Awsome camera with excellent picture quality, zoom, and battery life.
I thought I wanted a micro-sized camera and bought 2 different brands of compact cameras just to return them because of sub-par picture quality. After that experience, I decided to give the new Powershot S3 IS a chance. Sure it might not be small enough to fit in a pocket, but what a camera! The pictures are great with sharp images from corner to corner, a 12x zoom lens, and an extremely effective Optical Image Stabilizer. The benefits of the the Optical Stabilizer cannot be understated on a camera with such a long zoom range. When you zoom into maximum telephoto every slight movement of your hands results in a huge movement at the lens. With the stabilizer though it eliminates that problem. The pictures have low noise levels from 80-400 ISO, I have not tried the ISO 800 yet, though it should be nice to have in a pinch. The tilt and swivel LCD is awesome, you'll wonder how you got along without it before. Battery life is excellent and I cannot underemphasize the benefit of the camera running on standard AA batteries. If ever you find yourself in the middle of a day of shooting and the batteries die simply pop into a local convenience store and pick up some more. I would suggest you purchase a good set of rechargeable NiMH batteries though. The movie mode is great with the ability to zoom, a dedicated record/stop button, and stereo sound! Plus, finally a Canon digital PowerShot with a live histogram! You will not be disappointed in this camera.

Excellent digital camera with image stabilization that shoots VGA movies in stereo!
This is my 3rd digital camera and my first Canon. I moved up from an Olympus Ultra Zoom 2100. The 2100 has 2.1MP 10x optical zoom with image stablization, and lo-res movie mode. The reason I was attracted to the S3 IS was because it offers 6MP with 12x optical zoom and image stabilization, and VGA quality movie mode in stereo. Since purchasing the S3 IS I have not been disappointed.

I also bought a Transcend 4GB SD memory card which can hold about 32 minutes of video, or over 2300 photos in the highest quality. No problems addressing the 4GB memory, or doing a low-level format of the card in the camera.

Shooting both photos and movies is easy. The S3 IS has a separate button that you press with your thumb to start shooting a movie. While you are shooting, you still take snapshots with the shutter button. There are 2 stereo mics built into the front of the camera, along with a software selectable wind filter. While shooting, you can use the zoom feature with no added noise to the movie; it's very quiet. Image stabilization is still active when shooting a movie.

I think the S3 IS is good enough as both a digital camera and video camera that I no longer need to haul around 2 cameras (digital and video) to every event.

The Quintessential Digital Camera Has Arrived!
You can have peace of mind that you own the best digital camera on the market when you purchase the Canon Powershot S3 IS camera. When you go on vacation, you want the photos that are going to impress and with the 12x optical zoom, the photos will impress! Since this camera is brand new, everyone is going to be asking you about it. They can go ahead because I will tell them this Canon camera is the best! The photos have color and sharpness that seem to want to jump right out at you. I took a movie and I am amazed with the clarity. There is no other camera better than the Canon Powershot S3 IS. I also own a PIXMA photo printer, so, I have the best of both worlds.

Oh What A Camera!
This is my 4th digital camera. I was going to buy a Canon SLR and found that it was out of my price range. The S3 IS was right there at the top of my range so I went to the local camera store to ask about it and look at it in person. I can tell you that it is a very solid feeling camera. It fits in your hands very well and the buttons are all within reach. The photo quality is really amazing. Image stabilization really helps with those long range shots. The multiple shooting modes are really handy too. The only down side to this camera is the number of options available. You can literally get lost in the manual. No worries though. Put the camera in AUTO mode, point and shoot. For most people this should work just fine. The camera is VERY fast. There is NO lag time from the moment you push the shutter button and the time the photo is taken. No more predicting your shots. I am not super happy with the lenses cap. It fits loosely and tends to fall off but there is a lanyard to keep it attached to the camera. Not the most important feature of a camera. The 2" LCD is pretty impressive as well. The movie mode is nothing short of amazing. If you use it make sure you get a large memory card. I filled a 256 MB card in about 45 seconds of shooting at the highest quality setting. Bottom line...GREAT CAMERA!

Great Camera
I struggled with buying a DSLR, having some photography experience, but the attraction of carrying one camera to get both Video and still photos overrode my desire to be a photo purist. Thus I bought the S3 and am extremely happy with both the quality of the video and the still photos.

A few minor drawbacks - I bought the Canon case for it (and sent it back). Unless you will be carrying the camera as is, without the lens shade/lens adapter, the case is useless, too little extra space for any extras. I bought the lens shade/lens adapter as it is the only way to be able to put a protective filter on and I read some reviews that advised it because it protects the lens barrel. I returned those as well. I found lensmateonline.com that makes 2 size lens adapters (52MM and 58MM) in metal (as opposed to Canon's plastic) both in black for the S3 and silver for the S2. They also have a retractable rubber lens hood available. I found that if you leave the Canon lens hood on inside while using the flash, you get a dark shadow in the picture, the retractable lens hood saves you the hassle of unscrewing your lens hood - which can be dangerous especially with the plastic lens adapter as it can get cross threaded.

The camera itself is phenomenal...

The Canon PowerShot S3 IS
I purchased this camera on the basis of reviews at Amazon and elsewhere. I have been an avid photographer since 1959, starting with the Leica. The enthusiasm of other reviewers for the S3 IS is certainly well deserved. The speed and accuracy of the self-focusing as you change focal lengths is astonishing. At a single focal length moving the camera past a window from inside the house results in a breathtaking and precise change of both exposure and focus.

The movie facilities are well displayed also by turning slowly inside a house and watching the exposure and focus change to produce surperb results even through the windows. This is one fine movie camera. The 1 gigabyte limit on a movie should not be a problem since it permits roughly an eight minute movie. Downloading a two minute movie to my Dell desktop required about 10 minutes. After which I had a two minute perfectly focused and exposed movie with stereo sound!

As you will quickly find, extreme handheld close-ups will self-focus exactly at the Canon specified distance. Get too close and the camera focuses sharply on the other side of the object you wanted to photograph. Example, small flowers on a bush.

One more example. to check the focusing I picked our sleeping dog. Her fine fur was crisply focused and, to my eyes perfectly exposed.

This is the camera that until now existed only in my dreams.
Thanks, Canon. The S3 IS was well worth waiting for.

Super nice camera
Excellent camera, I got mine a week ago and I am very impressed. Overall it has a nice solid feel. Resolution is just fabulous. I originally wanted a compact camera that I could fit in my pocket to take places where an SLR is just too big and cumbersome. At first I was looking at the Leica D-Lux 2. But I found it too small for my large hands and fingers. Also the Leica is so smooth that it is sort of slippery to hold. The Canon does not have as high a resolution but is certainly acceptable, it is bigger which means it only fits in big pockets, but it has a nice grip. It is quite comfortable. The flash is not super powerful, but it is adequate and comparable to other cameras with built-in flashes. It is good for about 15 feet. Oddly enough you have to flip the flash up yourself but I don't consider it an issue. Outdoor photos are spectacular. I bought a 1 gb card for it and am quite happy. Battery life seems good too.

My only complaint is not even really a complaint. There are so many features packed into the camera that it takes a significant amount of time to traverse the menus. I am sure that when I become more familair with it, it will not be a problem.

This is a fantastic camera
I'm in love with my new S3 IS! I've been a die-hard Canon SLR fan for a long time, but my first digital was the Kodak Z7590. I was looking for high mega-pixels and the Kodak had the best optical zoom available at the time (10X). I was deeply disappointed in the quality of the images produced by the Kodak and am thrilled to have replaced that camera with the Power Shot S3. It is fantastic! Would highly recommend it!

The flip out LCD image finder is the best improvment over the S2 and I love the fact that I can add lenses to the camera at some point as well.

Awesome Camera
Unless you are a professional photographer this is an awesome camera. I have one other Canon A85 digital still camera, a Sony f717 and a Sony f828, a Nikon d50 and I know I will be using the s3 IS more then any of them. It's small, sharp pictures, as well as movie clips make this a real winner. I owned the s1 IS for a year and thought it was a great camera, my only complains were poor low light focusing, shutter lag, and no hot shoe. Well the s3 IS fixed two out of the three. Focus is much better and lag is almost none, very fast! They also added a lot of bells and whistles to this thing like color swap and color accent. (You can look on canonusa.com to see what these are.) I know how hard it is to make up your mind when buying one of these and I spent days reading reviews, but I have to say... if you want a camera to carry with you and get great shots... this will do the trick in spades.

My first digital camera
This is my first digital camera. I was doing research for about 6 month already until I settled for S3 IS. I was comparing many of them and Canon was able to offer more than its competitors were. I have been using camera a couple of days now and I am very pleased with the results. I am in the process of experimenting and I think every new user should do that. I was reading many reviews with comments on poor picture quality in low light settings and similar, but I think it is just matter of practice and knowledge. As per my experience, if you put camera in low light settings and put the flash on, pictures are very good.
Camera like Canon S3 IS requires you to go through the manual and make yourself familiar with many of its options.
Adjustable LCD viewfinder is very helpful especially if you are taking pictures above your height/sight of to low.

Personally, I would like for the flash to open itself automatically, rather than manual. Another thing that I would like is for the pictures to be dated. Since I have baby girl I would like my pictures to have the date on them, this way you only have date in the picture info.
I would recommend this camera to anyone who wants better than average, quality, and stylish product.


Pro: Many features offered to fit any ocassion
Con: My inexperience with digital cameras

Wow!! This is an amazing camera.
Ok, first of all I have no photography training, I've only taken pictures as a hobby, and for the last several years I've used my Fujifilm 3800, which was my starter digital. It got frustrating for me because I would see pictures other people would take and I couldn't understand why I couldn't take the same type of pictures. I looked and every photographer who's pictures I enjoyed (on Flickr, Blogspot, etc) were using Canon's. I've always thought that Canon's (for single image photography) were out of my league as a hobby photographer, but I wanted to take pictures of plants, trees, various things around me which I believe is interesting. So I did my research comparison shopped and picked this Camera.

