Canon G12 10 MP Digital Camera with 5x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.8 Inch Vari-Angle LCD

Since excellent reviews have already been written (plus some on You Tube), I will keep remarks brief and personal. I am basically a film photographer--mainly 4x5. In years past, Ive taken film cameras to Europe, but now Im too old for that. So I wanted a high-quality digi for travel. These were my criteria: I wanted a viewfinder. I did not need interchangeable lenses. I wanted one with many positive user reviews. I did not want to spend much more than $500. It had to be small enough to fit in my jacket pocket (no camera bag, please). But it needed to be large enough to accommodate external wheels, knobs, and switches---similar to classic film interface. I hate scrolling menus and searching for settings. So I hoped for a digital camera like my my Rollei 35! High quality, but spare. Two cameras fit the bill: The Canon G12 and the Nikon P 7000. I did not choose the Nikon P7000 because it was a new camera, needing firmware upgrades and some body improvements I bet it will be a fine camera in another year. So I bought a G12. Its a very enjoyable and fun camera to use: It brings back memories shooting film with my SLR and TLR cameras The G12 allows me to concentrate on the subject instead of the camera. It also has many electronic features that are easy to access and fun to use. It feels solid and well-made. For someone like me who has enjoyed manual cameras for decades, the G12 offers an enjoyable and plausible alternative for travel.

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I wont get into technical details like some other (very helpful) reviewers...Ill just say this: I tried 3-4 point & shoot digital cameras (from Canon & Nikon) in the weeks before settling on the G12 Canon G12 10MP Digital Camera with 5x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.8 inch Vari-Angle LCD . Each had their pros & cons, but at the end of the day they failed to take crisp pictures, and have a responsive shutter (too much delay/downtime between shots). A buddy of mine works with professional photographers, and I asked him for suggestions on a good P&S...he said universally all of his photographer associates use the G11/G12 when not lugging their DSLRs. I ordered it from Amazon on the spot (via Amazon app on my iphone...). I cant tell you how happy I am with this camera. The construction alone just feels good in your hands. Its small enough to carry conveniently (the main reason for me to have a P&S), but it has all the features you would need. But really...its a camera, and what you want a camera to do is take clear, focused images, and it does. I didnt buy this camera for video functions (I have a good video camera). I havent been this happy with a camera since my AE-1 in 79...which I still have! Im glad the G12 was suggested to me, and Im glad I ponied-up the extra $. Otherwise, Id still be in my decade-long rut of buying a new point&shoot digital camera every 3 years...

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My first digital camera was a Canon G1. Ive sold several photos that I took with that camera, the photo quality was that good. I then upgraded to a G3 but eventually then moved up to the Canon 20D and a nice set of lenses for it. However, Ive wanted a good point and shoot for those situations for which the 20D is too large and heavy. However, the G series was no longer as attractive because the newer versions didnt use Raw format. However, Canon finally added this valuable capability to back to the cameras in this series. I dont know which of the previous versions might have had it but at least the G12 does. And not only does it have this capability but its image quality is absolutely superb. I usually use the P setting with auto ISO and I have not been disappointed with any of the shots that Ive taken so far. Ive now owned the camera about a month. I still use my 20D for more serious work and it definitely has some advantages over the G12 including shorter shutter lag and focus time. But the 20D is a fantastic stand-in when I dont want to or cant carry the hefty 20D and its stable of lens with me. I highly recommend the G12 to anyone who is serious about photography and wants to take excellent photos. It is well worth the approximately $480 price that I paid and better than any other point and shoot that Ive owned.

