It hasn’t disappointed so far– it’s an all-purpose camera that suits a busy, active family.

Brand new on the market, it has brought some mixed expert reviews. In the end, it depends on what you want in a camera. This is a low-tech review on this camera.

These are the features that sold me:

20x Optical zoom

20x optical zoom– I can shoot footage and photos of my boys surfing or playing soccer. I took both video and photographs of my sons body boarding and surfing the other day.

It’s wonderful to have one small gadget that does it all. The image below is a still that was snapped from a video.

Bodyboarding at Pearl Beach, NSW

Image quality

Yes, it’s 12 megapixel, but more MP doesn’t always mean better photos. Sometimes more MP means that something else suffers.

As for the image quality, from what I could see from researching this camera, it’s much of a muchness between recent models of digital cameras at this price point. (Under $600)

I liked what I saw in reviews for the Canon SX20 and I’m really happy with the images so far– and any unwanted softening is due to the photographer (me!)

I have much to learn about the best manual settings, and I’m sure I’ll get much more out of this camera as I keep experimenting.

It also takes decent photographs in low-light and at night.

The image below is a quick snap taken in between the kids charging around the house– no time to worry about messy backgrounds or dirty t-shirts!

Messy kids stopping their play for mum to take a snap

High-Definition video

The video camera stopped working years ago, and the chance to have both High-Definition video and high quality photos from one device was attractive.

It’s not as good as a dedicated video camera of course, but the video quality is beautifully crisp and clear, and I’m fine with taking clips of 5-20 minutes at a time. Video can be taken at the same focal length as photographs.

You also have the option of shooting low-res 640×480 video which is great for uploading to the web.

Manual controls

The Canon SX20 IS may lack the finesse of a digital SLR, but it does have dedicated buttons and a dial for focusing, ISO, shutter speed, macro and aperture settings.

The lowest aperture setting is f/2.8, which allows for nice bokeh. (Bokeh (Boke)  is a Japanese word for ‘blur’ and often refers to a background blur with the subject in sharp focus.)

If it didn’t come with the option of manual controls, or if the manual controls could only be accessed through menus– this would have been an immediate turnoff and I wouldn’t have bought the camera.

I sometimes place images with articles in the course of my work, and I need a camera which can take a decent photograph.

With this camera, I can fiddle to my heart’s content– and use the automatic settings when I don’t have time to fiddle!

 Great price

For well under $600 (shop around!),  I now have a great camera that doubles as a camcorder and shoots at super-long focal distance. Perfect!

(The image at the top of the page is from the lookout at the hairpin bend at Umina Beach, NSW.)
 

Other features

The above five things made me decide on the Canon SX20 IS

If you want to shoot in RAW, don’t go for this camera. Buy the Canon SX1 IS instead, or better still, buy a digital SLR with RAW capability.

The Canon SX1 IS also shoots in full 1080i High-Definition, while the Canon SX20 IS shoots in 720p. Be sure not to get confused with the Canon SX10 IS, which does not have HD video capability at all.

It has a slew of other great features, such as face recognition technology– although many of the features can be found on your average digital camera.  I have a minor whinge with the lens cap, which threatens to lose itself at any moment– as it is not affixed to the camera in any way. (This is actually quite important, as a scratched lens is no fun at all.)

If like me, you’re happy to read over specifications and features until your eyes bleed, be sure to check the Canon website and expert reviews online.