It is amazing.

This camera has so many bells and whistles, but each one is there for a specific reason. One of the features I use a lot is the SCN function. It tells the camera the type of environment you'll be shooting in, beach, snow, indoors, foliage, etc etc etc.

The video this camera does is almost as good as the video on my actual Canon video recorder, the picture is a nice size with minimal compression so if you edit it with Windows Movie Maker you don't have the annoying (and very amature-ish) compression boxes.

Another nice feature is the color change, I love taking photos outdoors in black and white, with my old camera I had to use a software program to change the image to B&W, with this camera you can do it right then and there, and still have the original color image as well.

The Image Stabilizer works very well, and I shake like a leaf in a strong wind storm. I found that when using the zoom it's best to use 2 hands (which I never did before, like I said amature no photography training) and the shots come out great without having to use the flash.

I'm sure as I take more pictures, and do more research and study to improve my photography I'll be changing the ISO & shutter speed to meet my needs, otherwise this is exceeding my expectations and making me look like I am a better photographer than I really am.

Simply the Best in it's Class
If you are interested in all the specs and opinions about the features of this camera, then refer to digital camera review sites for this camera (such as dpreview.com and steves-digicams.com). If you want someone to have done all the work for you comparing the cameras, then consider this: I did extensive research on this item during the month of June, 2006 and I compared this item to other similiar cameras in its class, and this camera is - by far - the best in it's class. I did not weigh price into this decision, because I feel like the cheap price of an inferior camera should not give it points over a superior but more expensive camera. All in all, this is the best camera in it's class of high power zoom digital cameras. You won't be disappointed.

Camera aims to make better photographers
SO MANY FEATURES. SO LITTLE TIME.

Is it possible for a camera to make an amateur photographer better? Apparently this is Canon's goal with the S3. It provides easy access to controls that compensate for common difficult shooting scenarios. Most point-and-shoot (P+S) cameras have few buttons - relying instead on hidden menu driven options. While this may make the camera appear less intimidating initially, locating the correct setting while attempting to frame and photograph action or bad lighting subjects is frustrating. As a result, many features go unused.

By way of comparison, the S3 has at least ten more buttons than my discontinued P+S MINOLTA Dimage G500 (5MP 3x optical zoom). And many of the buttons on the CANON are multifunction depending on whether you are shooting in one of several modes, playing back stills, or movies - providing dozens of useful options.

The CANON S3 has a button for instant access to movie recording (with on-screen options for 320x240 15/30/60 fps or 640x480 15/30 fps) up to 1GB or one hour per clip. Stereo sound and zoom functions accompany movies. There are dedicated buttons for ISO, sound recording, flash, continuous shooting, macro, manual focus, display, and a customized shortcut. The mode dial on top of the camera includes settings for many typical situations such as portrait, landscape, sports, nighttime, and panoramic. There is also an AUTO[MATIC] mode. But if all your shots remain in this setting, you might as well use a P+S model.

The key benefit of the many buttons and dials on the S3 is quick access to a wide variety of useful features without taking your eye off the subject. The FUNC[TION] button can present a tremendous amount of pertinent information while the focused image is visible. Everything from remaining number of pictures and image quality to white balance and ISO feedback neatly border the subject. The DISP[LAY] button activates grids and histogram, switches between LCD and viewfinder, or reduces the amount of on-screen information. Either screen is equally informative and useful for making adjustments. The MENU button differs in that it brings up infrequently used options that temporarily replace the focused subject.

Elaborating a bit further on the impressive display of the CANON S3, it does a good job of simulating selected options. Punch up greens, blues, reds, all colors, neutralize, lighten or darken skin tones, photograph b+w or sepia and see the results before snapping the picture. It is possible to obtain untainted color even with mixed indoor lighting. In addition to AWB (automatic white balance) there are seven other settings accessed from the FUNC[TION] button. The last is custom metering. Just point at a white object in the room and press the SET button. No more green or orange casts on indoor photos!

Another common lighting problem occurs when a subject stands in front of a bright background or if frontal light from the sun washes out the highlights on faces. After a quick tap of the FUNC[TION] button, the first option in the upper left corner is exposure compensation. Use the omni selector left arrow to darken the foreground or right arrow to lighten it. If indoors or a relatively short distance away, you might also enable the flash. (For those with traditional photography background, there are also options for aperture priority or shutter speed priority on the mode dial.)

Despite efforts to write a short review, there is still much more to talk about. Image stabilization (IS) and the 12X optical zoom are significant features that work well together. In fact, now I understand why smaller digital cameras without IS typically only include 3 or 4x. The slightest hand movement is greatly exaggerated at high magnification. IS compensates for this movement. The S3 provides four options for IS: 1) continuous (constantly stabilizes preview which uses more power); 2) shoot only (stabilizes image when shutter button is pressed); 3) panning (stabilizes vertical movement only for tracking horizontally moving cars, race horses, bikers or runners); 4) off (stabilization is not necessary for tripod).

The 12X optical zoom can optionally be supplemented by 4X digital, making it possible to achieve as much as 48X zoom. A ring around the shutter button rotates clockwise to enlarge and vise versa. This brings up a slider in the viewfinder. If digital is activated, the white slider goes to a point and stops at 12X. Press it again and the slider is appended with blue as the digital zoom is progressively applied. I uploaded a picture of a bird in a a 16 foot palm tree with 21x zoom.

Panorama assist is yet another outstanding feature. As each photo is clicked, a portion slides over in preview, making it easier to align the next. Software is included to stitch the pieces together or you can use Photoshop's Photomerge under the Automate menu.

Image bracketing is also nice for difficult-focus situations; with one press of the button, three slightly different focuses are shot within a couple of seconds - a light, medium, and dark. This is not to be confused with continuous shooting (sometimes called burst mode), which shoots multiple images with consistent exposure as long as the button shutter button is pressed. This is extremely useful when photographing groups of people since it is often difficult to get everyone's eyes open and smiling at the same time. It is also great for photographing small animals with rapid movements like birds.


WHAT'S NOT TO LIKE?

There are a few annoyances that could be solved by spending more. After all, Cannon makes cameras from under $200 to several thousand. Despite big features, the S3 is, relatively speaking, on the low end of the scale. So any apparent design omissions must be kept in context.

LENSE CAP FIT: The most minor annoyance is the loosely fitted lens cap that frequently disconnects. Make certain the lanyard string is attached to the neck strap so it won't be lost. The obvious concern is smudging or scratching of the lens. While carrying, frequently check to make certain is on.

ACCESSORIES: Canon cut accessories to the bear minumum. There is no case (strap is included), no power cord, no lens hood, and only Alkaline batteries. Purchasing all the necessary options can break your budget by $150-$250 USD. Fortunatelly, some items are common enough that you may not need to purchase everything. I already had a couple of 256MB SD cards for my prior camera. You'll need to factor in the cost of a fast charger with four 2500+ mHa AA batteries (currently around $35). There is also a need for a high-capacity SD card. The included 16MB card will only store four of the highest quality images. About 90 stills can fit on a 256MB card at the highest quality setting. If you require more images per session or will be recording movies, consider a high-speed 4GB card (currently around $100). The S3 is optimized for high-speed cards.

LCD BRIGHTNESS: More of an annoyance is the limited pivoting 2" LCD screen brightness. Take comfort in the fact that some expensive DSLR cameras have only a viewfinder. Fortunately, when the LCD is not visible, the viewfinder on the S3 can be used. The diopter adjustment is handy since I may be wearing single-vision prescription shades, trifocals, or no glasses at all. The two independent brightness settings for LCD or viewfinder are a noble consideration. The LCD just doesn't get bright enough. In time, it is easy to get used to the viewfinder.

IMAGE FORMATS: A camera with so many features naturally appeals to the prosumer not ready to make the leap to a full-fledged DSLR. Though this would result in better high-ISO nighttime shots and better daylight images, the cost with multiple lenses could easy triple the price of the S3 and you'll lose some consumer-oriented features. Nevertheless, a non-compressed image mode would be useful - especially with the availability of high-speed 4GB SD cards.

Test shots of straight-up blue sky in large "fine" and "super fine" modes both exhibited pixelization when examining up close. In fact, super fine is slightly more pixelated in large areas of SOLID (perhaps due to sharpening?). This may be considered simulated film grain. There is more color averaging with fine mode producing a smaller, visually smoother images. The "large" image setting is 6 megapixels so the anomalies I reference when zooming in 400 percent in Photoshop are not visible on typical prints. When the composition includes many different color changes and fine DETAIL (landscapes, architecture), the super fine mode is much better. Otherwise the detail becomes muddy.

I developed a Photoshop action called Smooth Pixels. Though not always necessary, it provides moderate smoothing on 6MP images to reduce pixelization in large areas of flat color. It can also be used to minimize artifacts occurring as a result of saving a JPEG image with too much compression. If you have Photoshop experience these settings may be familiar to you. Opacities can be increased as much to as much as 60% with minimal loss of detail. (A screenshot of the Action palette has been uploaded.)

1 Make snapshot
2 Duplicate current layer
3 Smart Blur (Radius: 1, Threshold: 12, Quality: High, Mode: Normal)
4 Set current layer (Opacity: 40%)
5 Duplicate Background
6 Gaussian Blur (Radius: 0.5 Pixels)
7 Set current layer (Opacity: 40%)
8 Flatten image

RAW, LZW TIFF (compression usually requiring a PostScript level 3 printer for decompression) or standard TIFF options would be appreciated by those concerned about consistent pixels within continuous color with no artifacts surrounding high contrast colors. It should be noted that each time a JPEG is opened and saved (even with no edits) in an image editor application, there is slight degradation of image quality. This does not occur with TIFF or RAW.

WIDESCREEN LIMITATION: I was fooled by the boast of widescreen pictures. This applies only to STILLS. The WS stills are about 25 percent smaller than the maximum 6MP images. The viewfinder adds black bands to help frame WS pictures. Don't expect a low-cost HD WS movie function from the S3.

