The new camera could easily be mistaken for one of the PowerShot G-Series, especially its resemblance to the G12. Many people like their ergonomics and the ability to change important settings with external controls. These qualities remain in the G1 X, but some things have changed.
Specifications
Sensor format: CMOS 1.5-inch format , 18.7x14mm
Krop factor: 1.85
Sensor size: 14.3 million., 4352Ć3264 pixels.
LCD: 7.5 cm, 920,000 pixels, tilting at a variable angle.
aspect ratio: 3:2, 4:3, 16:9, 1:1, 4:5
Autofocus: face detection, 9-point, 1-point center or selectable
Shutter speed 60-1/4000 seconds
Shooting modes: Smart Auto, P, A, S, M, 14 scene modes
Continuous shooting: 4.5 fps up to 6 frames , 1.9 fps, 0.7 fps
Exposure metering: Matrix evaluation, center-weighted, spot metering
White balance: auto, 7 presets, 2 custom settings
Sensitivity: 200-12,800 ISO extended 100-102,400 ISO
Flash: Built-in 50cm ā 7.0m wide angle /1.0m ā 3.1m tele , hot shoe, sync, X-sync at 1/00s
Video: up to 1280Ć720, 24fps, AVI Motion JPEG
Memory cards: SD, SDHC, SDXC, 1 slot
Interfaces: mini-USB, analog AV, mini-HDMI
Power: Lithium-ion battery NB-10L 7.4V, 920mAh
Dimensions: 116.7 x 80.5 x 64.7 mm
Weight: 534 g
Price: 27 000 Dollars.
Supplied with: Camera, battery, wall charger, USB cable, neck strap, lens cap, user manual, software CD, warranty card
About the camera
On the left side of the upper plane of the body appeared going up like an elevator , a flash, so the dial exposure compensation moved to the right, under the switch dial shooting mode. This combination is more convenient because you need to correct the exposure much more often than you do to change the sensitivity.
In addition, it is quite possible to trust the auto ISO setting, limiting the upper value if necessary. However, the sensitivity menu is easy to access by pressing the multi selector ring.
An important advantage of advanced Canon compacts for many years is the LCD screen, which has a maximum degree of mobility and allows you to shoot from the most unconventional positions.
The newcomer also has it and has a high resolution 920,000 dots , allowing a fairly accurate assessment of the level of detail or hitting in sharpness.
By the way, in addition to the standard exposure bracketing the camera has a focus bracketing ā thatās where the accuracy of the screen comes in handy for selecting the best shot. By the way, there is also a switchable function to check the focus on the enlarged fragment right after shooting.
Animated aperture and shutter speed scales that appear on the screen make the process of setting the main parameters easier. Miniscale electronic level with a movable pointer allows to avoid horizon falling.
The LCD screen is good, but it uses a lot of power and does lose some intensity in bright light.
But the G1 X has a built-in diopter-adjustable optical viewfinder that zooms in sync with the zoom.
This viewfinder is quite primitive: in the wide angle zoom position part of the frame obscures the edge of the lens, no electronic information is displayed, only in confirmation of focus a green light on the right.
Itās the viewfinder we can thank for though, because it lets you shoot for a lot longer in situations where you canāt recharge the battery.
Although the G1 X is new, Iāve heard from photographers that their desire to buy the G12 has already migrated to the new model.
The main, if not to say killer, argument in its favor was the new 14-megapixel CMOS sensor with a completely new form factor 1.5 inches . When comparing the areas, it sits almost in the middle between the Four Thirds and APS-C standard according to Canon .
The new sensor is 16% larger than the first, and 20% smaller than the second. Compared to the G12 sensor, it is six times smaller.
Canon can now build a mirrorless camera around it ā the G1 X needs a mount and a series of lenses, which of course, is no problem for this photographic company.
But weāll have to be patient and settle for now for the hard-built zoom lens, to the description of which Iām moving on to.
Novelty optics is not impressive with high magnification ā only 4x. But as we know the shorter the focal length range FR , the easier it is to make a high quality lens.
This rule was confirmed in our test: examining a few hundred test shots I did not notice any barrel distortions and only a few of them had signs of chromatic aberrations CA , and that with magnification of no less than 100%.
By the way, it turned out that these problems are more noticeable on RAW files, but the built-in image processing tools effectively correct the CA before writing to JPG. I should add that a universal lens for every occasion needs a wider maximum FFR range at least 24-140mm equivalent .
However, the G1 X lens barrel has a removable ring that hides a bayonet mount for lens hoods, filter adapters and hopefully for optical attachments an extra wide angle lens would be very nice, as well as a macro lens ā the lens focuses from 50 cm .
the zoom lever is delicate enough to set the lens to the right position. Below my index finger is the dial for the main setting for P/A/S/M modes aperture or shutter speed , and the second control, the multi selector ring, is used in program mode to correct the exposure or select the aperture value in manual mode.
On the back panel there are a lot of buttons: for fixing the exposure, choosing the exposure mode and focus point, instant video recording and calling the main menu. A reprogrammable button that can be assigned one of 16 functions is also available.
The quick menu of settings is traditionally invoked by the central button of the multiselector and looks familiar to users of Canon compacts. But it has additional very useful functions e.g., an ND filter for shading on a bright sunny day .
