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

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Ive been a small time semi-pro since the early 90s. Although I will never pass up a chance to take a picture at anytime of anything or anyone that might create a beautiful image, my passion centers around outdoor photography when I travel. As I imagine, anyone with internet access can view and read everyones opinion and take of the G12 - every button, mode, and nuance has been examined like an alien from Area 51. With that I will give you my personal take from my perspective. The last seven years has seen my bank account quite lean so my instrument purchases have had to be well thought out and planned. I would say my "photography personality type" would be someone that will agonize over every technical capability and detail of a camera or accessory before a purchase, but after, resolves to the skill of artist to create beautiful and captivating images. That new camera will not improve your images. That new camera may increase your chances of getting the image youre envisioning, but without envisioning, the only thing that will change is your bank account. Although I had "fiddled" with this camera for weeks, my first real impression of this camera was when I went to my youngest daughters ballet dress rehearsal. This is far better than trying to get great shots of your kid at the final event (theres not as many people there, the stage and lighting most likely will be the same, and there is usually do overs for you to capitalize on). The ease at which I was able to manipulate this camera on the fly was remarkable and far and above any camera I have used to date. The array of dials, on top, in back, and in front give me the control I want at an instant. Rarely did I have to dip into depths of electronic menus to tweak what I wanted. Any camera I purchase from here out will be compared with what I have in the G12. And this from a person who really never considered this quality in a camera before this purchase. If you end up getting this camera and find yourself dissatisfied with the image quality I will confidently put you in a particular category. That category which a person spends far too much time inspecting their images on a computer screen at an enlargement size nobody would really consider printing unless they produced billboards. I have an expanse of cameras to fit different types of situations but the G12 fits a niche that cant be satisfied by anything I have to date. I wanted a camera (and its accompanying system) that I could simply "grab a small bag" and have everything I needed for a weekend trip to the coast, two weeks in Hawaii, or a month in India. And believe that if I nabbed that once in a lifetime shot, I would not forever bemoan the final print for lack of image quality, key filter, or perfect lens. I have a Domke bag (700-51B F-5XA) that is roughly the size of a Scooby-Doo lunch pale from the 70s. In it I have everything I need: every filter I can imagine needing (seven in total) all in a stack cap filter case; three batteries and the AC charger; macro ring flash; wide lens converter along with the adapter to mount it; lens shade; Gorillapod; LensMate filter/lens adapter; intervalometer (which also doubles as a remote shutter release); hand strap; and a white balance lens cap. I also have a small camera case that will sometimes go with me that is about the size of a Pop Tarts box. Must have features that led me to pick this camera and system: optical viewfinder - despite reviews I have read, this viewfinder is every bit as good as ANY viewfinder from a camera of this size that I have used in the last thirty-five years of playing with cameras - also a necessary component for discreet shooting, bright day shooting, and steady hand-held shooting; fully articulating screen - makes overhead, waist level and floor shooting easier and/or possible - also flips about to conceal/protect the LCD screen which adds protection and another valuable component of discreet shooting; tried and true and ever-tweaked (over the years) optical stabilization; hot shoe for external flash; size - small enough to be considered a compact - a camera and its system being any bigger would be subject to me opting to leave it home because I dont want to haul all that equipment around; price - this is a very important consideration but not for what you may think - when traveling, I dont want to consider the total price of the "bag of tools" so expensive that I leave it behind for fear of being stolen or broken - all in all have the camera with me more often means more pictures and a better chance of being equipped when that "great shot" presents itself.