FLASH OPTIONS: The manual pop-up flash could be a bane or boone. It is reasonably strong and there is a three-option dedicated button to 1) always enable the flash, 2) automatically flash only when required, or 3) disable flash. If you forget to lift the flash, automatic doesn't lift it for you. Conversely, lifting the flash when the user option is set to never flash results in no extra lighting. One could look at this as a benefit since less flashing preserves the batteries. It would make more sense to me for the flash to pop-up if needed in automatic mode. Get used to the icon in the viewfinder that indicates the status of the flash (which is grayed when the flash is not up).

The S3 has also been criticized because it does not have a hot-shoe connection for a replacement flash. (A handheld flash farther away from the lens is the true solution to red eye.) Canon's less than optimal answer is to provide an optional slave flash that can be used as a supplemental bounce flash positioned closer to the subject or mounted onto the camera using a bracket that connects to the tripod thread. (I have a much less expensive non-digital Canon T-50 SLR with multiple lenses with a hot shoe so adding one to the S3 is possible.)

TRIPOD THREAD: A plastic tripod thread is never appreciated. Be careful not to damage the threads or consider using a tripod quick-shoe attachment.

ABERRATION: Though improvements are being made, digital cameras (particularly less expensive ones) suffer from aberration, sometimes called purple fringing, surrounding high-contrast areas where a pixels along edges are discolored. The S3 is not exempt - more notably a few pixels of red (NW) and green (SE) misregistration. This is most apparent on photos with very light objects next to color away from the center of focus - particularly on overcast days when the sky is white instead of blue. A 6MP image is scaled down so much for standard prints that the aberration is not usually noticeable. For large prints this may require additional image editing.

UPGRADE FROM S2: Owners of the Canon S2 will not find the S3 a significant upgrade. This camera appears to build on prior success with a few additional features to keep it competitive with other brands. In doing so, Canon has left room for even more improvements in an S4. Differences between the S2 and S3 are summed up below.

* New sensor (6MP versus 5MP)
* Higher maximum sensitivity (ISO 800)
* Bigger LCD screen (2.0-inch versus 1.8-inch)
* New Sports mode
* Record live Histogram
* Widescreen shooting mode (stills)
* Fractionally larger and heavier
* Dark gunmetal (gray) as opposed to silver body

The difference between 5MP and 6MP is not perceived in standard size prints (both have far more megapixels than necessary). The extra pixels in the 6MP are useful for retaining more detail when cropping small areas of a photo with image editor software. High ISO (400+) is used for dark scenes when no tripod is available. ISO 800 is largely symbolic in the S3 since results are too noisy (aberrated pixels) to be useful. The 2-inch screen has the same amount of pixels as the 1.8 but it's scaled up a bit. The histogram is an animated graphic that indicates whether the framed subject is under- or over-exposed; this should also be apparent in the viewfinder preview image. Of course widescreen images can be cropped in post-production if it's only an occasional desire.


CONCLUSIONS
It will take some time to become familar with all the CANON S3 features. If results are too noisy or blurry, it is likely because the correct setting was forgotten. The CANON S3 is not perfect but, in its price range, includes a very good combination of available technologies with slight image quality sacrifices. Professional photographers may be inclined toward an entry level DSLR (perhaps CANON DIGITAL REBEL XT, CANON EOS 30D, or SONY ALPHA). The S3 is a nice alternative to a dedicated digital camcorder; it can even zoom and shoot high-resolution stills without exiting movie mode. For the best quality stills, movie recording is sacrificed in higher-end cameras.

If this review seems like too much to read then the S3 is not for you. There is much more to read -- beginning and advanced manuals for the camera itself in addition to manuals for the software. Prosumers that invest time reading can be rewarded with greatly improved image quality from the S3. Of, course composition is still up to the photographer. (www.photoinf.com) The prior S2 model may be a better bargain for the cost conscious unless some of the new S3 features listed above are absolutely essential. The typical no-frills consumer might be put off by the plethora of options and prefer a compact P+S with less buttons (CANON POWERSHOT S80, SD500, A540, or A520).

(See uploaded pictures of bird in palm tree and building exhibiting aberration. Because the Amazon image processor scales down images as much as possible, there are more image artifacts on samples than on original photos.)

Great little do-it-all camera
I just upgraded my digital camera from an older Canon Powershot G2 to this new S3. I recently attended a reception and all I can say is Wow! I loved my older camera but dark scenes posed a particulary nasty problem. With this camera I was able to capture people across the room with only the flash on the camera. So far, this camera rocks. I'll be taking it on a long trip in August to test out all the options. Only thing I miss is the remote control.
A nice thing about the camera is the viewfinder. It fits very comfortably on the eye and I'll never take a lens cap picture again, since like the digital slrs, what you see in the viewfinder is what the ccd actually sees.

Good camera, significant limitations, next likely significantly better
This is a rewrite of a previous review, hoping to be more concise.

Pros:

- Feels good, looks good, great ergonomics. Usually I de-emphasize this, but this is an exception.

- The pictures turn out great.

- The movie mode is awesome, good stereo sound (but see below under cons)

- It is quick and responsive, for zoom and focus.

- The rotating display is nice not only to take pictures of myself, but also to take closer pictures of other people in a candid way -- i.e. you won't be in their face with the camera obviously pointed towards the person.

- Some scene modes on the selector dial which is convenient.

- Flash doesn't automatically pop up. Most people see this as a disadvantage. I see it as a great advantage. If I don't want flash, I leave it down. It suggests using flash on the LCD. If I want to use the flash, I then flip it up.

Cons:

- Small 2" LCD, plus inferior viewfinder. This is almost a show-stopper for me. This camera is basically an upgrade to the S2. Due to competition, the next version of this camera is likely to have a larger LCD. It depends on whether you need an ultra zoom camera now, vs. waiting for next spring.

- There is no date stamp on the photos. This can be added using Canon's software according to their technical support.

- Plastic camera tripod mount.

- The movie mode produces really high quality videos. The problem is that they aren't compressed, or as compressed as other cameras. A movie can be only 1G, and only 8 minutes of video can fit on a 1G SD card.

- Lack of scene modes.

A comparison with the new Kodak p712.

The new Kodak, also an upgrade (of the 850) now focused quickly and has best in class low shutter lag. I had the 850 and have the 712, and there is a big difference.

The Kodak has better image stabilization.

The Kodak has *many* scene modes. This helps the non-professional get the settings right.

The quality of the images is about equal (other than the canon not being as good with image stabilization at maximum zoom).

There are more options for flash types

There are more buttons on the camera for faster settings.

The LCD and quality viewfinder make the Kodak a more fun camera.

The disadvantages of the Kodak over the S3, is that the Kodak doesn't have a rotating display, so photos of people could be more intrusive. The Kodak doesn't have the great feel or looks of the S3.

I think that I will be rewarded if I wait for the next iteration of Canon's ultra zoom. With Kodak's larger display, Sony's 3" display, Canon will have to make theirs bigger. A Canon with a larger display plus other improvements they may add would be my dream camera.

I am not going to keep the Kodak p712 either. I love that camera, but I want a rotating display. Having tried the rotating display, I am hooked on it.

No Real Difference Between The S2 and S3!! Except The Impact On Your Wallet!!
In all honesty I think there is really NO difference in picture quality between this one and the S2. I returned mines back to Circuit City and ate the damn 15% restocking fee. If you're really interested in this camera, then save your money and get the S2 because you really will not see much difference except the impact on your wallet. I am assuming allot of these glorious reviews are from folks who never owned the S2 to see and compare for them selves. I am not saying that the S3 is a bad camera; I am just saying that for the money difference, the image quality is tooooo damn similar. For this kind of money I highly recommend going with something like the Sony H5. You get more mega pixels, bigger screen, and awesome results. If you don't want to take it from me just visit dpreview.com a highly respected website when it comes to camera reviews. Anyway I sincerely hope this review helps some people before making the same mistake I did.

Excelente
Muy buena resoluciòn, las pilas hace la camara un poco pesada pero la recompensa con una larga duraciòn de baterìa, solo recomiendo mejorar la pantalla lcd que es de baja calidad

Outstanding value
I write martial arts books, most of which require numerous illustrations and photographs to help readers understand and perform the various techniques. After years of spending thousands of dollars per book with professional photographers, I finally decided to purchase a high-end camera so that I could do the shots myself. I needed something simple enough that I could hand it over to an assistant who would take the pictures, yet good enough to produce professional quality results. Ease of use, powerful optical zoom, and superior picture quality were my main requirements.

After weighing the options I decided to go with this model. For about what I would have spent on a mid-range digital SLR by itself I was able to invest in not only this camera, but also two 1 GB memory cards, a dozen rechargeable batteries, a padded hard case, a tripod, a complete lighting package, and a backdrop with stand. The whole set-up ran roughly $1,600. Since the highest resolution photos use up about 3.5 MB apiece, it is good to invest in a couple of large capacity, high speed memory cards. The batteries last for several hundred shots if you use the viewfinder so a couple of sets with a high-speed recharger ought to do for most applications. The cannon soft case isn't all that great so I decided to spend a few bucks more on a good hard case to protect the camera and accessories.

I am very happy with this investment. The camera performs admirably. Indoor pictures are clean and clear, even without the fancy lighting. I took a few test shots using the built-in "indoor" setting which compensates for fluorescent lights. They turned out remarkably well. With the extra lighting the indoor photos go from remarkably good to absolutely great. Outdoor shots on "auto" and "sports" modes work very well too, with or without a tripod stand. It's not quite as fast as an SLR, of course, but takes multiple shots with adequate timing for my needs. The manual adjustments work well if you're well versed in photography and know what you're doing. I've found that the pre-set modes meet such a wide variety of applications that I don't need to tweak things manually all that often. The only major feature that I have not tried yet is the movie mode. Since I have a good digital camcorder too, however, I'll probably never need it.

