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The G5 is latest in the Canon "G" series of compact digital cameras.
It’s important to frame this review in the context of what and how I
shoot. I don't test cameras. Generally, I’m a street shooter, including
people shots and my own twisted view of the world as we have built it. I
don’t shoot nature (although I shot a tree for this review), sunsets,
seascapes, or pets, but I do shoot portraits and I make some money doing music
events and occasional photojournalism. (You can see some of the results at
my web site.) I shoot medium format in both
color and black and white, and 35mm primarily in black and white. I don’t
own any SLRs, just rangefinders. I’ve become used to shooting with a small
camera that has a clear view through the viewfinder.
The big question for compact digital cameras is when they will start to
differentiate for users. Right now, they differentiate primarily on price, a
result of the feature/resolution war, and size. There are no digital cameras yet
that are designed to appeal to users of fixed lens 35mm cameras such as the
Konica Hexar, Ricoh GR1, or even the old Rollei 35. What's missing is a more
simple approach, less shutter lag, and better finders. I bought the G5 because it
appeared to be as close as I am going to get for now.
Image Quality
Obviously G5 image quality is a
critical factor. There are numerous sites on the web that offer test images,
particularly useful when several cameras are compared. I find that I can get good
prints at 8x10 on an Epson 2200, “good” meaning that they rival good
lab or darkroom prints. I don’t get the quality from these prints that I do
with a 4000dpi scan from a 6x7 negative, but that’s expected. Beyond 8x10,
there can be noticeable image deterioration in the prints.
The most serious problem with the images that I have taken is a small amount
of chromatic aberration, seen as purple “fringing” on some images.
This takes quite a bit of time to correct in Photoshop and is annoying when it
shows. It’s not an issue on very many images, it seems to happen with
bright highlights. This is the one serious issue with the resulting image quality
produced from the camera – otherwise, it’s sharp and has good color
characteristics and contrast. Noise level is an issue at ISO 400, but can be
smoothed with some of the software that’s available.
Lens
The G5 has a fast (f2.0 –
f3.0) zoom lens that goes from (35mm equivalents) 35mm to 140mm. This alone makes
it desirable for a) shooting in low light, and b) shooting at low ISO and
hand-holding. It also helps with the flash range, with a range specified to 13.1
feet at the far telephoto end. While this isn’t of much interest to me, it
may be of value if you don’t use an external flash and shoot regularly with
flash.
The lens options for compact digital cameras constitute one of the major
choices. Right now, you can have either a faster lens (like the Canon G series)
or a wider lens (like the Nikon 5000 series.) Hopefully there will be a wider and
faster lens in the not-too-distant future, but for now, the user needs to pick
one or the other. For me, the choice was easy – I’ve been shooting
most of the time with a 35mm lens and I often shoot in reduced (evening, night)
lighting. For others, the choice may be very different.
Image Formats and Adjustments
The G5 offers a wide range of image formats. There are four resolution sizes,
from the full five megapixels (2592x9144) down to 640x480. Three levels of jpeg
compression (Super-fine, Fine, and Normal) and RAW format. RAW gives access to an
uncompressed “raw” image. In my testing, I have found only minor
improvement in RAW over Super-fine jpeg, although I don’t have access to
any conversion software other than Canon’s, which doesn’t have a
stellar reputation. However, RAW mode slows down the write times significantly,
so if you need to be shooting constantly, it is far faster to use Super-fine
jpeg. There are tests on the web (for example, at
dpreview) that give examples of images at the
different compression levels. A key advantage of RAW is the ability to change the
camera settings (such as White Balance, contrast, etc) at the time of
conversion.
White balance and “Photo Effect” adjustments are available for
jpeg images, using the Function button (see “Ergonomics” below).
While the white balance “Auto” setting works reasonably well, I find
it far more useful with static images to step through the white balance settings
for the best appearance on the LCD. The Auto setting often misses subtle changes
in lighting, especially in mixed conditions, that can be improved by setting the
white balance. The white balance settings cover a wide range of lighting
conditions and I found it possible to always find a setting that was close enough
to require little to no adjustment in post-processing except in fluorescent
lighting situations. For people using the direct-to-printer capability, this is
very important. Fixing the fluorescent settings should be a priority for
Canon.
There is also the ability to create a manual white balance setting. This is
very useful in mixed lighting and with fluorescent lighting. I tried it and it
worked well, of particular value if you will not have time to fool around with
color balance in a photo editor.
What I found more
interesting was completely unexpected, probably because this is my first
experience with a digital camera. Using the white balance settings, I was able to
create some unusual color casts that led to some unusual images. For example, the
image here shows the effect of a mismatch on the white balance. While this could
be done in post-processing, it’s great to have the ability to see it on the
LCD before shooting. There’s probably other options that people will find
useful.
“Photo Effects” offers a whole other range of choices. As a
first-time digital user, I use the effects setting as my “film
chooser.” Two settings are of particular value. One is black and white.