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Ive had 35mm SLR systems for 40 years. The old case used to hold two Canon Bodies, a gaggle of lenses and accessories, and in a little out the way pocket I stuck an Olympus rangefinder. Like many photographers I used the rangefinder for street photography and walk around stuff. I probably took more shots with the little guy than with the other two SLR bodies combined. So now I am DSLR all the way. Have a single EOS 7D and the same gaggle of lenses and accessories as before and in that little out of the way pocket of my case I stick a G12. The G12 fills out my system and I feel whole again. I rarely use the LCD screen and shoot like always through the rangefinder unless I want a shot than can only be accommodated by flipping the screen out for high angle shots. I enjoy this camera very much. Things I like--- Very good low light imaging that is made possible by having "only" 10MP. The sensors are larger instead. Canon knew what they were doing here. Light weight Extremely long lasting battery (but remember I hardly ever use the LCD screen). Things I dont like--- No printed manual Hard to use navigation ring on the back side. Way too small. No shoe cover All and all the 140 great reviews vs that 12 negative ones gives you the right story in my mind. Since I have never tested any of the competition and cannot compare them then this heavily liked camera must do well in comparison. As for LCD display vs optical viewfinder it will depend I suppose on what you are used to. I am still not comfortable holding a camera at arms length to find the picture (Ive been a photographer for half a century). With a small light weight camera that has an optical view finder, I can hold it at my side with one hand, raise it quickly to my eye, and take the shot. Great for street photography and candid shots and once you take some that way you will take most of them that way. Dont hate the optical view finder. Go to your camera store and try one out. If your salesman looks under 40 try to find an older one. :)

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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 shot exclusively with a G12 for a year. I finally moved to a Micro Four Thirds system for reasons Ill get into later. But the fact that the G12 didnt quite meet my needs in no way diminishes my general opinion of it as an excellent camera. The G12 is solidly built. It wont go into many pockets, but its not overly heavy. The fit and finish oozes quality. The rotating controls are solid and generous (a mode dial, a dedicated ISO knob, a dedicated exposure compensation knob, a front dial, and a rear rotary dial). The rear rotary dial doubles as a set of four-way buttons, and this common design is always tricky to use, but youll develop the muscle memory to use it effectively. If youve never used an articulated display, it is a joy. Its hard to understand how useful it is until you use it, and its something I really miss with my new camera. As with everything else, the G12s implementation of this feature is first-rate. Its easy to move it around, but you never feel like its going to fall apart in your hands. It makes all kinds of composition easier: shooting from the hip, lifting the camera into the air, shooting around corners, getting into tricky positions. Dont underestimate this feature. The screen is nice and bright, and you get a good view of your pictures. The lens is worthy of the Canon name. Nice and sharp. Its fairly bright at the wide angle, but the f/2.8 is clearly one of the compromises for getting a 5x zoom lens; that is, its one of the factors in the G12s indoor-light struggles. The sensor is significantly bigger than that of most compact cameras, but its still a small-sensor camera. Despite this, the image quality is superb. Colors are natural and pleasing in most lighting conditions. Where the small sensor size hurts the G12 is by making it difficult to shoot indoors without flash. The provided flash is fairly powerful, but its positioning close to the lens makes it prone to red-eye. If you buy a G12, do yourself a favor and invest in the 270EX or 270EXII flash. G12 + 270EX is a great indoor combination, and that particular flash is perfect for the G12s size. You can also bounce light off a surface (for example, the ceiling) with the 270EX, and that can make a huge difference in getting natural-looking lighting. The G12s autofocus speed is lackluster. My primary subjects are my children, and I was never able to get candid shots exactly when I wanted to. The autofocus is accurate, and things like subject tracking and face recognition are very well done. Its GOOD at focusing, just not fast at focusing. The G12 does have a manual focus option, but its frankly not even worth mentioning. The viewfinder is useful on occasion. As nice as the G12 is, shooting with it gave me a good education in what I wanted in my next camera. I wanted to be able to take pictures indoors without a flash, and without cranking the ISO way up. I wanted to be able to isolate subjects with selective focus, but the G12s slow-at-telephoto lens and small sensor really make that difficult. And I wanted an autofocus system that would let me get candid shots immediately. I found what I was looking for in an Olympus Micro Four Thirds system, but there are things about the G12 I regret leaving behind. The articulated display, the nice array of manual controls, and even little things like an orientation sensor, are not included in my new camera. And getting a decent macro will require me to buy a macro lens, whereas the G12 can take very nice macro shots. I got some great pictures with the G12 in the last year. I got some great sports shots, despite the slow autofocus, but anticipating the action. I got some great indoor shots by maximizing available light and using the shoe-mounted flash. So its limitations can be handled. But its at its best with things that dont move fast that are outdoors. Landscapes, nature photography and daytime street shooting are the G12s strengths. And it wasnt TOTALLY out of its depth for my purposes (photographing young children), but there were better options.