The only serious drawback I have found so far is the viewfinder, which is a bit hard to see through in direct sunlight. Worse yet, the flip screen is nearly impossible to read in bright light too, even with the contrast turned-up. Similarly in very dark settings it's quite challenging to aim properly. The photos turn out quite well but I have found that I have to take several shots to frame things properly. Not a huge deal for what I'm doing since I bought all the fancy lighting, but something to consider if you plan to take a lot of shots in bright sunlight or darkness. As others have pointed out, there are no filters available for this model though there is an adaptor to add other lenses which could be filtered.

I purchased the 3.2MP S1 IS years ago so adjusting to this new model's features was a breeze. They are not identical, of course, but the layout is quite similar. It's fairly intuitively obvious too. I have actually read the manual and have concluded that this camera has way more functionality than I could ever imagine needing. It's nice to know that it should last for years to come without need for another upgrade though. It is so simple to use that just about anyone can take good pictures using the built-in settings straight away. It is also very easy and quick to download files to the PC for storage or further processing. If you've got Windows XP it's truly plug and play (no praying or special software necessary).

All in all, this camera is exactly what I needed. Great quality, reliable pictures at a reasonable price. Highly recommended!

Great Camera
Received the camera very quickly and very pleased with how it operates. Still learning about all the camera functions. Love it and still learning.

Better Choices Are Now Available
Since no camera is perfect for everyone, I truly hesitated (for over a month) to write this review. But, since I wrote a glowing review of another Canon camera model (the A620), fairness almost demanded a less positive review where equally warranted.

Like a previous reviewer, I also returned the Canon S3 IS recently purchased. And, just like that other reviewer, a significant reason was the small LCD display. I found it nearly impossible to use without reading glasses - not an obvious issue until actually using it in the "real world." Of course, the Canon A620 has the same small display, but one is more willing to overlook an annoyance such as this in a product costing considerably less. But, with a camera costing as much as the Canon S3 IS, there is little excuse today for such a small display (indeed, several other cameras in this price range offer a larger display).

Regardless, if this were the only issue with the Canon S3 IS, it might have been possible to live with this annoyance as well. But, added to that, the overall quality of this camera bothered me. Some aspects of the camera, such as the plastic tripod mount, suggests cheap construction. I seriously doubt a plastic mount can survive the repeated punishment of the often sharp metal screws found on the typical camera tripod. Plastic into plastic, perhaps. Metal into metal, of course. But not metal into plastic. Canon should know this, but went ahead with the plastic anyway. Since I use a tripod often (anyone seeking good images should), this annoyance was a little more difficult to ignore. But, moreover, this got me thinking about the rest of the camera. If Canon was so willing to cut corners with a plastic tripod mount, one has to wonder how far they went to cut corners in places consumers cannot easily see - the electronics and mechanics inside the camera.

There were other minor disappointments (weak flash, noisy EVF, and so on), but I could reasonably live with those. None, including the above, were enough to cause me to utterly rule out the Canon S3 IS. The early reviews of the newer Sony DSC-H5 were the final straw. A look at the features, and a trip to the store to actually handle the camera, was enough to finally cause me to switch.

The Sony offers an additional 1.2 million pixels of image resolution (even if one doesn't make larger prints, the extra resolution gives more room for cropping images), a larger LCD display, a better EVF, a metal tripod mount, a stronger flash, and more. It also performs better at ISO-400, offering another full stop of usable exposure over the Canon S3 IS (important to me during the long dark winters of northern Europe, but a benefit to anyone shooting in low-light conditions). The Sony doesn't perform exceptionally well at the larger ISO settings (ISO-800 and 1000), but neither does the Canon (no ISO-1000 setting, but similar performance at ISO-800). Otherwise, both the Sony and Canon are pretty evenly matched - little else gained or lost by chosing one over the other. I did lose the articulating display offered on the Canon S3 IS, but, more importantly, gained significantly in the other areas mentioned in this paragraph.

Like the other reviewer, perhaps a future Canon S(?) IS camera addressing these issues might tempt me to return to the Canon fold. But, in the meantime, Canon has lost this customer to Sony.

Lacking
This camera lacks....

..Time/Date Stamp
..Must raise flash to use
..Has image stabilizer but alot of my pics still blur

What's with all the glowing reviews?
I started to wonder this afternoon how many of the reviewers for this camera are on somebody's payroll....
I ordered it based on the reviews here as well as the review on stevesdigicam.com and received it the other day. Fully confident it would be a great camera after all the mostly glowing reviews I also ordered the lens shade, rechargable batteries, memory card etc etc.
Well I was pretty disappointed by it.
I bought it to replace my aging Sony F707, although afterwards I started to wonder exactly why I was replacing it in the first place... The photos I took with the S3 were lacking in comparison. Not only that, but I kept getting the "camera shake" icon in soft early morning light and the photos were actaully out of focus. I took the same shots with my Sony and it gave me fine results. And the S3 has Image Stabilization?
If that weren't all, a big reason I actually ended up getting this camera was for its video capabilities. However I ordered it before Kevin Fosler updated his review. I had no idea I could only shoot 8 minutes of high-quality video. Even with larger memory cards it would make no sense.
On the positive side, the camera is well laid out and I like the menu functions. It looks pretty nice too. So 1 star for those thing.
Well, the search begins again. The lesson I learned: next time I'm not just going to read reviews, I'm going to find a place where I can actually try out the camera I'm serious about buying. And I guess if I can't find one I'll just have to take my chances and at least I can send it back to Amazon.

Superior all-in-one choice!
The Powershot S3 is a good choice for those needing an extended zoom range, but wishes to avoid the cost and bulk of Digital SLR designs.

The S3 has a very fine, 12x optical zoom, that is quiet, smooth and quick. The stabalizer comes in very handy for still shots, and is a must for video.

The 6 megapixel images are clean and above average. Try to avoid higher ISOs on any of the compact cameras, but if you must, Canon's new 6MP sensor/processor combination is good.

Camera operation works well in the various automatic modes, and is also easy to control manually (except for manual focus). The eyelevel LCD is good, but everyone seems to have a different opinion on what looks good here. The rotating back LCD makes easy work of high level, low level or table-top copy work.

Video is unsurpassed in this type of camera. Stereo sound really gives this one a dimension that others lack. You can also easily switch on the fly. In the still modes, you can just push the button on the back to instantly start a video. During this video, you can instantly override the video, and take a still, then is picks back up on the video (it does, however, interrupt the video).

I won't revisit all the advantages of SLRs here. Although a good camera, this doesn't replace the speed of autofocus, continual shooting and quality of those cameras.

There's really not a lot of cameras in this category, but there are some definate winners, and the Powershot S3 adds to that list!

Versatile, superb camera
I bought this camera right before a trip to Paris and Burgundy. Normally, I'd take my 5D DSLR, but a hand injury dictated a much lighter camera. When I bought it, I thought I'd really compromised on image quality.

Having looked over the 300 shots worth keeping from the 900 I took, I have to say that the compromise in quality was very small indeed. I took a large number of low light shots on manual setting in the glorious Saint-Chapelle. Virtually every one came out a winner. I got the best shot I have ever taken of the circular stained glass on the west side of Notre-Dame. I got great causal shots of families relaxing in the Place de Vosges. And the IS on full telephoto shots in Puligny-Montrachet showed no shake at all.

I do wish that the camera supported RAW. And manual seems to take the resolution down by one notch, although I am still researching the user guide.

That said, for $500 you get almost DSLR camera quality which is easy to carry, easy to hold, and a joy to take shots with. This is a perfect starter camera for any one, and a great backup for DSLR users who can't carry a lot of kit.

Bravo, Canon!

my review
I like the S3. I am still learning to use the camera. I do agree with others that it is challenging jumping through the manuals. It would have been helpful to me for there to be a complete manual that gives all the details in how to use the camera in a logical sequence. And a quick start pamphlet just to get you going. I had to jump back and forth between the two manuals and that made it difficult for me to learn how to use this camera as I am new to the digital camera with so many features.

The view finder can be improved. I have difficulty seeing the messages/symbols. Also, I had to kind of guess that I was right on target for my shots.

The photos I have taken came out perfect despite me not being able to know exactly what I was looking at. The batteries have a nice long life for what I am doing.

I haven't tried the video yet.

I do like the camera. It works fine for what I am using it for.

Canon PowerShot S3 IS
Great camera . . . I took many long distant (12X zoom) pics of my daughter during her graduation and they all came out great. I highly recommend this camera.

WOW...............
I just recieved this camera, and I am in love. About a year ago I bought the A95, and loved all the shooting options. But as I have gotten better(a little) at photography, I realized a supper zoom(Among other things) would be "heaven sent".
This camera has it! The zoom is great! We are not talking a telescope here, but to catch birds, far off views, etc is wonderful.
And talk about shooting options! There are more possibilities for custom colors and lighitng conditions than I ever could have dreamed of!
...ok, after gushing, here are some real pluses;

Live Histograme.
Grid for Straight Horizons.
Intensity control over the flash.
Control over when the flash fires, before OR after the shutter opens.
Ablity to skip 1, 9, 10 or 100 images at a time. OR by shooting date, OR by folder. (Helpful when you have a almost full 1,2 or 3 Gig card)
Auto Exposure Bracketing.
White Blance control.
Color choice. (Vivd, vivd red, green or blue, B&W, Sepia, Custom, Positive film, etc.)
World time set. (You're traveling, and can have time set for where you are, and where you came from.)
High Zoom.
Macro and Super Macro. (Shooting ablity from 0cm!)
Preset(Portrait, Landscape, Sport, etc.) shooting modes, up to full control shooting.
The most advanced movie mode out there at the moment.
At about 6.0 mega pixles, there is enough info to print a 11 by 16 print!
...and in defense for a previous review;
Date stamp. (You have to set the option on the menu, then when printing, the date will be added.)
Hand pop up flash.(So no more accidental flash during a concert, or ruining a close up with a forgotten setting!)

