Canon
Canon caught some heat for the 15 megapixel G10 from a broad range of sources and justifiably so in my opinion. The sensor produced great detail as long as you were at low ISO but was severely limited in what it could do once the ISOs started creeping through the triple digits. Fifteen megapixels alone is more than the average consumer really has any use for in my opinion, print sizes 16×20 and beyond are easily accomplished with that kind of resolution if the files are handled and printed correctly but a ten megapixel camera can produce excellent quality at those sizes too.
I would never have bought the G10 and I was growing increasingly worried that Canon thought it was above listening to the complaints of consumers & reviewers. Shooting indoors or in low light with these point & shoot cameras with their higher and higher resolution sensors gets worse and worse the more you bump the ISO which is a bigger concern for most people than another five megapixels. Fortunately with the G11 (and the S90) Canon has stepped forward by cutting back. Instead of taking the same 15 megapixel sensor or in the worse case going to a higher resolution they’ve chosen to go with a 10 megapixel CCD. Canon claims a two stop improvement in noise, and considering how one could easily boost the ISO a stop or two indoors or at night anyway that’s fantastic news. Canon has implemented some other changes, like the vari-angle LCD, which restore my faith in the G series. If I thought it would meet my needs I’d definitely consider one of these now, although I think I’d want a P&S with more reach at the long end of the zoom.
Going back to printing, I wonder how many consumers with a G10 or G11 would print a 16×20 or bigger anyway. Beyond that, unless you’re shooting at base ISOs I expect the G10 should capture more usable detail per pixel – and perhaps overall – than the G11 anyway. At the same time the cleaner images won’t waste as much space on the memory card or hard drive! Behold: the benefit of less resolution.
Looking to buy either camera’ Just follow these links:
Canon G10 @ B&H
Canon G11 @ B&H
I do find myself wondering what has happened to features like the intervalometer, built in ND filter, f/2.0 (at the wide end) lens and so on that the older G series cameras (like my G3) had. I’d love to see those features return but it does not appear that the G11 brings them to the table. It’s also interesting that it offers no HD movie mode, but since the G series has always been sort of a “photographers first” camera the lack of emphasis on modern video capabilities isn’t that much of a surprise to me.