It’s true that any digital color image can be converted to a black and
white image in a photo editor. What’s valuable about this setting is the
ability to see in black and white on the LCD monitor. A commonly asked question
for new black and white (film) users is “how to see in black and
white.” This setting delivers exactly that - it’s an incredibly
useful tool. I usually switch back to color for shooting after viewing in black
and white.
The other Photo Effects setting I find useful is the Custom setting, which
gives a choice of Contrast, Sharpness and Saturation. While these adjustments
exist in any photo editor, it’s valuable to bring them in as close to
desired. As a long-time user of Agfa’s Ultra 50 film, I usually shoot with
Contrast and Saturation at their maximum. If you are going to use a photo editor,
sharpness is probably best set at its minimum setting. The drawback to the Custom
setting is that there are only three adjustments for each setting – more
(especially a completely unsharpened setting) would make this a lot more
useful.
Modes and the Custom Modes
Controlled from a top—panel dial, the G5 offers the expected operational
modes, including “dummy” mode (full Auto), Program, and Aperture and
Shutter Priority. Full Manual mode is also available. A “Stitch” mode
for panoramas (untested), “Night” mode for ambient plus flash
capture, and Movie mode (typical for this class of camera) are available. Then
there are the “bozo” (worse than “dummy”) modes for
“Portrait” and “Landscape.” Does anyone actually use
these? Aren’t there better uses for extra spots on the mode dial?
And then there are the two
Custom modes. These give the ability to set virtually everything (and everything
includes more than the manual says) and get those settings with a turn of the
mode dial. I chose to set these up as a “maximum” quality setting and
a “snapshot” setting, with maximum quality using the highest quality
image settings, and the snapshot settings producing a much smaller image with
more “auto” settings. The manual fails to make it clear how many
settings are saved – I thought the camera always came up in f2 until I
discovered that starting aperture is the same as the aperture in use at the time
of setting the custom modes. The manual is unnecessarily confusing on what
exactly is set for the custom modes. One useful feature is the ability to change
specific settings (for example, white balance) while in a custom mode. It stays
at the new setting until the camera is turned off.
The Screen
The flip-out-and-around LCD screen
completely changes the way one shoots. Except for a few large and somewhat
cumbersome (compared to the G5) medium-format cameras, there is nothing being
made today that allows waist-level shooting. With the screen out, it is very easy
to shoot at waist level. If it’s important to shoot without being noticed,
the flip-out screen makes this very easy. It also simplifies shooting at ground
level, something that I like to do, and which can now be done on the knees
instead of prone on the ground.
The screen also allows shooting from a variety of other perspectives,
including to the rear, to the side, and from high above. Self-portraits are
particularly easy – just flip the screen all the way around and you can see
yourself.
On the negative side, the screen is difficult to see in bright light. There is
a “bright” setting for it, but it’s still difficult to see.
I’m not sure what can be done to improve this, and usually just use the
finder on those occasions. The situation is aggravated when using the finder at
waist level as the screen is far more likely to catch bright light.
Fortunately the screen is
versatile because the finder is, like the finders of most cameras in this class,
small and terrible. Unlike other cameras in this class, you also get a nice view
of the lens barrel in the finder, although this will be a common vision for users
of rangefinder cameras like me. Looking through the finder feels like looking
through a thin tube. The complete lack of information in the finder is
frustrating. The one positive about the finder is the integral diopter
adjustment. I would very much like to see a “brightline” finder on
this camera, or one in its class. Surely there is a way to make a truly good
finder that zooms.
My solution to the finder problem is one that may work for me but not for most
people. I find the lens at the wide end most of the time I’m shooting,
shooting at 35mm (equivalent). I’ve recently put a Voigtlander accessory
finder on the camera, which works quite well other than some parallax at close
distances. However, there’s always the LCD to fall back on.
Ergonomics
For me, ergonomics has always been a deciding factor in using a camera. If
it’s easy to use, doing what I want and getting out of the way, it’s
good. If I have to think about where things are every time I pick up the camera,
or can’t get to the right controls without an effort, the photographic
results may not be there.
Many newer digital cameras seem to have a lot more ergonomic thought put into
them than earlier digital cameras I have tried to use and, despite the vast array
of settings, are relatively easy to use. The Canon G5 certainly fits this model,
with just a few exceptions.
Let me start with the horror story. The first day I went out for serious
shooting with the G5, I had periods of time when nothing would work. When I got
home and looked at what was on the flash card, I found videos. I didn’t
quite understand how that happened, but using it later that evening, noticed that
I rocked the mode dial by mistake. The most likely reason is that the Hexar I
often use has its aperture dial in the same place, and my hand tends to rest
there. And this leads to my major ergonomic issue with the camera – the
mode dial should have a lock of some sort. The power/record/play button has a
simple finger lock, quite well-designed so that it can be operated with one hand
but cannot be switched accidentally, and there is no reason for the mode dial not
to have a similar lock.
The other ergonomic issue is the control wheel in front – when
you use it to set shutter speed or aperture, it seems to have a drag effect, not
going one step with each click. This is frustrating – changing aperture (I
almost always use aperture priority mode) can be slow.