And finely;
I never use the view finder, it is not optical, so you see the same thing on the much bigger flip screen. And it has seemed plenty bright. A step up over the A95.
The menu is almost the same as the A95 has, just with more options.

All in all this is an amazing tool, especially for those of us who are hesitant about investing in a DSLR or an SLR. I'm still learning where the "sweet spot", for shooting with this camera is, but I know it is a "sweet time" learning where it is : )

Canon PS Pro S3 IS 6MP Digital Camera
Excellent Camera. Easy to use for basic photos and capable of great shots under difficult conditions.

So far so good!!
I have had the S3 for about a month ...and so far so good. It took some time to understand all the icons and different settings (still learning - but thats half the fun). I have been doing some experimenting with the many options on the camera to see what it can do. For those who are looking for a camera with growth potential....this is for you. It can take point & shoot shots on auto mode, or you can explore further with p mode, tv mode, and others that offer more custom settings.

I ordered and received an adapter and some filters from another site and I am looking forward to using them. A uv filter will also help protect the glass lense on the camera.

So far the S3 seems to have a large amount of creative options that I am looking forward to exploring more....all in a neat little camera.

Excellent Camera... and sound recorder!
I purchased this camera to use during our choir's tour through Austria and the Czech Republic. The pictures came out great; the image stabilization was very handy in many cases. One pleasant surprise; I used the sound recording capability extensively throughout our tour; I recorded all the choir performances using the camera, and the sound quality was quite acceptable.

Canon S3 IS
This is my first serious camera sonce buying an old DImage from KM years ago.

Forst of all, it takes great quality photos once you learn how to play in manual and creative modes.

It dosent offer the latest in specs, but Canon has done a good job at making the camera friendly to use that is makes getting to its limits that much easier.

The only downside is the somewhat rickety body that makes it feel more fragile than other cheaper P&S units. The handgrip flexes and the memory card door dosent exactly fit flush.

Its also a little more expensive since you have to spring for a charger and a lens hood. (Sony includes both in their H5.)

Hopefully Canon can include a bigger LCD and a more solid body in the S4.

I'd recommend buying a cheap memory card reader so that you wont have to connect the camera via USB port and save that USB door from use.

amazing performance for its price!
I selected this camera for its 12x optical lens and its professional stabilizer, and I'm not disappointed... Also very convenient to manipulate.

Didn't quite make it
For many people the Canon S3 is the camera they really wanted. The majority of the owners' reports here are testimony to that.

For the rest of us the Canon S3 came tantalizingly close to being that ideal camera, but fell short for various reasons. We had hoped for more, not so much in features and options, but mainly in the quality of what was offered. I found that it missed out in four principal areas:

1. its LCD screen is small and its resolution poor. The same is true of its EVF (viewfinder.) The LCD solarizes in bright sunlight making it impossible to use and is not bright enough to use in very sunny conditions.
2. it has chromatic aberration (purple/green fringing) especially at the telephoto end of the lens
3. it has no RAW mode
4. it's overpriced.

If the LCD & EVF had had decent size and resolution I probably could have lived with the other three. Almost every review mentioned this shortcoming. I liked the articulated screen - a must for me. But so small and so lo-res just didn't cut it for me. One user told me the EVF image was so pixilated in bright conditions he couldn't really tell what he had until he saw it on the computer.

I had hoped to do some semi-pro work with this camera. Doing it with this LCD would be difficult and difficult I don't like. And that missing RAW mode, lamented by many reviewers and offered by other cameras in this class, confirmed that it was -almost - a photographer's camera, as distinct from a point-&-shoot, that didn't quite make it. And that disappoints me.

I saw a lot of tele shots with purple fringing especially at the extreme end of the lens. Most of that could be eliminated with Photoshop work or by using a shorter focal length. But if you can't use the full length of your lens or you have to fix the image later, those are major shortcomings I don't want. An aprochromatic lens system, admittedly more expensive, would eliminate this problem.

I think the price factor worth consideration. The current best price here on the West Coast of Canada was $C580. But you need to buy a charger and batteries $39, plus a memory card since the ludicrously small one supplied could take only four hi-res pix, another $39. And a bag, say $20. And of course sales taxes. And you've got a camera costing around $800. And if you wanted a lens hood and supplementary lenses you're getting close to $C1,000. So it's not really a $500-and-change camera: in this price range it's competing with SLRs and other high end cameras.

For me, with the limitations I have described, that's just too much. For my eight or nine big ones I want top of the line quality. I hope that Canon hears the laments from many other reviewers and myself and rectifies them in the S4. They came so close this time but just missed the ring for so many serious photographers. I'm hoping the S4 will be THE one and not, like the S3, the one that might have been. And if not Canon then perhaps some other manufacturer will seize the opportunity. I'm waiting.

Great camera for this price range
I've probably researched to death digital cameras and finally settled on this one. Is it the best? Depends on what you are looking for. Then again I didn't want to spend thousands of dollars for a digital slr camera and a separate digital movie camera. I wanted a digital camera with a very good zoom lens, movie capabilities, and image stabilization and wouldn't be too bulky for taking on vacations. This one in my opinion fitted the bill. I probably really wanted the Panasonic FZ30 which is now going to be the FZ50 but noise and other issues kept leading me back to the Canon S3 IS. If the need ever arises to take high quality photos I can always dig out my old film 35mm SLR.

Good camera... IF you don't wear glasses!
I've taken a couple of thousand pictures with this camera and the results are generally very good. One serious flaw, however, is its electronic viewfinder. I wear glasses and the viewfinder is difficult (sometimes VERY difficult) to see in many outdoor lighting situations. (Of course the LCD screen is equally useless in bright light). If I take off my glasses so my eye can fit snuggly against the viewfinder, the view is fine. But if you wear glasses for distance, you know that taking your glasses off each time you want to shoot is not a reasonable option. Of course, this is a problem with optical viewfinders, too, but the problem is not nearly as severe. So, I would strongly advise those who wear glasses to test the camera thoroughly in a variety of lighting conditions before buying.

I will get to the good points in a moment, but another annoying, though not so serious, flaw is the setup for using shutter speed (and aperture) priority. The shutter speed is set using the four-way controller, located in the top right corner on the camera back. The problem here is that there is no way to select a shutter speed and lock it. Because of the position of the four-way controller, it is very easy to push it accidentally, while simply holding the camera between shots, which changes the shutter speed. This means being very careful how you hold the camera and checking the shutter speed before each shot to be sure it has not been changed. The shutter speed is displayed in the viewfinder, but the aforementioned problem with the viewfinder makes this problem doubly irritating for us glasses wearers.

Having said all that, I still like this camera. It has great flexibility, and operations are fast, smooth and quiet. The pictures are excellent. The rotating LCD is very useful, allowing the camera to be placed in positions where using the viewfinder is impossible. The IS is helpful, though some physical stability (tripod, tree, post ..) is still needed at the longer end of the telephoto range. The flash is OK, though red eye is definitely a problem. I've experimented with a few of the special modes and some worked well, while others did not. Selecting setting manually is often better.

There's a sizable learning curve with this camera, because of the numerous buttons, the many special shooting modes, and various options available. I still have much to understand, but the more I learn the more I like the camera, in spite of the problems discussed above.

Excellent camera, many useful functions and easy to operate
Excellent camera, many useful functions and easy to operate

A great camera for the money
I am most happy with the Cannon PowerShot Series S3. It will do everything I need to do.I have gotten some great shots.

Makes me feel like a pro without the SLR hassles, and great Canon details
As an editor and designer (but not a professional photographer), I wanted a camera that wouldn't look ridiculous on a shoot, wouldn't require me to fiddle around too much with nuanced settings, and wouldn't require me to invest too much in lenses to coax some good shots out of it. I also had gotten used to some conveniences from point-and-shoot digital cameras that I thought I'd lose out on by going SLR.

There were other cameras I had considered, especially from my old favorite brands, Olympus and Fuji. But the closest contenders were the S3's predecessor, the S2, and the Panasonic Lumix FZ7.

The Panasonic was making a hard sell: same optical zoom, similar if not better performance in speed tests, similar reviews regarding color and overall quality of their photos. And, really, the Panasonic was tremendously less expensive and featured a Leica lens, which made the brand-whore in me a little excited. But the final blow: The Panasonic seemed to have a goofy rechargable battery system, which is great if you have replacement batteries of the same type, but not so great if you're travelling. The S3, on the other hand, uses regular AAs. That meands I can use rechargeables as I like, or get some Duracells. On the road, that's important: I can't worry about whether I packed a charger, an extra battery or if the voltage is going to be alright in the country I'm in. The other big factor, the trademark Canon swivel-mount LCD display, was critical to my decision. I love having one on my Canon DV camcorder, especially when I'm taking overhead action in a crowd (or just trying to get a better view of the stage at a show!). And it beats the heck out of trying the classic hey-let's-point-the-camera-at-ourselves-and hope-it-works-self-portraiture technique. Just turn the LCD around toward the lens and, as long as you avoid looking to the side at yourself while taking the actual photo, it works like a charm. And just as your lens should have a cap, the LCD screen tucks away to protect it from fingerprints and grit that can mar it just as easily as the lens.

So, moving away from the Panasonic, I had seriously looked at an S2, since most reviews had talked about the S3 not being much of an upgrade from that model. After some consideration, I decided that the LCD of the S2 was a little too small (though the S3, with a slightly larger screen, is no prize-winner in that arena either) and the additional resolution of the S3 would help with zooming and cropping on otherwise too-wide shots. But the real reason I chose the S3 is much more shallow: the black S3 passes off much more like a professional camera than the silver-toned S2, which screams pocket camera. I really think that makes a difference at an event-- you'll get more cooperation from folks if you look a bit more on-the-job, than just a groupie taking snapshots.

