarely need to go into the menu system. Its very convenient to get back to record mode from playback mode: you just half press the shutter - great. I find I need two fingers to turn the mode dial. You can change the battery and CF card while its on a tripod.
ANNOYANCES:
Very few. A non-tethered lens cap that Ive resigned myself to losing one day, a strap that always seems to be in the way of the swivelling screen, a manual focus button thats too easy to press by mistake and a screen that freezes momentarily while the camera focuses, unless youre in continuous focus mode. Super Macro mode forces the camera into 4MP mode, though the results are still outstanding.
Ive heard of quality-control issues with this camera. Indeed, I had to return my first example straightaway because of a CCD fault. Im totally happy now, but Id advise you to check yours very carefully when you get it.
CONCLUSION:
This is a very well built camera thats satisfyingly simple to use, feels good in the hand, and most importantly, has a great lens. The photos Ive taken so far have impressed me enormously: theyre sharp, with great colour, great subtlety and naturalness. With 8MP, you have all the flexibility you need to enlarge and crop. And with a feature set like this, and the option to add conversion lenses and filters, its a camera you can grow into if youre moving up like I did.
On: 2005-03-04
This is a fantastic camera that takes excellent pictures! I highly recommend it, with one caveat: the auto-focus is *really* slow. (Much slower than Canon point-and-shoot digicams, and much slower than Canon 35mm film SLRs.)
On: 2005-02-25
SUMMARY:
+Great lens
+Fast
-Poor sensor
-8MP
-USB 1
-ISO Noise
-Dizzying Evt
-4:3 aspect ratio
-fixed 8MP, 4MP only
PREFACE: Ive had great expectations from this camera, the best non-d-slr camera, top of the line Canon. I am not a professional photographer and my previous camera is a 3MP Sharp VE-CG30U (Canon G1 based, same lense, updated body, but no swivel lcd - very good entry level camera).
PROS: I love this Canon lens. Excellent range, wide angle, telephoto. It has a pretty wide diameter and a shallow focal pane - allowing for excellent pictures with small dept of field (blurry background). The zoom ring is an excellent solution. The cameras operation is very impresive, pretty fast power on, focus and save (on CF) times.
CONS: The CCD sensor caused lots of trouble for me - has to return my first two, I had bad light spots on the ccd on low shutter speeds (and sometimes visible at 1/60 flash shots). My Nikon 5400 (similar Sony CCD) also had to be replaced for this.
8MP is an overkill, I knew that upfront, but I considered it as an additional zoom - you can crop half of the image and still have enough resolution to print 8x10 ! What I did not realize, is that it creates an overhead of storing larger image files. plus my 2GHZ P4 machine struggles with the 3MB files just when I try to browse through the directory. The camera is equipped with a USB 1 (!!!) collection, so expect to wait quite a bit to download your pics (a card reader is mandatory). After examining the pictures, I dont think that you can print a great shot, if you crop the most center of the image - you are much better off getting closer and reframing. While the camera produces great pictures with a lot of detail, I dont see much advantage of this high resolution.
In addition, the ISO setting on the pro1 is a joke - cannot use anything over 100 ! My cheapo old digital camera did not have as much noise on ISO 400 ! Why did they include ISO 200/400 with this much noise ? It is unfair marketing.
I get dizzy from the evf - it is a great idea, but a nightmare using - flashes and freezes while focusing - even after the latest firmware, unless you use the battery-draining continous focus operation.
Note to Canon: I believe all the above problems are related to the Sony produced CCD. This camera would give equally great pictures with a 5MP sensor - maybe then you could use higher ISOs.
Software: While the label suggest professionalism, the camera does not have more settings/customizations than the S1 IS (which also has advanced-mechanical Image Stabiization full 30fp VGA video) ! I was especially diappointed the limited choise of picture size settings. 8MP or 4MP or 2MP or VGA ! All 4:3 modes ! When you print 4x6, all your pics will be cropped at the center. My old Sharp had 3:2 aspect ratio - just like film, it is very good. Then your full frame (as you pictured it) fits on 4x6 paper ! The Nikon 5400 also has a 3:2 mode - on the lcd it has a blank band on the top and bottom - great solution. Canon EOS Digitals have a 3:2 sensor. I cannot believe Canon could not include a similar option !
On: 2005-02-24
SUMMARY:
+Great lens
+Fast
-Poor sensor
-8MP
-USB 1
-ISO Noise
-Dizzying Evt
-4:3 aspect ratio
-fixed 8MP, 4MP only
PREFACE: Ive had great expectations from this camera, the best non-d-slr camera, top of the line Canon. I am not a professional photographer and my previous camera is a 3MP Sharp VE-CG30U (Canon G1 based, same lense, updated body, but no swivel lcd - very good entry level camera).
PROS: I love this Canon lens. Excellent range, wide angle, telephoto. It has a pretty wide diameter and a shallow focal pane - allowing for excellent pictures with small dept of field (blurry background). The zoom ring is an excellent solution. The cameras operation is very impresive, pretty fast power on, focus and save (on CF) times.
CONS: The CCD sensor caused lots of trouble for me - has to return my first two, I had bad light spots on the ccd on low shutter speeds (and sometimes visible at 1/60 flash shots). My Nikon 5400 (similar Sony CCD) also had to be replaced for this.
8MP is an overkill, I knew that upfront, but I considered it as an additional zoom - you can crop half of the image and still have enough resolution to print 8x10 ! What I did not realize, is that it creates an overhead of storing larger image files. plus my 2GHZ P4 machine struggles with the 3MB files just when I try to browse through the directory. The camera is equipped with a USB 1 (!!!) collection, so expect to wait quite a bit to download your pics (a card reader is mandatory). After examining the pictures, I dont think that you can print a great shot, if you crop the most center of the image - you are much better off getting closer and reframing. While the camera produces great pictures with a lot of detail, I dont see much advantage of this high resolution.
In addition, the ISO setting on the pro1 is a joke - cannot use anything over 100 ! My cheapo old digital camera did not have as much noise on ISO 400 ! Why did they include ISO 200/400 with this much noise ? It is unfair marketing.
I get dizzy from the evf - it is a great idea, but a nightmare using - flashes and freezes while focusing - even after the latest firmware, unless you use the battery-draining continous focus operation.
Note to Canon: I believe all the above problems are related to the Sony produced CCD. This camera would give equally great pictures with a 5MP sensor - maybe then you could use higher ISOs.
Software: While the label suggest professionalism, the camera does not have more settings/customizations than the S1 IS (which also has advanced-mechanical Image Stabiization full 30fp VGA video) ! I was especially diappointed the limited choise of picture size settings. 8MP or 4MP or 2MP or VGA ! All 4:3 modes ! When you print 4x6, all your pics will be cropped at the center. My old Sharp had 3:2 aspect ratio - just like film, it is very good. Then your full frame (as you pictured it) fits on 4x6 paper ! The Nikon 5400 also has a 3:2 mode - on the lcd it has a blank band on the top and bottom - great solution. Canon EOS Digitals have a 3:2 sensor. I cannot believe Canon could not include a similar option !