In every other way, the G5 is surprising intuitive offers dedicated buttons
for the functions most commonly used rather than forcing the user into a menu for
most settings. When you do use the menu, it is also intuitive and doesn’t
have multiple levels for most operations. Dedicated buttons for white balance, AE
lock, exposure compensation, meter pattern, display, and other functions allow
quick changes. Also, because the camera body is metal (except the back), it is
fairly hefty and feels solid when shooting.
Focus and Metering
The autofocus is moderately quick, which affects shutter lag (see below). It
could be faster. There is the ability to move the focus point around the screen,
but for fast shooting, this is fairly useless – it’s far easier to
move the camera to point the center box at the subject, focus and then recompose.
This is probably true of most cameras that use movable focus point. Focusing in
very low light is slow to impossible unless the focus assist lamp is used. Focus
appears accurate in the images I have shot so far.
The G5 has three metering modes – evaluative, center-weighted and spot.
In practice, I find that evaluative metering works almost identically to
center-weighted, not dealing particularly well with backlit scenes and other
situations that evaluative metering should detect. The first week I used the
camera, I had it default to evaluative, but found I was not getting good exposure
without switching to the spot metering. Now I default to spot metering, which is
accurate and narrow enough to isolate most subjects from extraneous
surroundings.
Shutter Lag
Yes, there is shutter lag. Yes, shutter lag is the biggest issue with
shooting with the camera for many photographers. But yes, there are ways to
minimize shutter lag.
The simplest way to do this is pushing the shutter halfway down to lock focus
and exposure prior to shooting. This gives fairly short delay. It’s even
shorter if you use the MF and AE lock buttons (both positioned well) to lock in
the settings. This assumes that you shoot with "focus priority." Occasionally,
there is a problem locking the focus, which causes a more serious delay. With
practice, the delay can be anticipated reasonably well, but this takes a lot of
shooting. Digital camera manufacturers do seem to be aware of the problem and
hopefully will figure out a way to improve things.
There is also a delay writing to the card. You can use continuous mode and get
a reasonable frame rate, but you are not going to get to the speed of a film
camera with a motor drive. As memory costs decrease, this may get solved through
use of larger buffers. It’s not an issue for me, but some may find the
write time problematic.
Flash
The G5 has a hot shoe, which is the best thing about its flash system.
There are a wide variety of controls available if you shoot with Canon dedicated
flash units. Since I don’t, I tested it with a Vivitar 285 and with my
wireless slave system for flash, both of which worked fine. The internal flash is
small, gives horrific redeye (which I carefully painted out in the example here),
and seems overpowered at close distance. I set it to -1 on the flash compensation
to get a normal indoor exposure. It runs out of power fairly quickly, although
the specifications show it as reasonable for a camera in this class. If you want
fill, the flash works acceptably, make sure to use the flash compensation to get
a good ratio. I have rarely used the flash, I would rather look for a way around
it, or add fill using Photoshop later. The color temperature seems quite good on
the flash even though this can be fixed after the fact also.
Playback Mode
The captured image comes up almost immediately on the screen in one-shot mode.
You can choose to hold the image or convert to RAW (if you are shooting in JPEG)
before it disappears from the screen. From shooting mode, playback is accessed
via the power dial. There are a number of options for viewing and for navigation,
including a thumbnail view that is more useful than I expected on the small
screen. Settings are shown for each image, although they can be omitted if a
“cleaner” view is preferred. I generally find myself using the
“clean” image for playback. There is also a view with a histogram
which helps to identify areas of overexposure
Playback is immediately ended if the shutter button is pressed, which has
become my normal method for exiting playback, rather than using the power dial.
The concept of “shooting priority” is appealing to anyone used to
years of film cameras where pushing the shutter button takes a photo no matter
what, excluding, of course, the times when film isn’t in the camera.
Strap
It may seem trivial but I find
straps and how they attach to be critical to how easy it is to shoot. Normal
shooting is with the strap twisted around my hand so that the camera is secure
from bumps, falls, accidents of any sort. The G5 has a strap lug on each side and
a thin strap. I immediately ditched the strap - it’s uncomfortable for
anything but very occasional use - and dragged out one of those stretchy
“load-reducing” straps I had on another camera. Unfortunately, when
wound around one wrist, the strap made it difficult to move the LCD screen out
and around.
So I logged onto the net and looked for a different kind of strap and ended up
with a LowePro wrist strap that attaches to one strap lug rather than two and
gives a fair amount of security. It’s a pain to put on the wrist and you
can’t just hang the camera around your neck to fiddle with a memory card or
battery, but it works fine for shooting.
The other strap lug is attached to the lens cap, which, fortunately, comes
with a tiny cord for just that use. It’s fortunate because a) the lens cap
pops off when the camera is turned on, and b) the cap slips off a bit too easily.
The thin cord doesn’t interfere with the LCD movement.