So far, I have not been disappointed. The thing that makes me most happy about my decision, especially in the way of not having gone the SLR-route, is that going fully-automatic with the camera doesn't fail to come out with great images. I'm no pro, but I've got some sense of what I'm doing photographically. I've played with a lot of the settings and going manual when I have had the chance, but at least 80% of the time, letting the camera's auto mode do the work comes up with the best shots. And when I'm taking quick shots at a crowded event with no chance to mess with settings, that always makes me happy. And I've only replaced the batteries once, and the second set is still going strong after a few weeks--I suspect the batteries in the box didn't have much to them.

My only two real complaints at the moment: the small, but awkward dimensions and the color compared to my old pocket camera. The size of the camera is actually a plus; it's smaller than an SLR--with or without the lens attached--and can easily be "palmed" with one hand without feeling like it's going to slip. On the other hand, I've never had a harder time trying to find a nice camera bag that wasn't too snug (the lens barrel with cap can make most "digital camera cases" fit much too tightly to be of any convenience or protection) or too roomy (even the smallest SLR bags are too big and DV camera bags a little too compartmentalized or too "secure" with multiple zippers and flaps). Because of that, I just place it in my satchel with the rest of my stuff and hope for the best.

As for the color: I feel like everything I've shot so far has been okay, but comparing the color produced by the S3 versus my old cheap Fujis (the last being an A303 or my brother's current F470) reveals a big gap. Under good, naturally-lit conditions, the colors from the Fuji cameras always come out bright and deliciously saturated. The Canon's seem true enough, but muted and almost dull relative to my old photos. It's nothing that makes me disappointed, and perhaps I can play a little more with what I'm doing in sunlight, but I would love it if I could get flowers to look as beautiful or kids at play look as full of life without even trying.

All in all, it's everything I wanted it to be in a semi-pro camera, and the LCD and battery features have already shown their worth. Until I make the plunge into a nice digital SLR, I'm really glad that I made this my latest camera.

Don't buy this camera if you want macro
In all fairness to Amazon, I need to write this review. I just returned my Powershot S3 IS because it did not do what I needed it to do. The ability to take macro photos is critical to me and this camera, despite claims to the contrary, does not have any real macro capability. The reviews on this page did not mention the macro mode in any substantive way--and now I know why.

In macro mode, the zoom function is very limited. Only about a fifth or less of the 12X zoom can be used. After that, the camera will not focus. The field of view is about the size of a sunflower, if you are shooting flowers. I couldn't figure out how to shoot objects the size of bugs or coins without cropping. In supermacro mode, the zoom is unavailable altogether.

This may be a very fine camera for other purposes, but if you want to use the macro mode, don't buy it.

Wonderful camera!
All I can say is about this camera is it is really great and I HIGHLY suggest this camera to anyone with an interest in good photography. The manual settings are a must for anyone into birding/botany/nature. Everything is awesome about this product, although consider buying a tripod, bag, 1GB+ SD memory card, and maybe some optics, although the optics aren't really needed to get really, really great images with this camera. If you want a video camera and a camera, consider buying this all-in-one camera/video, because the movie mode is perfect and works great for anything. I've even used it in documenting a severe storm in our area; recording hail, wind, and flood damage. Can't beat it in any area!

I love having a digital camera!
My family has loved having a digital camera so far. I love being able to just keep on clicking and then being able to deleted the ones that I do not want. Our family recently went to Disneyland for vacation and the camera was perfect. We still have a lot to learn about all the features that this camera has. It is easy to use and the pictures turn out very well when I have them printed out.

Macro works GREAT
I'm not sure what the macro problems are the poster a few reviews ago had. There might be someting wrong with that camera and I would seriously consider sending it back. One thing to remember is for VERY close photos, be sure it is in super-macro mode, not just macro mode. It will focus on dust on the lens (0 cm!) and takes stunning photos. I have quite a few extraordinary shots in super-macro and macro mode, all auto-focused. I wish we had more info on that problem, because I'd say the S3 takes better than average macro shots!

All-in-all, I'd definitely say this is about my favorite non-dSLR camera on the market.

Great camera
I was between the panasonic, sony and the nikon point and shoot zoom cameras. I bought this one from other views I read and they way it felt in my hands. I love the features on this camera like the beach and snow shooting. I'm not a major photographer, but do take loads of pics and this camera sure can dish it out. The pics are wonderful. I am so happy wiht it. I did buy a fast speed sd 2 gig card and it makes a difference. I liked it much better than the panasonic, that one felt cheap and did not have the bells and whistles. The sony was nice, but did not fit my hands and I did not like how it was laid out. THe nikon wsa nice except no view finder, just the view screen. I have had this camera for 3 weeks and love it. So far the only downer is that it has so many new things on it over my kodak camera. Its far better than the kodaks.

A Superb Semi-Pro Camera That Novices Will Love.
I researched cameras for six months before I had the money to buy. I wanted a mega zoom with a good feature set and high quality video, since I knew I couldn't also afford a video camera. It shoots such good pix in auto mode, that I find myself rarely using the other settings, at least so far. You can shoot photos while shooting video or shoot video while in still photo mode. The video is high quality, AVI at 30 frames per second, which I believe is better resolution than standard TV. You can use the 12x optical zoom while shooting video. Most digital still cameras shoot video at just one focal length. The camera has two mikes and records CD quality stereo sound when shooting video, though you can set it for lower sound and picture qualities if you like. The built-in flash does an excellent job, and with the standard setting I have yet to get red eye.

Image stabilization works very well and is essential with a 12x zoom, especially when shooting video or low light stills. Picture quality is just wonderful in both video and still picture modes. After buying the camera and a 2 gig SD card, I took a bus trip through 28 states visiting friends, shooting hundreds of photos and about 10 minutes of video. The results were great.

Photo stitching software comes with the camera and it is excellent. I had been concered about the very limited wide angle capablity, equivilent only to a 35mm lens on a 35mm camera. But by taking overlapping photos I got wonderful panoramas and group photos without the usual wide angle distortion and with more detail. While this works best with a tripod, with a little care you can shoot by hand and get excellent results.

The batteries are AA. Get a charger and NiMh rechargable batteries. The nice thing is, if your batteries die, you can get a set from the store [uses 4] in a pinch. I was able to shoot 10 minutes of video plus about 150 pix on the batteries that came with the camera. I could have done better, but I spent at least a couple of hours with the camera on, fooling with menus and settings and reviewing the photos and videos.

At best resolution and least compression, a 2Gig SD card will hold 715 photos or 15 minutes of best quality video. 4 Gig cards are available, and if you intend to shoot a lot of video, I would strongly recommend one. Also, the faster the card the better. Slow cards won't keep up with best quality video, and time between still shots will be longer. If the card doesn't advertise it's speed it isn't fast enough! Get 133x or 150x speed. This translates to 20mb or 22.5 mb per second. In theory the camera's single shot limit for video is one hour, but it's a non-issue as the 4 gig cards will only hold 30 minutes of best quality video.

Things I don't like: 8 gigs for an hour of video is way to high. MPEG2 DVD's will hold up to 4 hours in the same space. The view screen should be bigger in this class of camera. It's better than the previous model -two inch versus 1.8 inch- but it really needs to be larger...that said it's adequate for my old guy eyes, and if I had to give up the ability to adjust the screen to get a larger size I wouldn't. I would also like to set the zoom to a slower rate of zoom when shooting video. Rate of zoom is adjustable, by how far you move the lever, but the throw is too short to be precise.

Basically, if you can do without the camera fitting in your pocket you will be very hard pressed to do better than the Canon S3IS.

Great Camera
I was getting ready to buy the S2 IS 5MP when Canon came out with the S3 IS 6MP. Why have 5MP when you can have 6MP in the same camera? Takes great pictures. Zoom? Its got all the zoom you need. Soon as you start playing with all the features it gets easy. I have a Canon 4 by 6-inch printer and that makes it even more fun. Instant printed pictures. The picture quality rivals my big Canon 35mm. I also bought the Canon wide angle lens for this camera with its adapter. Wow!

Great Camara-Terrible Viewfinder
I am generally happy with this S3, but as I have gotten older, and my eyes are dimenishing, I need a quality viewfinder. This one is electronic and suffers a clarity that I do not have in my other cameras- a digital rebel and old sureshot. At times I have taken pictures not knowing its focus, only to be pleasently pleased later on. The LCD is also not as good as I would wish. I think the IS is unbelivable, and its movie capabilities are amazing for its quality. I do not want to sound negative, but this has been my experience.

A review for the point-and-shoot crowd.
I bought the S3 as a replacement for my PowerShot S10 which has served me amazingly well since I purchased it. My old S10 is only a 2.1MP (megapixel) camera but that suited me just fine, taking tens of thousands of pictures over the past six years that I owned it. My only complaint about the S10 is a common one amongst digital cameras: a crappy 2x optical zoom. The S3's 12x optical zoom was its main selling point for me, and having the PowerShot name behind it sealed the deal.

This camera does FAR more than I'll ever use so I'll instead focus (no pun intended) on the things that I particularly like about the camera, from a point-and-shoot perspective. Some of this info may be old hat to the point-and-shoot digital camera crowd, but remember that I'm coming off a six year old camera that doesn't have half as many features. :)

Although the camera is not an SLR camera, it behaves like one. There's an LCD panel on the back of the camera for lining up your shots, of course, and there's also a viewfinder. Looking through the viewfinder reveals another LCD screen that shows you what the camera's CCD is showing. In effect this gives you the benefit of an SLR camera without the extra cost. This forced me to change my shooting style; when I took close-up shots through the (straight-through) viewfinder on my S10 I had to purposefully aim the camera slightly higher in order to properly frame the shot. With the S3 I don't have this bother any more.

The screen (both the LCD screen and the one in the viewfinder) displays an astonishing amount of information, most of which I ignore. Two very helpful bits of info: There's a white rectangle in the center which defines the balance point of your shot, and more interestingly, a black grid that really helps you make sure your images are straight. (Speaking of straightness, the camera also has an automatic sensor to determine if you're taking portrait or landscape shots. When you download the pictures into your computer, they're pre-rotated correctly. Very handy. (PS: It interfaces with a standard mini USB cable, and it works flawlessly with Apple's iPhoto software.)

