Digital Cameras Reviews

Last year’s retro-minimalist Canon PowerShot SD1000 got rave reviews from both professional camera reviewers and ordinary consumers because it delivered everything an ultracompact digicam could reasonably be expected to provide. What made the SD1000 unique in a flood of generally competent but mostly uninspired mini-cams was not its old school style or its flashy collection of features, but its proficiency and dependability as a digital image-maker. Updating a very popular digital camera like the Canon PowerShot SD1000 is an especially tough job, but the new Canon PowerShot SD1100 IS, which replaces the SD1000, retains most of what made its predecessor one of the mini-cam sales leaders of 2007. More…

I have to admit that as much as I love SLRs, the compact camera market captures a portion of my photography heart as well. There is something so novel about being able to slip a camera into most any pocket and get pictures anytime: try doing that with an SLR. The latest compact I have been playing with, the 12 megapixel Pentax Optio A40, is a fun little camera that works great as a back-up, but does it do enough to be an all-in-one picture taking device as well? More…

When Pentax recently released their updated flagship K20D and mid-range K200D, they also offered a series of new “DA” lenses designed specifically for Pentax DSLRs. One of the most impressive lenses from this latest release is the Pentax DA* 200mm ED (IF) SDM f/2.8 prime. After a few years of criticism over the lack of modern telephoto primes and long zooms, Pentax has stepped up to the plate in 2008 with some excellent new high-quality lenses for DSLR users. Can Pentax re-establish its former popularity with its latest line of cameras and lenses? If this lens is any indicator, they may be on the right track. More…

In the compact digital camera world, standard zoom lenses have tended to start out in the low- to mid-30mm focal range at the wide-angle end of the spectrum, a 35mm-equivalent length that isn’t really all that wide. Every so often you’ll come across a 27 or 28mm, but those have tended to be the exception rather than the rule. As a brand, Panasonic’s lineup has a fairly high concentration of 28 to low-30mm lenses, but the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX35 breaks new ground in the compact wide angle sweepstakes: a 4x optical zoom starting out at 25mm. More…

I was pretty excited when I found out I would be reviewing the Casio Exilim S10, “the world’s smallest and thinnest 10.1 megapixel camera.” Encased in stainless steel and decked out in four color choices, it looks and feels like a great accessory. Of course, it’s not all about looks, as any fool knows, and with tiny cameras, compromises often have to be made somewhere. Want to know if this book lived up to its cover? Read on… More…

Unboxing the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS20 was déjà vu: “Didn’t I just review this camera?” As it happens, in a way I did, having recently checked out the FS20′s sister model, the FS3. While the cameras are strikingly similar, visually, with a wide-angle lens, more resolution, and a neat joystick controller, the FS20 makes it clear in a hurry why it gets top billing in this pair (actually, with the mid-level FS5, a trio) of new Lumix cameras. Good specs, good styling, and good images are all in the FS20′s corner. So what’s holding it back? In some ways, a case of high expectations for this most feature-packed of the FS models. More…

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