The new Canon Powershot G6 is more evolutionary development than revolutionary milestone -- basically a silver G5 with a 7 megapixel CCD. The “G” series has been Canon’s flagship digicam model since the G1 was introduced in 2001. The earliest “G” models were groundbreaking high performance prosumer digicams with a signature tilt-swivel LCD screen that spawned numerous imitators. When Canon unveiled the DIGIC (Digital Imaging Integrated Circuit) processor on the G2 it was a revolutionary engineering feat, a new “all in one” processor chip that enhanced AF accuracy, markedly boosted processing speed, provided substantially improved power management, and utilized complex Canon imaging algorithms to produce images that were optimized for sharp detailed resolution, balanced contrast, low image noise, and consistently realistic color. Canon’s DIGIC Processor has been a major selling point through four generations of “G” models, but where is the long awaited second-generation DIGIC2 processor?

Important note: The image above is not the G6. If you want to see what the G6 looks like, follow this link

http://consumer.usa.canon.com/app/images/d_eos/g6_586x225.jpg

What’s New?

The G5’s black pro look is out and the G3’s silver look is back. There’s a new seven megapixel CCD, a new 2” tilt-swivel LCD screen, a larger handgrip (on a somewhat smaller body), Canon’s print share button, a new VGA movie mode, 9-point AiAF (first seen on the Digital Elph series), and a slightly more powerful battery

NUTS & BOLTS

Viewfinder/LCD

The G6 features a slightly larger than normal tunnel style optical viewfinder that zooms with the lens. The eyelevel finder shows about 85% of the frame, but doesn’t provide parallax correction lines. G3/G5 owners who complained that they could see the top of lens barrel at the bottom of the optical viewfinder frame will be pleased to discover that Canon has fixed that niggling little irritation. The G6’s optical viewfinder provides a diopter correction adjustment for eyeglasses wearers.

Anyone who has seen or used Canon’s Powershot Pro 1 will recognize the G6’s new and slightly larger 2” full info tilt-swivel LCD screen (earlier “G” series digicams featured a 1.8” LCD screen). The LCD screen is sharp, color correct, fluid, and displays 100 per cent of the image frame, but it doesn’t seem as bright as the G5’s (most users will want to enable the “bright” option via the set-up menu). Users can leave the LCD screen nested into its well (facing out) for standard viewing, or rotate it up to 270 degrees and swivel it up to 180 degrees through an almost infinite range of shooting angles for composing over the heads of a crowd shots, in close macro compositions, as a waist level finder, for around the corner shots, and turned to face the front for self-portraits. When not in use the LCD screen can be flipped around and popped back into the monitor well (viewing surface in) to protect it from scratches, smudges, and fingerprints.

Users can opt for up to 10x magnification for more detailed image review and to confirm focus accuracy, enable the G6’s Histogram display (a graphic depiction of the image frame that shows areas of over/under exposure) to fine-tune exposure settings, or use the nifty Intervalometer for time-lapse photography (for up to 100 exposures with intervals from one to 60 minutes). The G6 has an AF focus aid beam for more accurate focusing in low light.

Lens

The G6 uses the same f2.0-f3.0/35-140mm (35mm equivalent) all glass (8 elements in 7 groups) 4X zoom first seen on the G3. Minimum focusing distance (in macro mode) is 2”. The zoom features a built-in Neutral Density (ND) filter permitting shooters to use slower shutter speeds or larger apertures than would normally be possible in bright outdoor lighting. Canon’s optics experts developed a new anti reflection coating for this venerable zoom in order to reduce chromatic aberration (purple fringing) a common complaint from owners of the G3 and G5. The lens isn't threaded for screw in filters or add on lenses, but users can quickly remove the protective plastic lens surround ring, attach the optional adapter, and mount auxiliary wide-angle or telephoto lenses and inexpensive 58mm filters.

There is some very minor barrel distortion at the wide-angle end of the zoom range, but no visible pincushion distortion at the telephoto end. The G5/G3 displayed slightly above average chromatic aberration (purple fringing), especially in maximum aperture shots with high contrast color transition areas. The new anti reflection coatings help reduce CA, but the ever-present purple fringe has only receded, it hasn’t completely disappeared. Overall, the G6’s 4X zoom is quite good; images are consistently sharp with balanced contrast and accurate colors.