Software
With XP and Mac systems, the Canon
software isn’t necessary for transferring images to the computer. However,
I prefer it to the XP picture transfer software, as there is more capability.
Also, if you need to process RAW images, you will need to load either the Canon
software or a third-party package.
There has been quite a bit of criticism on photo.net of the Canon RAW
conversion software, but I’m still using it after trying numerous packages.
Breezebrowser and YARCPlus both crashed before finishing conversion. Numerous
reinstallations, cleaning out the registry, wiping old files off the disk, none
of this eliminated the problem. Powershovel was even worse, giving numerous
errors during the installation process and failing to load once it was installed.
These are the only packages of any type that have failed to run on my computer,
and I’m not sure why. I didn’t try the Adobe plug-in because you
can’t “try before you buy” and after my other experiences, I
didn’t want to spend the money and find that it doesn’t work.
Unfortunately, since testing the third party programs, Canon's software sometimes
crashed despite complete removal and registry cleaning. One of those packages
inserts something evil in the system.
I did find the Canon software acceptable for the task at hand. It’s a
bit quirky in its operation, but it works, and allows ouput to TIFF and JPEG
formats. I’d like curves adjustment rather than the simplistic three-point
settings for color and brightness and the ability to do global color correction,
capabilities that appear to be in the third-party packages. A very useful feature
of the RAW converter is the ability to mimic the camera settings such as White
Balance, Brightness, Contrast, Sharpness and even the pre-configured image
settings such as Vivid and Neutral.
Manual
The manual isn’t bad. It reads as if it was written in English rather
than translated, has excellent illustrations, and does a reasonable job covering
usage of the camera. There could be more information, however, especially
regarding setup of the custom mode, and less time spent on the useless “My
Camera” setup.
At the time of writing this review, the G5 manual was not online. As the G2
and G3 are online in pdf format at the Canon (US) website, I expect the G5 will
be added. However, much of the G5 manual is available at Canon’s Japan
website (http://web.canon.jp/Imaging/psg5/index-e.html) in html format. Because
the html manual uses color, it is sometimes easier to use than the manual that
comes with the camera.
Summary
The G5 hasn’t been available long, and although I bought
it within a few days of its availability, this still doesn’t constitute a
“long term” test that really determines how comfortable a camera is
to work with and how close the results are to what the photographer wants. For my
kind of shooting and what I want it to do, it works well. Despite the shutter lag
and the finder, it’s excellent for street shooting because of the ability
to compose with the camera at a lower level. Except for the chromatic aberration,
the image quality is excellent. It’s easy to control the camera.
Do I recommend it? In its class, there are specific choices that have to be
made, such as the tradeoff between lens speed and focal length. It can certainly
do the job, but it definitely won't be the last camera in this class. If I had my
way, I'd put a fixed 35mm (equivalent) lens on it, shorten the shutter lag, and
put in a brightline finder. Then I'd have the Hexar I've used so much, but
digital. Otherwise, Canon has done a good job putting together a camera that does
what I want it to do.
Where to buy
If you are looking for a place to purchase a G5, please consider these
retailers who make a contribution to photo.net for each order placed on their
websites via the following links:
Congratulations on terrific review. One thought: Sony DSC-F707 AND 717 allow shooting from the waist because entire body can be shifted while lens remains horizontal.
Cheers,
Bob
I just wanted to emphasize on one point: lens cap instability. In my opinion this is the single most annoying problem of the G5. The lens cap doesn't screw or click onto the lens, just slides smoothly on it. The slightest push or drag will slip it off. This becomes a very serious problem when carrying the camera in anything other than a special bag to fit it (which is not provided) or even on one's shoulder/neck. The damn thing keeps falling off all the time, and I'm sure that unless I find a solution (ideas anyone?) I will very soon have a scratched fixed lens.
Someone in the Canon design department ought to be spanked for this. Not putting a securely fastening lens cap, or a built-in sliding lens cover cannot be excused for a product of its class.
Other than that, having tried out the camera for about a week, I agree with most of what is said in the review. Overall it is a good camera with superb image quality for its class. It has almost everything one can hope for with current technology at its price range -- except for a damn lens cap that screws onto it!
I was anxiously awaiting Jeff's review of the G5, as I think of him as a photographer with an actual photographic objective. It's important to recognize that Jeff's style of photography is probably not what Canon marketers of the Powershot series had in mind: "what? not using the zoom?!?" That makes for an interesting review.
However, a G2 would certainly would fit Jeff's style of shooting and it might even offer advangages: "purple fringing problem" doesn't appear to be as severe as the G5, G2 doesn't have the control dial that Jeff mentions, and it's about $200 cheaper at the time of writing.
Finally, lensmate makes an affordable adapter for the G-series that allows a plain lenscap (and filters) to be used; search "lensmate" on google.
I like this style of review, which focuses on usablility and end-result, as opposed to a tedious treatment of a large number of test images taken in laboratory conditions. However, in this case such a treatment may help potential G5 customers recognize a better camera in the G3.
