I spent most of the late sixties living in Europe, stationed in Germany with the U. S. Army. I was a Military Policeman, we worked nine days on “duty” and then had three full days off. It was an exciting time to live in Europe, so my three day breaks were always chaotic whirlwind train or car trips to see performers like Jimi Hendrix live, watch the Ford GT 40 Mk II’s come in 1-2-3 at Le Mans, or sneak into Prague three weeks before the Russian invasion. Most of my friends were enthusiastically into photography, but I came to the hobby late. This was the heyday of “Magnum” style B&W photo journalism, and the early days of “serious” color photography. Every Army base had a photo lab, where you could develop and print your negatives almost for free.

All my friends hung out at a small bar called “Blackies” run by a former MP who had married a German girl and never gone home. Blackie loved to spend money and show off his new toys to the awe struck young MP’s who frequented his bar. We were all in love with his Mercedes 230 SL sports car, and when he bought a Rollei 35 in 1968, I found myself in love with a camera for the first time. The tiny Rollei was a precision built scale focuser with a collapsible Carl Zeiss 40/f3.5 Tessar lens. It was tough as nails and produced full sized 35mm prints (or slides) that were tack sharp from corner to corner. I eventually bought a Rollei 35S and it has always been one of my favorite cameras, a fine example of the justly world famous quality of German engineering.

A good friend recently offered me the opportunity to try out his new Canon Powershot S10 and after using it several times I was reminded of the tactile pleasure and fun that accompanied my first experiences with the “Classic” Rollei 35. Both cameras are tiny (about the same size) feature sturdy all metal construction, have exceptional optics, and both are just plain “fun” to use. The first thing everyone always said whenever I pulled out my little Rollei was, “That’s cool, can I see it?” And that is exactly what anyone who sees the S10 says. It is amazing that Canon could make a “feature rich” digital camera as small as the S10 (Canon has since introduced the Canon S100 Digital Elph, which is even smaller, and has similar features) with an exceptional quality 2X zoom lens and 2.1 megapixel resolution. The lens retracts into the body when not in use (like the Rollei’s Collapsible lens) making the S10 a truly “pocketable” digital camera that can be taken anywhere. The S10’s tough and stylish brushed stainless steel body is scratch resistant (like the Rollei 35’s sexy all metal body) and well sealed against dirt and moisture.

Canon Powershot S10: Technical Specifications

Resolution: 2.1 Megapixel (1600x1200)
Sensor: 0.5” CCD
Viewfinder: Optical (high eye point) & Digital 1.8” TFT LCD
Lens: Optical (all glass with 3 aspherical elements) 2X zoom 6.3mm-12.6mm (35mm equivalent 35mm-70mm)
4X digital zoom
Aperture: f2.8-f8.0
Focusing: 18” to Infinity (Macro mode: 4.7”-18”)
Shutter: 2 seconds to 1/1000th second
Flash: built in (4 mode)
White Balance: 5 mode
ISO Settings: 100-400
Image Settings: 5 mode.
Storage Media: Compact Flash (Type I or II)
File Format(s): JPEG
Power: 2CR5 Lithium or Canon NiMH (battery charger & AC adapter optional $90-$110)
Included: 8mb Compact Flash (type I) card, USB interface, Video out, & Software: (Powershot Utilities, Adobe Photo Deluxe)

A “Tongue-in-Cheek” comparison

The Canon S10 is much easier to use than the Rollei 35, technological advances really make a difference in terms of features and overall usability. There is no comparison between the scale focusing (estimate the distance from the camera to subject and set the lens to that distance range) Rollei and the highly accurate multi point auto focus of the S10. The S10’s flash is automatic (although you have the option to turn it off) and works quite well, especially in low light situations (where the auto focus aid beam is a really helpful feature) with the Rollei you have to insert the external flash into the hot shoe on the BOTTOM of the camera, and then turn the camera upside down to take (completely manual) flash pictures.

The original Rollei had no on board metering (later models had a “center the needle” Cds meter) while the S10 provides both spot and center weighted metering options (in Manual Mode) the 2X Canon zoom is measurably better than most of the 3X zooms currently available, with superb resolution (700 lines horizontal & vertical) minimal distortion (.05 % barrel @ 6.3 mm (wide) and less than .03 % barrel @ 12.6 mm (tele) and virtually no chromatic aberration (color fringing) The lens is tack sharp and compares favorably with the 40/f3.5 Carl Zeiss Tessar on the Rollei 35, a “classic” camera, famous for its excellent optics.

