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Canon PowerShot S300 Canon makes a major update to their original S100 "Digital ELPH": More zoom, more controls, and better photos. Hard to beat! Select a topic Reference: Datasheet PowerShot S300 Sample Images --------------------------------- 1. Intro and Highlights 2. Executive Overview 3. Design 4. Viewfinder 5. Optics 6. Exposure & Flash 7. Shutter Lag & Cycle Time Tests 8. Operation & User Interface 9. Camera Modes & Menus 10. Image Storage & Interface 11. Video, Power, Software 12. Test Results & Conclusion --------------------------------- Print-Friendly Review Version Additional Resources and Other Links Reader Comments on PowerShot S300 Review --------------------------------- Digital Camera Comparometer (TM) --------------------------------- <-- Digital Cameras (Home) <-- Digital Camera Reviews Index <<Optics :(Previous) | (Next): Shutter Lag & Cycle Time Tests>> Page 6:Exposure & Flash Review First Posted: 4/5/2001

Exposure
We found the exposure control on the S300 pretty straightforward, as with the previous S100 model, with an improved LCD menu system that was less time consuming to navigate. The camera features Automatic and Manual basic exposure modes, Manual simply meaning that you have control over the image quality, exposure compensation, and white balance. The camera controls shutter speed and aperture in all exposure modes. Putting the camera in Automatic exposure mode means that the camera controls everything, with the exception of the self-timer, flash, capture, and macro modes. Exposure mode is controlled by the Mode dial on top of the camera, which also includes Stitch Assist (or panorama) and Movie modes (both described below). The S300's sensitivity setting is equivalent to ISO 100 and is not adjustable. However, in low-light shooting situations, the ISO equivalent automatically raises to 150. Shutter speeds on the S300 range from one to 1/1,500 seconds, which somewhat limits the camera's low-light shooting capabilities. In our testing though, we found the S300 produced bright, clear images at light levels as low as one foot-candle (11 lux), a level about equivalent to a city night scene under typical street lighting.

Camera operation is a breeze, as you just point and shoot most of the time, leaving the exposure decisions up to the camera itself. Halfway pressing the shutter button sets focus and exposure, and the small LEDs next to the optical viewfinder let you know when the camera is ready to take the picture. A number of the camera functions are controlled by individual control buttons on the back panel, but a few features require the LCD menu system. We always like to see as little reliance on the LCD monitor as possible, but the small size of the S300's back panel means some compromise is required, in order to leave enough room to grip the camera securely. Regardless, we found the LCD menu system very navigable, and it only took a glance at the manual to make sure we were on the right track.

The S300 uses a center weighted metering system, which means that the camera averages exposure values from a small area in the center of the image to determine the proper exposure. Although there is no adjustable AE/AF Lock function on the camera, the usual half-press of the shutter button serves as a simple exposure/focus lock option. (Here's how this works: Place the area you want to base the exposure on in the center of the field of view, halfway press and hold the shutter button to set the exposure and focus. Aim the camera to achieve the final framing while continuing to hold down the shutter button. Once you've framed the picture, just fully press the shutter button to capture your photo.) Exposure compensation is adjustable from -2 to +2 in 1/3 EV increments, in all modes except Automatic, simply by pressing the Exposure Compensation / White Balance button on the back panel.The first press of this button displays the EV scale on the LCD screen, with the setting controlled by the arrow buttons. A second press of the same button brings up the white balance screen. White balance options include Automatic, Daylight, Cloudy, Incandescent, Fluorescent, and Black & White (which records monochromatic images).

A 10 second self-timer option is accessible through the Continuous/Self-Timer button on the back panel and is available in all photography modes. Once in this mode, a half press of the shutter button sets focus and exposure, and a full press triggers the self-timer countdown. The timer will count down from 10 seconds by flashing a small LED on the front of the camera, which will accelerate at two seconds. The mode is canceled by simply pressing the Self-Timer button again or turning the camera off.


