Canon PowerShot S500 Digital Camera Review

Viewfinder (4.5)
The viewfinder is the small circular window at the top on the back of the Canon PowerShot S500. A crosshair is visible, and zooming can be viewed through the viewfinder. The viewfinder is small, but the image is visible from far enough away from the back of the camera so users don’t grease up the LCD with an oily T-Zone. My one caution with using viewfinders in general is that they are only 75-90 percent accurate on most compact digital cameras. This should be kept in mind when composing images.

I liked the viewfinder on the S500, although I prefer to use the LCD…certainly a mark of my age, as us younger folk (just under 30) have been spoiled by the advances in extension technology. These extensions allow for more convenient image viewing, and viewfinders are slowly taking a back seat.

LCD Screen (6.0)
The 1.8-inch, 134K-pixel LCD screen is on the lower left side of the back of the Canon PowerShot S500. The LCD is the main navigation hub of the camera, and icons relative to various functions and features are displayed throughout, mostly on the perimeter. The LCD brightness can be adjusted, but users should know that a histogram might be a more accurate way to get an idea of an image’s illumination pattern and exposure. The LCD’s color is not equivalent to that of the CCD, so the LCD should be considered more of a guide to framing the image than to adjusting color or brightness. Users can access the LCD control option (brightness) in the Set-Up menu. This is a good sized LCD for such a small digital camera, and its placement is appropriate. Compared to the competition, it’s nice to see the LCD screen pushing 2 inches.

Flash (6.5)
The Canon PowerShot S500 has several flash modes, including Auto, Auto with Red-Eye Reduction, Flash On, Flash Off, and Slow Synchro. The flash modes can be selected by pressing the flash icon (lightning bolt with arrow) on the four-button navigation keypad. Repeatedly pressing the button will rotate through the various flash modes. The flash itself is located on the front of the Canon PowerShot S500.

Depending on the recording mode, certain flash modes are unavailable. In automatic recording mode, the Auto flash, Red-Eye Reduction Flash, and Flash Off modes are available. In Manual record mode, all flash modes are available. In multi photo or burst shoot mode, Flash On, Flash Off, and Synchro flash are available for the first photo only.

Like any smaller camera, the onboard flash setup does little to really improve image quality. The flash modes on the S500 are both useful and reliable…although I found myself switching to flash off mode as on-board flashes tend to make for harshly lit images.

Zoom Lens (6.5)
The PowerShot S500 is equipped with a 36-108mm (equivalent) zoom lens. The zoom is accessed by moving the lever around the shutter release to the left or right. Depending on how far the lever is pressed, the speed of zoom is altered. The S500 zoom lens has an aperture range of f/2.8 - f/13; however, the aperture size is reliant on the focal length being used. In full telephoto mode, the aperture can be closed down to f/13, but can only be opened up to f/4.9. When in full wide angle, the aperture can be opened all the way to f/2.9 to let in a maximum amount of light, but can only be closed down to f/7.1; a bit debilitating to the camera’s maximum depth of field. Although the total aperture range for the S500 (f/2.8-f/13) is fairly impressive, the separation does not make sense to me.

In general, when shooting for increased depth of field, three things should be taken into account – camera to subject distance, aperture setting, and focal length. Ideally, when trying to gain more depth in a shot, you should try to distance yourself as much as possible from the subject, to create the various planes. The user should than zoom out to full wide view as wide angle shots will always provide more depth of field then telephoto. Finally, the aperture should be closed down as far as possible. Obviously, when shooting in lower light situations you may need to open up a bit, however, if its depth of field you desire, the aperture should not be less than f/8. Conversely, when shooting in telephoto mode there will naturally be a compressed view. This is typified in cinematic close-up shots where the character’s face is the subject of the shot and behind, the background is blurred. This type of shot is taken with a telephoto lens and the blurred background results from the lack of depth of field. Therefore, I do not understand why the aperture range on the Canon S500 is not fully offered in wide angle, although the ability to close down the aperture to f/2.8 will help to reduce image blurring from camera shake – often present in telephoto shots.