Canon PowerShot S500 Digital Camera Review

Auto Mode (7.0)
Automatic mode on the Canon PowerShot S500 is engaged by rotating the mode dial to the red SLR camera icon at the top of the list — if, indeed, a dial can have a top. Or a list. In any case, automatic mode has several features, which the camera controls automatically: focus, exposure, white balance, shutter speed, and ISO sensitivity. All of these features are adjusted relatively seamlessly, with the exception of exposure and white balance. These two features are quite slow in making adjustments, so users should be sure to give the camera plenty of time to adjust before taking the picture. Finalized adjustments will be made as soon as the shutter is pressed, but the display on the LCD is somewhat misleading, as users can visually watch adjustments being made in near real-time. The only features available via the function button while in auto mode are image quality and image size.

Auto mode on the Canon PowerShot S500 is pretty standard, and is comparable to almost any other digital camera’s auto mode. Limited functionality is a common trait, mostly to help novice users from getting lost within manual settings. Canon’s auto mode is reliable, and adjustments are made quickly and quietly.

Movie Mode (6.5)
Movie mode on the Canon PowerShot S500 can be accessed when the mode dial is set to the movie camera icon. Similar to taking a photo, the shutter button engages the “record” function of the camera. When the shutter is pressed again, the recording stops. Sound and image are recorded simultaneously in three different sizes: 640 x 480, 320 x 240, and 160 x 120. The maximum length of a movie clip (15 frames/second) varies with each size mode, but can be approximated: 30 seconds at 640 x 480, 3 minutes at 320 x 240, and 3 minutes at 160 x 120. Too much is made of movie modes on digital cameras, as are photo modes on camcorders. But, as they are included, we do write about them. The movie modes on the PowerShot S500 are minimal and restrictive in size. But as most users will never actually export a movie where they really care about the quality, the modes available serve their overrated purpose.

Drive / Burst Mode (6.0)
The Canon S500 offers two modes of continuous shooting, a high speed continuous shooting mode as well as a normal continuous mode. Both continuous shooting settings are reliant on the size or quality of the images being captured. These modes are named after the rate at which the frames are recorded, not the quality of images being produced. Normal continuous mode will allow the user to capture 1.5 frames per second for as long as the shutter release is held down or up to 8 images at a time. The high speed continuous shooting mode will capture up to 10 total exposures at a rate of 2.2 frames per second. Continuous shooting capabilities are beneficial to users who intend on capturing sequential stopped motion, in much the same way animation is created.

Playback Mode (7.0)
In order to access playback mode, the Canon PowerShot S500 mode switch must be moved to the left, towards the blue playback icon. When turned on, the Canon PowerShot S500 will display the last image taken. Users can use the left and right buttons of the four-button keypad to navigate through images stored on the CF card.

In playback mode, images can be magnified. This is done by pressing the zoom toggle towards the magnifying lens icon, or towards the telephoto icon (tree). Images can be magnified up to ten times in individual image playback mode. When zoomed in on an image, between 1x and 10x, users can utilize the four-button navigation keypad to scroll around the image.

Images can also be displayed in sets of nine in Index Playback mode. This mode is engaged by pressing the zoom toggle to the left, towards the checkered panel icon above the wide angle icon. The four-button navigation keypad can be used to change the image selection. To select an image, users can move the zoom toggle towards the magnifying glass icon. To switch between sets, users can press the zoom toggle again to the left, which will reveal the index jump bar. Once the jump bar is on the screen, the left and right buttons of the four-button navigation keypad can be used to move between indexes.

Movies can be played back as well in playback mode. An image with the movie mode icon is viewable in playback by pressing the SET button (on the bottom left in the row of buttons beneath the LCD). Once selected, standard VCR/Playback icons appear at the bottom of the LCD, and users can use the four-button keypad.

All the playback modes are intuitive and easy to navigate, with plenty of playback options available. PowerShot S500 users should feel confident that their playback appetites will be whetted by the options provided.

Custom Image Presets (0.0)
The Canon PowerShot S500 has image controls over picture quality and photo effects. These can be accessed by pressing the function button and selecting the preset details of the desired setting; however, the S500 unfortunately does not offer any specific custom image presets such as Twilight or Beach mode.