Home > Consumer Reviews > Canon PowerShot S45 4MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Optical Zoom

I recently picked up the S45 in Japan. I own a Nikon Coolpix 2500, which I love for its compact size and rotating lens/flash unit, but wanted a camera with resolution to match my photo printer, a Sony DPP-SV77.

My requirements for the new camera were: 4 megapixel, optical finder along with an LCD, 3x optical zoom, and a very compact size (roughly equivalent to the Coolpix).

After reviewing the available options, the S45 seemed to be the best fit. Now that I've owned it for a week, I can say definitively that is an outstanding camera, with more features than most users will ever take advantage of.

The software in the camera is extremely well thought out. The viewfinder display is clear and comprehensive (but with an option to reduce the complexity by eliminating unnecessary icons), and the various exposure modes are so complete that the S45 easily rivals the new generation of 35mm SLRs in terms of metering and exposure options. This includes aperture- and shutter-priority, the ability to change exposure values instantly even in Program mode, a range of ISO equivalents, EV compensation, and of course a fully manual option.

Of course, the digital-only goodies are here as well, including a 15 fps video mode (with sound and *in-camera editing*), a panorama stitching feature that is extremely cool, and voice tagging of the still images.

Image quality is excellent, with only a hint of that traditional digital low contrast that seems to be prevalent in all but the ultra high end (6mp) cameras. (Intriguingly however, you can store pictures in RAW [rather than JPEG] mode and change the contrast and brightness in PC software after the fact without quality loss.)

My only complaints are minimal: first, I love the fact that my Coolpix shows up as a removable drive directly in Windows Explorer; with the S45 you have to use Canon's included software (which is excellent) to transfer images from the camera. Second, the lens cover (also an on/off switch), while it feels solid, doesn't always close firmly, which makes me worry a bit about its durability. Finally, the camera is somewhat thicker and heavier (denser-feeling) than the Coolpix, which is the trade-off you make for far far more features (at an admittedly higher price).

I limited my brand choices to Nikon, Canon, and Sony, and I think that in this form factor there is no camera that even comes close to the S45 (except perhaps the older S40). If you are a sophisticated amateur (or even a pro looking for a backup digicam), you won't be disappointed.

After over a month experimenting with most of the function/settings, have to admit I'm pretty impressed on both built/picture quality of the Canon newly improved S45. Even at auto mode you can hardly produce a bad shot, provided that I'm a die-hard manual SLR fan of NIKO FM2 for nearly twenty yrs.

Rarely need to use photoshop to polish/adjust pics taken by S45, unlike my previous digital camera which I have to spend lots of time to correct digital noise, redeyes..etc.

When shopping for digital camera, don't get too obsessed with megapixels or spec. 'number', what's more important are the software/chips which make the camera provide precise light sensing & focus accuracy as well as flexible tweaks when you want your pics to have optimum result at any given changing shooting environment. This point is well taken by users of Sharp's 4mp digital camera which uses Canon G2 equivalent lens but produces far inferior pics than Canon's even though Sharp's camera cost 40% less (so is the quality...).

For S45, a large capacity CF card & a spare battery is always a must if you do indoor flash shooting & prefer to store pics at high resolution(which gives you stunning result), costco's website do provide a package deals that include above mentioned extras at reasonable price.

LCD comes with a clear plastic cover that gives you enough protection, or you can buy those LCD protection sheets for PDAs then cut to desired size for less than five bucks. Exterior of S45 is a nice brushed metal finish which provides enough protection for its lens.

No comment on the software since I installed the camera's driver only & use photoshop to polish when needed. Twain driver is quickly recognized by most 3rd party graphic & photo album softwares when hooked up with PC.

Upon comapring Canon's G2,G3,S230 & S45, S45 provides the best combination between size/function/pic quality criteria & one can hardly go wrong with any of them.

