Canon PowerShot SD40 First Impressions Review

There is no optical viewfinder on the Canon SD40: all viewing is done through the LCD screen.

 

The screen is a 1.8-inch low temperature polycrystalline silicon TFT model with 118K pixels. Although this is much smaller than many other modern cameras, it fits in well with the design of the camera and is reasonably bright and clear. The screen’s brightness can be adjusted to 15 different brightness levels. Images are not particularly sharp, but they are sharp enough to be viewable and to allow you to check focus, framing, etc. The LCD screen doesn’t make a fabulous playback device because of its small size; it makes it hard to gather ten friends around to watch a slide show. However, its 100 percent coverage of the recorded image makes it a good viewfinder.

The small, thin flash is located above and to the right of the lens (looking from the front). Canon claims a range of 1-6.6 ft with the zoom in wide angle mode and 1-4.3 ft in telephoto. That’s not much: it wouldn’t be enough for a group shot at a party, for instance. If you’re looking for a camera that can take photos of groups of people in the dark, look elsewhere. But if it’s for portraits, then it should suffice. If you need more flash power, Canon’s HF-DC1 can be used with the camera. Users can also access flash compensation from the Func./Set menu, where +/- 2 power is offered in full stops. The Canon PowerShot SD40’s flash modes can be changed with the right side of the multi-selector. The following modes are available: Auto, Auto with Red-eye Reduction, Auto with Slow Synchro, Flash On, Flash On with Red-eye Reduction, Flash On with Slow Synchro, and Flash Off.

The 2.4x optical zoom lens is a Canon model with 4 elements in 4 groups, with a focal length of 6.3 - 14.9mm. Combined with the 1/2.5-inch CCD sensor, this means a 35mm film camera focal length equivalent of 38 - 90mm. That’s a little shorter than most (especially at the low end, which tends to be more useful), but it’s acceptable. The lens can focus from 3.9 inches in the macro mode and 1 ft normally. Many ultra-compact cameras have lenses that remain within the camera body, but the Canon SD40’s lens extends from the case when turned on.