CANON PowerShot A710 IS

*All the pictures of the new stuff was taken with my old camera, and the pictures of my old camera are taken with the new one. Obviously…

My camera died on me a few days ago. The CANON Digital IXUS 50 I had been using had seen some rough times over the last year. I am not exactly very carful with my electronics. I tend to just dump stuff in my bags or pockets and occasionally drop things as well, unintentionally of course. Over the last few weeks my IXUS was acting up, not turning on when I wanted it to, the zoom lens was jamming, and it had a very moody nature sometimes refusing to focus on demand. I took it out to Baby Face the other night and I think that was the last straw. I could not get a decent shot at all. For the rest of the night my IXUS was just dead weight.

So my old man happened to be coming over from HK and I asked him to pick me up a new camera. I did not bother going online and looking for any particular model, I just told him I wanted something good and sturdy that has a good set of manual functions and can also shoot video clips. I also wanted something that would not be too bulky to carry around. I am not a tech savvy person and he is quite in the loop with what is going on so I know I can trust his choice. He picked me up the CANON PowerShot A710 IS.

I have a much older model of the PowerShot back home in Indo. I have been using that in the office for a few years now and it is really good piece. It is not as dainty as the IXUS or other new generation camera’s but it is strong with ample functions. The design is also pretty sleek for its size and I like the grey scale color combination. The PowerShot A710 IS features a 6x optical zoom and 7.1 mega pixel picture quality.

The whole set came with an AV cable, a USB cable, 2 software and user guide CD’s, and a bunch of manuals in different languages. All of which found their way to my bottom drawer.

I also got gifted a 1GB memory card and the multipurpose card reader. I already have 3 of those but I do not know where any of them are. I really need to organize my life.

The LCD display on the back of the PowerShot is pretty big. It is much larger than the older model I was using in Indo. There also seem to be a few more buttons and they are more spaced out. So many gadgets today are trying to fit more and more functions into smaller spaces. One button can have 5 different functions and that just confuses the hell out of me.

A spin dial selector is located on top of the camera. This is something I really like about the PowerShot. It allows a user to quickly and easily navigate through the main features of the camera without having to push buttons and sort through items on the LCD screen. You then only have to revert to the detailed functions if there is a very particular change you are looking for. And there are numerous features that I am eager to try out.

So my old IXUS drops into the bottom drawer. It was a good piece while it lasted and if I can get the zoom working I would like to keep it on staff. It is small and easy to carry around at night. It also looks better in the dark.

Only one year of use and I managed to discolor and scratch the poor bastard to such a horrific state. Many of the buttons are jamming now and it can’t even tell when it should be in camera or movie mode half the time.

I have not taken the new CANON PowerShot A710 IS out yet for a run but I was toyin with it by the office window and it feels pretty good. I am also fidgeting with other settings so I might not get optimum pictures for a few weeks. While writing this post I have actually taken more pictures of my IXUS (which are posted above) and they come out pretty good. I also got a shot of the cap I am wearing today. I am surprised how detailed and clear this shot is considering I already reduced the resolution on the camera to save space.

I am sure there are much better camera’s out there and one in particular that I want, but for now this will do. I am no professional photographer but this puppy has enough features to keep me occupied for a while. This was a damn good choice my Dad made for the budget I gave him. Now I just need to plan another vacation.