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Canon PowerShot SX1 IS
User Report
by Mike Pasini
Don't beat yourself up if you confuse the Canon PowerShot SX1 IS with the SX10 IS. These 20x zoom digicams are physically quite similar. A little chrome here, a wider LCD there and that's about it. They share Canon's attention to fit and finish with a build quality unusual in this category.
But inside, the Canon SX1 is quite a different beast. The 10-megapixel sensor in the Canon SX1 is not the usual CCD found in every PowerShot ever built but a CMOS sensor. That's a first. By no coincidence, the Canon SX1 (unlike the SX10) shoots Raw and captures HD video.
That's exciting, no question. But my first impression of the Canon SX1 was something other than excitement. The word that kept popping into mind to describe the Canon SX1 was "awkward." But after spending some time with the Canon SX1, well, have you heard the one about the ugly duckling?

Look and Feel. The Canon SX1 is no larger than its 20x zoom competitors. I have a small tent city of bags here but none of them really fit the bill. If I'd kept the Canon SX1 around much longer, I would have used an UPstrap on it to be able to hang it over my shoulder instead of from my neck. It's light enough either way, though.

The metal tripod mount is a bit too close to the battery compartment to switch AAs when tripod-mounted, but the card compartment is in a separate bay on the grip side, so no worries there. Above that port is the USB and mini HDMI port. Next to that is the DC In and AV port.

But frankly, none of the super long zooms I've tried really seem to have worked out the camera design as well as the Olympus SP550 UZ or Fujifilm S2000HD. Since then the trend has been to use cheaper materials to compensate for the more elaborate, expensive optics. Canon does buck that trend with a good build in the SX1 IS, but the design itself just seems awkward to me.

Controls. Controls are what make a dSLR easier to use than the less expensive digicam. There are usually fewer controls on a digicam and they tend to be primarily electronic.

The Canon SX1 has more buttons and dials than the average digicam, but you'll still be visiting the menu system more often.

The Power switch behind the Canon SX1's Shutter button could not be placed in a more awkward position. You can't reach it with your forefinger while holding the Canon SX1, and if you try to reach it with your thumb you'll drop the camera. So it takes two hands to turn the camera on or off. Nothing new about that, of course, but Power buttons shouldn't be afterthoughts.

The Mode dial has the familiar Canon groups of Creative Zone (for Programmed Auto, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, Manual, and Custom modes), Auto and Image Zone (for Portrait, Landscape, Night Landscape, Sports, Special Scene modes, Stitch Assist, and Movie modes).

The LCD is articulated, hinged on the left side, rotating to face downward or upward or forward (from which it can be rotated back against the back of the camera). Because it's a 16:9 aspect ratio, it really swings out wide and can get tangled in the shoulder strap. So, frankly, as much as I like articulated screens (for composing high and low shots without cracking my knees), I left it in the routine back panel position.

One of the brighter ideas in button technology (if there is such a thing) was the introduction of the Movie button. And the Canon SX1 has it. No matter what mode the Mode dial has selected, pressing the Movie button will start recording video. Pressing it again stops the capture. Simple. And better.

Canon is forever changing the functions of the most familiar buttons and the Canon SX1 indulges in that shell game, too. The Control dial's Up arrow switches to Manual focus (not a bad idea, really, on a long zoom where you want a convenient way to set the lens quickly on infinity). The Right arrow displays the ISO settings, Down handles release modes (like the Self-Timer) and Left sets Landscape, Macro, or Super Macro.

A Display button below the Canon SX1's navigator disk changes what's displayed on the LCD before switching to the EVF and changing what's displayed there. Two functions in one button. It works, but I'm so used to using a button by the EVF to activate it that it takes some getting used to.

The button by the EVF switches aspect ratios from 4:3 to 16:9. That's a great idea, too, because these are essentially compositional choices and you might want to try the alternative while you're framing the subject. If you're shooting in portrait orientation, a button is a very nice way to do that, rather than returning to the menu system.

To that button's left is the Print/Share button whose major advantage is in the seven shooting functions you can assign to it. As the Shortcut button, you can set it to Light Metering, White Balance, Custom White Balance, Red-Eye Correction, Digital Teleconverter, i-Contrast, AE Lock, AF Lock, or Display Off.

On the top deck, the Flash button that only does something when you lift the built-in flash up, also lets you record an audio note with an image in Playback or just unaccompanied audio. Audio recording enjoys a few settings on the Canon SX1 that I don't usually see: microphone level and wind filter.

The famous Canon Menu button is right where you'd expect to find it under the Control dial. It brings up the LCD menu system's main settings, primarily for basic camera behavior. Shot-to-shot settings are available from the Function/Set button in the middle of the Control dial, just as they are on any PowerShot.

One of the more useful controls isn't even on the Canon SX1. It's the included remote control, powered by a CR2025 coin battery with a membrane keyboard. You can use it in either Record or Playback mode after activating it using the Release Mode button (Down arrow). When activating it, you can also press the Menu button to set the shutter delay (0, 2, or 10 seconds). It works whether you are behind or in front of the camera, too.

In Record mode, you can zoom in or out and fire the Shutter with the remote. You can also change the Display mode, switching to the EVF to turn off the LCD, as well as changing the information displayed. In Playback mode, you can see an index of images, display an image, and enlarge it in steps, or call up the Menu to run a slide show.

The remote is a wonderful addition to the package, opening up a few more shooting possibilities, particularly in the wild, and making it a lot more comfortable to run a slide show on your television with the camera cabled to it.

Lens. The 28-560mm 20x optical zoom lens is a real treat. And because you can compose easily with either 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratios by simply pressing that obscure button next to the EVF, it's even more fun.