On: 2005-02-15
This is by far the best sub-SLR digital camera out there in my opinion, but it still isnt perfect. The image quality beats the pants off of what any of my previous Sonys could do. The color accuracy is much better, and overall exposure is much more balanced. However, the Pro 1 suffers from grainyness in all images - even ones taken in bright sunlight. Shadowed areas look pretty awful when you zoom in on them. But, since were talking 8+ megapixels, that grain is usually not noticable at all at viewing sizes. Its only when you zoom in that you can see a large amount of grain, but even bright blue skies look like sandpaper when you start to zoom in.
The only other problem I can report is an apparent dead-pixel problem with their CCDs. I bought my Pro 1 and a few days later I noticed that all of my shots had a spattering of red pixels in areas of the images. Ends up there were quite a few 5+ dead pixels on the CCD, so I returned it to the store and exchanged it for another one. Two weeks later I noticed a single (but very large) dead pixel on the CCD. I havent dealt with that yet since I need the camera right now, but if that dead pixel continues to bug me Ill probably complain. So, since I got two separate Pro 1s and *both* had bad pixels on the CCD, Id encourage you to test your Pro 1 as soon as you get it and look for bad pixels.
On: 2005-01-19
Santa brought me this camera for Christmas and he must have liked how I behaved the past year, because this camera is an utter delight. Other reviewers went to great lengths to describe the strengths and weaknesses of the Canon Pro1. For the most part, they are right, especially regarding some of the slightly odd ergonomics. (I tend to wrap my right thumb around - and activate - a couple of buttons.) Chalk it up to old habits and unfamiliarity. Chalk it up to electronic gadgetry.
Basically, in my opinion:
* photos come out unbelievably sharp, in some very adverse conditions
* the cameras macro capabilities are outstanding, with exceptional results
* the flash works quite well within a twenty foot range; tacking on my Speedlite from my old T90 solves more challenging situations
* altering aperture and shutter settings, along with the numerous other camera settings, allows for some nice creativity and flexibility
* Canons PC software and connecting cable works great
* It focuses rapidly and triggers quickly
* Auto-bracketing and exposure compensation work wonderfully
* With my 2 gig Hitachi microdrive, I can take loads of fairly decent quality video with audio. Amazing.
I frankly do not see how you can go wrong with this camera. Its not too large and the construction is top-notch. Buy with confidence.
On: 2005-01-06
I spent weeks comparing cameras in this class and was even "convinced" by my local Wolf Camera manager that I needed a Digital SLR. This camera is extremely versitile; ranging from a point & shoot to completely adjustable settings. No interchangable lenses? Never really used them on my old SLR, anyway. One important note for those of you considering a digital SLR: you can only use viewfinder (not the display) when taking photos. Display can only be used to review the photo after it has been shot. Maybe not a big issue for some, but once youve become used to this feature with digital cameras, it will be hard to go back exclusively to a viewfinder.
by: gadgester On: 2004-12-15
Ok, this isnt one of my usual hands-on reviews. I aint got the kind of money to buy all these cameras and test them. But I wanted to give potential buyers some help...
Should you consider an SLR-type EVF (electronic viewfinder) digital camera or an interchangeable-lens digital SLR for serious photography? I faced this question and agonized over it for months. I wish I had come across this brief and very helpful article by Popular Photography Magazine (Im not affiliated with them in any way):
[...]
The article compares five current-model EVF cameras: Canon PowerShot Pro 1, Konica-Minolta Dimage A2, Nikon Coolpix 8700, Olympus Camedia C-8080, and Sony Cybershot DSC-F828. Its a very easy read, and at the end the writers give you a helpful checklist for the EVF vs. d-SLR decision.
As for myself, Im going with a d-SLR since I want 1) high-quality lens, 2) lens choices, 3) little to no shutter lag, and 4) accessory choices. Good luck!
On: 2004-12-14
Ok, this isnt one of my usual hands-on reviews. I aint got the kind of money to buy all these cameras and test them. But I wanted to give potential buyers some help...
Should you consider an SLR-type EVF (electronic viewfinder) digital camera or an interchangeable-lens digital SLR for serious photography? I faced this question and agonized over it for months. I wish I had come across this brief and very helpful article by Popular Photography Magazine (Im not affiliated with them in any way):
[...]
The article compares five current-model EVF cameras: Canon PowerShot Pro 1, Konica-Minolta Dimage A2, Nikon Coolpix 8700, Olympus Camedia C-8080, and Sony Cybershot DSC-F828. Its a very easy read, and at the end the writers give you a helpful checklist for the EVF vs. d-SLR decision.
As for myself, Im going with a d-SLR since I want 1) high-quality lens, 2) lens choices, 3) little to no shutter lag, and 4) accessory choices. Good luck!
On: 2004-12-08
The built-in flash of Pro 1 is very weak. I use this camera mostly indoor now because we just had a baby. Almost every time the pictures have dark corners (not my shadow, BTW). Last week we brought some relatives to Luray Cavern in Virginia, the flash illustrated the people ok but not the stone columns behind. The built-in flash on my brothers old 3.2 mp Olympus did the much, much better job. Finally I decided to buy a external flash ($100+). Now the problem is solved.
On: 2004-12-07
The built-in flash of Pro 1 is very weak. I use this camera mostly indoor now because we just had a baby. Almost every time the pictures have dark corners (not my shadow, BTW). Last week we brought some relatives to Luray Cavern in Virginia, the flash illustrated the people ok but not the stone columns behind. The built-in flash on my brothers old 3.2 mp Olympus did the much, much better job. Finally I decided to buy a external flash ($100+). Now the problem is solved.
On: 2004-10-02
Im very picky about the detail of the camera so this review becomes very long, sorry about that in the first place.
At the first I ordered Nikon Coolpix 8700 because of the price (at that time there was a rebate of $200). However, when I had the Nikon in my hand it feels not comfortable because on the right hand side, theres a pin sticking out for the shoulder strap, and on the left side you have to be careful not to touch the control panel when you place on your hand. So I ordered Canon Powershot Pro1 to compare whether I should spend about $200 more or not, and the answer was ABSOLUTELY!!!! These are a few reasons I choose Canon over Nikon. since all of the technical issue such as the quality of the picture, and all other technical stuff are already answered by other people, I will just talk about something detail or you might call it picky. Some people might find this is weird.
The 2" LCD of Canon and brighter and sharper than Nikon 1.8", I can clearly see the different between the two. However, on the EVF, I think Nikon did the better job on that one. Its not the big different like they have on the LCD, just noticeable.
Another option that I like about canon is it got the focus beep and the square in the EVF turn green when the camera got the focus, Nikon doesnt have this option, but it just shows in the screen with the green dot when it got the focus.
The manual focus in Canon is way better than Nikon because when youre using canon your right hand thumb is holding the MF button and your left hand is turning the focus ring. This make canon feel like a real SLR.
