Deantastic!

In November last year, I began the quest for a digital camera to accompany me on my travels and travails. I listed three point-and-shoots and three digital SLRs, pointing out the pros and cons for each one.

Fast forward to two months later, and the quest is over. I finally have a photographic companion and memory storage doohickey.

Introducing the Canon PowerShot A650 IS.

It is interesting to note that the A650 wasn’t among the contenders on the quest for my digicam. I found the camera while on vacation in Cagayan de Oro City. I was looking for the PowerShot A590, but in doing so stumbled upon the A650.

The Canon PowerShot A650 IS’ specs are these: 12.1 megapixel CCD optical sensor, 6x optical zoom, video recording capabilities, the ability to add telephoto lens using adaptors, and manual focus. You can also manually choose shutter speed, f-stop, and ISO, which makes the camera a marriage between the point-and-shoot and DSLR families.

The camera utilizes four double-A batteries. As a result, it needs to be quite bulky and fits better into a bag than into a pocket. It’s worth the size, though—pictures are beautiful, although color is a little off. The 6x optical zoom (plus digital zoom) allows one to get really tight shots from afar. The manual focus—one of the things that makes me prefer DSLRs over point-and-shoots, as most of the latter lack the capability—is very usable, although focusing is definitely slower than with the lenskit of a DSLR. It also has a flip screen so you can easily take portraits of yourself or shoot comfortably from awkward angles, such as when you need to raise the camera over a crowd. The optical viewfinder isn’t bad either, but when peering through the viewfinder, part of the view is obstructed by the protruding lens.

See below for some sample shots taken with the A650 IS:

EXIF data: f-stop - f/3.2; exposure time - 1/50 sec.; ISO speed - 400; focal length: 15mm;

EXIF data: f-stop - f/3.2; exposure time - 1/2sec; ISO speed - 80; focal length - 11mm

EXIF data: f-stop - f/2.8; exposure time: 1/20sec; ISO speed: 400; focal length: 7mm

So far, I’m rather pleased with the camera. Its bulkiness is fine by me, as I know I’m getting something in return. Finally, I have someone to accompany me on my travails. All I need now is to give him a name. (Suggestions are appreciated. )