Auto Focus

The G6’s 9 focus point AiAF (Advanced intelligent Auto Focus) system covers a much larger part of the image area than earlier “G” AF systems making it easier (and faster) for the AF system to analyze the scene in front of the camera and accurately calculate camera to subject distance to determine which AF point is closest to the primary subject and lock focus on that AF point, even when the subject is not centered in the viewfinder. Creative users can select which of the 9 focus points they want to manually line up with the closest element in the frame. This makes compositions look better because the primary subject is not always placed dead center, snap shooter style.

In aperture priority, shutter priority, and manual mode, the G6 utilizes Canon’s proprietary Flexizone AF which defaults to the center focus point or permits users to manually shift that AF point around the central two thirds of the frame for maximum compositional control. When Spot metering is enabled, the metering spot can be set for the center of the frame or linked to the active Flexizone AF point, allowing the photographer to align the AF target on the most important element of the composition and tie the camera’s metering to that same spot.

The G6 features the same Auto Focus Bracketing (AFB) system as the G3/G5. The camera captures three exposures in rapid succession (with a single push of the shutter button) marginally shifting the focus for each (one just slightly in front of the optimum focus point, one at the optimum focus distance, and one just slightly behind the optimum focus point), virtually guaranteeing at least one sharply focused image, even in rapidly unfolding action situations. The distance interval can be adjusted (large, medium or small) allowing for precise spacing and precise focus no matter what sort of image (macro, sports, street/candid, etc.) is being shot, an especially useful feature when focusing is critical.

The G6's Auto Focus is very fast and consistently accurate (virtual real time with pre-focusing and almost instantaneous from scratch) noticeably faster than the G5’s (Canon says more than fifty per cent faster).

Manual Focus

The G6’s manual focusing mode is the standard distance/scale type, which is useful but slow and somewhat cumbersome. In manual focus mode the G6 provides a reference scale (on the LCD) for focusing accuracy and the center of the LCD screen is enlarged as an aid to precise focusing.

Flash

The G6's built-in multi mode flash is a fairly powerful (Canon claims the maximum range is 16.5 feet, which seems to be pretty accurate) unit that provides a wide range of flash options. The G6 also provides a hot shoe for mounting external Canon Speedlights (220EX, 380EX, 420EX, 550EX, and the MR-14EX macro speedlite). Flash sync with Canon Speedlights is 1/250th of a second. Third party flash units may be used, but only in Manual Mode (flash synch with third party units is @1/125th of a second). In manual mode flash output can be adjusted incrementally.

The G6’s flash doesn’t choke down as nicely as some digicam units for the macro shooting so overexposed/hot spot images should be a concern for close-up aficionados. One simple solution is to tape a cut to size piece of white paper towel over the flash for macro shooting. Flash exposure can also be adjusted up to +2/-2 EV (in one-third-step increments) or flash output can be reduced from full power to 1/3 or 2/3 power, for those who prefer a less primitive alternative.

File Storage/Memory Media

The G6 (like its predecessors) stores images to Compact Flash (type I & II) media (including microdrives) and is FAT/FAT32 compatible for use with storage media with capacity over 2GB.

Image File Format(s)

JPEG & RAW

Connectivity

USB 1.1, A/V out, DC in.

On a critical note, 7 megapixel prosumer digicams really should provide users with a USB 2.0 connection (and the G6 fails to do that). On a more positive note, the flimsy soft plastic connection well cover of the G3/G5 has been replaced (after lots of owner complaints) with a more durable hard plastic cover.

Power

The G6 draws its juice from the new BP511A, a sort of super-charged version of Canon’s BP-511 Li-ion battery. Canon Claims the G6 can record 300+ exposures with a fresh BP511A (full time LCD and occasional flash use) and that seems fairly accurate based on my two relatively heavy weekend shooting excursions. The G6’s battery life seems to be substantially better than the G5’s, but that impression is based on limited personal (subjective) experience, rather than long term empirical (objective) testing. The included charger needs about 90 minutes to re-charge the BP511A.