On the charger, I think I like canon charger better than Nikons because canon charger tells you how far the battery has been charging 1 blink for empty, 2 blinks for 50%, 3 blinks for 75% and become solid when it fully charged.
Dont waste money on buying a flash shoe because I will disable the internal flash automatically. I did that when I first got the camera because I thought I would help protect it from dust and etc.
You get extra accessories with canon such as remote control, lens hood, and 64MB high speed CF (but no one worry about this one).
On the USB issue, both Nikon and Canon got USB1.1 unlike Sony F828. But I just order the firewire CF reader from amazon its called Delkin Devices READER-24 FireWire Reader and Writer for CompactFlash (...) It transfer my 512mb very fast. I would recommend it over any USB 2.0 reader because theyre usually failed.
I think overall Canon look more professional than Nikon Coolpix 8700. Moreover, Nikon 8700 and 5700 are identical except the red and grey rubber grip, so some people might think Coolpix 8700 is 5700 which mean people might think that you have 5700 instead of 8700. But if youre carrying Canon Powershot pro 1, for some people, they might know for sure that its the top of the line digital camera for Canon.
For the response on the other member on the small flakes that he has on his cameras lens, I checked out my camera for the flake as soon as I got my camera from amazon.com and found no flake. However, after camera going through after zoom cycle like Tim said, now theres some flakes appear in the lens. I was worried about it quite a bit, but like Tim said the flakes do not affect the quality of the pictures. By the way, I first use this camera when I had my vacation, so the camera went through a lot of zoom cycle and on/off operation. Now theres interesting thing happened, I always checked for the flakes in the lens, but about 2nd day after I first found out about the flakes, all the flakes are gone now!!! I dont know how this happened, but assume the following actions might be the reason:
„X I did tap the side of the lens after I found out the flakes, hoping it might fall out to the side of the lens, but I was not.
„X The way I placed my camera in the camera bag was a bit awkward. I have case logic bag which is a quite bigger than the camera, I place the camera when its not being use by having the left side of the camera(from the EVF view) on the bottom of the bag, which made the right side of the camera(the battery compartment) facing up ward. I didnt mean to place the camera in this position but I just thought which position would be convenient for me to have the camera store in the bag, so that it would be easier to take it out from the bag with my right hand.
Hope this is helping clearing out some question about the flakes.
On: 2004-10-01
Im very picky about the detail of the camera so this review becomes very long, sorry about that in the first place.
At the first I ordered Nikon Coolpix 8700 because of the price (at that time there was a rebate of $200). However, when I had the Nikon in my hand it feels not comfortable because on the right hand side, theres a pin sticking out for the shoulder strap, and on the left side you have to be careful not to touch the control panel when you place on your hand. So I ordered Canon Powershot Pro1 to compare whether I should spend about $200 more or not, and the answer was ABSOLUTELY!!!! These are a few reasons I choose Canon over Nikon. since all of the technical issue such as the quality of the picture, and all other technical stuff are already answered by other people, I will just talk about something detail or you might call it picky. Some people might find this is weird.
The 2" LCD of Canon and brighter and sharper than Nikon 1.8", I can clearly see the different between the two. However, on the EVF, I think Nikon did the better job on that one. Its not the big different like they have on the LCD, just noticeable.
Another option that I like about canon is it got the focus beep and the square in the EVF turn green when the camera got the focus, Nikon doesnt have this option, but it just shows in the screen with the green dot when it got the focus.
The manual focus in Canon is way better than Nikon because when youre using canon your right hand thumb is holding the MF button and your left hand is turning the focus ring. This make canon feel like a real SLR.
On the charger, I think I like canon charger better than Nikons because canon charger tells you how far the battery has been charging 1 blink for empty, 2 blinks for 50%, 3 blinks for 75% and become solid when it fully charged.
Dont waste money on buying a flash shoe because I will disable the internal flash automatically. I did that when I first got the camera because I thought I would help protect it from dust and etc.
You get extra accessories with canon such as remote control, lens hood, and 64MB high speed CF (but no one worry about this one).
On the USB issue, both Nikon and Canon got USB1.1 unlike Sony F828. But I just order the firewire CF reader from amazon its called Delkin Devices READER-24 FireWire Reader and Writer for CompactFlash (...) It transfer my 512mb very fast. I would recommend it over any USB 2.0 reader because theyre usually failed.
I think overall Canon look more professional than Nikon Coolpix 8700. Moreover, Nikon 8700 and 5700 are identical except the red and grey rubber grip, so some people might think Coolpix 8700 is 5700 which mean people might think that you have 5700 instead of 8700. But if youre carrying Canon Powershot pro 1, for some people, they might know for sure that its the top of the line digital camera for Canon.
For the response on the other member on the small flakes that he has on his cameras lens, I checked out my camera for the flake as soon as I got my camera from amazon.com and found no flake. However, after camera going through after zoom cycle like Tim said, now theres some flakes appear in the lens. I was worried about it quite a bit, but like Tim said the flakes do not affect the quality of the pictures. By the way, I first use this camera when I had my vacation, so the camera went through a lot of zoom cycle and on/off operation. Now theres interesting thing happened, I always checked for the flakes in the lens, but about 2nd day after I first found out about the flakes, all the flakes are gone now!!! I dont know how this happened, but assume the following actions might be the reason:
„X I did tap the side of the lens after I found out the flakes, hoping it might fall out to the side of the lens, but I was not.
„X The way I placed my camera in the camera bag was a bit awkward. I have case logic bag which is a quite bigger than the camera, I place the camera when its not being use by having the left side of the camera(from the EVF view) on the bottom of the bag, which made the right side of the camera(the battery compartment) facing up ward. I didnt mean to place the camera in this position but I just thought which position would be convenient for me to have the camera store in the bag, so that it would be easier to take it out from the bag with my right hand.
Hope this is helping clearing out some question about the flakes.
On: 2004-08-27
I am by no means an expert photographer, but I know a little bit about ISO and aperatures and such.
Like the previous reviewer, I greatly anticipated receiving my Powershot Pro1 from Amazon. You can read many professional reviews on this camera so I will keep this short.
I thought I should mention that, exactly like another reviewer, my camera had DEBRIS inside the lens housing. Plus the lens appeared scratched or perhaps had some kind of coating flaw. I was extremely happy with Amazons return/exchange procedure, could not have been easier. Well, I got my new camera and it looked OK, but after several zoom cycles, I noticed it too had some white flaky debris inside the lens. I carefully examined a photo taken afterward and believe it is not affecting the image quality, but I do not understand how an $850+ camera should have this kind of quality problem. There are only 1-2 small flakes visible, so for now I will keep the camera.
Other notes: Close-up image quality is stunning. Highly lit environments are a little washed out in auto mode, so you may find you are running the camera more in manual modes to improve image quality. Movie mode is a great feature.
On: 2004-08-19
I upgraded from a G3, an excellent camera, and looked carefully at the other 8Mpix cameras before choosing the Pro1.