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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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UPDATE 2015: ... and down it goes to one star. I cant believe, after only 5 years the camera stopped working. One day out of a sudden while taking shots at a birthday party the camera froze up, the lens got stuck and wouldnt detract, and the display would show an error message: Lens Error, Will shut down Automatically, Restart Camera. Looked around online - sure enough, a bunch of people have the same problem with this camera! Really? What kind of quality is this for an expensive camera like that? Very disappointed. My 10 year old Sony Cybershot DSC still works! It just shouldnt have happened. Repair cost at the local shop: $120! Bought myself Sony WX500 instead. ____________________________________________ I am an amateur and do not know a lot about all the settings and professional specifications. But I do love photography and I have been exploring and trying out different settings on this camera. Pros: -Color usually turns out very nice -Really great low light (no flash) and night shots! -Videos turn out quite well Cons: -I think for that price the camera should have came with the cover for the hotshoe. I bought one, but once on, the internal flash wouldnt work at all. -I was very annoyed with the fact, that the max size for jpegs is about 3MB. I would like to be able to choose lower compression for jpegs. -in Auto-mode, the internal flash function overexposes and I havent found the way to change this. -Also, you cannot turn on the internal flash in auto mode, which is annoying. On such occasions I just switch into Program or Manual setting and turn on the flash. -As with all point-and-shoot cameras, when the flash is turned off manually, most images turn out blurry. -Its not possible to zoom in/out while filming! - why??? -Zoom does kind of hang at times and it appears to be rather slow I am sure there is much more to say about this camera, but these are my impressions of it.

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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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I wanted to upgrade from my Canon SD1100. I asked my photography friends about recommendations for cameras and one of them suggested that I look at the Canon G12. I know nothing about the ISO, shutter speeds, aperture, etc. so I thought buying a DSLR may be too much money and too high of a learning curve. My needs were to be able to take close up pictures of flowers with blurry background, better action shots of my kids sports, better nighttime photography, better low light pictures, and so on. I am able to achieve all my photography needs with the G12. It is smaller than a DSLR so you can fit it in a purse or small bag. I love the swivel screen. It does come in very handy. The SCENERY modes are very useful. In fact, my favorite is Color Accent since you can pick a color in a picture, such as red, and the rest of the picture is in black and white. You can do the same thing in Photoshop, but its very handy to be able to do the processing while you take the picture. The pictures turn out very artsy. The depth of field with this camera is a bit limited when trying to take close ups and you want to blur the background. My photography friend gave me this tip. He told me to shoot in Aperture Priority mode (Av). At the same time, use Zoom to zoom in on your subject. Change the f stop to the smallest setting possible with zoom enabled. Step back more from the subject and zoom in more. Take the picture. Voila! The blurry background is achieved! The Portrait setting in the SCENERY mode supposedly blurs the background, but not enough for me. Im going to take a local photography class to understand more about basic photography concepts, but Im sure I will be able to take even more awesome pictures with the Canon G12 after that. Take a look on flickr.com and search for Canon G12. Youll see so many pictures taken with this camera. This camera can take amazing pictures with the proper understanding of how to use its functions. **Review Update 7/30/12*** Been using the G12 for several months now and have gotten to know its pros and cons better. The G12 is a great camera to bring on travel. Its smaller size than a DSLR fits nicely into my handbag. The ISO, metering, and shooting mode controls on the top of the camera gives quick access to changing your settings. I took it to Hearst Castle and was able to take pictures indoor without flash for the first time in my life. The last time I went to Hearst Castle, I had my film 35 mm camera where if I turned off the flash, the pictures were too dark because I couldnt adjust anything with my old camera. With the ability to control shutter and aperture, I was able to use the G12 to capture low, light indoor shots and night time photography. The downside of the G12 is that for portraits where you want shallow depth of field (blurry background), you cannot get much blurriness unless you have the subject way in front of the background and stand far away and zoom into the subject. Ive also had professional photographers try to help me achieve the look but it just doesnt give me a satisfactory look compared to the lenses on their DSLRs. However, if Im doing macro photography, such as photographing flowers, I am able to achieve the nice shallow depth of field look, just not with larger subjects.

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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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