Full Review
I just received this camera last week and already it is a good friend. This camera will especially appeal to photographers who are already using prosumer or pro level Canon D-SLR users or are just interested in the highest level of creative control from a compact camera.
This little gem is very similar in features, tweakability and even shares the same DIGIC III processor as the 40D and even the Mark 1D III, although the Mark 1D III admittedly has two of these processors.
What I really enjoy about the camera is the quality of the case and build along with the manual rotary dials for ISO and shooting modes. The camera will shoot in auto modes quite nicely but has all the manual and creative modes of the Canon pro dSLRs.
For example, I was just shooting with my new Canon 40D and then switched over to the G9. All the pro level concepts are there in the G9 and it's a seamless transition. I can switch ISO speeds with the manual dial. Change priority modes from Aperture to Shutter Priority. I can even easily change advanced functions of the flash like choosing between first and second curtain sync. Moreover, these advanced functions are not buried deep in a menu system. The buttons on the back along with the very familiar large rotary knob will be immediately familiar to Canon dSLR users. It even has Customizable User Configurations that can be registered on the mode dial at positions C1 and C2 for instant recall of all settings. This is absolutely awesome as I have my 40D and G9 setup the same way and can recall the same basic configuration instantly.
Add to add this RAW shooting and a 12.1 megapixel sensor and a fantastic 6x zoom lens and this camera makes me want to leave my big setup behind. I think my dSLR will start gathering dust.
Some weaknesses that are not really a fault of the G9 but of really all compact cameras are that it starts getting sensor noise over ISO 400. The noise level is excellent between 80-200 and in general I think it is still by far the best I have seen in any compact. Did I mention that it has an ISO 80 setting? The lens is sharp. I am very satisfied there. RAW mode continuous shooting is not particularly fast, but no surprises there.
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