Super newb with an S5 IS question

[lantern]

I've been reading....and reading about cameras since I finally decided I want/need a camera other than the one I talk into from time to time. I wanted something that would last me for a while and had a good bit of zoom as the things I like to take pictures of(race cars) tend to have owners that keep the general public a good ways off.:D Also getting video of these things would be super sweet as well.

I decided the S3 IS had almost all my criteria covered except I wanted just a bit higher MP with a hotshoe. Enter the S5 IS. This thing had it all including the new Digic III processor.

Now the question.
During my reading I noticed reviews that said the G7 had a lot of noise reduction that in some cases gave photos that were not as good for post processing as shots with the Powershot A640. These two cameras have the same size sensor, but the A640 has the Digic II processor. Is there a chance that the Digic III processor is the culprit here? If so, does this not put a dark cloud over the S5 IS?

I hope not. I was just wondering what those on this forum that have MUCH MUCH more experience with this stuff had to say on the subject. All I have right now is what I read and what conclusions I can JUMP to.;) :D

Thanks ahead of time for any responses and HELLO as this is my first post as a fairly long time lurker.

[lantern]

I thought the A640 was a 10 MP camera on the same sensor as the G7?:confused:


Just looked at your flickr gallery. Lucky man!

[FLiPMaRC]

I remember about a year ago when the S3 came out and when I got mine, the S2 owners were saying the same things about the S3. (i.e. "not worth the extra $$ for the difference in features")

It has come full circle :p

[lantern]

LOL!

I've been using the "S3 picture thread" to learn about the camera even more. I've already got accessories in mind that I want for a camera that I don't even own yet!!!

The amount of talent shown on this forum is amazing. The flow of information is even more amazing. It's nice to see people helping others into and during this hobby.

[Plutonius]

Some cameras coming out now use dynamic compression (variable quantization tables) with a lower bit compression to get smaller consistant sized files. This increases the performance (burst mode) of the camera but gives you less to work with in PP.

The G7 uses 3 bit compression (compared to 5 bit in the S3) although I'm not sure if the G7 uses variable quantization tables. This may be why it's harder to PP the G7 images.

I wonder if the two burst modes in the S5 is in response to compression issues.

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1009&message=23078075&q=g7&qf=m

[downtrodden]

I apologize, Lantnern is correct. the A640 is 10 mp the A630 is 8. and the review for both are on the same page side by side :X

Anywho, Yes Lantern I am a very lucky man. :D


As for the S2/S3 deal- When the S3 first came out- no it wasn't a reasonable upgrade imo. But i wasn't in the market for a camera at that time and by the time i was, the S3 was down to 330 and the S2 was at 299. And 30 bucks *IS* a reasonable amount more to pay for the extra MP and the slightly better performance and larger LCD. Wait a year and the S5 price drop will make it a reasonable upgrade. But until then, I just don't see paying even 100 bucks more for a hotshoe and larger LCD. And if you can't wait for a price drop for a new camera... i still think the S3 is the way to go.

Btw, Amazon has the S3 listed at 303 and the S2 at 299. 4 bucks makes the S3 a worthy upgrade.

~Cory

[XaiLo]

I'm not seeing a whole lot that's compelling with the S5. having spent premium dollars on both the S2 and S3 along with filters. I still feel Canon has bigger issues to deal with than just a hotshoe a nice addition but for me too little too late.

Will I buy an S5 "no" but I've also moved onto dslr land. Will I still use my S3 "yes" more so as a spotter than for actual pics. Will I buy another point and shoot hopefully not anytime soon. But you never know the S3 is still a rather capable camera, my needs just changed. The S3 was a good camera at $499 @$300 it becomes a great camera for the money.

[Visual Reality]

My main gripe with the S3, that I have come to find, is the noise. Now, maybe other cameras just have heavier noise reduction in-camera and the S3 is leaving it to post-processing instead, which is a good thing. However I have to run almost every shot through Noise Ninja, even if it was taken in broad daylight (except for Macro shots which turn out quite good). I like how it lets you turn down sharpening and contrast so you have more power in PP.

[S.C.]

Btw, Amazon has the S3 listed at 303 and the S2 at 299. 4 bucks makes the S3 a worthy upgrade.

~Cory

I agree... my S3 was only a few dollars more than the S2 when i bought it a little over a month ago. I paid 305 and the S2 was listed at 299.

I love my S3 and hope to get out next weekend and take lots of pics. :)

[griptape]

While I would certainly pay $5 to upgrade to a hotshoe (and maybe even another megapixel, despite it being the same size sensor) I wouldn't pay $200, and I sure as hell wouldn't pay $500 if I was just looking to buy a new camera.

[tim11]

For me, it's either bounce flash or no flash so hotshoe is really a big deal indeed. $200 for hotshoe? Keep in mind it's TTL so it keep the guessing out, I will pay $200 for it; of course. Another thing I'd like to see is how clean S5 image on high ISO. If useable on ISO1600 it will shake the crown of the Fuji S6000fd on its dimlight territory.

[Visual Reality]

For me, it's either bounce flash or no flash so hotshoe is really a big deal indeed. $200 for hotshoe? Keep in mind it's TTL so it keep the guessing out, I will pay $200 for it; of course. Another thing I'd like to see is how clean S5 image on high ISO. If useable on ISO1600 it will shake the crown of the Fuji S6000fd on its dimlight territory.
It uses the same sensor. 800 and above are useless marketing gimmicks. Almost as bad as the megapixel race :rolleyes:

[DirePenguin]

My main gripe with the S3, that I have come to find, is the noise. Now, maybe other cameras just have heavier noise reduction in-camera and the S3 is leaving it to post-processing instead, which is a good thing. However I have to run almost every shot through Noise Ninja, even if it was taken in broad daylight (except for Macro shots which turn out quite good). I like how it lets you turn down sharpening and contrast so you have more power in PP.

DPReview just did an article comparing high ISO pics (http://www.dpreview.com/articles/compactcamerahighiso/page3.asp) between a number of popular P&S cameras (comparing them all to Fuji).

One thing I was interested to see is that, despite the fact that it's considerably noisier than the Fuji, the Canon S3 pic seems to be the least degraded in terms of detail. I would assume that means the output from a noise reduction program would be better because there's more detail to preserve.

[Visual Reality]

I have noticed that as well, even though it is a bit noisy all the fine detail is there which lets me decide in the end. I also turn down sharpening all the way so it doesn't exaggerate the noise more.