Canon Powershot SD800 IS

wxwax · June 30, 2007

I bought one because I've long wanted a camera that's always at hand. The SD800 is nice and small. Still a bit bulky for my pants pocket. But it fits nicely in the motorcycle jacket pocket, and I always have the jacket with me.

It has Image Stabilization and a slightly wider angle lens (28-105 mm.) But let's not get carried away. Compared to a wide angle on a larger sensor DSLR, it's still mighty tight and long. The IS is OK, but it won't help you in a windowless room lit by fluorescents. You still need flash assist. Even with flash, expect a lot of noise in low light/high ISO.

The screen is nice and big, very pleasant. It takes a tiny SD card, so I had to buy a multiple-format card reader. The camera has a solid feel, well-built. It's a fun little camera, I'm glad I have it.

Here are some shots I've taken with it. They've all had some kind of PS tweaking, they're not straight out of the camera.

This one is handheld near dusk. The IS really wasn't up to the job. I had to shoot multiple frames to get any that were even halfway sharp.

Awais Yaqub · June 30, 2007

My elder bro is looking for a cam to take to Norway with him. He is in love with canon after using my w1 for 6 months

. SD800 looks decent for him
nice photos but he don't have photo nor photoshop brain

anything which boost super photos straight out of camera ? and low price

Andy · June 30, 2007

It's one of the best pocket cams I've used - I really like it a lot.

wxwax · June 30, 2007

Awais Yaqub wrote:

My elder bro is looking for a cam to take to Norway with him. He is in love with canon after using my w1 for 6 months . SD800 looks decent for him
nice photos but he don't have photo nor photoshop brain anything which boost super photos straight out of camera ? and low price

He could use it without a problem and get good results. But it's not inexpensive, I'm afraid.

Andy · June 30, 2007

wxwax wrote:

He could use it without a problem and get good results. But it's not inexpensive, I'm afraid.

~ $300 USD? I dunno, that's pretty darn reasonable for what you get, IMO.

wxwax · June 30, 2007

Andy wrote:

~ $300 USD? I dunno, that's pretty darn reasonable for what you get, IMO.

Yeah, good point. I wonder how much it is in Pakistan?

Andy · June 30, 2007

wxwax wrote:

Yeah, good point. I wonder how much it is in Pakistan?

Well, at US Prices, it's about 18,000 PKR.

Awais Yaqub · June 30, 2007

300$ that is fine

Now i can give him my w1 for 250$ add dad's 50 and get sd800 for myself.

. Similer thing i did to my little bro few days ago but it was cell phone

wxwax · June 30, 2007

Awais Yaqub wrote:

300$ that is fine Now i can give him my w1 for 250$ add dad's 50 and get sd800 for myself. . Similer thing i did to my little bro few days ago but it was cell phone

schmoo · July 12, 2007

I love the search feature on this forum. I have been combing the intarwebs for reviews because I'm looking to get a P&S and this was well-timed. I thought I would go for the SD850 IS but I see that even though it's newer, it doesn't have as wide a lens as the SD800 IS.

I'm not sure I understand that, but...

... Anyway, thanks for the great, thorough, and timely review, Sid. I'm sold.

wxwax · July 12, 2007

schmooo wrote:

I love the search feature on this forum. I have been combing the intarwebs for reviews because I'm looking to get a P&S and this was well-timed. I thought I would go for the SD850 IS but I see that even though it's newer, it doesn't have as wide a lens as the SD800 IS. I'm not sure I understand that, but...

... Anyway, thanks for the great, thorough, and timely review, Sid. I'm sold.

As I said, the small sensor in these cameras makes even the widest lens not-so-wide. For me, that's the single biggest adjustment from an SLR, especially the full-frame 5D.

kini62 · July 12, 2007

schmooo wrote:

I love the search feature on this forum. I have been combing the intarwebs for reviews because I'm looking to get a P&S and this was well-timed. I thought I would go for the SD850 IS but I see that even though it's newer, it doesn't have as wide a lens as the SD800 IS. I'm not sure I understand that, but...

... Anyway, thanks for the great, thorough, and timely review, Sid. I'm sold.

For about the same price and only a little bigger, you should check out the Panasonic TZ3. 28-280mm with IS and good continuous shooting modes.

Gene

marlof · July 12, 2007

wxwax wrote:

As I said, the small sensor in these cameras makes even the widest lens not-so-wide.

That's the fun thing about the Ricoh Caplio GX100 I bought: a 24-72 equivalent lens, moderately fast, image stabilization and pretty good manual controls (not to say a good DNG Raw format). It has the typical small camera limitations (noise, limited dynamic range), but still is fun to use as a take everywhere sketchbook. And at least it doesn't smear the noise all over the place. I really enjoyed the little rascal, before I broke its viewing screen by bumping into a table. Can't wait until I get it back.

wxwax · July 12, 2007

marlof wrote:

That's the fun thing about the Ricoh Caplio GX100 I bought: a 24-72 equivalent lens, moderately fast, image stabilization and pretty good manual controls (not to say a good DNG Raw format). It has the typical small camera limitations (noise, limited dynamic range), but still is fun to use as a take everywhere sketchbook. And at least it doesn't smear the noise all over the place. I really enjoyed the little rascal, before I broke its viewing screen by bumping into a table. Can't wait until I get it back.