EXPOSURE

The Canon Powershot G6 provides a full range of exposure options including: Automatic (P&S), Program (the camera determines shutter speed and aperture settings, but users can adjust all other exposure parameters), Scene Modes (Portrait, Landscape, & Night Scene), Shutter Priority AE, Aperture Priority AE, and Manual exposure modes.

Canon’s iSAPS (Intelligent Scene Analysis based on Photographic Space) technology produces consistently excellent exposures in all scene modes. The camera evaluates the scene in front of the G6’s lens using an on board database of known scene types and then compares that information with the specific scene’s subject distance, white balance, contrast range, lighting, and color (just before the image is recorded) to determine the best exposure. The ISAPS system works hand in hand with the G6’s DIGIC processor and AiAF auto focus system to quickly and consistently create exceptional images.

The G6’s movie mode allows users to record video clips at 640x480 (VGA resolution) @ 30 fps (for up to 30 seconds). The G6’s impressive new movie mode was first seen on Canon’s superb little Powershot S1-IS. The G3/G5 were limited to 320 x 240 @ 15 FPS. Audio notations (up to 60 seconds) can be added to still image files.

Exposure Compensation

The G6’s Exposure Compensation mode allows users to adjust exposure over a +2/-2 EV range in 1/3 EV increments to compensate for tricky lighting, dark backgrounds, or highly reflective subjects.

Auto Exposure Bracketing

The G6’s Auto Exposure Bracketing (AEB) mode allows users to capture three images with one push of the shutter button, each at a slightly different exposure setting. One image slightly over the base exposure setting, one image at the base exposure setting, and one image slightly under the base exposure setting --- virtually guaranteeing at least one correct exposure.

Metering

The G6 provides three light metering options: Evaluative, Center-Weighted Averaging, and Spot. Evaluative metering assesses numerous individual points across the frame and then chooses the optimum aperture/shutter speed combination to capture the image. Center-weighted metering biases exposure on the central portion of frame (great for landscape and travel images where the subject is likely to be centered). Spot metering reads only a tiny portion of the image frame allowing users to bias exposure on the single most important element in the composition (like the eyes in a portrait). The G6’s metering system is accurate and the range of metering capabilities (especially the option to couple Flexi-zone AF and Spot metering) is more than adequate for non-professional shooters.

White Balance

The G6 provides a reasonably useful range of White Balance options, including TTL Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H (for daylight-balanced fluorescents), Flash, and two Custom WB modes. The Custom settings permit users to manually set white balance with a white card (wall or ceiling). The ability to save and re-call two Custom WB settings makes it easier for users to move back and forth between scenes with fundamentally different lighting (for example indoors and outdoors). Automatic white balance seems to be accurate in most common types of lighting.

Sensitivity

The G6’s sensitivity range (expressed as 35mm equivalent ISO ratings) is fairly flat--TTL Auto, 50, 100, 200, and 400. ISO 64 and 800 settings would have been nice and a completely reasonable expectation on a seven hundred dollar prosumer digicam.

In-Camera Image Adjustment

The G6 lags well behind its competition in this area. The G6’s Photo Effects mode allows users to select spot metering and adjust exposure compensation. Shooters can also make relatively broad in camera image adjustments (vivid or neutral color saturation, adjust the contrast level, enhance sharpness, and choose sepia or B&W tonal effects). Savvy photographers can opt to use the custom effects feature to manually adjust the contrast, sharpness, and saturation in 3 step increments (low, normal, or high). Users can enable photo effects in any mode, including movie mode. Photographers can accomplish many of the same functions Adobe PhotoShop, but in-camera image adjustments are always more convenient than post-exposure image manipulation.

Saving JPEG images as RAW files post exposure

Sometimes experienced photographers opt to shoot an image in JPEG format and then wish they had chosen to record it as a RAW file (RAW files are a lossless compressed format). Users can record an image as a JPEG file, review the image, and decide post Exposure that the image provides lots of room for improvement and tweaking in PaintShop Pro or Adobe PhotoShop. With the G6 users have three options; delete the image, save the images as a Jpeg file, or press the FUNC button and convert the image to a RAW file before saving it to the CF card. This is a great option for serious photographers.