Many people will find it hard to believe that they're better off with the nearly identical 4 megapixel G3. However, reviews by other dedicated digital photo sites conclude that the G5 introduces significant noise and chromatic aberration into images and these artifacts cancel out the effect of extra resolution. Canon had to produce this camera because of our obsession with pixel count and in spite of the fact that reviews of the G3 conclude that its combination of a clean sensor and excellent optics give it an edge over most 5 MP cameras.
Furthermore, few people actually need 4 megapixels, much less 5. I had a hard time accepting this myself, until I printed out a couple 8x10s from my G3. 5 megapixels will simply mean that the memory card gets filled sooner, and each image takes longer to write to compact flash. Unfortunately, people look at pixel count much the same way we do processor speed in computers. This is why folks buy P4 machines with 15" monitors and 128MB of RAM.
The price difference between the G3 and G5 will buy the exceptional Canon 420EX flash, which produces a stunning improvement over the built-in flash and will dramatically enhance your ability to capture indoor shots.
Finally, I second the Lensmate recommendation. It allows for threaded filters and its durable construction from machined anodized aluminum protects the plastic telephoto lens housing. However, it also blocks the built-in flash from the lower left corner of images at full wide angle.
The G3, with its cleaner sensor and lower price is the sensible choice. It's a better camera for less, but most won't see it that way.
I just want to point out that a major reason for more megapixels is that later you have more freedom cropping pictures, which is quiet important as the 4x3 ratio is rather unconventional. However, I must say that the difference in true resolution between G3 adn G5 is small; the lens is becoming the limiting factor, not the sensor chip.
I have also recently bought a Canon G5 as "carry it with me everywhere I go" camera since my 10D is a little bulky in this department.
My first impressions:
- Compared to the 10D, the G5 is very noisy. (No surprise considering the CMOS sensor in the 10D) On the G5, ISO 50 is good, but at 100 things start to go downhill, and by 200...forget about it, I've yet to even try it at 400 as I am sure to be depressed.
- The chromatic abberations of the G5 can be pretty bad at times. It's much better stopped down, but this defeats the whole point of having a fast lens.
- The G5 is smaller than the 10D, but not quite what most would consider a "pocket camera", so the "Take it with me everywhere I go" thing never really materialized.
- The swing-out LCD screen is great. I wish the 10D had one. This feature alone has kept me from selling my G5...so far anayway...
Knowing what I know now, would I get a G5 again?....Probably not.
Too many times I end up just leaving it at home and taking my 10D with me, weight/bulk be damned. I just want to get the best shots that I can and the G5 just doesn't cut it for me.
On my homepage (www.sushicam.com) I post lots of pictures from both the G5 and 10D, and while most shots look similar in quality when shrunk down to be displayed on the web, full resolution versions and prints show the real story. (No comparrison between the two cameras...not a big surprise given the rellive cost of each)
But, having said all this, if all you want to do is post pics to the web, then the G5 should fit nicely.
Very nice review. However, having first seriously used digital cameras back in 1998 and being a regular SLR user, I see some things differently, eg. the "photo effects" are a waste of time IMHO, since an image editor offers much more precise and powerful controls. This also applies for BW, although I recognise the author's point in "seeing in BW" with the camera (and I'll admit that it will be an advantage in some situations). The autofocus systems on these cameras in general are adequate, but after having toyed with a pro-level SLR, I know that there are many things that could be better, eg. focus selection and speed. Still, I agree with most of the review and liked the part about straps and ergonomics (although the mode dials in G-series cameras have never been a problem to me, so obviously it's somewhat operator dependent).
I would have liked to hear what the author thought about the usefulness of the long end of the zoom.
I think some of the comments on image quality are a bit harsh.
I've printed to 8x10, and could probably go larger, with some images. These prints are comparable to prints made from 35mm negatives scanned at 2000-4000 dpi on a film scanner. Chromatic aberration issues appear in some photos, generally ones with strong backlight, but by no means all photos.
All cameras in this "class" seem to have tradeoffs of one sort or another. With the G5, it is the chromatic aberration issue, but that's about all the images can be faulted on, and it can be corrected if carefully managed in post-processing.
I wouldn't think of comparing this camera to a dSLR because it is fundamentally different in use. It would be the same comparing a rangefinder camera to any SLR - it's not a reasonable comparison. The dSLR doesn't give the same versatility with the LCD that most of the compact digital cameras have, and the size can be a major issue for a variety or reasons. I haven't owned a film SLR for years despite having five film cameras.
The comments on the G3 relative to the G5 are consistent with what appears elsewhere, and it could be a better buy for many people based on what I have read.
Just try to sneak a photo in a suburban shopping mall if you want to find out how useless an SLR is in some places.
The one area where a digicam is clearly superior to an SLR is in the way it doesn't put people on their guard. I can can walk around NYC or any touristy place with my Sony DSC-S85 and there are so many people carrying around small digicams and looking in the LCD screen that nobody even notices.