The Pro1 has, for me, the best overall quality, versatility and ease of use of all the 8Mpix offerings. I have not found any trouble with the "lack" of an autofocus light due to the hybrid system, though focusing at long zoom lengths is troublesome in nearly all cameras.
Flash performance is fantastic, and the Pro1 has ETTL and zoom support with affordable Canon external flashes. The Nikon and Sony cant do this and the Olympus flash is horrendously expensive. Ive found that adding an external flash to bounce the light has made a dramatic improvement in my indoor photography, so Canons external flash support makes a huge difference.
On: 2004-07-12
As a botanist/ecologist/photographer I do a great deal of plant photography. I have used Canon products for years and swear by them and rarely at them. The Pro1, though, leaves a lot to be desired for my purposes. The EOS 10D does far better even with lower resolution. The Pro1, for the purposes I need, is not very suitable. (See my review of the PowerShot S1 IS).
But as a photgrapher who has been published around the world, mostly medium and large format photographs, I think for most people the Pro1 would be a very good choice. It has excellent construction and the image quality is superb with very true color, much better than most. If you dont want to mess with RAW image processing, you can photograph using the Super high resolution Large (gives you a JPG image) and get excellent results that compare very favorably with RAW processing and none of the fiddling with RAW. The availability of a 28mm equivalent wide angle is also very nice and not all that common.
The sharpest aperature to use is f5.6 or f6.3. The images are just a hair softer at larger or smaller apertures. Even the digital zoom will produce a pretty decent image at 14x, but gets worse at maximum digital zoom. Usually digital zoom is pretty worthless, but when you start with 8 megapixels you can still end up with a suitable pixel count after all the digital footwork that goes on in the camera. But generally you are still further ahead shooting at maximum optical zoom (no digital) and cropping, if you dont mind some additional digital manipulation antics to improve things.
So, all in all, I highly recommend this camera to anyone who needs high resolution and compact size. It is a good buy. But for really good macro photography I recommend a digital SLR and a top notch macro lens. If you only do a little macro work and are not real fussy about having razor sharp images then this camera will do fine. Sometimes it would almost match the 10D, but not quite. For all other uses, the camera is great.
On: 2004-07-11
This is my 3rd Canon Digital camera - Powershot G2 and G3 were the previous ones. Took 20,000 pics with them.Things I love about the Powershot Pro1:
-takes excellent macro (close-up) photos. The clarity is incredible, especially when using the "Super Macro" mode.
-Color is exccellent.
-Moveable LCD panel on back. I take mostly nature shots - closeups. This allows me to take photos from positions I could never get into without the moveable panel. Shoot from under flowers, raise the camera up to shoot down onto flowers that are above my head, etc.
-battery life is superb - about 400-600 or more photos per charge.
-the 7x zoom is awesome. From 30 feet I can take a photo of a 2" diameter flower and see the details of the flower in the resulting pic.
-Many advanced features. READ THE MANUAL! You wont discover this cameras full potential until you do. Drawbacks:
-The first Pro1 I got had dust and fibers INSIDE the lens. I was able to trade it for another one 2 weeks later after I discovered the flaw - the dust and fibers were only visible when examining the lens in sunlight. One of the replacement camera they were going to give me also had dust inside the lens.
-This second unit I had became defective after 2 weeks. The zoom lens started moving in and out with jerks - sticking. So now I am on my 3rd Pro1 unit. Hopefully the problems with the prior ones are not typical!!
-Slow focussing and composition, as mentioned in other reviews. Not as much of a problem for me, as I do mostly plant photos. But it has caused me to miss butterfly shots.
-The lens cap is a pain to put on and remove. A simple push-on one wouldve been MUCH better. And I am wondering if the necessary action of squeezing the two little tabs all the time caused the failure of my 2nd unit (lens movement sticking - this action may be always pushing the lens from side to side, and cause the mechanism to wear prematurely?
-Have to watch exposures. I find my photos are often overexposed. I have learned the conditions under which this happens, and have learned to compensate for it (which is easy to do). But this was an issue with the G2 & G3 also.
-Regular macro mode is poor at auto-focussing. However, the "Super-Macro" mode is VERY good at auto-focussing. So far, I HIGHLY recommend this camera. I have taken 4000 pics with it in the 40 days I have had a Pro1, and I like it a lot.
It has very advanced features, and even has more features than the Rebel. For example, you can select center-spot metering - cant do that on the Rebel except in Manual mode (if I recall correctly). It is "pseudo-SLR" in that the vewfinder displays the same info as the LCD panel. The zoom is excellent, although some people dont like the "zoom-by-wire" aspect of it.
by: Anonymous On: 2004-06-26
Having never owned a high-end camera I was a little intimidated by the various offerings on the market. I wanted a camera that I could use as a point and shoot and would also allow me to become a bit more "creative" with my photography. I started my research from scratch and had no preference regarding manufacturers, mega pixels, lenses, etc. I read every professional review and consumer review that I could find. I finally narrowed my selection down to two models. The Konica Minolta Dimage A2 and the Canon PowerShot Pro 1. I made a point of visiting my local camera shop so I could get a hands on look at the various options, feel and performance of each camera. The salesman was a Minolta aficionado and tried steering me towards the A2 by quoting a multitude of statistics (many of which were erroneous or existed on both cameras). After holding the PowerShot and playing with it a while, I selected the Canon as my future camera and set about purchasing one. I must say that Im ecstatic with my decision. The camera weight and size is perfect as is the performance. During my research I came across two items which I have verified as areas of concern: 1) The camera has difficulty focusing in low light. This often includes indoor environments with 60w - 100w lighting nearby. I have overcome this by reading up on photographic techniques and how to manipulate a camera to obtain the shot Im looking for. Took me a while to conquer something more than the Auto setting, but Im doing it now and the low-light focus is no longer a problem. 2) Shutter lag seems long. In Auto mode, this is a definite problem if youre shooting any kind of action. Once again, photographic techniques have all but eliminated the shutter lag. Using the custom settings I have reduced the shutter lag to a point that its no longer an issue. I simply make the camera do what I want rather that giving it complete control. Over all, the PowerShot Pro 1 is superb. Its size, weight and performance are excellent and the options available are surprising. If youre looking for a camera that will do it all for you, beware of this one due to the low-light focus issue and shutter lag. If youre willing to take control of the camera, I highly recommend it!
