Pros: Great picture quality and a viewfinder option for when the screen is not visible
Cons: Only 3x optical zoom and advanced features may take some reading
The Bottom Line: This is a great camera for beginners or photo enthusiasts with great quality pictures and an immense number of features. Also, great battery life!
noangels's Full Review: Canon Powershot SD450 / IXUS 55 Digital Camera
The current trend in camera purchases right now is that everyone wants the "small" and "cute" cameras that fit in a purse or a pocket. To be completely honest, most of these cameras are not worth half of what it will cost to fix it once it is broken from being put in a pocket or a purse. The Canon Elph series is the exception. The SD 450 is a great camera.
To state the obvious: it is 5 megapixels which is the CCD I recommend to most people. Pictures of this quality can be blown up to 16x20 inches without losing quality. It has a 3x optical zoom which is what most cameras will have in this size range. Very large cameras may have 8-12x zoom and you can get a digital SLR (interchangable lens cameras that often run $900 and up)with a very high zoom. You may also note that it has 4x digital zoom. This means NOTHING. It is not a "zoom." What this really means is that your camera can digitally stretch the picture to make it appear bigger while cutting the edges of the picture off and making it blurry. I recommend that you do not use this feature with ANY camera although it will be included with almost every camera you buy.
Now for the less obvious information: This camera does include a viewfinder. A viewfinder is that little hole you look through that we all used to use when we had film cameras. What does that mean to you? Most people have some experience with a cell phone even if they do not own one themselves. Anyone who has opened a cell phone to make a call on vacation while on a sunny beach has noticed that you cannot see a cell phone screen in sunlight. The same thing occurs with a camera. A camera screen will not be visible in sunlight. That means that $400 camera you bought will be completely useless on your vacation to any sunny location with the family. This camera actually gives you that option which is something most small cameras will not have.
This camera also features a DIGIC II processor which is one of the best processors on the market. Processors are more important than megapixels. In this camera you have both. This processor is even used in Canon's Digital SLR line which has professional cameras ranging in price from $999 to $5000.
For those who are interested in photography, you'll be happy to know that the SD 450 has tons of features that give you photographic control such as scene settings, white balance options, and some manual controls. Portrait mode, stitch assist, fireworks, underwater, indoor, foliage, beach, kids & pets, digital macro, night snapshot, and snow modes are all available. Read the book though, the camera is relatively simple to use but some of the more advanced options can be confusing.
I was very impressed with the lag time between pictures. The camera recovered very quickly from each picture. I currently use an Ultra II (higher speed) memory card rather than a standard memory card. I did notice a big difference with the higher speed memory card but the lag was also not bad with the standard card.
The camera is very easy to connect to a computer. The included software is helpful but nothing spectacular. I find it easier to just use card readers anyway as they can be used for multiple cameras while the USB cables are usually camera specific.
If you're looking for a small camera, this is the way to go. The photos are very high quality and with the viewfinder, you'll never have to miss a shot. You can even buy an underwater case for it so you don't even have to miss a shot in the pool!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 299 This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Easy Enough for Anyone to Use
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