Noise Reduction

Noise reduction is automatically enabled on long exposures.

Controls, Design, & Ergonomics

The Powershot G6 is an attractive and stylish silver digicam (although I liked the black “pro” look of the G5 more). The body has been slightly re-designed and is basically a marginally smaller and more squared up version of the G5 with a somewhat modified control layout and an enlarged handgrip. I really like the new larger handgrip since it adds an extra level of stability and that is always welcome. The G6 is simple to use and all controls are logically placed and quickly become intuitive. The G6 is well constructed (metal alloy-polycarbonate body) and should be tough enough for just about anything short of combat journalism or extreme environments.

Most of the G6’s shooting functions can be easily accessed via traditional buttons, knobs, and switches, but when users must resort to the menus, pushing the FUNC button provides a simplified single menu overlay that takes shooters directly to the most commonly changed/modified camera operations/functions, without the need to navigate through several different menus. Traditionalists can enable the “My Camera” menu to customize the startup screen and add warning beeps and virtual shutter sounds (although it always makes me smile when I push the shutter button of a shiny new digital camera and hear the distinctive shutter sound of an old-time mechanical focal plane shutter)

Technical Specifications

Resolution: 7.1megapixels (3072 x 2304)
Viewfinders: Optical True Image Zooming and tilt-twist-swivel 2.0”color LCD
Lens: f2.0-f3.0/35-140mm (35mm equiv) all glass optical zoom lens with 7 elements in 8 groups
Exposure: Auto, Program, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, and Manual exposure modes
Auto Exposure Bracketing: Yes
Exposure Compensation: Yes +2/-2EV in 1/3-stop increments
Auto Focus: AiAF (9 AF point) with FlexiZone AF point placement
Auto Focus Bracketing: Yes
Manual Focus: Yes
Metering: evaluative, center-weighted, & spot
White Balance: TTL Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H or Flash, and Custom 1 & 2
Flash: Built-in multi mode (Auto, Red-eye reduction auto, Red-eye reduction on, Red-eye reduction off, slow synch, first curtain synch or second curtain synch effect, and off) with hotshot for external Canon (220EX, 380EX, 420EX, 550EX, Macro Ring Lite MR-14EX and MT-24EX) Speedlights.
Flash exposure compensation +2/-2EV in 1/3EV increments.
Sensitivity: Auto, ISO (equiv) 50, 100, 200, & 400
Image Formats: JPEG & RAW
In-Camera Image Adjustment: Yes
Noise Reduction: Yes (automatic on exposures longer than 1 second)
Image Storage: CompactFlash including IBM MicroDrives
Connectivity: USB 1.1 & A/V out
Power: 1 BP 511A
Street Price $699.00

Included

32MB CompactFlash Card, BP-511A Lithium-Ion rechargeable battery, charger, USB & A/V cables, Wireless Remote Control, Neck Strap, Lens Cap, Software CD-ROM, and printed software and User’s manuals.

Optional

The G6 has a superb selection of optional accessories including auxiliary wide angle, telephoto, and macro lenses, a car battery charger, a soft case, and several Canon Speedlites and macro flash units.

In the Field/Handling & Operation

I have an old friend who sells new and used digital and analog cameras and accessories and he turned up recently with a brand new G6 and asked if I wanted to help him check it out. Our first outing with the G6 was a trip to Cherokee Park on a gorgeous Sunday to shoot nature images along Beargrass Creek and in the sloping open meadow area near the top of Dog Hill. We got a couple of really good Eliot Porter style “intimate landscapes” of the creek and a nice clump of slightly backlit emerald green cinnamon ferns before adjourning to the large meadow above the creek to shoot summer wildflowers. We found lots of giant purple coneflowers and Black-eyed Susan’s, some in very attractive mixed clusters. The G6 does an excellent job as an outdoor/landscape camera.

For our second outing (the following weekend) we headed for Bowman Field. One of the surest signs that summer is really over here in Louisville is the annual Adam Mathews Cheesecake Balloon Festival. The AMCBF draws entries from all over the mid-west and upper south and this year’s festival pulled in more than 100 hot air balloons. A huge crowd showed up for the Saturday balloon glow.

