Canon PowerShot SX50 HS Review

4.5
October 10, 2012 | Mark Goldstein |
  1. Ease
    of Use
  2. Image
    Quality
  3. Sample
    Images
  4. Product
    Images
  5. Product
    Specs
  6. Rating &
    Conclusion
  7. Main
    Rivals
  8. Review
    Roundup
  9. Product
    Videos
  10. Comments
    (268)
Canon PowerShot SX50 HS Review Image Canon PowerShot SX50 HS Review Image

Buy a PowerShot SX50 HS Black Digital Camera (12.1 MP, 50x Opt, SD/SDHC/SDXC Card Slot)

Lowest Price: £359.00

Buy a PowerShot SX50 HS Black Digital Camera (12.1 MP, 50x Opt, SD/SDHC/SDXC Card Slot)

Lowest Price: $353.95

Specifications

IMAGE SENSOR

Type 1/2.3 type back-illuminated CMOS
Effective Pixels Approx. 12.1M
Colour Filter Type Primary Colour

IMAGE PROCESSOR

Type DIGIC 5 with iSAPS technology

LENS

Focal Length 4.3 – 215.0 mm (35 mm equivalent: 24 – 1200 mm)
Zoom Optical 50x.
ZoomPlus 100x
Digital Approx. 4x (with Digital Tele-Converter Approx. 1.5x or 2.0x and Safety Zoom¹). Combined Approx. 200x
Maximum f/number f/3.4-f/6.5
Construction 13 elements in 10 groups (3 UD lenses and 1 double-sided aspherical lens)
Image Stabilisation Yes (lens shift-type), 4.5-stop. Intelligent IS
Ultrasonic Motor (USM) Yes, zoom

FOCUSING

Type TTL
AF System/ Points Face Detection, 1-point AF (Any position is available, fixed to centre or Face Select and Track)
AF Modes Single, Continuous, Servo AF/AE¹, Tracking AF
AF Point Selection Manual selection using FlexiZone AF/AE, Size (Normal, Small)
AF Lock On/Off Selectable
AF Assist Beam Yes
Manual Focus Yes
Focus Bracketing Yes
Closest Focusing Distance 0 cm (W) from front of lens in Macro

EXPOSURE CONTROL

Metering modes Evaluative (linked to Face Detection AF frame), Centre-weighted average, Spot (centre or linked to Face Detection AF or FlexiZone AF frame)
AE Lock Yes
Exposure Compensation +/- 3 EV in 1/3 stop increments
Enhanced i-Contrast for automatic dynamic range correction
AEB 1/3 – 2 EV in 1/3 stop increments
ISO sensitivity* AUTO, 80, 100, 125, 160, 200, 250, 320, 400, 500, 640, 800, 1000, 1250, 1600, 2000, 2500, 3200, 4000, 5000, 6400

SHUTTER

Speed 1 – 1/2000 sec. (factory default)
15 – 1/2000 sec. (total range – varies by shooting mode)

WHITE BALANCE

Type TTL
Settings Auto (including Face Detection WB), Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H, Flash, Custom1, Custom 2. Multi-area WB correction available in Smart Auto. White Balance Compensation.

VIEWFINDER

Viewfinder EVF (0.20 type), 4:3 aspect ratio, Approx. 202,000 dots
Viewfinder / Coverage Approx. 100%
Dioptre Correction Yes

LCD MONITOR

Monitor Vari-angle 7.1 cm (2.8”) PureColor II VA (TFT), Approx. 461,000 dots
Coverage Approx. 100%
Brightness Adjustable to one of five levels. Quick-bright LCD

FLASH

Modes Auto, Manual Flash On / Off, Slow Synchro
Slow Sync Speed Yes. Fastest speed 1/2000 sec.
Red-Eye Reduction Yes
Flash Exposure Compensation +/- 2 EV in 1/3 stop increments. Face Detection FE, Safety FE, Smart Flash Exposure
Flash Exposure Lock Yes
Manual Power Adjustment 3 levels with internal flash (up to 19 levels with external EX Speedlites 270EX II and 430EX II. 22 levels with 580EX II, 600EX and 600EX-RT¹)
Second Curtain Synchronisation Yes
Built-in Flash Range 50 cm – 5.5 m (W) / 1.4 m – 3.0 m (T)
External Flash E-TTL with EX series Speedlites¹