If you're taking a picture and you need a flash, the camera will alert you to this fact which is great. Not so great is the fact that it won't alert you until you actually go to take the picture. Considering that you need to manually raise the flash when it's needed, this has the potential for making you lose some candid shots. Tip: Keep the flash raised at all times, and set the flash for "automatic" so it fires when needed.

The image stabilization feature is downright awesome. I actually had to make a conscious effort to get the camera to take a blurry picture with stabilization enabled. One-handed overhead shots are as clear as a tripod shot.

As I said, I bought the camera for the zoom and it doesn't disappoint. The zoom ring is variable in speed (the further you move it, the faster the zoom moves). The image stabilization feature really comes into play at full zoom. I was able to take a not-blurry photo of a news helicopter hovering overhead, with the camera at full optical zoom and without a tripod.

The camera takes four AA batteries; Canon provides you with a set in the box. That will be good for about 100 shots, depending on how much you use the flash. Rechargeable batteries are a must; a decent set of rechargeables (2000mAh or greater) will give you about 500 shots. Well worth the extra money. However, I do like that it will take standard AA's in a pinch; my old S10 took a proprietary rechargeable battery and I occasionally found myself with a set of used-up rechargeables when a photo opportunity arose.

I have but two complaints about the PowerShot S3 IS. Complaint #1 is the body of the camera is constructed of plastic. My old S10 was metal bodied and survived several trips to the concrete floor with only superficial damage. I daresay a similar incident with the S3 will result in a shattered body. Complaint #2 is Canon's incredibly lame inclusion of a puny 16MB SD memory card. At full quality and full resolution, you might get 4-5 pictures onto the card before it fills up. Canon is just adding to the nation's landfills with these things. The first purchase anyone will make is a larger card (I bought two 2GB cards) and Canon's cards are more expensive (sometimes significantly more expensive) than the competition. The inclusion of a 16MB card is either a joke or an insult; at the very least Canon should have included a 128MB card.

Great Little Camera
This camera was great. Easy to use, fun to review the photos. SD cards work very well. Video is easy to turn on. Though turning it off, you tend to take your eye off the subject. But I think I can edit the video clips later to have better starts and stops. Camera is small enough to go just about anywhere. and light enough to not be a issue while walking around. Reading the manual and understanding all the features is a bit tough. but the presets work pretty good and I'm very pleased with the purchase.

An excellent camera for both amatures and pros
What an excellent camera!!!

I recently bought one and took it on a trip to Europe. We're just back and the photos are amazing.

I tried the various photographic modes and they deliver the goods.

The camera is very easy to operate, and the zoom is very very useful.

I would suggest at least 1/2Gb memory because of the size of the photos.

Is this better than the cheap Canon S2? Perhaps... let's see
I used the camera twice before it died on me. I took about 15 pictures in total. So, keep in mind that I haven't gotten much use out of it (I'm asking for a replacement, rather than money back).

The good:
1. It uses alkaline AA batteries.
2. It's light.
3. It fits my hands like a glove. On a piano, I have about a 10-12 key stretch.
4. I'm techy enough so while a bit overwhelmed with all the options, I can handle them.
5. Loading from the camera to the computer is a snap!
6. The RCA jacks are a hoot, allowing displaying pictures on a t.v. easy and fun.
7. There are various instructions booklets for them and they're separate English and Spanish - not both. One set can be discarded!
8. I got some great shots for someone who just replaced her very good Nikon SLR for her first digital camera.

The Bad:
1. I only took about 15 pictures before the camera literally just died on me; it wouldn't power on for a third time. Of course, I tried a couple of different new sets of batteries and the originals should have been fine.
2. Is it black to cover the potentially flimsy plastic body? (The S2 - that I refused to buy - had "silvery-cheap" look and feel and the S3 seems like a stones throw away.)
3. Red-eye is pretty bad due to the low flash to the body and the software that comes with the camera, while having the option to "edit it out" puts human eyes in; this looks really creepy when your main subject matters are a dog and cat.
4. It is a bit heavy; be prepared.

I've looked for a couple of years for the right camera to replace my Nikon 35mm. The digital camera needed to be:
1. Light
2. Produce good quality pictures (overall)
3. Have good reviews by users, not "editors." One never knows if a review by an editor is a paid advertisement in disguise.
4. Be easy enough for me to handle and to teach my partner, who's less of a techy to use.
5. Have image stabilization (the jury is still out on how real that is... got some fuzzies when I wasn't expecting it)
6. Have a very good optical zoom

It meets and exceeds most of those requirements. So, I'm asking for a replacement, rather than a refund. We'll see where this goes from here.

The replacement from Amazon came faster than a speeding bullet and worked at first shot (to my delight). I've used it to take pictures from the car as we passed unimportant things, just to see what it would do. At 40-45 miles an hour, it freezes signs so read them (one cannot tell they were shot while we were moving). The ISO setting is high, there's no blur. The camera is amazing and with the steady decrease in price, I highly recommend this to anyone with a glimmer of being able to adapt to lengthy and clear directions and who can handle the many features this camera has to offer.

A mini-DSLR perfect for photo enthusiasts
I have been taking film pictures with a professional Canon SLR for over a decade, and have been holding out on purchasing a DSLR until they come out with a sub-$2,000 full-frame body. A few years ago, I bought a Canon digital Elph (S330) just for some everyday digital point-n-shooting. While the Elph has served me well, I find the lack of manual settings too limited for my taste. If I were to upgrade to a DSLR, I would get either the Canon 1Ds or the 5D (both of which carry full-frame sensors, a requirement for me), but I'm just not prepared to spend $2,500 for the 5D or 3x that for the 1Ds yet.

With the recent addition of my family (a new baby), I started to look into buying a replacement for the Elph so I can take more baby photos. The film SLR takes great pictures, but traveling with 3 lbs+ of photo equipment is just not practical. I needed something compact (not necessarily pocket sized), but gives me the options to take pictures on manual settings like an SLR. I did quite a bit of research, and determined the Canon S3 IS would be the best camera for my purpose. I've used it for the past month, and it's been great! It's shaped like an SLR, only smaller. It has most, if not all, of the manual settings of a full-size DSLR, minus the interchangeable lenses and an optical viewfinder. Obviously, with an EVF camera like the S3 IS you gain live preview capability, movie mode, and the absence of sensor dust issue. The live histogram is also a huge advantage over competitor models. With a long-zoom and image stabilization, the S3 IS is priced at a fraction of a DSLR. While nobody should expect the same picture quality out of the S3 IS as a DSLR, especially at high ISO, this is truly a great camera for photo enthusiasts who are just not ready to buy a DSLR, or DSLR owners looking for a more compact digicam for traveling or everyday work.

Great!
I am very pleased with my purchase of the Canon PowerShot S3 IS. So far it has taken great pics and haven't had any problems at all. The battery life seems to be holding out very well. I ordered energizer lithium rechargables (2500 mah) and they last a long time.

The picture quality has been good, but if you want to mess around with the advanced setting it takes a little getting used to. Overall this camera has been exceptional so far and haven't had any problems.

Also if you buy this camera I would recommend getting the Canon lens adapter set and some 58mm UV filters to protect the lens.

Railfan's best friend
Just got this little jewel, a real step up from the Nikon Coolpix stuff I was used to, as well as the S2 IS which now resides with my sister. As my subjects are trains, the telephoto lens and hood work great, especially when used in combination with a UV filter and/or polarizer (depending on the situation). Despite needing four AA batteries for operation, it seems to be a real miser when it comes to sipping the juice. This dog has lots of tricks, and I've just begun to scratch the surface. I recommend the S3 IS to anyone who is unable or unwilling to dish out the $$$$ to purchase a DSLR.

Canon PowerShot Pro Series S3 IS - AMAZING!!!
We LOVE this camera! It makes a professional out of any amateur! It's VERY easy to use and is not too bulky to carry around all day. Great for wildlife and sharp details. The colours are spot-on and don't require touching up in Photoshop. Movies can be made for full screen viewing - and the image stabilizing capability has finally made the digital camera for photos and film a crisp, clear non-blurry experience. I can't recommend a camera more highly!

Great camera, brilliant bundle

I am an artist, a traditional painter, and I needed a camera to create my own images for prints and cards of my paintings. This camera is more than enough for what I need, but when it comes to detail, resolution, and color clarity, you can never really have too much.

And I am NOT a camera techy, as many of the reviewers on this camera seem to be. However, with that said, and with all of the features this camera has, the functionality of this camera became VERY intuitive after just a few hours of referencing the manual and working directly with the camera.

Another thing I want to point out is the bundle this camera is packaged with. Personally, I give Canon a great deal of credit for making this package. The 16MB SD card it comes with is NOT useless! It is perfect for grabbing the camera right out of the box and putting in the batteries (4 included!), and giving it a whirl. I know 16 MB is very little space, but slow down------it's not a "scam" to get you to buy more and more products, or to spend $600 when you thought you were only going to spend $350 on your new camera, etc. Yes, you will want a bigger card---of course you will! But this package gives you another opportunity to save more money, and to expand your options on your own personal terms. I can only imagine if the camera was bundled with a 1GB stick that people would complain about the size or quality or the rise in price, etc.
No, it doesn't come with a carrying bag either. But do you determine what golf club to buy based on wether or not it comes with a sleeve/cover?


I have the lens adapter/converter to 58mm and the lens hood as well, and I am definitely glad I purchased them all together.
NOTE-----I HIGHLY reccomend also buying a UV filter for the camera, if for no other reason than protecting the lens. You will be much more nervous and meticulous if you have to clean the camera's own lens rather than a filter.

I can't argue much about the technical specifics of cameras, etc, but the setup on this camera was a breeze. I plugged the A/V cable into my TV, and there it was----stereo sound from the movie I had just recorded, no messy setup, and immediate results. Easy! It even functioned to display the viewfinder contents on the TV itself when in camera mode, which was a nice surprise if nothing else!


