Customer reviews from usa.canon.com
Canon - PowerShot G1 X 14.3-Megapixel Digital Camera - Black
Average customer rating
4.1
(45 Reviews)
Rating breakdown 45 reviews
5 Stars
24
4 Stars
9
3 Stars
7
2 Stars
4
1 Star
1
76%of customers recommend this product.
(
31 out of
41)
Customer Reviews for Canon - PowerShot G1 X 14.3-Megapixel Digital Camera - Black
Customer Rating
5
For times when your DSLR just isn't practical
on April 2, 2012
Posted by: chmrhp
from Pennsylvania
I've used a DSLR for several years but recently noticed that I was leaving it home more & more of the time and missing out on photo opportunities--unless you consider cell phone photos acceptable. I wanted something to carry with me when my DSLR (Canon 7D) isn't practical (e.g., business trips) and considered many options. I was leaning toward an ILC when it occurred to me that, that option would just be another bag of lenses to leave home.
I began looking for a compact camera that would meet my expectations for versatility (e.g., full manual operation) as well as build and photo quality. I found what I was looking for in the G1 X!
I've had it for 2 weeks and have taken about a thousand photos in several modes, but mostly manual. That includes night photos, indoor, outdoor, flash, portrait, landscape, urban, etc.
Best of all it went on a business trip and gave me the camera I was looking for to capture the photo opportunities I'd been missing when my DSLR remained at home.
I love this camera but must point out, it doesn't do macros well. Also the price is higher than most cameras of this type. However I'm glad I made the investment and will be using my DSLR and a dedicated macro lens for my macro shots so the G1 X fills my needs completely!
Pros: photo quality, build quality, extensive feature set, easy to carry at all times
Cons: cost, poor macro performance
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
Canon G1X
on December 27, 2015
Posted by: Nemo
from Dallas, Texas
I bought this camera when it was first introduced years ago. Greatest Powershot I have ever owned, and I've owned most all of them, and nothing take better photos. Unfortunately it was lost.
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
High quality non-DSLR
on July 24, 2012
Posted by: RobW
from Minneapolis, MN
My G1X is second camera (to 7D), replacing my G10, which in turn replaced G7.
Image quality is outstanding. On a 10-day trip recently with both 7D and G1X I, much to my surprise, found the choice between images from each camera surprisingly difficult. Very low noise and excellent color performance.
I can understand some of the comments re start-up time and focus performance is slightly below what I would have hoped, but for me these are minor compromises in the performance of an excellent camera.
Don't really understand review comments re battery performance, as I've not been able to stress it so far, and I'm a self-confessed hog who then has to spend far too many hours sorting through the results.
VIdeo performance is stunning. I loaned my wife the camera to try HD Video while i was using the 7D to capture stills, while our daughters were zip lining in rainforest area. Results were impressive, with the video image quality and stabilization outstanding.
Very flexible camera in a small package and a very worthwhile upgrade from the G10. I see a few niggles reported, and a few I agree with, though I'd certainly buy it again as-is. Of course, if Canon are able to deal with them via firmware in the same way as the firmware upgrade about to be released for my 7D, then I'll be a delighted owner indeed!
Pros: good battery life, Good Low-Light Performance, excellent image quality, durable, Bright LCD, Lightweight/Portable, Simple controls/menu
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
on April 11, 2012
Posted by: OK Photo Girl
from NE Oklahoma
I normally shoot a DSLR, either a Canon 5D Mark II or a Canon 7D depending on what I'm shooting, but I also like to have a more compact camera for those times that carrying a bunch of heavy gear just doesn't work. For me, the G1X fits that bill to a T.
As other reviewers have noted, this is not a sports or other action camera. I don't know of a compact camera that is. I use my 7D for that. And, it's true that without a filter adapter and a close-up lens, the "macro" capabilities aren't the best. Since the filter adapter isn't in stock yet, I haven't been able to test that combination. But I do a lot of close-up and true macro with my 5D Mark II and with the image quality that I'm getting with the G1X, I'm betting the close-up lens will produce some really nice shots.
Yes, there are other compact cameras that will focus closer without an adapter & close-up lens, including the G12. The G12 is a very nice camera, but since I own one, I can tell you that the image quality (though good for a compact) doesn't even begin to compare to the IQ from the G1X. If you enlarge your shots or if you're a pixel peeper, you will appreciate the difference a large sensor can make (assuming good technique!).
My biggest complaint with both the G1X and the G12 and any other compact I've put my hands on recently, is the way the lens zooms with a lever. A lens with a zoom ring (like the Powershot Pro1 lens) would be a huge plus as it allows the photographer to zoom much more precisely.
That said, image quality is still the most important factor for me. The G1X doesn't quite match the image quality of my DSLR cameras/lenses, but it's close. It's really, really good....definitely the best compact camera I've ever used.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
3
camera is too slow between shot
on December 29, 2013
Posted by: ken
from Washington
Take too long between shot. Seems slower then the cheaper canon power shot. I wish they can make it a bit faster.
Pros: Good Low-Light Performance, Nice features/settings, excellent image quality, Bright LCD, Lightweight/Portable, Simple controls/menu, easy to use
Cons: Short battery life, too slow
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
outstanding product
on April 13, 2012
Posted by: Doc
from Ct.
Having been a serious photographer for over 50 years the G1X fills almost all of my current needs elegantly. Starting with a G9 and then a G11 and now the G1X I don't miss the various "serious" cameras that I distributed to my Grandchildren at all. This latest iteration is a quality instrument which does what it was designed to do well.While there are no perfect cameras the G1X will do till there is one.