Like most outdoor Louisville events the festival was a sea of noisy children, loose dogs, Goths, baggy pants teens, and every known variety of adult. We headed first for the classic car display to shoot some of the nifty old cars. Old car shows are really popular anymore so here are a couple of simple tips for capturing some really dramatic images. Check your camera owner’s manual and set color saturation and contrast to maximum. Get in really close and fill the frame with details like chrome, headlights, taillights, fender and trunk mounted spare tires, hood ornaments, curvy fenders, and wrap around grills. Concentrate on an areas with no reflections or glare and disable your camera’s flash. You’ll get dramatic images that focus (no pun intended) on shape form, and pattern. Even if you are not a very good photographer you’ll be amazed at how striking your images will be.

There were also lots of “candid/street” type images of families and couples spread out on quilts and blankets on the ground and kids hanging out (and acting up) while waiting for the balloons to get set up. The afternoon started off sort of windy and overcast, but the wind died down nicely as golden light (late afternoon/early evening) came on. We had a decent sunset with dark clouds with pink highlights lining the western horizon and then, just after dark the flight crews started inflating the balloons with large fans. Once the balloons are semi inflated the crews use propane burners to heat the air inside the balloons (this also gives the balloons lift). The burners make the huge colorful balloons glow against the dark night sky like gigantic multi colored light bulbs. Multiply that visual by 100 balloons and you’ll have a pretty good idea of the photographic opportunities available at a balloon glow. What really sets the Adam Mathews Cheesecake Balloon Festival apart for photographers is that festival spectators are allowed complete access to the balloons. Visitors can get up close, talk to the crews, and shoot pretty much anything you like. This provides the opportunity to shoot some absolutely stunning color images of the balloon crews (in silhouette) surrounded by the brightly glowing and colorful balloons. The balloons are huge when you are able to get up close, but most of the burners only flare up for a couple of seconds, so it was very difficult to time exactly when to trip the shutter. The G6 did a good job and virtual real time shutter firing (with pre-focusing) was helpful in getting the timing just right.

We did a couple of longer exposures with the G6 mounted on a beat-up old Slik 444 Sport tripod when the fireworks show started. Shooting fireworks with a digital camera is different than shooting fireworks with a film camera, but we were able to get a couple of decent bursts by watching exactly where the bursts occurred, locking the G6 on that spot (with the zoom set at the wide angle end of the range) and then tripping the shutter when we heard the “whump” of the mortar tube firing the projectile into the sky.

PERFORMANCE

Image Quality

The G6’s image quality is slightly better than the five megapixel G5, but that is to be expected with a forty per cent increase in resolution. Resolution is clearly a factor in just how good the images from any given digital camera will be, however image quality doesn’t rely solely on resolution. Two other important considerations: the optical quality of the lens and how well the camera’s image processor handles its job will ultimately have just as much impact on the final image as the resolution. The G6’s excellent 4X zoom, 9 point AiAF system, and DIGIC processor work together to produce absolutely stunning 7 megapixel digital images. Colors are well saturated (but not garish) and resolution is sharp with balanced contrast and consistently good shadow detail. Overall, image quality comes close to what you'd expect to get from a digital SLR. Noise management is very good (better than any of the currently available 8 megapixel digicams) and chromatic aberration (which was a common complaint with the G3/G5) has been reduced significantly.

We made two 8x10 enlargements (one nature shot from Cherokee Park and one night time Glowing balloon shot from Bowman Field) with an Epson 2200 (on Epson photo paper) and both were excellent, although the nigh time shot did show some minor noise. ISO 50 images are consistently superb (although chromatic aberration still makes an appearance in maximum aperture shots with high contrast color transition areas. ISO 400 shots are not noise free (despite the hype) they are better than most of the G6’s competition can do at ISO 400), but they do contain image noise.