SHOOTING

Modes Smart Auto (58 scenes detected), Program AE, Shutter priority AE, Aperture priority AE, Manual, Custom 1, Custom 2, SCN (Portrait, Smooth Skin, Smart Shutter (Smile, Wink Self-Timer, FaceSelf-Timer), High-speed Burst HQ, Handheld Night Scene, Snow, Fireworks, Stitch Assist), Creative Filters (High Dynamic Range, Fish-eye Effect, Miniature Effect, Toy Camera Effect, Soft Focus, Monochrome, Super Vivid, Poster Effect, Color Accent, Color Swap), Movie Digest, Movie
Modes in Movie Smart Auto (21 scenes detected), Standard, Program AE, Portrait, Miniature Effect, Monochrome, Super Vivid, Poster Effect, Color Accent, Color Swap, Snow, Fireworks, iFrame Movie, Super Slow Motion Movie
Photo Effects My Colors (My Colors Off, Vivid, Neutral, Sepia, Black & White, Positive Film, Lighter Skin Tone, Darker Skin Tone, Vivid Blue, Vivid Green, Vivid Red, Custom Color)
Drive modes Single, Continuous, Continuous with AF, Self-Timer
Continuous Shooting Approx. 2.2 shots/sec., AF: Approx. 0.8 shots/sec., LV: Approx. 0.9 shots/sec., High-speed Burst HQ: Approx. 13 shots/sec., up to 10 shots. High-speed Burst HQ with AF: Approx. 4.1 shots/sec., up to 10 shots¹²

RECORDING PIXELS / COMPRESSION

Image Size 4:3 - (RAW, L) 4000 x 3000, (M1) 2816 x 2112, (M2) 1600 x 1200, (S) 640 x 480
16:9 - (RAW, L) 4000 x 2248, (M1) 2816 x 1584, (M2) 1920 x 1080, (S) 640 x 360
3:2 - (RAW, L) 4000 x 2664, (M1) 2816 x 1880, (M2) 1600 x 1064, (S) 640 x 424
1:1 - (RAW, L) 2992 x 2992, (M1) 2112 x 2112, (M2) 1200 x 1200, (S) 480 x 480
4:5 - (RAW, L) 2400 x 3000, (M1) 1696 x 2112, (M2) 960 x 1200, (S) 384 x 480
Resize in playback (M2, S, XS)
*XS is half the length and width of S
Compression Superfine, Fine
Movies (Full HD) 1920 x 1080, 24 fps, (HD) 1280 x 720, 30 fps, (L) 640 x 480, 30 fps
Super Slow Motion Movie (L) 640 x 480, 120fps, (M) 320 x 240, 240fps
Miniature Effect (HD, L) 6fps, 3fps, 1.5 fps
iFrame Movie (HD)
Movie Length (Full HD & HD) Up to 4 GB or 29 min. 59 sec.¹
(L) Up to 4 GB or 1 hour²
(Super Slow Motion Movie) 30 sec.

FILE TYPES

Still Image Type JPEG compression (Exif 2.3 [Exif Print] compliant) / Design rule for Camera File system and DPOF ver. 1.1 compliant), RAW, RAW+JPEG
Movies MOV [H.264 + Linear PCM (stereo)]
iFrame

DIRECT PRINT

Canon Printers Canon SELPHY Compact Photo Printers and Canon Inkjet Printers supporting PictBridge (ID Photo Print, Fixed Size Print and Movie Print supported on SELPHY CP & ES printers only)
PictBridge Yes