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I spent a lot of time online comparing this camera with the canon S95, Lumix LX-5, and less so the Nikon. I was tempted by the S95s smaller size but greater control options and better lens led me to the G12. I was also interested in the Panasonic LX-5 but I just could not get over the Panasonic color management especially in JPEG since Im too lazy to deal with RAW exclusively and didnt want to adjust color on all my photos, I went with the G12. Sure, it is not that fastest, brightest, or smallest, but it is a very good compromise in a size that is somewhat pocketable (certainly in a jacket pocket and in a pinch my pant pocket). Its speed certainly doesnt compare with DSLR level cameras but the difference with the LX-5 was not enough to sway me. Im not a pro but want quality photos of my family and scenaries when we travel, and I think this is a great camera for that. Ive not missed too many great shots with this camera, its low-light performance is very respectable, and its "auto" mode is excellent. The auto white-balance biases toward the warm side in indoor lighting so thats only the thing Id like to go out of auto mode for. Occassionally I use the other settings but rarely. Ill post some of the photos taken in "auto" to demo how good it is as a P&S while still giving people near professional-like control for lots of things. Pros against competing cameras: Flip-out screen (I know some people dismisses this but it is handy sometimes) Automatic/internal lens cover (just say no to the dangling lens cover) Good lowlight performance (yeah I know the S95 is similar and the LX-5 has better aperture but I liked the G12 performance better on head-to-head comps) 5x optical zoom Cons: no optical zoom on video (but this doesnt bother me on a photo camera) size/weight (its not that bad, if I want super compact I just use my phones camera) Conclusion: Im very happy with my purchase. It is a good P&S companion to people who have DSLR, and for me its good enough to delay my DSLR purchase for now.

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This is the nicest camera I have ever owned. I am an casual photographer with enough background to know where to select aperture or shutter priority, yadda yadda. I do not like exchangeable lenses for three (significant) reasons: (1) changing a lens lets dust into the sensor ... and this will happen, (2) changing lenses is time consuming and causes you to miss shots and annoy subjects, and (3) extra lenses usually dont give you any capabilities that you cant get with editing. On the last point, note that this camera even has an internal fish-eye effect. You can get multiplier lenses that attach to this camera, but they are a gimmick and best ignored. For what I do, I find the 5x zoom is fine; any more would probably create image stabilization problems. Canon has the best image stabilization of any of the major camera brands -- it just works. It is fun to play around with the camera by shaking it and taking a picture to see if you can defeat the stabilization. Its amazing how often it corrects for even the nastiest of shaking. The pictures are first rate; color balance, resolution, exposure all perfect 98% of the time. Low light sensitivity is great, and image stabilization gives you great evening shots. The G12 uses big chunky dials to select functions (as opposed to finicky touchscreens on many point and shoot cams). The case seems to be metal, with a rough surface, and shape that makes the camera very easy to hold. The vari-angle LCD is very useful (I think Canon made a mistake in not carrying this capability over to their upgrade, the G15)... I use it for crowd shots, walking, etc. The macro is impressive, allowing me to get pictures less than an inch away from a subject. Overall, the build feels very solid; much more so that other P&S cameras. Other reviews seem to indicate that reliability is good. The flash is adequate, but I purchased an inexpensive Bower SFD728C TTL Autofocus Flash for Canon E-TTL II which links into the G12s electronics. It delivers about 4x the light, and allows bounces, which is really useful even if you are not a professional. I dont use it all the time (its as big as the G12) but comes in handy for party shots, and other indoor shooting. One reviewer stated that this flash is not controllable from the Canon menues; but in the case of the G12, the flash intensity is directly controllable from the G12 menues, so the reviewer may just have missed this. Update 12-16-2012: I have had a month to learn virtually all of the settings on the G12 and also get a feel for their utility in actual use. I am impressed with how cleverly Canons engineers have thought through the UI and ergonomics of the G12. This is a digital camera, so f-stop, exposure, ISO, etc. dont map precisely into their equivalents on a film camera. But Canon provides controls for these in a format that makes the G12 feel very natural. All of the buttons and dials are logically placed, and useful; the menu system gets things done with a minimum of clicking and searching. Ive had a chance to look at the G15 and G1X since I purchased this, and even though these beat the G12 in pixels, they are not as logical in their UI and ergonomics. I think this sadly may be because Canon listened to reviewers and customers - particularly those who wanted a more video oriented camera. The loss of the articulating screen on the G15 substantially lowers utility (IMHO), and the larger sensor on the G1X makes the lens and cover a bit clumsier. The latter two are still great cameras, but for my taste, the less expensive G12 beats them both.

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