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Canon PowerShot G1 X photo samples

The G1 X handles high-ISO-sensitivity shots with aplomb.

Lori Grunin
I've been reviewing hardware and software, devising testing methodology and handed out buying advice for what seems like forever; I'm currently absorbed by computers and gaming hardware, but previously spent many years concentrating on cameras. I've also volunteered with a cat rescue for over 15 years doing adoptions, designing marketing materials, managing volunteers and, of course, photographing cats.
Lori Grunin
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1 of 15 Matthew Fitzgerald/CNET

Noise

The G1 X does produce very good JPEGs up through ISO 1600, which is excellent for this class of camera. Though decent raw-processing software isn't yet available, given Canon's history I'd say that you probably won't be able to eke better performance out of the raw versions, just different trade-offs.
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2 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

JPEG quality, ISO 400

Just an example of the midrange ISO sensitivity quality at macro distances.

(1/60 sec, F4.5, ISO 100, spot metering AWB, approx 44mm)
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3 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

JPEG quality, ISO 800

This photo is a little softer than I'd like, though it's still pretty good for ISO 800.

(1/60 sec, F4.0, ISO 800, evaluative metering, AWB, 28mm)
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4 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

Noise, ISO 3200

Even ISO 3200 JPEG shots can be quite usable. You can see a little color noise (look at the whites of his eyes) and clipping in the shadows, but the edges and color look pretty good and there's none of that mushy watercolor effect produced by overcompression in the luminance channel.

(1/30 sec, F2.8, ISO 3200, spot metering, AWB, 28mm)
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5 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

G1 X vs. X100, ISO 3200

There's a lot of factors that go into high-ISO-sensitivity image quality. Here, I suspect that the X100 delivers better results not just because of the size of the sensor--it's bigger--but because it has a brighter, faster lens.

(G1 X: 1/30 sec, F2.8, spot metering, AWB, 28mm; X100: 1/40 sec, f2.8, spot metering, AWB)
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6 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

G1 X vs. G12, ISO 1600

The G1 X definitely fares better than its cheaper sibling in low light.

(G1 X: 1/20 sec, F2.8, spot metering, AWB, 28mm; G12: 1/30 sec, f2.8, evaluative metering, AWB)
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7 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

G1 X vs. E-PL3, ISO 1600

The cheaper Olympus E-PL3 displays more color noise in its JPEGs than the G1 X. But the beauty of the ILC is that you can always buy a better lens and improve the results a bit; you can't do that with the G1 X.

(G1 X: 1/20 sec, F2.8, spot metering, AWB, 28mm; E-PL3: 1/30 sec, f2.8, spot metering, AWB, 34mm)
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8 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

Color

The G1 X displays excellent color accuracy.
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9 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

Sharpness

The camera can produce some nicely sharp images.

(1/60 sec, F5.6, ISO 100, evaluative metering, AWB, approx 79mm)
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10 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

Handheld NightScene mode

This was shot using the G1 X's Handheld NightScene mode, which combines 3 shots for a reasonably exposed night shot. On one hand, it's kind of mushy; on the other, it's equivalent to ISO 12800. One thing to watch out for is motion; those blobs in the lower right of the photo are a couple of people walking through the scene.

(1/20 sec, F5.6, ISO 12800, evaluative metering, AWB, approx 99mm)
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11 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

Bokeh

Like a lot of fixed-lens cameras, the out-of-focus highlights look more processed than organic aperture, but it's not bad.

(1/30 sec, F5.0, ISO 100, evaluative metering, AWB, approx 57mm)
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12 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

Distortion

While the lens is slow, it has a reasonable amount of barrel distortion at its widest. However in the middle of the range, the edge-to-edge sharpness isn't as good as I'd like it to be (not shown).

(1/30 sec, F6.3, ISO 100, spot metering AWB, 28mm)
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13 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

Miniature effect

An example of the camera's faux tilt/shift effect.
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14 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

Toy camera effect

Canon's Toy Camera effect allows you to select from three sets of color tones: warm, standard, and cool.
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15 of 15 Lori Grunin/CNET

Monochrome

You can choose from three monochrome color schemes, black and white, cool (cyanotype), and sepia. You can't control the contrast, though, and I wasn't thrilled with the odd infrared-look of the background.

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