Cool camera, but bigger than I wanted. I want something I'll have with me, everywhere, all the time. So it needs to be small.

DavidTO · July 12, 2007

I have this camera, and love it.

Shane422 · July 12, 2007

How's the shutter lag on the SD800?

DavidTO · July 12, 2007

Shane422 wrote:

How's the shutter lag on the SD800?

.39 seconds

ian408 · July 12, 2007

Andy wrote:

It's one of the best pocket cams I've used - I really like it a lot.

+1

schmoo · July 12, 2007

wxwax wrote:

Cool camera, but bigger than I wanted. I want something I'll have with me, everywhere, all the time. So it needs to be small.

Ding ding ding! Plus, I'm small. And my pockets are small so I need it to be tiny. I've been using the Elph line ever since I went digital for my P&S, and the only reason why I'm shopping for another is because I've broken two LCDs in the last year.

From what I've seen, Canon has finally improved on this. I checked out the SD800 IS in the store today; I'm glad to see they reinforced it.

Maybe I can make this one last a little longer. It's eating into my lens budget!

marlof · July 13, 2007

wxwax wrote:

Cool camera, but bigger than I wanted. I want something I'll have with me, everywhere, all the time. So it needs to be small.

Yes, it does hit the maximum size I'd personally want a carry everywhere to be. But it still fits my jeans pocket, and I got too tired (former Ixus and Sony P&S user) of cameras that looked nice but offered too little or awkward manual control. The GX100 is about the same size as a Panasonic LX2, both with a portruding lens. But as with the LX1, I can see why people skip this as a carry everywhere.

Fred W · July 15, 2007

schmooo wrote:

Ding ding ding! Plus, I'm small. And my pockets are small so I need it to be tiny. I've been using the Elph line ever since I went digital for my P&S, and the only reason why I'm shopping for another is because I've broken two LCDs in the last year.

From what I've seen, Canon has finally improved on this. I checked out the SD800 IS in the store today; I'm glad to see they reinforced it.

Hi Schmooo,

After seeing this little camera perform during the Wild Utah workshop I ended up getting one (SD800IS) myself. I can't drag around my DSLR and lenses everywhere I go but this little P&S is with me on the job, around town, on the bike, boat, etc. It fits nicely in a pocket or on a belt. I bought a Lowepro leather holster that protects nicely without adding bulk.

schmoo · July 16, 2007

Fred W wrote:

Hi Schmooo,

After seeing this little camera perform during the Wild Utah workshop I ended up getting one (SD800IS) myself. I can't drag around my DSLR and lenses everywhere I go but this little P&S is with me on the job, around town, on the bike, boat, etc. It fits nicely in a pocket or on a belt. I bought a Lowepro leather holster that protects nicely without adding bulk.

Fred! Yes, I was also sneaking peeks at everyone's point and shoots, even though I wasn't in the market for them at the time. I did like the performance of the SD800IS, although the moving histogram on Skip's was also neat (though not necessary). I'm glad to hear you were so moved, too.

Workshops are so much more than just being critiqued by the pros... you come back with a huge shopping list.

BladeFlap · December 13, 2007

IQ satisfaction?
Any owners of the SD800 care to add anything now that the camera's been out a while.
I'm considering this for my wife who will be doing a lot of travel.
I read the Dpreview review which noted that the tradeoff of the wider lens was more softness in the corners. (compared to the SD700is)
Any comments on that?

Cuong · December 13, 2007

BladeFlap wrote:

Any owners of the SD800 care to add anything now that the camera's been out a while.
I'm considering this for my wife who will be doing a lot of travel.
I read the Dpreview review which noted that the tradeoff of the wider lens was more softness in the corners. (compared to the SD700is)
Any comments on that?

You might want to consider the SD850 IS. Smaller LCD but has viewfinder (2.5" vs 3"), lens not as wide but longer (35mm-140mm vs 28mm-105mm), newer and cheaper. I just got one for my brother and he loves it. I have the SD700 IS and I take it with me everywhere. Actually, the SD850 IS is the replacement model for the SD700 IS.

Cuong

wxwax · December 13, 2007

BladeFlap wrote:

Any owners of the SD800 care to add anything now that the camera's been out a while.
I'm considering this for my wife who will be doing a lot of travel.
I read the Dpreview review which noted that the tradeoff of the wider lens was more softness in the corners. (compared to the SD700is)
Any comments on that?

I can't remember if I cropped this at all. Might have.

Canon Powershot SD800 IS

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