But put my 28-105 zoom on my F-80 and mounted it on a tripod and it just screams "Taking Pictures Please Fuck with Me."
I've had cops stop and ask me what precisely was I taking pictures of with the Nikon. That's never happened with the Sony. It opens up areas to be photographed that aren't available with a Nikon and it's clearly superior to a point and shoot film camera.
A (d)SLR is indeed an entirely different camera from a rangefinder (I've used both), but I think that one thing that can be compared is the electronics and automation (this was the intention in my previous post, sorry for the obscure wording). Eg. AF-speed and convenience, level of automation, speed of electronics are all things that are somewhat independent of camera type. Obviously all digicams make compromises, but we should be aware of the compromises and how they affect our work, eg. I found the G2 to be too slow for many things I wanted to do, but for others this might not be an issue.
Thank you Jeff for a wonderful review of the G5. After reading the review in Dpreview.com and other digital sites I came to the conclusion that for the money G3 would be a better buy. Is the LCD screen of G5 different from the G3 screen? I was under the impression that both screens can be flipped. Thanks
About the lens cap. Ditch it. Ditch the lens ring. Get the conversion lens adapter and install it. $17. Leave it there. You now have 58mm threads on the end of you camera. Put a filter on it if you want and a snap on canon lens cap. Camera looks cooler this way anyhow.
Thanks for the thoughtful review, Jeff. After owning a Canon G2, D30, and then a D60, I am for now back to my film rangefinders and SLR. The autofocus/shutterlag is way too long on all the digicams I have tried and the dSLR's are too big for my shooting style. I think that Jeff is headed in the right direction in using the VC viewfinder with the G5 as well as using the custom mode settings.
Elsewhere, I read a description of a similar method to overcome a digicam's limitations for street shooting. The Olympus 5050 was the subject of the comment. It apparently has 10 "My mode" settings which remember every setting you have dialed into the camera for future use. So the proposed strategy was this: For each standard 35mm focal length equivalent (eg: 28/35/50 etc.) set up a custom setting at the hyperfocal distance and aperture of choice for that focal length in manual mode. Then mount a varifocal viewfinder in the camera's hotshoe. Then, if you want to shoot at the 35mm equivalent focal length, just choose that custom setting in the camera and adjust the viewfinder to that focal length and fire away without any autofocus lag. Since Jeff prefers to shoot most of the time at the 35mm equivalent focal length he may be able to accomplish the same thing with the G5 using a single custom setting and the 35mm VC viewfinder. I don't own a digicam at the moment to be able to test this method, but it sounds like it would work to me. I would like to hear from anyone who has tried it.
This is an excellent review. I've used the G5 since it appeared in Canada here. I love the camera but I'd like to add that the support of the Canon dedicated Speedlites like the EX420 flash is shockingly poor. Neither FP (Focal Plane high speed sync) mode nor the flash's infra red autofocus assist lamp seem to be supported. Why the lack of support for E-TTL dedicated flashes Canon? Is it a matter of not wanting to take away market share from the 10D? Does anyone know how to make use of the EX420 or EX550 to take advantage of the FP mode or use the infra red assist beam on the flash? The manual doesn't list these functions as supported.
I owned almost 13 cameras in the past 2 years including digicam,Af film SLR,Manual film SLR and D SLR. I used to own a canon G2 about a year ago but sold it after 4 months . Overall, canon makes the best digicam in terms of image quality but I didn't like the feeling when I put the G2 in my hands. It felt like it was going to fall and break all the time especially when my hands are sweating.I now own a G5 and there are some really great improvements over the G2. The focal length is now long enough for me to create a blurry background for close portraits. The grip is better and it feels right to my hands and doesn't slip too easily.One thing I noticed is that the manual focus is very usable with the newly designed dial in the grip . The g2 has the same manual focus function but was impossible to use because there was no dial and you have to use the selection buttons instead. There are are so many shortcuts available such as white balance and exposure compensation which makes it very convinient and I can concentrate on taking pictures instead of looking for functions just to change a setting.
I highly recommend the G5 if you are after image quality and the color usually comes out better than other brands.
You can find many pictures taken by G2 and G5 in my homepage
Ayeye photographic expression http://www.ayeye.com
There are a couple of things I want to comment on. First of all, when commenting on the flip-out LCD screen, you said: "Except for a few large and somewhat cumbersome (compared to the G5) medium-format cameras, there is nothing being made today that allows waist-level shooting." But there are several digicams that have flip-out screens and allow for this kind of thing.
The second thing isn't an issue with the review, but with the camera. My G5 is lousy in low light conditions. The auto-focus hunts around, giving tantalising views of crystal-clear shots, before finally rendering the image as a dull smudge. And it never seems to give as good an image when you shift it over to the manual setting, if you're shooting far away.
Upping the ISO above 100 is pointless unless you like tons of noise, and even using it at 100 is questionable.
Daylight shots, on the other hand, are quite sharp (but may have a tendency to be overexposed). Although, as has been noted, it's almost impossible to see the image on the screen. I find myself using the viewfinder much more with this camera than with other digicams.
