Review on Canon PowerShot Digital Image Stabilized Optical by Charles Collier

I've been using this camera for over 18 months and have taken several thousand shots. I have a backpack full of DSLRs, tripods, prime lenses and so on, but I carry this little camera in my bag so I don't miss a shot. It's handy to have, I pull it out of my pocket to record all my trips in seconds. The size and weight are perfect for the front pocket of a pair of jeans. Key Features: FAST startup, photo delay power button is short enough to capture everything, much better than some competing cameras. Wide angle is just right, but don't forget to zoom in on most images. The image stabilization is not a gimmick, it works great. - COLOURS! I use Exposure Compensation -2/3, colors and exposure are great. Tilt the lens up or down to capture more or less of the sky for quick on-the-fly adjustments, press the shutter button halfway, then compose the shot. - Tiny portable charger and great battery life. Cons: - Soft lens, especially at wide angles - Windshield and screen scratch easily with normal use, carried in pocket with keys and change, thrown in center console etc. No damage really, just cosmetic. Useless: - Automatic mode. Never use it. Use manual control, turn off flash, add about -2/3 EC for better exposure and colors. - Viewfinder. The battery life is good enough that I don't have to worry about taking photos with the LCD off. Tiny, difficult to use, inaccurate, lackluster. I've taken dozens of identical shots with this camera and my DSLR. I pull this little girl out of my bag, take a picture and put it back in my pocket. A single lens reflex camera comes with expensive fixed focal length lenses, a tripod, and a mirror lockup. Jpeg files printed directly from any camera in 4x6 format are HARD TO RECOGNIZE. Now that's high praise! However, when printing in 8x10 format, the difference is significant, and Canon is very soft. I'm using a Minolta 7D 6MP DSLR, it's MUCH higher resolution than Canon's 7.1MP (megapixels don't mean anything at all). Exact color gradations are sometimes significantly better than with the SLR camera, shadow areas appear significantly sharper, noise is sometimes lower. To sum up, in 4x6 format the Canon SD800IS performs almost as well as a heavy bag of $5,000 pro gear. At 8x10 the difference is clear and obvious and the DSLR wins easily. Canon can't work on large prints unless your subject lends itself to low resolution. In addition, the small pocket camera cannot do ultra-wide angles, long telephoto shots, background blur or other fancy settings. It is limited to standard shots. IS works well and you can lean the camera against fence posts, walls or other solid objects for longer shots. I highly recommend this camera and its replacement, the SD880IS. Everyone should have such a camera. The whole SD range are great cameras, between friends and family I've tried about five different models and they're all good. The differences are in battery life, IS, wide angle, and processing features like switching to manual mode.