Canon PowerShot A710 IS

Reviewed February 2007

Introduction

Take 1 Canon PowerShot A700, place in a bag. Add 1.1 million pixels and 1 Advanced Internal Optical Stabilization System. Shake well, and what comes out is the new PowerShot A710 IS!

Four controls are grouped on the top right of the A710 IS. First is the On/Off button, which lights up in green at the centre when the camera is On. Second is the Mode Dial, which is typical of many Canon cameras, divided into two groups of programs, one called the Creative zone, and another called the Image zone (see further).

The third and fourth controls are combined: the 2-stage Shutter Release and the Zoom Control that rings it.

The zoom control is stepless, and transits the 6X zoom lens from wide angle to telephoto in approximately 2.5 seconds. With the camera set to the playback mode, the wide angle side / makes it possible to see images as thumbnails (index view) placing 9 images on the monitor when pushed once, and when pushed twice allows jumping from one set of 9 images to another using the up arrow of the 4-way controls (see further). Pulled to the telephoto side, /, it allows zooming into an image up to 10X.

As noted above, the Mode Dial provides 11 positions, each of which is a capture mode. Those above the Auto mode are referred to as the Creative zone, providing varying levels of control over the camera; while those below the Auto mode are referred to as the Image zone and preset the camera according to the subject to be photographed.

The Auto mode is designed to be the simplest mode to use, requiring neither a basic understanding of camera settings, nor "classifying" the subject to select the Scene mode.

The Auto mode takes care of all settings, but allows the user to select the image size and quality, the flash mode, the self-timer, or choose whether the sensitivity should be High or Auto.

The Creative Zone modes contains:

	Program AE lets the camera select the aperture and shutter speed, but provides full control to the user over all other parameters.
	Shutter Priority makes it possible to choose the shutter speed from a range that extends from 1/2000 second to 15 seconds while the camera selects the aperture.
	Aperture Priority allows selecting the aperture, from f2.8 through f8 when the camera's zoom lens is at the widest angle, and f4.8 through f8 at the maximum telephoto, while the camera selects the shutter speed.
	Manual Mode provides full control over the camera, while the camera indicates the difference between the metered exposure and the user’s settings using the exposure compensation indicator, displaying the compensation value in red when the settings for aperture and shutter speed will result in an incorrect exposure. A shutter speed range of 15 seconds to 1/2000 second is available when the camera is set to wide angle (1/1500 second at the telephoto end), and the aperture range is the same as the Av mode.

And the Image Zone encompasses:

	Portrait uses a large aperture to shorten the depth of field, thereby capturing a sharp subject in front of a blurred and non-distracting background.
	Landscape uses a small aperture to maximize depth of field, but this often results in slower shutter speeds that may require the camera to be stabilized.
	Night Scene uses a slow shutter speed (1 second maximum) and the flash to capture a subject standing in front of a night-time scene. Sensitivity is automatically controlled.
	When the Mode Dial is set to this position, the right and left arrows of the 4-direction control (see further) allow selecting one of 8 additional Scene Modes: Night Snapshot mode adjusts sensitivity to minimize the need for a tripod when capturing subjects in front of night scenery. Kids and Pets mode optimizes the shutter speed so as to capture quick movement. Sensitivity is automatically controlled by the camera. Indoor mode sets the white balance to tungsten and uses the flash only if it is absolutely necessary. Foliage mode accentuates greens and reds slightly so as to give plants and trees a more sustained colour. Snow mode takes the reflective nature of snow into account in the metering by compensating the exposure. Beach mode also takes the reflective effect of water into account so that both subjects and water are captured clearly. Fireworks mode captures a 2-second exposure with the focus set to infinity. Underwater is designed for shooting underwater using the optional Waterproof Case (WP-DC6). The mode adjusts the white balance to reduce the bluish tone and capture images with a natural colour. Colour Accent allows selecting a colour in a captured image displayed on the monitor, and saving the image with only that colour while all others are changed to black and white. Colour Swap allows selecting one colour in an already captured image, and then replacing it by another.
	Stitch Assist allows capturing a series of contiguous images with the same brightness level so they can be assembled later, with a computer, into a panoramic image using the software included with the A710 IS.
	The Movie mode allows capturing any of 4 movie types: Standard can be set to capture either a 640 x 480 pixel image or a 320 x 240 pixel image, and either frame size can be captured at 30 or 15 frames per second. With this mode, the optical zoom is turned off, but the 4X digital zoom is available. The maximum recording is 1 GB. Fast Frame Rate makes it possible to capture a video sequence with a frame size of 320 x 240 pixels at 60 frames per second and for a maximum running time of 1 minute which, when played back, appears slow motion. Compact is designed to capture video at the smallest file size possible so it can be sent as an e-mail attachment. The frame size is 160 x 120 pixels at 15 frames per second for a maximum recording length of 3 minutes. Two more modes, Colour Accent and Colour Swap, are similar to those of the still image mode (see above) allowing either a colour to be retained while all others become black and white, or one specific colour to be swapped for another. Whatever mode is used, sound is recorded monaurally, and the optical zoom is locked at the first frame as is the focus. White balance and exposure are dynamic however, and are adjusted continuously as the recording progresses.

The A710 IS is equipped with an optical viewfinder that can, in a pinch, be used to take photos. The viewfinder is devoid of any markings and its exit pupil is quite small, making it a touch difficult to use.

To its right, two LEDs indicate camera activity: the top one indicating focus (green), and potential camera shake (orange); the bottom one indicating flash charging (yellow).

Below the viewfinder a 2.5-inch, 115,000 pixel LCD monitor, unchanged from the A700, offers an average resolution, but a good refresh rate, and its brightness is automatically increased when shooting in dark conditions.