To Jeff and others complaining about G5 LCD display visuals in bright light. Get yourself a Hoodmann H200, http://www.hoodmanusa.com/Hoods.asp and/or a Silvestri Digibellows with 4X magnifying lens http://www.silvestricamera.info/eng/news_eng/digibellow.htm .
I use both and they make all the difference in the world
I've recently bought a G5, and find the purple/blue fringing to be a big problem, especially in high contrast scenes - try shooting trees against sky and the results are frankly, terrible and totally unusable. However, if you use the camera in less demanding situations, it can produce shots which are sharp and clear - it does have a good lens. The autofocus is much slower than what you'd be used to on a modern 35mm SLR, which is a nuisance for candid shots or the like. I'm not going to keep this camera for longer than I have to, and find myself using 35mm a lot more than I anticipated when I bought the G5.
I shoot alot and my cameras travel with me often and gets more than their fair share of knocks in a year. With the warranty on my G3 coming to an end, I traded up to the G5 for no other reason than I needed the protection of a manufacturer's warranty and was too lazy to go through a User's Manual of a different make of digital camera. Just wanted a camera which I did not have to spend time getting aquainted with.
Comparing images I didnt really see what all the fuss was about among the anal-ysts on CA. Images returned clean for its class of camera. Enlargements through full A4 looked great under the loupe (havent tried printing any larger as I'm using an Epson 830)
The G5's black dressings, I feel, has been its most important change vs. the silver G3. The camera, with one black stroke, assumed a stealth mode. I threw away its peel-off stickers and applied a little black tape over the Canon logo ...... and it went super stealth.
Coupled with the flip out LCD and tireless battery, this has got to be THE digital street shooting machine on the market today.
So I brought the camera up to Hong Kong for 5 days...... Land of the Unphotographed .........and came back with an unusually high number of useable people images. My previous trip to Hong Kong in March 03' (3 days) with my Contax G2 yielded only a handful of images that made the cut.
A sample of 20+ images executed with the G5 in Hong Kong are here.... http://www.walkeast.com click under Galleries and go to the Hong Kong Oct '03 gallery.
As an owner of G5 for 5 days now, I'd like to add a few private observations. Hope they will be of some use.
1. The noise everyone is complaining about is non-existant at ISO 50. I took a lot of night and low-light photos (in full-manual, naturally) with various aperture and shutter settings (up to 15 seconds) and at ISO 50 I could not see any noise (or a very small amount of it) under 250% magnification. Of course, it appears at higher ISO settings, but the same is true for any film, especially colour slides/negative.
2. Autofocus is slow and practically unusable in low light settings. However it's ok by me as I don't use AF too much. I miss the manual focus ring on the lens, of course, but, surprisingly, using the MF zoom area on display you can achieve nice results. Also, when in doubt, use focus bracketing (a very nice feature, normally seen in much more expensive cameras).
3. White balance. If you want to be sure the photo you are taking now will be fine, use RAW and process WB later on your computer. Automatic white balance is fine for daylight but may be inaccurate for artificial light settings.
4. Built-in flash is usable for fill-in - nothing else. Canon EX flash works fine and brings predictable and good results.
5. Picture quality, colours, contrast, shadows, saturation is great. Just great.
Having said all this I would recommend G5. However, it is by far not a point-and-shoot for a fresh amateur, nor a "sophisticated p-a-s" for an advanced amateur. I know I may be frowned upon, but my perception of G5 is more like of a good rangefinder (warning: blasphemy) similar to Leica M-series (Sic!) targeted for an experienced amateur/semi-pro.
I would like to add that this camera is delicate. Nary had I removed it from the box and sat
it on my coffee table, than my cat came sniffing and knocked it off said
table. The table is one of those
low-slung Scandinavian designs, and is only 15 inches tall. I might also add that there is an ultra
plush carpet under the table that cushioned the 15-inch fall. You can imagine my chagrin when I picked up
the camera and noticed one of the internal elements jiggling around in the lens
barrel. I really would expect any
camera to be able to survive a well-cushioned 15-inch fall, never mind a
semi-pro (prosumer if you will) camera.
I have to admit that it did still take pictures, but as you would
imagine they were seriously out of focus.
I may have more to add when its replacement arrives.
After much research, I bought a G5 a few months ago and I thought I'd add a couple of other points.
Firstly, the choice for me (as for many others) was between the G5, Nikon 5400 and Sony DSC-V1. The Sony was quickly ruled out due to its lack of ergonomics (all of its bulk is in the wrong place), its lack of a time-lapse function (my main toy), its use of Sony memory and its general fiddlyness. The Nikon was harder to rule out, not least because my 35mm SLR is Nikon. But finally the regular reports of bizarre firmware behaviour and agonising write speed steered me away. The lack of an AF-assist lamp helped the decision, and picking one up sealed the deal - the strap lug is right where your hand wants to be and the grip feels too small. Comparison pics also showed the Nikon images to be quite soft, almost to the point of blurry around the edges.