On: 2004-06-25
Having never owned a high-end camera I was a little intimidated by the various offerings on the market. I wanted a camera that I could use as a point and shoot and would also allow me to become a bit more "creative" with my photography. I started my research from scratch and had no preference regarding manufacturers, mega pixels, lenses, etc. I read every professional review and consumer review that I could find. I finally narrowed my selection down to two models. The Konica Minolta Dimage A2 and the Canon PowerShot Pro 1. I made a point of visiting my local camera shop so I could get a hands on look at the various options, feel and performance of each camera. The salesman was a Minolta aficionado and tried steering me towards the A2 by quoting a multitude of statistics (many of which were erroneous or existed on both cameras). After holding the PowerShot and playing with it a while, I selected the Canon as my future camera and set about purchasing one. I must say that Im ecstatic with my decision. The camera weight and size is perfect as is the performance. During my research I came across two items which I have verified as areas of concern: 1) The camera has difficulty focusing in low light. This often includes indoor environments with 60w - 100w lighting nearby. I have overcome this by reading up on photographic techniques and how to manipulate a camera to obtain the shot Im looking for. Took me a while to conquer something more than the Auto setting, but Im doing it now and the low-light focus is no longer a problem. 2) Shutter lag seems long. In Auto mode, this is a definite problem if youre shooting any kind of action. Once again, photographic techniques have all but eliminated the shutter lag. Using the custom settings I have reduced the shutter lag to a point that its no longer an issue. I simply make the camera do what I want rather that giving it complete control. Over all, the PowerShot Pro 1 is superb. Its size, weight and performance are excellent and the options available are surprising. If youre looking for a camera that will do it all for you, beware of this one due to the low-light focus issue and shutter lag. If youre willing to take control of the camera, I highly recommend it!
by: Anonymous On: 2004-06-07
If you attached the filter adapter to the lens, and take a picture set to 28mm with the flash, there would be a darkened area size of half a quarter at the mid lower edge of the picture. The adapter gets in the way of the flash at 28mm.
This is poor design for an expensive camera like the Pro1.
On: 2004-05-29
The CD supplied with said camera didnt install in a computer which has the required software and hardware.The AC adapter didnt work with a notebook computer which has the required hardware and software
On: 2004-05-28
The CD supplied with said camera didnt install in a computer which has the required software and hardware.The AC adapter didnt work with a notebook computer which has the required hardware and software
by: Anonymous On: 2004-05-27
The Powershot Pro1 is the best all-around 8 megapixel digicam. It is compact (unlike the Olympus 8080, Sony F828, and Konica Minolta A2); has a fast 28-200 lens (Olympus only goes to 140mm equivalent, Nikon doesnt allow wide angle); and allows for fine adjustment of focal length (Olympus and Nikon use a crude zoom lever that makes it difficult to zoom exactly as you want to). An additional important point is that the Powershot can actually be used in RAW mode: the Olympus, Sony, and Nikon cameras lock-up for a while after taking a picture in RAW mode (this means the camera is not usable for up to 12 seconds after a RAW picture is taken).Perhaps the closest competitor to the Powershot Pro1 is the Konica Minolta A2, but the A2 has an old lens design that lacks the resolution of the Powershot Pro1, and the A2 is much bigger, lacks the high resolution LCD screen on the Pro1, and has limited movement of its LCD screen. The A2 has a very high resolution viewfinder, but with a good LCD screen (like the Pro1), using a viewfinder is not preferable (for me at least). The A2 also has been noted in online reviews to have quality control problems. Comparisons aside, some reviewers here have suggested that the Pro1 has "slow" autofocus and that the LCD screen freezes for a moment as the autofocus operates. The conclusion given is that the Pro1 is therefore difficult to use with moving subjects. The difficulty, however, is primarily with photographic technique rather than the cameras autofocus system. Because of the sensor size and lens design, the Pro1 has a large depth of field, meaning that subjects will appear in focus over a fairly large distance. Even at the telephoto end, the depth of field for a portrait (e.g. 100mm) at f/4.5 will be sufficient that you can pre-focus the lens and follow a moving subject easily. The shutter response is very very fast when the lens is already at its focus point. This is a standard technique often overlooked by people who never used a manual focus camera. And this technique is far better than relying on the autofocus system in any of the 8 megapixel cameras: none of them is faster than intelligent pre-focusing! The Pro1 makes this even easier by allowing the user to store a focus distance in the Custom1 and Custom2 settings. This is a terrific camera. No camera is perfect, but the Pro1 makes the best compromises in its class. And for those worried about image noise when looking at photos magnified on screen: this is eliminated from actual prints using any of several noise reduction software packages. Dont be afraid to use 400 speed on the Pro1, put the file through good noise reduction software, and print it. The result will still be very nice.
On: 2004-05-17
The PowerShot Pro1 is a camera designed to be familiar to current Canon owners, easy enough to use for first time buyers and yet still provide a semiprofessional feel and feature set. Canon has borrowed from its professional lens line to put an L quality label on the lens system to indicate that this is a new lens and it has been designed to fulfill the high resolution requirements of an eight megapixel CCD. In use the Canon felt slightly slower than I was expecting, certainly not much faster than the G5 and I didnt see any marked improvement in speed overall from that camera.Overall image quality was good, that L lens proving it can deliver the resolution and that Canons reliable DiGiC image processor can turn out a quality image with good tonal and color balance and no noticeable artifacts. Http://www.powershotpro1.com
On: 2004-05-11
This is the fifth digital camera I have owned...Ive had 12 35mm cameras before this. Without a doubt this is the best of the lot! I have taken 5,000 pictures and movies with it alreadyand have learned that you must be patient initially to see just what this incredible Canon product can do. All the criticisms of it are from people who seem to think you should use the automatic settings for all the extreme types of photos. This is not the case. Just like any pro type camera, there are times when you should crack the manual and try all the myriad of settings. Believe me you will not be sorry if you do just that.
On: 2004-05-11
I have had atleast 6 film slrs over the past 20 plus years, and when digital came out over 5 years ago, I waited for the right time to buy. The advantages of a digital over a film camera are obvious, but the resolution and lack of wide angle below $1000 was the main limitation. Now those are no longer as much an issue unless I was shooting something for a large poster.Reasons I chose this camera at this time:
1. I pondered the Digital rebel because of the 17 odd EOS lenses I have, starting at the 20 MM wide. I find the wide angle most useful for scenery and indoors, the medium tele for people pics. The 1.6 lens multiplier for semi-pro DSLRs made all my wides except the 20 mm useless. That killed the Rebel idea.
2. I find 28 mm my MOST used wide angle since it captures scenery in a way I want to remember it. The 20 is great indoors, but for scenery, it really makes the background too small. This camera has 28 mm.
3. I find the 85 to 200 mm range great for people portraits, 85 being best. This has that range.
4. I didnt want to end up cleaning dust from my CCD with interchangeable lenses, especially on a camera I want to use a lot. That killed the rebel idea again.
5. The L lens really shines, with great colors and resolution. Look a www.dpreview.com and see for yourself. The color is definitely cleaner and the resolution fantastic.
6. For wideangle, the stitch mode really kicks (...). There is nothing as good as Canons implementation of this concept.
7. With digital at 8MP, I can get a better picture into the computer than the best 35 mm slide film and home slide-scanning. Less artifacts, noise and NO DUST!
8. Once you get a high quality digital picture into the computer, the possibilities are endless. You cant add resolution in a computer, you need to start with it. You can do things with masks etc. to show highlight and shadow detail like no film could ever do, just not enough exposure latitude.
