Picture Quality / Size Options (7.5)
The Canon PowerShot SD870 IS has 8 megapixels on its 1/2.5-inch CCD. It has plenty of size and compression options easily accessible in the Function menu. Size options include 3264 x 2448, 2592 x 1944, 2048 x 1536, 1600 x 1200, 640 x 480, and 3264 x 1832 (widescreen). The 1600 x 1200-pixel size has a “postcard” mode that saves the date in the EXIF data. Compression sizes include Superfine, Fine, and Normal. In Playback mode, users can shrink images to 1600 x 1200, 640 x 480, and 320 x 240 so they can be directly uploaded to blogs and websites or transferred to camera phone albums. The resized files can be saved separately or they can overwrite the original file, depending on which choice is selected in the menu.
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Picture Effects Mode (8.25)
In the shooting mode, there are Color Accent and Color Swap preset exposure modes that act like glorified picture effects. With the display button and the multi-selector, users can choose colors. In the Accent mode, all other colors are turned to black and white. In the Swap mode, one color can be replaced by another. The result isn’t usually as flawless as one would expect it to be, because the selected color is a flat color, so any shadows or lights that give the colored object some depth are lost.
In the Function menu are an abundance of color effects, which Canon calls its My Colors modes. The following offered in the Function menu: Off, Vivid, Neutral, Sepia, Black & White, Positive Film, Lighter Skin Tone, Darker Skin Tone, Vivid Blue, Vivid Red, Vivid Green, and Custom Color. All options are also available in the Playback menu except for Custom Color mode.
Custom Color mode allows users to scroll through different parameters and adjust them in five steps: contrast, sharpness, saturation, red, green, blue, and skin tones. Overall, the Canon SD870’s picture effects are thorough.
