Buy Now...
click image to enlarge
The Canon PowerShot S120 measures 10x5.5x2.7cm the latter when off this figure can increase by 3cm when fully zoomed, it weights 216grams.
A lot of novices get put off if the unit has a lot of buttons, they will like this as it has only four – apart from the ubiquitous five position joystick – on the back.
The left side has an inset flip button for the pop up flash while the right side has a door behind which are connections for Digital and mini HDMI out. The base has the battery bay behind a door and this is also where you insert any SD card you might use, further along is the tripod screw.
The face has the lens and the all important image focuser. The top has the pop up flash which is slightly left of the lens and can never be nearer than 3.5cm to the lens. The slightly inset on/off button is next then the forward edge has the shutter release with the telephoto/ wide angle adjustment around it. Finally on the back edge a ten position wheel.
The rear is dominated by the 6.5x4.5cm TFT display and to its right the two pairs of buttons and the ubiquitous five position joystick that controls how you delve through all the various menus when the novice feels they are up to it, however without touching any buttons provided the wheel on top is set to ‘Auto’ they will get perfectly acceptable images.
This unit can capture still images in 16:9, 3:2, 4:3, 1:1 and the more unusual 4:5 format. Each of those has four possible sizes attached to it and Canon use L, M1, M2 and S to state it, these vary from the 12MP maximum down to VGA or slightly less.
click image to enlarge
Like almost all recent cameras it can also take video via a single button press, there are four modes 1920x1080 @ 60FPS, 1920x1080 @ 30FPS, 1280x720 @ 30FPS and 640x480 @ 30FPS.
Images taken with flash tend to look a little over exposed when viewed on the viewfinder – as with the majority of small cameras – but when viewed on a PC they are fine.
With a manual flash the novice may forget/ignore the screen message to raise the flash and these images will probably be a disappointment as the slower shutter speed required to get a decent image will mean having to hold the camera still for longer. However there are times/places where a flash is not acceptable and you can still get a good image in low light conditions by either using a tripod or placing the camera on a solid surface, your ability to hold the camera still even with all the advanced camera features will probably still not enough.
As with all cameras you need to grow into it, pass the novice stages and use it to its full capabilities and then the images you take will truly be your own compositions.
The Canon PowerShot S120 is available from the link below for £362.99 with free delivery and a range of accessories including a tripod, 8GB SD Card and other items, this price is less than other offers for the camera alone.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00GC1PQ4G?ie=UTF8&tag=gadge0a-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634
!!