9. At 50 ASA, this camera blows the competition away, in ALL respects. Hence for the best digital shot below $1000, this is the camera.
10. Built like a tank, is compatible with all of Canons newer gadgetry, takes filters, polarizers (yes!) had built in ND filter, what more could you ask for under $1000.
11. I love the controls. Took a couple of hours reading through the manual and familiarizing myself with the camera.
12. Turn OFF the the continuous focus if you are not going to need it, esp. for things that are not moving, focusses beautifully.
13. The 2" 235K pixel CCD in the back is the best Ive seen, probably the same from the 4.5K$ new Canon Pro D1 MkII camera. Plus the 180 degree rotation is priceless. I use it when I do self timer shots with groups, macro etc.etc.
<14> Camera does focus bracketing, which I never had on my EOS Elans and isnt available on probably any DSLR. Manual focus is available just in case. <15> I checked moire and noise in Photoshop, none to minimal. Photos need no equalization and noise removal. A little moire removal on things like reflections on hair (only sometimes).
<16> The only thing I might add are..live histogram, but most time I know whats going to be overexposed, the camera only confirms it. Exposure latitude is wider than film.<17> The Depth of Field, the space in which everything is in focus, is much much greater than in a 35MM film camera. Hence f-stops over F8 that I used with my wide angles is unnecessary. At 28mm, I get depth of field from 9" to infinity on the Pro 1 whereas I needed F22 on my 35mm camera. This had held me back from buying digital until I dicovered this fact doing some research.
On: 2004-05-10
This is the fifth digital camera I have owned...Ive had 12 35mm cameras before this. Without a doubt this is the best of the lot! I have taken 5,000 pictures and movies with it alreadyand have learned that you must be patient initially to see just what this incredible Canon product can do. All the criticisms of it are from people who seem to think you should use the automatic settings for all the extreme types of photos. This is not the case. Just like any pro type camera, there are times when you should crack the manual and try all the myriad of settings. Believe me you will not be sorry if you do just that.
On: 2004-05-10
I have had atleast 6 film slrs over the past 20 plus years, and when digital came out over 5 years ago, I waited for the right time to buy. The advantages of a digital over a film camera are obvious, but the resolution and lack of wide angle below $1000 was the main limitation. Now those are no longer as much an issue unless I was shooting something for a large poster.Reasons I chose this camera at this time:
1. I pondered the Digital rebel because of the 17 odd EOS lenses I have, starting at the 20 MM wide. I find the wide angle most useful for scenery and indoors, the medium tele for people pics. The 1.6 lens multiplier for semi-pro DSLRs made all my wides except the 20 mm useless. That killed the Rebel idea.
2. I find 28 mm my MOST used wide angle since it captures scenery in a way I want to remember it. The 20 is great indoors, but for scenery, it really makes the background too small. This camera has 28 mm.
3. I find the 85 to 200 mm range great for people portraits, 85 being best. This has that range.
4. I didnt want to end up cleaning dust from my CCD with interchangeable lenses, especially on a camera I want to use a lot. That killed the rebel idea again.
5. The L lens really shines, with great colors and resolution. Look a www.dpreview.com and see for yourself. The color is definitely cleaner and the resolution fantastic.
6. For wideangle, the stitch mode really kicks (...). There is nothing as good as Canons implementation of this concept.
7. With digital at 8MP, I can get a better picture into the computer than the best 35 mm slide film and home slide-scanning. Less artifacts, noise and NO DUST!
8. Once you get a high quality digital picture into the computer, the possibilities are endless. You cant add resolution in a computer, you need to start with it. You can do things with masks etc. to show highlight and shadow detail like no film could ever do, just not enough exposure latitude.
9. At 50 ASA, this camera blows the competition away, in ALL respects. Hence for the best digital shot below $1000, this is the camera.
10. Built like a tank, is compatible with all of Canons newer gadgetry, takes filters, polarizers (yes!) had built in ND filter, what more could you ask for under $1000.
11. I love the controls. Took a couple of hours reading through the manual and familiarizing myself with the camera.
12. Turn OFF the the continuous focus if you are not going to need it, esp. for things that are not moving, focusses beautifully.
13. The 2" 235K pixel CCD in the back is the best Ive seen, probably the same from the 4.5K$ new Canon Pro D1 MkII camera. Plus the 180 degree rotation is priceless. I use it when I do self timer shots with groups, macro etc.etc.
<14> Camera does focus bracketing, which I never had on my EOS Elans and isnt available on probably any DSLR. Manual focus is available just in case. <15> I checked moire and noise in Photoshop, none to minimal. Photos need no equalization and noise removal. A little moire removal on things like reflections on hair (only sometimes).
<16> The only thing I might add are..live histogram, but most time I know whats going to be overexposed, the camera only confirms it. Exposure latitude is wider than film.<17> The Depth of Field, the space in which everything is in focus, is much much greater than in a 35MM film camera. Hence f-stops over F8 that I used with my wide angles is unnecessary. At 28mm, I get depth of field from 9" to infinity on the Pro 1 whereas I needed F22 on my 35mm camera. This had held me back from buying digital until I dicovered this fact doing some research.
On: 2004-05-03
I own the Digital Rebel (300D) and last week I bought this Pro1 for my wife. So after a week of intensive use and testing (we are both professionnal wedding photographers) here are the pros and cons, some of them compared to the rebel:PROS:
- 8 MP
- L "pro" lens, really delivers crisper and sharper images than the bundled EF-S of my rebel, but I still prefer my EF 50mm f/1.4 USM
- 28-200mm equivalent is everything we could ask for weddings, we usually stay in the 28-80 range anyway because of flash range limitations
- the built-in flash is reliable, fast and strong
- lots of functions and modes, + 2 custom settings
- very small, *ideal* for a womans hands, yet again Im used to the rebel plus the battery grip so...
- 1 compartment for CF card and battery
- incredibly bright, big and clear LCD, very useful
- flip over LCD panel
- good battery bundled (1350 mAh versus 1100 for the rebel)
- also bundled: 64MB CF, neck strap, 58mm filter adapter, remote control (!) and hood
- Good price (same as rebel)
- hot shoe for external flash
- black "pro" look CONS:
- Electronic zoom ring, a bit slow and drains battery
- autofocus too slow for wildlife or sports
- not as user friendly as previous Canon models
- maybe a tad too small for most men hands
- smaller cmos sensor than the digirebel
- takes like 2 seconds to turn on (I expected less than the rebel, but its the same)
- usb 1.1 (should be 2.0 what the Hell was Canon thinking??)
- almost impossible to focus in low light, even with an external flash with IF assistant beam
- freezes the viewfinder for a sec when if focuses, annoying
- not many additionnal accessories (like battery pack, eyepiece extender...) Bottom Line: I would still recommend it for weddings or maybe all-round, but the next thing Im buying in about 6 months will definitely be another digital SLR (like the 1Ds), give the rebel to my wife and sell the pro1. Its a great camera, but its not really "pro" like the name and the L lens suggests. Well thats about it, I hope it helps.