Shooting
For a camera with a contrast focusing method, the G1 Xās autofocus is fast and reliable. Problems might at first arise before you get used to the zoom lens if you want to focus closer than the lens can from 50cm .
But if you are more careful, you can get help from the mini scale at the top of the screen which tells you the minimum focus distance for the given zoom position.
Of course, autofocus becomes ineffective in āclassicā situations such as low light, high zoom when reducing the aperture ratio and when the subject is low-contrast.
Manual focusing with the multi selector ring is the only way to get out of this situation. To make the process of focusing easier, an enlarged section of the image is shown in the center of the frame the whole time the shutter button is not pressed halfway.
Portraits taken in auto mode with the built-in flash show that the flash output is accurately metered, white balance is set correctly, and ISO sensitivity is low.
Face detection in the frame is fast and confident ā thereās almost nothing to find fault with. The optical stabilization system is based on lens shift in the lens. The manufacturer claims it has 4 stages of efficiency.
Experiments have shown that at the maximum FFR 112mm at a shutter speed of 1/6-1/8s t. e. with 4 steps back from safe you can really get up to 90-95% of clear shots, and that without turning on the enhanced stabilization mode it certainly āeatsā the battery more .
At 5 steps 1/4s you can get up to 50-70% of clear shots, and at 6 1/2s up to 30% if youāre a biathlete or just an experienced photographer .
Good color reproduction throughout the test, in a variety of lighting conditions. As it became clear in the beginning, the exposure metering of new items has a tendency to a small overexposure.
It can be easily corrected by entering the exposure compensation which, as mentioned before, is easily and visually done here ā by turning the separate wheel on the upper side of the body.
If you shoot a high contrast scene and save it as a JPG file, the first time you look at it you might think that not all tones of the scene fit into the dynamic range DD ā they usually look overexposed.
And the rule has never been more true: do not trust the picture on the LCD screen and do not hurry to delete such frames. During the correction in photo editors it is discovered that in many frames the information is not lost and can be restored.
However, the camera also has a built-in DD expansion function with three settings: Auto, 200% and 400%. Experiments showed that the first and second gave about the same result with incomplete recovery of light, but the third pulls out almost everything possible.
There is one thing though: when you increase the DD correction the auto increases the ISO speed and that cuts down on details a bit.
But that depends on whether you choose low, medium, or high levels of digital noise filtering. If you are an experienced user of photo editors, choose the first option, if you do not like to engage in post-processing ā choose the middle option.
High level of filtering effectively removes artifacts from smooth tone areas and transitions, but significantly blurs small details. Overall, the camera noise reduction is very gentle on detail, and maintained at a respectable level up to a maximum ISO 12,800.
Sensitivity up to 3200 is quite usable, down to 6400 quality degradation is most noticeable in the shadow area, but the midtones suffer from artifacts. From 8000 ISO onwards, powerful filtering is applied, smoothing out monochrome areas but barely affecting the contrast. Overall, the high ISO performance of this compact is impressive.
Conclusions
The Canon PowerShot G1 X is a good candidate to be your only travel camera. It offers a wealth of creative possibilities and delivers high image quality even in low light that rivals that of a semi-professional DSLR.
Your camera also includes accessories for SLRs: external flashes, radio and IR syncro. Full HD video shooting expands the creative possibilities.
Picture tests
1. Correct color and exposure in mixed lighting. Digital noise is effectively handled by the automation, artifacts are poor 45mm, f/8, 1/25s, ISO 800 .
2. Autofocus was okay in the face of quite thick fog. Stabilization system worked well, too. Depth of field is adequate for the subject 28mm, f/5.6, 1/6s, ISO 1600 .
3. Focuses through thick porthole glass with confidence. Good level of detail. too much light, not enough contrast 76mm, f/8, 1/400s, ISO 100 .
4. Under backlight without lens hood, there was practically no loss of contrast, but I got flare ghosting near the edge of the frame. Exposure is correctly set 28mm, f/8, 1/200s, ISO 100 .
5. Contrasting scene taken at the wide-angle zoom position. Branches at the edges of the frame practically have no chromatic aberration. Fine details are not washed out even in the corners 28mm, f/5.6, 1/200s, ISO 100 .
6. Good photo detail, despite shooting at high sensitivities with slow shutter speeds. Auto white balance and exposure are correct 28mm, f/7.1, 1/6s, ISO 1250 .
7. All tones of the high-contrast subject fit into the dynamic range. The angle of view of the lens at the extreme position is clearly insufficient for such scenes 28 mm, f/8, 1/200 s, ISO 100 .
8. Shooting at the maximum focal length. Achieved a high level of detail, right down to the texture of the stone. Lights are overexposed but can be restored in the photo editor 112mm, f/8, 1/160s, ISO 125 .
How does the Canon PowerShot G1 X compact camera perform in low light conditions? Is it capable of capturing clear and detailed images without the need for additional lighting equipment?
How does the Canon PowerShot G1 X compact camera perform in low light conditions compared to other compact cameras in its class?
What are your thoughts on the image quality and performance of the Canon PowerShot G1 X compact camera? Is it worth investing in for professional photography?