Astonishing power in a super-compact design

Astonishing power in a super-compact design, August 28, 2008
By Edward Sawma (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews


I previously had a Canon PowerShot S110 digital ELPH from 6 years ago or so, and loved that camera. I didn't realize that there was so much more that a little camera could do! I researched the new Canon's out there (since I loved the ELPH), and decided on the SD770 IS for its compact design and features outlined well by others.

This camera just blows me away. Canon Powershot SD780IS takes amazing pictures in full-auto mode. In situations where full-auto doesn't quite do the job as well as SD770 IS possible, this camera lets you change ISO settings, white balance, focus method, and tons of other factors.

Compared to the S110, I thought the ability to change the ISO setting was a big improvement over previous generations. You're actually changing the sensitivity of the sensor in the camera, allowing you to take pictures with more clarity in conditions that have less light. This, coupled with the image stabilization (which again, blows me away on this camera), allows you to not have to use flash, preserve the real look of the scene, and take a crisply clear picture.

Battery life is amazing. I haven't charged Canon Powershot SD770 IS once yet... I'm going on over 150 pictures taken now. I've taken many pictures in low light with no flash, which drains the battery faster because the sensors have to stay on longer. The battery low warning has now come on... but I've still taken over 10 pictures on low battery, so Canon Powershot SD780IS gives you a good amount of warning time.

I also thought I didn't need more megapixels, because my pictures from my 2MP S110 looked great. True, 10MP looks even better, but a HUGE benefit is that Canon Powershot SD780IS automatically improves your ability to do digital zoom and keep the picture looking crisp. You can take a 10MP full resolution photo of a scene, then crop Canon Powershot SD780IS down later to the zoomed-in part of the scene that you want, and still have a crisp image for a 4x6 print. The camera is also able to do this more automatically... if you choose to take a photo at a lower resolution, like 4MP, and you use digital zoom, the camera will automatically use its sensor to it's full 10MP capability to zoom digitally and SD770 IS retain image quality.

Just a fantastic camera. I'm glad I stuck with Canon, and I'm glad I bought the latest generation.