On: 2004-05-02
Im an amateur and all I can say about this camera is that "I love it", couldnt ask for a better piece of equipment. Intuitive and easy to operate. I bought filters and love the results of my images even more. True high noise at ISO 200/400, tough to get quick response on the action shots, but thats about it, this camera delivers alot of performance and quality photos. Worth every penny paid! Im glad I waited for this one!
On: 2004-05-02
Before I purchased the Powershot Pro I had owned both the Canon S40 and the S50, I was happy to find that Canon had continued the same software format and that having experience with the former allowed me to use the Powershot Pro immediately. First a complaint: Yo Cannon whatsup with the lens cap!? After seventy-five years of cameras designed with a lens housing longer than the lens such that one can palm a cap on it without looking, or more importantly remove it without looking, Canon reinvents the wheel, and badly. The lens housing does not protrude farther than the lens, everything from fingers to clothes to branches touch the lens because it has none of the typical protection. The cap fits in one position only, locking in with tabs that must be pressed on both sides to remove it. Simply unusable and probably left off by most users, which means a chronically dirty lens. The second problem is the long period of time that it takes to calculate an image, over a second in the best conditions and longer in poor light. This is a complete nuisance and a reason to shop for another camera if you take motion shots. There is no such thing with this camera, the subject is off frame by the time it reads the light, etc. A poor job in this area. Those complaints out the way I find the camera useful, the movie mode records in 640 X 480 making it useful for something other than a novelty as it was on the earlier Powershot line. The lens is excellent, in the Supermacro mode it focuses at one half inch and with the 7X optical zoom added onto the 15X digital zoom it is possible to shoot either a frame-filling shot of a finger nail as well as the numbers on an airplane flying at 3,000 feet, and with the same lens! It is an L series lens and focuses by sound, somehow, so it is always busy readjusting as one moves the camera, also the viewfinder is through the lens making it technically a SLR. The software allows one to use different areas of the LCD to focus so there is no reason not to get the perfect focus every time. The combination of light metering, shutter speed, F stops, and focal variation are so great one could shoot each shot dozens of ways, and probably will. Get a big compactflash card for this one. The battery lasts so long at this writing I cant say how long because I have yet to deplete it; with the S40 or S50 one always carried a spare because they lasted about an hour, not with the Powershot Pro, seems like many hours, at least three so far, stay tuned. The photographs in general are excellent, as long as the subject is still and it has its second or two to calculate.
On: 2004-05-01
Im an amateur and all I can say about this camera is that "I love it", couldnt ask for a better piece of equipment. Intuitive and easy to operate. I bought filters and love the results of my images even more. True high noise at ISO 200/400, tough to get quick response on the action shots, but thats about it, this camera delivers alot of performance and quality photos. Worth every penny paid! Im glad I waited for this one!
by: Anonymous On: 2004-04-30
I recently purchased a PRO1 after trying a Minolta A2, which I liked a lot but in the end couldnt live with the soft images it took. The Minolta A2 has rightly been praised for having great ergonomics so I was a little concerned as to whether I had been spoiled too much. But actually I have been pleasantly surprised by the PRO1. The buttons are in logical places and it is very quick and easy to shift between play and record modes. The EVF is much better than I thought it would be and seems just as good as the A2 (to my eye at least). The zoom is also good -- again, I thought I would miss the manual zoom on the A2, but with a little practice the PRO1s zoom seems just as responsive. Theres even a way to get the zoom to rapidly move, a bit like the express option on a car window. I had also seen some criticism of start up time, but it seems fine to me (and faster than my old G2). Similarly, some people seem irritated that the LCD/Viewfinder blacks out momentarily after taking a picture, but to me this seems OK and something I can easily live with (hardly even notice after a while).Of course the camera is bit on the small side compared with the other 8MP offersings so that takes some getting used to and I could see the camera being a little cumbersome for larger hands. But I like the fact that the camera is fairly diminutive and not too obvious. There are a couple of annoyances -- the lens cap seems flimsy and cheap, but as I intend to permanently mount a UV filter on the camera Ill be buying a 58mm lens cap anyway. Unfortunately though it appears that the sun-shade cannot be mounted when the filter adapter is attached. The LCD is fantastic -- a little larger than previous Canon models. The articulation also seems a bit stiffer than my G2 which is actually a good thing and is less prone to be accidentally moved (and subsequently misaligning a shot). Probably the biggest thing to get used to is the AF. Some have complained that it is slow, and I can see if you are taking action shots it could be. Im primarily going to be taking portraits & landscapes so its fine for me and seems responsive enough, and more importantingly appears to be accurate. The biggest challenge Ive had with the AF is trying to get a lock in low light. I eventually realized by perusing a few forums that the AF doesnt work well at focal lengths > 50mm in low light. This is a shame and probably the main reason why I give this 4 stars instead of 5, but it is certainly not a showstopper. I also found it a little difficult to use in macro mode (at least taking flowers) when it tends to hunt more than I would expect. But the best thing about the camera is resolution -- it really delivers. Pictures taken in 8MP are crisp and contain an amazing amount of detail. I specifically wanted a camera with large resolution so I could take pictures of buildings or landscapes and crop. I can tell already that its going to be possible to make a lot of prints with no or minimal post-processing. Like a lot of people I dont want to spend hours after a vacation processing pictures in Photoshop so its important to me to be able to print directly out of the camera. The PRO1 seems very suited for this. The one thing I do miss about the A2 is the anti-shake. Also noise on the PRO1 is noticeable above ISO 100 so that means youll need to shoot at ISO50 or 100. I went out to my local park tonight and took some pictures about 15-30 mins before sunset and discovered that many of my pictures were blurred even with camera speeds at 1/80 or so. As I shot with ISO 200 & 400 I also found the pictures just too noisy to be of much use without PPing them. But that could just be me getting used to the camera, as Ive certainly got very sharp pictures in brighter conditions, but if I have use a tripod more often it would probably be worth it. As with everything there is no perfect product, but this camera, despite a few AF deficiencies and quirks, really comes closer to what I was hoping to find in an 8MP camera and most importantingly, creates large crisp and pleasing images.
On: 2004-04-21
Im a fairly inexperienced camera user, and this is my second digital. My previous camera was a Canon Powershot A80, which did everything exactly as expected, and is great for the money.I waited excitedly for months to get my hands on this camera, and, as a whole, the camera is exceptional. Image quality is great. Its also very responsive, and super easy to use (for a manual cam). You just cant beat the swivel LCD screen, (super) macro mode, and 8mp resolution. There are, however, some things which should be mentioned: -High noise at ISO over 200 (camera does 50/100/200/400)
-Autofocus very sluggish, making it hard to catch action shots
-Made to hold with right hand, in which it fits nicely. On the left side, however, there is no "comfortable" spot to hold the camera. Not ergonomically correct. Even bizarre. I usually just "rest" it on my hand.
-No AF assist light for focusing in low light/night time situations. This is truely bizarre, as my A80 ($300 camera) has one built in, and it works great! Seems like a ridiculous oversight...