The adamfblock (from SF) review above was just about perfect. Everybody likes this camera. But nobody thinks any camera is perfect, a rating should be given relative to peers, meaning in this case 5 stars. If you research this camera you will find no strong argument that any camera in its class exceeds the S-45 in quality/features. The G3 is a better camera, but too big for my purposes. I would miss all those spontaneous surprise shots if I ony had a G3, because I would not have it with me. And while size of aternative really tiny cameras is nice, everyone agrees that the loss of features/quality in those is rather significant (at this point). The S-45 is small enough to carry around most everywhere, I got the little leather container that can be worn on your belt like a pocket knife, that is nice. If you only have one camera, and want to avoid any driving desire to replace it in the next 5 years, this is a good bet.

The Canon S45 is an excellent digital camera with a few drawbacks. As far as 4MP cameras go, it is a bit pricey but the quality of the camera build and the features on the camera make it well worth the price. While the camera isn't exactly shirt pocketable, it is still fairly easy to carry around with you and not overly bulky.

On the plus side, the S45 has:
1) 9 point AutoFocus
2) DIGIC processor which speeds up capture of photos and their quality
3) 3x Optical Zoom (who cares about the digital zoom)
4) 4 MP picture quality
5) Easy to use interface with quick access to manual settings via FUNC button
6) close to centered tripod attachment for easier stitch photo taking
7) A ton of manual settings (exposure settings, aperture settings, shutter settings, white balance, photo effects, and more!) Almost all the settings available on Canon's high end G3 camera!
8) A pretty tough metal body
9) Ability of the camera to take RAW shots for photoediting.

On the minus side:
1) Decent to weak flash that is better than the S400 but still weak for low light and night photos at greater than 10 feet away.
2) Decent to below average battery life... 200 shots on a full charge with LCD on in my experience
3) Slide door that protects lens and doubles as power switch worries me in quality a bit.
4) Red eye problems with straight flash use but much less so when the red eye reduction is used.
5) I wish it had a hot shoe or some other way to add an external flash unit.

The camera takes fantastic shots even when in manual mode although its strengths will be found when you learn the manual settings of the camera. I think this is a better buy than the Canon S400 since they are the same price. If you're willing to sacrifice a little size... this Canon won't disappoint!

After extensive research, I decided on this camera as a replacement for my older 2 megapixel Olympus 2040. I have been very impressed with it so far - it seems very well built (sturdy), is small enough to fit in my coat pocket, and takes great pictures. The telescoping lens extends and retracts very quickly making it easy to take a picture on a moment's notice - this was a problem with my old camera - it was too slow.

When researching the camera, I was trying to find one that took "AA" batteries since they are much cheaper (NiMH). However, the Canon NB-2L battery isn't too expensive if purchased from a third party retailer (I got a generic one for [$$]). Also, the included charger is very small and portable with built in retractable AC plug - it's lightweight and easy to throw in a bag and take with you.

The camera records the orientation that each photo is shot with in the EXIF header, and if you use the bundled Canon software to download the photos, it auto-rotates them for you. This is very handy. Unfortunately, it doesn't work if you use other software such as iPhoto or Image Capture.

The mode dial is very handy - it has enough settings on it (ie, automatic, manual, shutter priority, aperture priority, night shot, portrait, movie mode, etc.) that you can quickly flip to the one you want. My old camera required the use of menu systems to set most of these modes - the dial is much faster.

The camera features a stitch mode which allows you to stitch together multiple pictures to form a panorama. When in this mode, the camera shows you the last picture you took (offset to the side) allowing you to roughly overlap 1/3 of the next picture with the previous one. Using the included stitch software, I was able to easily make a Quicktime VR movie - pretty cool. You can also make panoramas with this mode, and unlike some manufacturers (Olympus), this works with any brand of CF card, it doesn't have to be the manufacturer supplied one.

The only drawback I've found for this camera is the lack of a USB auto-mounter feature ("Mass Storage Device") which many other cameras have. This feature allows you to just plug in the USB cable to your computer and have the camera auto-mount on your desktop like any other removable disk. I wish Canon would include this feature since it enables you to completely bypass software for the import process. This is something I can live without though - the other features make up for it.

Overall, a great camera which I would highly recommend!