Hi People,
This is my first time reviewing a product on MS. Though i’ve benefited numerous time by reviews on MS, I never actually got around to writing one. Please overlook any mistakes.
When I decided to move up from a film roll camera to a digicam, I didn’t want just a simple point & shoot camera, nor was I a pro to go in for Digital SLRs. the cameras that I zeroed down on were the S2IS, the Sony H1, and the olympus SP500UZ.
My other requirements were a high optical zoom [for nature photography], a super macro mode [for the intra oral photography that I need to do], and a good video recording [because I didn’t want to invest in a camcorder separately].
The SP500UZ was the first one out, because it didn’t have an image stabilizer, which I believe to be very important for macro shots.
The H1 and S2IS are similar on most counts but I preferred to go in for the S2IS partly because of my gut feeling, and I haven’t regretted it one bit.
First the Cons:
The flash is a manual one- you have to physically flip the flash open. It doesn’t pop up if it senses less light.
The lens cover is pathetic. It just sits on the lens and pops out the moment you switch the camera on. So in case of accidental switching ons, there is no protection to the lens. The H1 has a nice latch, so it doesn’t fall out. Also it warns you if you switch it on without removing the cover.
I’m still learning the ropes, so maybe it’s something I’m doing wrong, but I do get grainy pictures or noise in some situations. [Maybe it’s at high ISO speeds like someone mentioned, I’ll have to check it out]
The video duration is a bit short for my liking. If my 1 year old daughter is in a real mood for antics, I cannot shoot the whole circus, max I can take is just a few mins [3-4 I think on my 512Mb SDcard].
The LCD screen is a bit small, esp compared to the H1. I believe the S3IS has a bigger screen? But it’s really not an issue as far as I’m concerned.
Not too many of these, and other than the lens cover the rest are not such a big deal.
Now for the Pros:
The LCD screen flips around, which is very helpful for protecting the LCD screen. It is also useful when taking shots at angles or even self portraits. Contrast is also never an issue, because you can swivel it to whatever angle you want. The only thing that scares me is that when the screen is out of the camera’s body it looks a bit delicate and i’m afraid of breaking it. But then digicams are supposed to be treated gently, right?!
The User interface on the camera is really good. all buttons are right where your fingers are, yet you don’t press any by mistake. The software/ menu [whatever you may call it] on the camera is very user friendly and it didn’t take a long time to figure that out. Overall easy to use.
One welcome feature is the one touch movie recording. You don’t have to flip the dial to go into movie mode, just press the dedicated movie button and you start recording faster than you can say "Lights, Camera .... Action". While on the movie thing, another super feature worth mentioning is that you can take still fotos in between video shooting. that however gives a black screen for a split second in the video clip which you have to edit. The movie mode is fantastic though, and even better when you experience the stereo sound that goes with it. it sound great even on the camera.
The versatility in terms of manual settings that can be done on this camera is more than the H1 [I had a friends H1 with me for a weekend when I compared and contrasted both cameras in detail].
It gives great intra-oral fotos. And by extension also great closeups of nature. There is the macro mode, and then there is the super macro mode, if you want to kiss the object with your lens while taking the shot. Have taken dozens of such fotos without any problems.
Battery life is good. I’m using 4 rechargeable 800mAh cells and they last pretty long.
I’m using a regular speed Sandisk 512 Mb SD card, not the high speed ones, and I’ve not really noticed a very long lag in writing or transferring data.
[One word on the S3IS, as far as I read it, I don’t think that the improvements over the S2IS justify the cost difference. I bought mine for 18k and I think for the price the S2IS is a great buy]
Overall,
it’s a great camera, and although i’ve still not used it to it’s full potential, I’m thoroughly content with my purchase.