Digital Camera Reviews

Product Name: Canon Powershot Pro1

Canon’s flagship semi-pro compact is a heady mix of advanced features and high performance.

Manufacturer: Canon Australia
Price: A$1499.00 as at Nov 2004
Release Date: February 2004

Ideal For: Serious amateurs in love with the notion of a fully featured compact.

Pros:

  • Great optics
  • Big 2” ‘tilt’n’twist’ LCD screen
  • Extensive features and controls
  • Good suite of accessories

Cons:

  • Some vignetting at zoom and aperture extremes
  • Limited WB adjustment

Features:

Ease of Use: 1/2

Overall:

Verdict:

Certainly a showcase camera for Canon’s compact range, but one is drawn to wonder “has the compact gone too far?”

Notes:

As soon as you pick up the Powershot Pro1 you know it’s a serious camera. It has a solid, confident feel, a wide, adjustable 2” LCD and prominent 7x optical zoom lens complete with custom lens hood. But is the Pro1 overkill in a compact? Has Canon been lured into a spiralling megapixel race?

Since its release, the Pro1 has also reduced in price by $700, placing it just below the entry-level EOS 300D dSLR. This raises a new debate. When faced with a compact and a dSLR at almost the same price, which way do you go? When shopping, the Pro1 passes the all-important handling test, feeling more like a well-finished, chunky little SLR than a fat compact and the subtle controls do well to mask the underlying complexity that could make digital newcomers’ heads spin.

For all the caution expressed here, the Pro1 is capable of very satisfying results courtesy of Canon’s new DiG!C processor and razor-sharp, fast L-Series Fluorite lens coupled to the massive 8 megapixel CCD. Your holiday snaps will take on new life, but Aunt Maud may cringe at her newly revealed wrinkles.

If you’re considering this level of compact camera, make sure you also check out dSLRs in your price range.

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