Pros: size, picture quality, ease of handling
Cons: needs a longer zoom
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
4
What ive been waiting for - mostly.....
on April 4, 2012
Posted by: Bozphoto
from California
Overall this is an amazing camera. Photo quality is amazing with the huge CMOS chip, all the manual controls and knobs make it easy to use, and the flash shoe allows u to add a pro flash. Ill detail all of the features I was impressed with, but for balance Ill lay out the cons real quick.
First they designed the lens with special threads so you have to buy an additional expensive adapter to add filters. To add insult to injury the camera is realeased but the adapter isn't so you can't even buy it as i write this.
Second is the macro. I loved my other Canon point and shoots ability to take great macro shots. This one you cant get too close. Again you can buy the Canon Close up Lens (model 250D) in 58mm but it is not available almost anywhere at this time. This is a 2 element add on that Canon claims will not create abbaration or affect image quality.
I'll address some of the other points I read in other reviews.
Other people address the size as a problem. I don't know what you expect from a camera with optics this good with a chip that large. I think it is great. I would like it to be as small as the g11 or smaller but reality is they packed a lot into this great camera.
The screen is great. Someone said it needs glass in front of it. If your that reckless with your camera, get a protector for 5 bucks.
The viewfinder is what I would expect from a point and shoot. Do people really expect a SLR prism quality on a view camera?
If you have ever had Canon products before it will take you all but an hour to get thru the manual to master 90 percent of the functions (or at least that's how long it took me). If its your first Canon, I agree with the other guy who said to not learn it at the last minute before a trip unless you like to just keep your camera on Auto.
SOME GREAT FEATURES:
The thing I LOVE about Canon high end point and shoots -- In manual mode you get an exposure preview on the LCD screen. I use this all the time. It gives you a very very close estimation of what the final pic is going to look like right on the screen. Once you pop up the flash it doesn't work but you can use it to meter your background with the flash down and then add the flash once you like what you see. For instance you are going to use the pop up as a fill flash against a bright sky, you can use this feature to dial in the clouds and sky color perfectly before you raise the flash.
There are other amazing features that some people may be "Too Proffessional" to use but I think are great like the wink function to trigger the shutter. You and your wife or husband are out and you compose a great shot you want to be in. Set the camera up and simply calmly walk over to your wife and get your pose perfect. Once you are ready, just wink (yes just wink one of your eyes) and the camera detects it and will fire 1 to 5 frames (as you set it) two seconds after the wink.
It has another function where you can select one color in a scene to keep and the rest will be black and white (I know what the advanced photographers reading this are thinking right now -- "i can do that in photoshop"). Of course you can, but it is still a really great feature and can save you time if it comes out well. For instance you are at a wedding and you wand the yellow flowers to pop and the bride to be in black and white. Just show the camera what you want to keep and it will keep the yellow. It will even give you a preview before you click the shot. (this will not work in a busy scene with lots of yellow in the background or foreground but still a neat feature).
Video -- takes 1080p, sorry not a video guy but looks great to me.
HDR mode. For those un familiar with Hight Dynamic Range, it is simply a series of shots (one underexposed, one over exposed and one normal exposure) that is normally combined with software to get details previously impossible in very high-contrast scenes (like a sunny day where lots of shadows are cast by trees or other objects). This camera actually takes the 3 shots for you and combines them automatically and does a GREAT JOB of it in my short test of the feature. I read one guy complain about it not being good, I found the opposite. The problem I find with HDR shots is many of them look so unreal they are no longer photos but a digital creation in my mind. The feature on the camera combines the 3 shots and the scene still looks "believable" in other words looks like a real shot to me which is something I like rather than avoid.
Another feature I enabled is where you take a shot and it shows the preview but in a small box it shows a zoomed in portion of where the camera was focused for the shot so you can examine the detail of your shot on the fly. So camera shake or improper focus stands out and you can retake as needed. The optical image stabalization helps with focus by the way, I almost forgot to mention.
Lots of cool stuff for the newbie photographer like face detection, red eye reduction, fisheye effect, toy camera effect, etc. Stuff I personally will not use but I think a lot of consumers will have fun with these features once they learn how to use them. It even has a wind reduction feature for recording video like a vollyball game with the fam on the beach.
So I love this camera and plan to give it lots of use. It is big but fits in my travel bag nicely. As you can see from above, I am excited about this new camera my only real complaint is that Canon has me locked into spending another 150 bucks to buy an adapter that is not even available yet and a close up lens to take my macro shots which is also not available. Items that could have been included with the camera (at least the adapter).
One suggestion to Canon - on the next model - if you look in the pic you can see there is a nice big high grip ring around the lens. If this could be rotated left and right to control the zoom it would really feel like a pro camera. Instead there is this little cheap plastic piece sticking out from the shutter release button for the motorized zoom. It would really improve the feel of this great camera.
Pros: excellent image quality, ability to prieview exposure on lcd in manual mode, tons of features., hdr is nice., lots of manual controls, feels great in your hands.
Cons: expensive filter adapter sold seperately, no close up focus for macro, adapter and close up add on lens unavailable.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
excelent camera
on February 2, 2013
Posted by: rapopper
from Venezuela
i have this camera for 6 monrhs and what it does is excelent,however if you are for macro or fast camera look another camera.
Pros: Good Low-Light Performance, excellent image quality, Lightweight/Portable
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com