Shutter Lag/Timing

The G6 is noticeably faster at start-up than the G5 (Canon says 30 per cent faster) and AF lag is substantially shortened (Canon says the AiAF system is 50 per cent faster than G5) virtually non-existent in good lighting and faster than average in lower light. Depress the shutter button halfway and the camera focuses in well under a second. Write to card and shot to shot times are about the same as the G5, but still very quick, even in RAW mode. Shutter lag (from almost instantaneous when pre-focusing is utilized to about one second in low light) is about the same as the G5, but noticeably faster than most of the G6’s competition.

A Few Concerns

The new 2” LCD screen is a bit too dim (brightness can be adjusted via the setup menu), but even at the “bright” setting the G6’s LCD screen isn’t as bright as it should to be. A 7 megapixel prosumer digicam should provide a USB 2.0 connection, not USB 1.1.

Red-eye problems are worse with the G6 than they were with the G5 (Canon shifted the G6’s zoom position slightly) so photographers who do a lot of portraits may want to invest in an external Canon speedlight (or the latest version of Adobe Photoshop).

Conclusion

The Canon PowerShot G6 is an excellent digital camera, but it features little that is really new or innovative. The “G” family has become a bit redundant and some of the technology is a bit dated. Innovation and cutting edge technology that was once pioneered on Canon’s flagship series is now just as likely to be introduced on A, S, and Pro series models like the S500, the A95, The S1-IS, and the snazzy little S70. The real question for many serious photographers and savvy consumers is going to be “G6 or Digital Rebel?” Here’s a little help with answering that burning query ---there’s never been a better time to buy a dSLR (the Digital Rebel can be had for about a C-note more than the G6).

The Digital Rebel utilizes a six megapixel APS sized CMOS imager (rather than the tiny 1/1.8” CCD imager used in the G6) so image noise is consistently lower, across the board. Even inexpensive consumer grade (OEM or 3rd party) 35mm lenses will outperform the G6’s fixed digicam format zoom (dSLR’s will provide consistently better image quality even though the G6’s resolution is nominally higher). Factor in the ability to use wide-angle lenses (zooms designed to “cover” the 1/1.8” CCD digicam format have such short focal lengths --typically from 5-7 to 21-25mm’s-- that wide angle optics shorter than the 35mm equivalent of about 28 mm are an impossibility) and selective focus capability (lenses designed to cover the 1/1.8” CCD format are so short that blurred or soft focus backgrounds are impossible because of inherently greater depth of field at shorter focal lengths) and the snappy little Rebel is the easy winner. In addition tiny super complex digicam format lenses are much more prone to chromatic aberration (purple fringing) than larger 35mm lenses and they can’t duplicate the Bokeh (out of focus background highlights are soft and rounded, rather than sharp and hard) effects of longer focal length 35mm lenses.

Don’t get me wrong the G6 is a fantastic digicam, but at this price point camera options increase exponentially so it may not be the best choice for many photographers. In addition to the Digital Rebel and the snazzy little S70 (for about $100 less than the G6) there are also several 8 megapixel prosumer digicams (K-M A2, Nikon CP8700, and the Olympus C8080) available for about the same price as the G6.

If you’re not quite ready for that move up to a dSLR or an 8 megapixel super prosumer digicam (and you don’t need 7 megaspixels) the price of the nifty pro black (5 megapixel) G5 is likely to drop dramatically as the holiday season approaches--if you can find one.

Remember, Epinions is always your best source for independent and unbiased electronics reviews.

Links

For definitive advice on How to Choose a Digital Camera please see my review:
http://www.epinions.com/elec-review-2E46-17B174E2-39A418E3-prod1

For more information on some other hot Digital Cameras you may find my reviews (listed below) useful:

Nikon Digital Cameras

Nikon Coolpix 8700
http://www.epinions.com/content_138657762948

Canon Digital Cameras

Canon Powershot Pro 1
http://www.epinions.com/content_143509589636

Canon Digital Rebel (EOS 300D)
http://www.epinions.com/content_116460850820

Sony Digital Cameras

Sony Cybershot DSC F828
http://www.epinions.com/content_124605206148

Olympus Digital Cameras

Olympus Camedia C8080
http://www.epinions.com/content_140332732036

Konica-Minolta Digital Cameras

Konica-Minolta Dimage A2
http://www.epinions.com/content_134021746308
















Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 699.00
This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Flexible Enough for Enthusiasts