I actually still shoot film the vast majority of the time however I purchased my mother a G-10 for her birthday last year and spent a couple weeks using the camera so I could adequately teach her how to use it. I have since borrowed it on numerous occasions and was actually about to buy my own G-10 but then I heard about the G-11 so I figured I would wait and buy the new upgraded version. I am glad I did just that. For me this camera is worth upgrading to just for the swivel LCD view screen on the back. I cant tell you how many times I have shot outdoors and was completely unable to see the LCD screen even when you shaded it with one of your hands. Adding the swivel option basically eliminates this problem. This option is so nice when shooting outdoors that I am honestly thinking about upgrading my mothers camera for this one reason alone as she doesn't have the best eyesight which means if I am having problems seeing the viewfinder, I can only imagine how hard it is for her to see it.
The next best thing I have noticed about this camera is its improved film speed ratings. I have already done a lot of testing with the G-11 and to say that they have improved the speed ratings is a huge understatement especially in the higher film speed settings. I was extremely hesitant to use a film speed over 400 with the G-10 yet I am using speeds above 800 with the G-11. Depending on the conditions your shooting in you should see anywhere from a 1.0 to 2.0 stop difference. I did some tests where the G-11 shot pictures at 800 that were basically equivalent to a 200 on the G-10. I was hoping for an improvement in this area but wasn't expecting this big of an improvement.
The next biggest improvement has to be with the auto mode. I tested the auto mode extensively with the G-10 as that was going to be the mode my mother used the most, at least out of the gate, and I was unimpressed. There were too many shooting situations to count that easily fooled the camera into shooting with settings that were less than optimal. You would still get decent results but it definitely needed improvement and they have done just that. Running the identical tests I did with the G-10 clearly showed that this camera is much better at selecting the appropriate shooting mode. Some conditions were drastic improvements. This is probably the 2nd biggest reason why I am most likely going to be upgrading my mothers camera to a G-11.
A lot of people were concerned with the G-11 as it actually has a smaller picture size than the G-10. The G-10 has a 14.7 MP size and the G-11 only has a 10 MP size. Overall that's a 32% decrease in maximum size. People who have a high understanding of digital imaging sensors knew not to worry as the MP size is not the most important aspect to an imaging chip. Details such as dynamic range, image noise and low-light performance are just as important, if not more important, when discussing overall image quality. I for one have always hated the MP war as we passed the quality that the vast majority of the population would be content with a long time ago. It has basically become a numbers game where people think that bigger is better and they just don't seem to grasp that they will never have any use for such high MP images. So I tip my hat to Canon for taking this extremely bold step as this is the FIRST time that we have seen resolution reduced in a line of cameras that is still progressing forward. IMO this is the white flag that signifies the war of the MP is finally coming to an end and we will finally see companies focused on these other, equally important, image qualities as much as they have been with the MP size. As for the image quality of the new sensor, its outstanding! I immediately noticed a difference in the overall quality of the images. They seem richer with much less compression on the higher and lower ends. If I had the choice of choosing between the G-10 sensor and the G-11 sensor I would take the G-11 sensor every single time. Again a big tip of the hat to Canon for boldly choosing to go this route with the G-11 sensor.
The G-11 retains the same 5x optical zoom lens from the G-10 which in case your unaware is equivalent to a 28mm to 140mm lens. Also the same is the aperture settings which go from f/2.8 to f/4.5 depending on the zoom setting. Shutter speeds range from 1/4,000 to 15 seconds and it has the same metering modes as the G-10 (evaluative, center-weighted and spot). Thankfully they didn't make any changes to the manual dials at the top of the camera as that is easily one of my favorite aspects to these cameras. ISO speed and the camera mode dials let you quickly and easily switch the most important settings. I an an old school photographer so I still prefer dials to buttons. IMO its the best set up out of all the point and shoots on the market.
2 other noticeable improvements include an increased flash sync speed of 1/2000 and a high-definition HDMI connector (Dont worry it still has the USB 2.0 connection).
The bottom line is that Canon has taken the G-10, which was easily one of the best point and shoots on the market, and made some outstanding improvements that have taken this camera line to a whole new level. If your one of those people who care more about how many MPs your camera has than the actual image quality of the camera then you should stick with the G-10. If however you are more concerned with image quality than MP's then drop what your doing, list your G-10 on eBay and run out and buy the G-11. The image quality, improved noise performance, and swivel back LCD screen make this camera absolutely worth every penny.
The only negative thing I can say about this camera is in regards to Canon's sheer ignorance when it comes to the lack of standard size filter threads. How hard would it be to design this camera so it had a 52 or 58mm threaded lens opening? Trust me when I tell you it would be extremely easy. At the very least they could design it so all you needed was a simple step up ring to 52mm or 58mm. Instead they leave out threads altogether and make you go out and spend around a hundred bucks on a 3rd party aluminum lens tube that then allows you to use 58mm and 72mm filters. The "Plastic" Canon Lens tube isn't even an option as its so poorly designed. It just really annoys me that canon totally ignores this aspect of this camera. In all honesty threaded lens openings should be mandatory for all cameras, even point and shoots. Again it would be EXTREMELY Easy to change.
Overall the G-11 is simply an amazing, must buy, camera.
5 Stars!!
Edit......
The more I thought about it the more I thought I should come on here and be more specific in regards to the lens tube issue. While Amazon will not allow me to write the name of the company that makes the aluminum lens tube that people should buy if they want to use filters with the G-10 or G-11, I can however be specific in regards to which one you absolutely should not buy which ironically is the one made by Canon. The lens tube that you should stay away from is the LA-DC58K Lens Adapter and here is a link to that item.
Canon LA-DC58K Conversion Lens Adapter for Canon G10 Digital Cameras
There are multiple problems with the LA-DC58K. First its plastic which means the overall quality is much lower than the other options on the market, besides plastic threads are never a good idea as they wear down with time making it harder and harder to properly screw things in as it ages. This simply doesn't happen with brass or aluminum threads. The biggest problem with the LA-DC58K is that it doesn't fit soundly on the camera. Once installed it should be 100 movement free, in other words it should have a nice sound fit and that just isn't what you get with the LA-DC58K. It rattles around and is completely unstable once fitted in the camera and this is simply inexcusable. As if this wasn't enough you also get severe vignetting at wide angles and the tube isn't long enough thus it restricts full zoom ability. I honestly have absolutely no clue how this accessory was allowed to go to market in its current condition.
I know it may seem unbelievable that Canon could design an accessory for one of its flagship models that has this many problems but believe it as everything I wrote is 100% accurate. I am one of the unfortunate people that ordered the LA-DC58K. It was absolutely horrid and was boxed up and returned after less than an hour of use. Its a shame that I cant give the name of the company that makes the aluminum version but since its not sold on Amazon its against their policy to list it. Just Google "Aluminum lens tube canon G10" and you should easily find the company that produces it.
I hope this helps! Canon PowerShot G11 10MP Digital Camera with 5x Wide Angle Optical Stabilized Zoom and 2.8-inch articulating LCD - Powershot - Canon G11 - Canon - Canon Digital Camera'
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