Neat Features

An AE lock allows the user to “lock-in” auto exposure and flash setting before you snap the picture. Automatic white balance plus five manual “pre-sets” (and 3 ISO settings) permit the photographer the option of custom tailoring exposures to ambient light conditions. A built-in buffer memory provides continuous shooting in “burst-mode” of up to 1.7 FPS (even while shooting at the maximum quality level) A metal tripod mount for extra stability, a flash range of from 0.6 ft to 10.8 ft (even in total darkness….with auto focus aid beam) and the capability to manually adjust sharpness and contrast settings.


Conclusion

My only real complaints with the Canon S10 Powershot are the optical viewfinder that only shows 77 per cent of the actual picture area (this tends to encourage photographers to place the image subject “dead center” which makes for weak compositions) and the lack of an included battery charger. The high priced 2CR5 lithium only lasts about fifty minutes with the LCD in use (less if you use the focus aid beam or flash) making it almost a requirement to purchase the optional charger/AC adapter. Shutter lag time is about average, between (maximum) 1 second and (minimum)1/5 of a second.


Overall, the small size, rugged construction, excellent optics, and great feature set of the S10 make it a real treat to stick the camera in your pocket and take it along on all your adventures. Creating stunning digital images has never been easier, or more fun. The ability to use Compact Flash (type II) cards and the IBM MicroDrive (which allows over 230 maximum quality images to be stored) just add to the charm and usability of the S10. At less than $400 ($350-$370) the camera is a real bargain. If you’d like to take home a “classic” Rollei 35S (and get in touch with how compact photography was done before the dawn of the digital age) an excellent condition “used” example can usually be purchased for between $250-$300.

For information on How to Choose a Digital Camera please see my review:

http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-2E46-17B174E2-39A418E3-prod1

For information about specific Digital Camera models, please see my Digital Camera Reviews:


Nikon Digital Cameras

Nikon Coolpix 5000
http://www.epinions.com/content_52720406148

Nikon Coolpix 885
http://www.epinions.com/content_46290931332

Nikon Coolpix 995
http://www.epinions.com/content_40256769668

Nikon D1X
http://www.epinions.com/content_36023996036

Nikon D1
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-4868-E2433E5-38737CF8-prod2/tk_~CB003.1.78

Nikon Coolpix 880
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-2DA8-DF21E52-39E118CA-prod5

Nikon Coolpix 990
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-3B78-3C431D90-3A345313-prod3

Canon Digital Cameras

Canon Powershot G2
http://www.epinions.com/content_47646084740

Canon Powershot S10
http://www.epinions.com/content_7563808388/tk_~CB003.1.74

Canon EOS D30
http://www.epinions.com/content_11625991812/tk_~CB003.1.58

Canon Powershot PRO 90IS
http://www.epinions.com/content_30440001156/tk_~CB005.1.9

Canon Powershot G1
http://www.epinions.com/content_8768294532/tk_~CB003.1.70

Canon Powershot PRO 70
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-6496-25768DA-38C3E01A-prod9/tk_~CB003.1.70


Sony Digital Cameras

Sony DSC S85
http://www.epinions.com/content_51957567108

Sony MVC-CD 300
http://www.epinions.com/content_45591793284

Sony DSC-S50
http:http://www.epinions.com/content_15885897348

Sony Mavica MVC-CD1000
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-5F01-365BA12-3980602C-prod3/tk_~CB003.1.14

Olympus Digital Cameras

Olympus Camedia C3040
http://www.epinions.com/content_42675179140

Olympus Camedia C3000
http://www.epinions.com/content_26106105476/tk_~CB003.1.30

Olympus Camedia E10
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-59FB-183DFC73-3A17388F-prod2/tk_~CB003.1.42

Fuji Digital Cameras

Fuji Finepix S1 “PRO”
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-5591-16816C34-39047A87-prod5/tk_~CB003.1.18

Minolta Digital Cameras

Minolta Dimage 5
http://www.epinions.com/content_49104522884


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Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): $370