The G5 has proven to be a wise choice - it is extremely versatile. It can work just like a fixed point-and-click if you set one of the user presets to use hyperfocal (http://www.marcjutras.com/ehyperfocal.html) reducing shutter lag to near instantaneous. It is small enough to carry around in a regular day bag. The battery life is huge and with a 1Gb microdrive I can snap all day long without changing card or battery.
Other users have mentioned the advantage of having an inconspicuous camera, but I'd like to point out just the opposite - there are times when credibility counts with human subjects, and the G5 with a lensmate and external flash can make you look a lot more like a pro than some little silvery thing with a nano-lens. This makes a big difference when you want crowd members to 'act up' to the camera.
The choice between G3 and G5 is up to you, but Canon is definitely the way to go if you are serious about digital photography without going dSLR.
Gripes: ("Dear Canon, please fix...")
100-shot timelapse limit (why?!) and minimum 1 minute interval.
Automatic loss of info display from LCD when screen not in certain positions (again, why?!)
Manual focus is disabled when LCD monitor is closed (manual focus is essential in hyperfocal trick, hyperfocal trick particularly suited to fast-reaction viewfinder point-and-shoot).
It's interesting to note that, at present (July 2004), G5 prices at some Internet stores are slightly lower than G3 prices, despite the fact that G5 has an extra megapixel and G3 has been discontinued for a while. Seems the market has responded to what many reviewers have found for themselves: Canon did a great job with the G3, but slapped a larger sensor in the G5 without really testing it out, resulting in the dreaded purple fringing CA problem.
I was considering getting a G5 and handing off my Canon S45 to my wife, but I think I'll wait and see what the next six months will bring.
The Canon G5 should be avoided. My experience is that blue or purple casts/fringing (Chromatic Aberrations) is way too common. To see what I mean, take a look at the following example: http://www.duckware.com/canong5/index.html.
Opt-Tec also makes camera wrist straps, but some of them are detachable.
Lens Cap: I cut a piece of non-fuzzy velcro to 1/8th inch by approx. 2 inches long and placed it inside the lens cap. The cap is much more secure. If Canon had designed it to be really secure, and it was turned on before the lens cap was removed, it might have damaged the lens motor by not allowing it to move.
Noise: Use it at 400 ISO, but get Noise Ninja (soon to be a PS plug-in), or Grain Surgery for best results.
Purple Fringing: Granted it's a problem, and certainly there shouldn't be subject restrictions, but if you know the G5 has a problem with bright, shiney objects, and it's important to get that shot, why point it at aluminum scrap metal, or enlarge a print of a car bumper up to exhibition size just to demonstrate a point as the above link shows? If it's necessary to get that kind of shot, use something like a 10D. I bought the G5 to shoot general stuff, usually family pictures.
I bought a Canon G5 about six months ago. It takes very good pictures, at least viewing them on the screen. I do occasionally get the purple fringing on high contrast pictures. It's minor, but it does happen. I haven't made any physical prints, from this particular camera, so can't comment on prints. The on-screen images, in my screensaver, are dynamite. It's lightweight enough that I don't mind having it on my neck all day. Having the zoom is convenient. Controls are reasonable. Reasonably fast lens.
Weaknesses are few, but may be important for some photographers. The startup time is 3-4 seconds, which is maddeningly slow when you are in a hurry. Candids, or taking pictures of moving things, such as someone walking by at a wedding, is virtually impossible, due to focus and shutter lag. Taking pictures of children is hit or miss, for the same reason. This is a BIG step backwards from my Nikon 35 mm. Seeing the lens through the viewfinder doesn't bother me, but if you hand it to anyone, you'll surely have to tell them 'it's normal.' This gets tiresome, after a while.
Battery life is superb. I bought an extra battery and they both lasted for a two week trip to Europe, with me not using the screen too much.
Overall, recommended, if you always have about 2-5 seconds to take a picture. If you need more speed, avoid this one. I can't say if other digital cameras take as long to startup and shutter lag. If so, this seems to be something no one ever mentions in the reviews (besides Philip's earlier digital camera reviews, where this weakness was featured prominently, and rightly so). Makes me wonder about the photo magazines and online site reviews, where this significant weakness barely gets a mention.
Since there are no filter threads, and I can't stand the thought of an unprotected lens, I also bought a aluminum UV filter holder from these guys:
http://www.lensmateonline.com/g3.html
SUPERB construction from this product, and now the delicate lens and lens barrel is protected from bumps and scratches. Really, it's better built than the camera. This holder DOES block the flash on wide angle shots, see their site for details.
"Jeff, have you considered the Olympus 5050 as an alternative to the G5? And if you did, what made you to pick G5? "
Hi Vilin!
This is a good question. 5050 and G5 has closely same features so I'm looking forward to Jeff's answer!
My oppinion is that Olympus 5050 and G5 are totaly difference. I suppose you own Olympus 5050. Its a nice camera, but develpoed and produced with old technology, but G5