Flash
The built-in flash on the S300 offers five operating modes, all controlled by the Flash button on the back panel. The button cycles through Auto (lightning bolt icon with an "A"), Redeye Reduction (eyeball icon), Forced On (lightning bolt), Forced Off (lightning bolt with a slash), and Slow-synchro (person icon with a star). Auto, Forced On, and Forced Off are pretty self-explanatory. Red-eye Reduction means that the camera fires a small pre-flash before the full flash, to reduce the occurrence of the Red-eye Effect. The Slow-synchro mode times the flash with a slow shutter and is perfect for night subjects because it allows more ambient light into the image. All of the flash modes are available in Manual exposure mode, with a small assortment available in Automatic and Stitch Assist modes. The flash takes about 10 seconds to charge. The top LED next to the optical viewfinder glows orange when the flash is ready. Canon states that flash power ranges from 2.5-11.5 feet (76cm-3.5m) in normal wide angle mode, and from 2.5-6.6 feet (76cm-2m) in telephoto mode. In our tests, we found that the flash range was about 8 feet, with the lens partway between telephoto and wide angle. This range is shorter than that of many digicams, largely due to the somewhat "slow" maximum aperture of the lens when its set to full telephoto, and the diminutive body size, reducing the space available for a large flash capacitor. For the advanced amateurs out there interested in using a "slave" flash with the S300, we report that, although the flash looks like a "single pop" design to the naked eye, it does in fact use two very closely spaced flashes, so you'll need a special slave trigger to use with it. (You can find one at www.srelectronics.com.)

Movie Mode
A new feature on the S300 that wasn't previously available on the S100 is the Movie exposure mode. The S300 can record short movie clips with sound, with actual movie length depending on the resolution size. Movies are recorded at approximately 20 frames per second, with resolution sizes of 640 x 480, 320 x 240, and 160 x 120 available. Maximum recording times are four, 10, and 30 seconds, with the larger resolution size offering the shortest recording time. (This time may be dependent on the complexity of the images being recorded: In our tests, we measured recording times of six, 15, and 30 seconds respectively.) Recording stops and starts with a full press of the Shutter button, but the amount of available CompactFlash space may also limit the recording time. The self timer option is available in Movie mode - The camera begins recording after the 10 second delay has elapsed, and continues for the maximum amount of time available for the resolution selected, or until the shutter button is pushed again. Exposure compensation and white balance are both adjustable in Movie mode, but remain fixed after recording starts.

Stitch Assist Mode
The S300 features a panoramic shooting mode, called Stitch Assist, which is accessible via the Mode dial. Once the mode is selected, a guideline tool appears in the LCD monitor to help you line up shots (a small arrow tells you which way to swivel the camera). There are actually two Stitch Assist modes to choose from: left to right and right to left, indicated by an arrow on the LCD screen. The left and right arrow buttons select the direction for the sequence. All exposure adjustments (flash, image quality, exposure compensation, white balance, and macro/infinity mode) are set with the first image. Note that digital telephoto and certain flash settings (Auto and Redeye Reduction) are not available with this mode. You can shoot up to 26 images in a sequence and needn't worry about minor discrepancies in the overlapping portions of successive images, as these can be quickly fixed with the stitching software that accompanies the camera.

As an additional aid to aligning successive panorama images though, after each image has been captured, a portion of it is retained on the screen (shifted appropriately) to help you line up the next one. Depending on the subject, this can be quite effective, as it's fairly easy to see when portions of the image don't "connect" across the seam properly. (See the screen shot inset right, which shows the result of two shots being lined up. The seam between them is about 1/3 of the way in from the lefthand edge of the image.)

Continuous Shooting
Once activated by pressing the Continuous/Self-Timer button on the back panel, the S300's Continuous Shooting mode is claimed to shoot approximately 2.5 frames per second as long as the shutter button is held down or until the buffer memory is filled (shooting times may vary depending on the subject and shooting setup). In our tests, we found Canon's spec for continuous shooting speed to be pretty optimistic: We measured maximum-resolution continuous mode speeds at about 1.19 frames per second, and minimum-resolution times at 1.52 frames/second. Still pretty fast, but nowhere near the 2.5 frames per second that the documentation claimed.