I mainly want to take pictures of my kids but also want it to use for sports (myself and theirs when they get older). I am worried about the blur that occurs on sports pictures sometimes. I play tennis and get a lot of that on any camera. Does anyone have this and have good experience with sports pictures. Also, had a question about the quality and stability of the zoom. Thanks in advance. My daughter has the Canon S2, and has very good results with it. Outdoor or flash pics with lots of light are excellent. Low light pics with no flash tend to have some noise. I get similiar results with my Sony H1. These "ultra zoom" cameras give you great flexibility without having to carry around a lot of separate lenses for a d-SLR camera.
The camera does a good job with sports pics as long as there is good lighting. The 12x zoom lets you get close to the players, and the autofocus can track moving objects.
However, there is no predefined high shutter speed Sports Scene mode. You have to learn to use the Shutter Speed Priority mode. Then you just set a shutter speed that is fast enough to capture the action (usually 1/200 second or faster), then the camera will set aperture wide enough to get a good exposure.
There have been no problems with the zoom, and the image stabilization really helps avoid camera shake when using the long telephoto.
Other similar cameras are the Canon S3, Sony H1/H2/H5, Panasonic FZ7/FZ30/FZ50.
Good Luck If you're looking at the S2, you might as well be looking at the newer model, the S3 IS. An excellent camera- if you're looking for a 'superzoom'. Also consider the Panasonics (FZ50, FZ30, FZ7) and the Sony (H2, H5). Frankly- they're all very good, well designed cameras with excellent quality.
These all have image stabilization - which helps stabilize image blur due to hand shake- especially needed at long telephoto lengths. If you are outdoor ,and have good light- you should be able to stop action no problem. Indoor- you'll need to find a camera that has a better high ISO performance- such as the Fuji's (S9500, S6500/6000), or... a DSLR. |