OTHER FEATURES

Red-Eye Correction Yes, during shooting and playback
My Camera / My Menu Start-up image and camera sounds customisation. Menu customisation
My Category Image tagging feature
Intelligent Orientation Sensor Yes
Histogram Yes, live histogram
Playback zoom Approx. 2x – 10x
Self Timer Approx. 2 or 10 sec., Custom
Menu Languages English, German, French, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, Italian, Greek, Norwegian, Portuguese, Russian, Swedish, Spanish, Ukrainian, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Simplified Chinese, Chinese (traditional), Japanese, Korean, Thai, Arabic, Romanian, Farsi, Hindi, Malay, Indonesian, Vietnamese

INTERFACE

Computer Hi-Speed USB (MTP, PTP) dedicated connector (Mini-B compatible)
Other HDMI Mini Connector (HDMI-CEC compatible) A/V output (PAL/NTSC)

MEMORY CARD

Type SD, SDHC, SDXC

SUPPORTED OPERATING SYSTEM

PC & Macintosh Windows 7 SP1/ Vista SP2/ XP SP3
Mac OS X v10.6 – 10.7

SOFTWARE

Browsing & Printing ImageBrowser EX
Other PhotoStitch
Image Manipulation Digital Photo Professional for RAW development

POWER SOURCE

Batteries Rechargeable Li-ion Battery NB-10L (battery and charger supplied)
Battery life Approx. 315 shots¹
Approx. 420 min. playback
A/C Power Supply Optional, AC Adapter Kit ACK-DC80

ACCESSORIES

Cases / Straps Soft Case DCC-850
Lenses Filter Adapter FA-DC67A (Compatible with Canon 67mm Filters: Circular Polarizing PL-C B, Protect Filter)
Flash Canon Speedlites (including 270EX, 270EX II, 320EX, 430EX II, 580EX II¹, 600EX, 600EX-RT), Speedlite Transmitter ST-E2, Speedlite bracket SB-E2, Off-Camera Shoe Cord OC-E3
Remote Controller/ Switch Remote Switch RS-60E3
Power Supply & Battery Chargers AC Adapter Kit ACK-DC80, Battery Charger CB-2LCE
Other Lens Hood LH-DC60
Canon HDMI Cable HTC-100

PHYSICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Operating Environment 0 – 40 °C, 10 – 90% humidity
Dimensions (WxHxD) 122.5 x 87.3 x 105.5 mm
Weight Approx. 595 g (including battery/batteries and memory card)


Zoom ¹ Depending on the image size selected.
AF Modes ¹ Some settings limit availability.
Manual Power Adjustment ¹ Not all functions of the flash are supported.
External Flash ¹ Not all functions of the flash are supported.
Continuous Shooting ¹ Under conditions where the flash does not fire.
² Depending on memory card speed / capacity / compression setting.
Movie Length ¹ The following Speed Class memory cards are required for maximum record time: (HD) 1280 x 720 Speed Class 4 or above. (Full HD) 1920 x 1080 Speed Class 6 or above. (iFrame) 1280 x 720 Speed Class 6 or above.
² Depending on memory card speed / capacity / compression setting.
Battery life ¹ Using the batteries and memory card format supplied with the camera (where included), except where indicated.
Flash ¹ Not all functions of the flash are supported.
  • *Standard Output Sensitivity / Recommended Exposure Index.
  • According to ISO 12232:2006 (20th April 2006) which specifies the method for assigning and reporting ISO speed ratings for digital still cameras.
  • All data is based on Canon standard testing methods (according to CIPA Standards) except where indicated.
  • Subject to change without notice.
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Lowest Price: £359.00
Lowest Price: $353.95
  1. Ease of Use
  2. Image Quality
  3. Sample Images
  1. Product Images
  2. Product Specs
  3. Rating & Conclusion
  1. Main Rivals
  2. Review Roundup
  3. Product Videos
  4. Comments (268)

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hd video, hd, compact, review, 1080p, 12 megapixel, hdmi, super-zoom, RAW, jpeg, 10fps, tilting, super zoom, 2.8 inch LCD, Canon, PowerShot, 50x zoom, sx50, sx50HS, SX50 HS, Canon PowerShot SX50 HS, 50x, 2.8 inch, Canon PowerShot SX50 HS Review, 24-1200mm

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