The other external controls of the A710 IS are grouped on the right side of the monitor, starting with the Mode Switch, which serves to select either the capture or the playback modes.

Next are two round buttons positioned side by side over the 4-direction control.

The button on the left allows adjusting Exposure Compensation in all modes with the exception of Auto, Movie, and Manual modes. Exposure can be adjusted over a range of ± 2 EV in 1/3 EV increments. With the camera set to the Manual mode, the button serves to toggle back and forth between the aperture and the shutter speed so adjustments can be made.

The 4-direction control, with the FUNC. SET button at its centre, serves to scroll through the menus in both capture and playback, change camera settings such as aperture and shutter speed in the modes that allow it, set exposure compensation, etc. Its up and down arrows also support additional function:

The up arrow serves to select the Flash mode: Auto, Forced On, or Forced Off. Red-eye reduction is available, but must be turned on in the capture menu first. (See the Characteristics section for more information about this menu.)

The up arrow also supports a Playback mode function, speeding up image review by jumping groups of images, the specific jump mode being selected with the up and down arrows: Jump 10 images Jump 100 images Jump to the first image of each shot date Jump to a movie Jump to the first image of each folder

	The down arrow selects the Focus mode, either Macro or Manual. Macro focus allows the A710 IS to focus on a subject that is 1 cm (0.4 inch) from the front element of the lens when the zoom is at the wide angle end.
	And when pressed a second time, the down arrow starts the Manual Focus mode, which requires the use of the monitor as the camera automatically magnifies the centre of the image to assist with focusing. Finally, the down arrow also provides an Auto Focus Lock function (AF-L) when the shutter release is pressed halfway and the camera has auto focused.

As is the case with most Canon compact cameras, the A710 IS has a FUNC. SET button at the centre of its 4-direction control. The button serves to confirm selections made in the menu when a menu is on-screen, and in playback when an image is magnified on-screen, it serves to "lock" the magnification level, making it possible to move from one image to the next using the right/left arrows and retain the magnification.

The FUNC. SET button also serves to call up the Function Menu, which contains basic image capture settings. This menu can be displayed in all capture modes, but offers the most settings when the camera is set to P, Av, Tv or M:

• ISO Speed: Auto, Hi (High ISO Auto), 80, 100, 200, 400 or 800 ISO.
• White Balance:
  • Auto,
  • Daylight,
  • Cloudy,
  • Tungsten (incandescent),
  • Fluorescent (warm-white or cool white),
  • Fluorescent H (daylight),
  • Underwater (for use with the optional waterproof case WP-DC6),
  • Custom (measured under ambient light conditions using a white surface as a source of the white point).

• Drive Mode:
  • Single: the default, captures one image each time the shutter release is pressed.
  • Continuous: 1.7 frames per second using Large/Fine image quality and size until the memory card is full.
  • 10-second Self-timer.
  • 2-second Self-timer.
  • Custom Self-timer: which can be set to release the shutter 0, 10, 15, 20 or 30 seconds after it has been pressed, and the number of shots to capture from 1 to 10.

• My Colours: provides control over the way colours are recorded:
  • Off: the default, uses the normal colour settings for the A710 IS.
  • Vivid: accentuates colour saturation.
  • Neutral: decreases colour saturation.
  • Sepia: captures the image with sepia (brown) tones.
  • Black and White: captures a grey scale image.
  • Positive Film: enhances reds, greens and blues.
  • Lighter Skin tone: lightens skin tones.
  • Darker Skin Tone: darkens skin tones.
  • Vivid Blue
  • Vivid Green
  • Vivid Red
  • Custom Colour allows adjusting freely contrast, saturation, sharpness, colours (red, green and blue) and skin tones.
• ± Flash: with the Tv and Av modes flash exposure can be compensated over ±2 EV in 1/3 EV increments. While when the A710 IS is set to the Manual mode, or when the flash is set to the Manual mode in the REC. menu (see further), its output can be adjusted over 3 steps (1/3, 2/3 or full power).
• Metering Mode: serves to select the metering pattern:
  • Evaluative
  • Centre Weighted
  • or Spot, which can be set to the centre of the frame, or tied to the focus point.
• Compression selects the image quality: SuperFine, Fine or Normal. This option is replaced by Frame Rate (30 fps or 15 fps) when the camera is set to the Movie Mode.
• Recording Pixels: serves to set the image size (see the Characteristics section of the review) or the frame size for movies.

Two more buttons are located below the 4-direction control. MENU, on the right, calls up the menu which varies with the mode the camera is in, Capture or Playback. (See the Characteristics section of the review for more information).

DISP. on the left, controls the monitor (On or Off) and the quantity of information superimposed on the display. In a capture mode, pressing the DISP. button cycles through a display that indicates current settings around the periphery of the frame, to one that shows only the most basic settings and the AF frame, to simply turning off the monitor so power can be conserved while the optical viewfinder is used.

Set to the playback, the DISP. button cycles through three presentations. One simply displays the image file number at the top of the monitor, and its position within the images contained in the folder at the lower left, followed by an indication of the image's quality and size settings and the date and time at which it was captured.

Another presentation provides a greater level of detail about camera settings, placing a thumbnail at the top left of the screen, and making possibly overexposed areas flash.

This presentation also places a histogram below the image, while the shot data is shown on the right side of the monitor: capture mode, ISO, shutter speed and aperture, exposure compensation, flash compensation, white balance, metering mode, image size and compression, in addition to the information presented with the previous display.

A third presentation simply displays the image full-screen, ideal for slide shows.

The PowerShot A710 IS has a good ergonomic design, but it shows no major improvements over the A700. However, the introduction of the A710 IS might have been a perfect opportunity to increase the resolution of the LCD monitor, in addition to the introduction of optical stabilization in an A-Series camera.