-Alot of buttons on a small camera. Fingers may cramp. By no means is the camera "junk", and Ive enjoyed it thus far, but felt it necessary to mention these problems for others to consider.
by: Anonymous On: 2004-04-20
This is my 5th digital and the best of the lot. I have been getting consistently sharp pictures with a huge amount of detail and correct color saturation from day 1.I love the swivel LCD and found the camera to be easy to operate.
If all you are going to do is point and shoot this is the camera for you. If you like control of aperture, shutter speed, white light etc....., this is also the camera for you. I like to keep the camera at super fine resolution and find the amount of detail this camera picks up astounding. Even if I crop out a tiny section of the image the resolution is excellent. The battery life is very good. Most people will need a 512 MG or larger card though. Maybe an extra battery too. What could make the camera better? Perhaps a lower price tag, and an inexpensive camera case. My poor camera sat around unprotected for 2 weeks! I know, not all camera come with a bag or case in their package, but it would have been nice. Bottom line is the picture quality is one of the best of the 8 MGP digicams out there right now. The small size is a definate plus for me, and it starts up quickly and handles very well. Not the best in lowlight situations, but for me the other advantages outnumber this one feature.
On: 2004-04-20
Im a fairly inexperienced camera user, and this is my second digital. My previous camera was a Canon Powershot A80, which did everything exactly as expected, and is great for the money.I waited excitedly for months to get my hands on this camera, and, as a whole, the camera is exceptional. Image quality is great. Its also very responsive, and super easy to use (for a manual cam). You just cant beat the swivel LCD screen, (super) macro mode, and 8mp resolution. There are, however, some things which should be mentioned: -High noise at ISO over 200 (camera does 50/100/200/400)
-Autofocus very sluggish, making it hard to catch action shots
-Made to hold with right hand, in which it fits nicely. On the left side, however, there is no "comfortable" spot to hold the camera. Not ergonomically correct. Even bizarre. I usually just "rest" it on my hand.
-No AF assist light for focusing in low light/night time situations. This is truely bizarre, as my A80 ($300 camera) has one built in, and it works great! Seems like a ridiculous oversight...
-Alot of buttons on a small camera. Fingers may cramp. By no means is the camera "junk", and Ive enjoyed it thus far, but felt it necessary to mention these problems for others to consider.
by: Anonymous On: 2004-04-14
I believe this camera excels in everything. It takes really great shots and you have the control to do many things. Canon hit the ball hard with this camera. One problem is the quick freeze before you take a shot, hard to shoot an action photo.
by: Anonymous On: 2004-04-13
As expected, the image quality is excellent. The drawback is the viewfinder. This is through the lens, which would be fine but pressing the shutter release part way freezes the image for a moment before the camera fires. I was trying to photograph my young niece jumping on a trampoline and running around and found it almost impossible because the frame would freeze as soon as I pressed half way down. The apparent solution is to not press the shutter release until ready to fire, which will tend to produce jerkier images. Perhaps practice will solve the problem but for now I think this camera will be difficult to use for any kind of action or motion shot. For the price, this is a surprising flaw.The shots that do work out are really impressive. Rich, saturated colors, remarkably good exposure even with flash and a dark background. Potential to be a pro point and shoot.
On: 2004-04-13
I bought the camera through the mail. Turn on the camera and there are two dead pixels near the middle of the LCD screen. Took some pictures with 430EZ flash using TTL and all pictures are washed out white. Canon said its compatible with the EZ series flash but apparently not the case.
Mail order shop told me that I cant exchange it for another one because two dead pixels on LCD screen is not categorized as defective. I dont remember paying $1K for something like this. Called Canon and they said I have to mail it to their repair center to get it fix under warranty.
So, I bought the camera and havent use it yet and its costing me another $30 to ship it to get the LCD replace. What kind of quality control is this for a $1K camera?
by: Anonymous On: 2004-04-09
I really, really wanted to like this camera, but I cant. On the plus side, it takes nice, sharp pictures (although a bit noisy in dark areas), and is built like a tank. But thats where it ends because it is absolute torture waiting for this thing to focus! Honestly, my four-year-old Sony Cybershot focuses faster which I simply cannot understand. Also, the LCD viewfinder freezes for at least one second for every single shot while it composes the picture. This is fine if youre shooting a bowl of fruit, but if your subject is moving at all, youre going to want to pull your hair out! I really wish this camera were all it was supposed to be, but you have now been warned. I guess Ill keep looking.
by: Anonymous On: 2004-04-09
I was eager to buy this one, I read so many wonderful reviews on the internet, I saw the beautiful shots in the sample galleries, I was so thrilled, but then I went to the store to try the Canon Pro1 myself and the whole experience was a disaster. If the camera had been made by Kodak or Sony or Minolta, then I would not have been surprised at its akwardness and lack of quality. This is a cheapo piece of garbish, I would not pay more than $100 dollars for it, despite the 8 megapixels advantage. The lens is useless, you can not focus with it. The buton placement does not make any sense, it is not ergonomic either, it feels unconmfortable on your hand. The telefoto lens is too heavy and throws the camera forward. It vibrates when you take a picture. It was a mess. Do yourself a favor and buy any other Canon model, they are all excelent except for this one. I am going to guess that the Pro1 was neither built nor designed in Japan. This is the most "non-Canon" camera you will ever see.
On: 2004-04-05
I looked at the Nikon 8700 and the Canon Pro 1. I had them both in hand, shot pictures, compared the EVF, comfort, weight and read all the reviews prior to see the actual cameras. After a long evaluation I decided on the Canon. It just had a better feel. The camera offers a lot of features. I wanted to get back into a camera that would do something other that point and shoot, which this does very well. I also wanted to be able to adjust the apature and film speed. Creative and fun things.
The first pictures I took were very impressive. Low light visibility is good. It has a SLR feel and sound to it. Color was beautiful and th 7X optical is just perfect to be hand held.
One important thing to consider is how the camera will operate in low light. It has an AF assist, which should be on all cameral or it will not be able to focus on a particular subject and the picture will be blurred. Without getting technical, this camera can be used by a novice or a professional. Its versality is unbelievable. Also, a very important feature of this camera is its battery. It has an extremely long life and its charger is small, easily carried in a case and charges to full charge in one hour.
by: Anonymous On: 2004-04-01
This is a camera that I thought would be perfect. I was moving up from a G1 that had served well and was fault free. The eight megapixels sounded great, and I knew the camera would be intuitively easy to use. I had looked hard at the Digital Rebel, and liked the opportuity for a better lens. But I like being able to shoot using the LCD more. It is often more convenient and can help with some really difficult angles. The downside is that it is hard to maneuver. You have to grasp it from the right, and it is heavy on the left due the position of the lens. The style of the grip makes it hard to hold. Unlike the G1, there is no factory case. Theres a bag, but not a case that you could have on the camera that might make it easier to grasp. For me, no regrets, just some compromise.
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