For my two cents, if you are looking for better quality pictures but, like me, you are NOT a techy or a professional photographer, and your budget is NOT $9000 (there IS a guide on Amazon for a $9000 budget), I recommend this camera to you. The camera DOES look like a big, complicated mess and it can certainly be intimidating. But you probably thought the same thing when you first started to drive a car. By now, you don't have to put too much effort into driving your car, and this camera quickly became as familiar and intuitive to me as well. And the results speak for themselves----the pictures are remarkable, and every time a friend sees a movie clip I have taken with this camera they smile and laugh and often tell me how surprised they are that a camera can do all of that. I am very pleased with this camera, 5 stars in any category that is relevant to me and my needs.

Superb Image Quality..
The image quality is really good and Color Ascent feature is the best from Canon.
The only problem i see is the size. This is bulkier than the small & compact point and shoot cameras in market..

After a month .... not so good
We spent a month to find the perfect camera and we did a great job!!!!
The pictures are amazing! I love the color accent mode (it allows you to take black and white pictures leaving one chosen color) and super macro mode. The image stabilizer works pretty well ( when you don't zoom). Batteries last long. Movie mode is amazing (you can zoom during recording). Camera is a little heavy and big and the LCD is only 2 inches, if you want something smaller with a bigger LCD pick the Canon PowerShot SD700 IS. We decided to get the S3 because:

1 More optical zoom
2 Better movie mode (zoom in SD700 doesn't work and it doesn't have such nice sound )
3 LCD won't scratch (it closes)
4 Uses batteries (thanks to that we don't need to take charger to Europe)
5 The same price

The SD 700 makes pictures faster than the S3 (but after having a Sony Cybershot is not bad at all).

After having camera for a month I would give it 3,5 stars.
You can't see anything on LCD when you are outside , especially on a sunny day!!!
Image stabilizer might work fine but when my kids move just a little bit during picture , whole picture is blurry!!!! Does anybody know a good camera that would prevent that?

This beats the Digital Rebel XT for user friendliness.
I own the Rebel XT and just purchased this camera a few days ago. The S3-IS the camera of my dreams - it is already my favorite. Don't get me wrong, the XT is a wonderful camera, but not nearly so easy to master. I used this camera last night to take shots of my son playing football, using the sports setting. In the past, with the XT, I would only keep 20% of my shots. With this camera, I've kept 95%. I nearly filled a 1 gig card and I'm thrilled to have captured these memories. If you are not an experienced Canon camera user, the controls and options may be difficult to understand at first, but the great thing is the camera can be kept on the auto setting, great pictures can be achieved, and you can learn while you use it! When Canon upgrades again, I'm going to sell my Rebel, buy the new model, and give this one to my husband. To all parents of athletes: BUY THIS CAMERA. You will not regret it.

A Great go-between for those who aren't ready for the expense of a D-SLR
I have no complaints about this camera - so far I've taken some pretty good shots (I submitted a few to the customer photos for this product).

It's relatively easy to use. I love the range of manual controls over the various settings but full auto mode also takes excellent shots.

The super zoom is phenomenal as is the super macro.

I kinda wish that the manual focus was a little easier to access/manipulate.

Admittedly, camera shake becomes an immense issue at longer zoom settings, but then again - that's what tripods are for.

I love that I now have access to add-ons like filters and super telephoto lenses. This cam is not an SLR but it's a good way to jump into slightly more advanced photography than your old point-and-shoot.

I consider the fact that it uses AA batteries to be a plus - I can use all of my motley collection of NiMH AAs. It get's really good mileage off of some old rayovac 1500mAh cells that I have.

The range of features and photo modes etc are too great to get into here but some features like the INTERVALOMETER just blew me away - I've used it as part of a sleep study project and I'm trying to create a sequential set of photos of a bamboo plant growing next.

Ala in all, great camera for the price.

As good as everyone says
Not being a photographer I was looking for something that took great pictures and was easy to use and this is exactly it. I used it tonight for the first time at a baseball game and took over 250 pics mostly using auto and sport with the continuous shooting and got the results I always wanted before but couldn't do it with the cheaper digitals...Very Impressed so far.... Also wanted to mention that I had the camera on for hours and the battery never ran out...

Great "have it all" camera!
I was an Olympus user... having had a C3040 and then a C5050. However, I always felt that the 3x zoom was way too short compared to what you get used with video cameras. On the other hand, when I dropped my old 35mm SLR camera and accesories because it was mostly sitting at home due to its enormous size and weight, I promised myself that I will never have a camera that I can't carry in my belt. Thus, the digital SLRs are of no advantage to me, no matter the image quality... I hope sometime in the future, some clever manufacturer will finally create the perfect SLR: one the size of a point and shoot camera but with optical SLR viewfinder and tiny interchangeable lenses, if one needed to. Not too difficult... but they still need to sell all those big lenses before they commit to a new micro SLR design.

So, while I wait, I found that an image stabilized long zoom camera was a perfect interim product. I chose the Canon IS S3 for its good reviews, size and overall Canon quality. Olympus, one of the first in bringing optical image stabilization years ago with the UZ 2000, had in the meantime abandoned it and all their long zoom series had no stabilization. A long zoom without stabilization is going to produce more frustration than excitement, especially when those lenses are hardly brighter than F/3.5 at the long end.

So, I was tempted by the IS S3, though I bought it just after it came in the market in May, so I paid more than $100 than today's price. This is the cost of buying oven-warm products. I knew it and I assume it. However, I must say that I am really happy with the camera. I am still learning how to take advantage of all the features it has, while you can be happy most of the time with just the auto point and shoot mode. I admit that the image noise is a bit higher than my old C5050, at same ISO values, something I expected from a camera with such a small sensor. But the advantage of the 12x zoom compensates more than enough.

To carry this camera you need to get the Canon pouch (PSC-75). It is the only one that tightly fits, and I really tried two dozens or more of the generic ones. It just fits the camera (and its strap if you use it on your belt) and looks very much like the old 35mm SLR cases, that you can just leave hanging from the camera while in use if it is not in your belt. If you take extra batteries, put them in your pocket... though for one day shooting you don't need them.

Image quality is excellent for this type of camera. I uploaded some images that shows it, plus an example of the My Colors mode wich is a nice addition from Canon: it is like having Photoshop in camera... but you don't need to go to college to use it. And for the zoom, an image of the moon with a 1.7x Olympus converter shot handheld looks terrific! 1/160s at 730mm I never imagined I could. (check it in uploaded pics).

Some people complain about the flash not popping up automagically. I love it! Now I don't even need to look for the flash sign in the display. When I want flash, I just pop it up. If I want to make sure it will stay off, fold it down. Just keep the flash setting to forced.

The macro is tricky to use. When using the full zoom, you can focus a field of view of about 8cm wide from a distance of 1 meter. Not bad if you want to stay away from your subject. But to get real macro, you have to get very, very close... The zoom has to be in wide, and at 10cm from the lens you get around 6cm wide, at 5cm it is 4cm wide, and at 0cm (yes, you can focus on something touching the lens surface) you get 2.5cm wide.. enough to duplicate and old 35mm slide.

Well, I am not talking about all the features that have been described in detail by so many people. I just want to say that I miss the flash hot shoe and low noise of my C5050. In return I get a great stabilized zoom and really fast reaction camera. I still keep the C5050 for my underwater shooting when diving.

Excellent image quality but failed with video
Image quality was excellent and so happy about that. However, video captured system noise(beep and wheel sound) which is never seen in any other cameras. Even camera is not for video, but its noise is so annoying and video feature is useless. So I gave it up and returned. Later found it is only defect on that camera. If you buy this, please check this earlier in case. Yeah, I didn't notice this till after 3 days.

Does this Camera have date stamp on Pics
With previous Canon models didnt have date stamp on pictures
Looking to buy this camera if it has date stamp on the picture

incredible camera!
In reading reviews about cannon S2 and S3 I couldn't decide on one. So I bought both to campare them. I printed out pics and family voted. The S3 were much clearer. I tired the S2 first and didn't think it could get easier. I was wrong. The S3 is so easy.I know nothing about photography and in no time I was taking beautiful pictures that others say look professional. I love the macro mode to get closeups and the S3 has the iso button on the front so you can change it when you want. no having to go through menu looking for it.
In reviews I read that this camera might be too much for a beginner. That couldn't be more wrong. So the S2 went back. Not that it's a bad camera at all but I thought the $40.00 more was worth the better picture quality I got.

Some big exceptions
This is a sturdy, solid formidable camera; it takes great shots and has most of the features I was looking for in a take everywhere camera - good zoom, good lens, adjustable screen, AA batteries, movie mode, good macro features, image stabilizer. But with that package came nuisances I ended up not being able to tolerate. There are buttons everywhere that you would naturally put your hand to hold a camera if you are even a slightly experienced photographer. I kept resetting features everytime I picked up the camera, and ended up finally handling it like a raw egg. You can't "grab it" you must pick it up with two fingers to avoid hitting buttons you don't want to hit. I carry a camera with me always in a pocket in my bag. Because of the button issue, I've had to put it in a case, so I don't turn it on from simply jostling the bag. The camera once turned on when I laid my jacket down and it was comic watching my bag go in and out with the lens pushing it. But that kind of "accident" can screw up the lens. It does not have a natural hand-hold and it's hard to find a comfortable way to grip the camera - and I have small hands - it would be much worse if you have large hands. The LCD screens - well, there's isn't much great to say here - they are simply inadequate in daylight. Canon recommends using the viewfinder when in broad daylight because the LCD screen is barely visible, but the viewfinder reads very poorly - you cannot accurately see what your are framing - detail, color, anything close to accurate representation is just not there. The adjustable lcd screen mechanics are simply magnificent-a feature I was thrilled to have-but viewing it is simply inadequate. - I just decided tonight that this camera just wasn't good enough for my needs and am ordering the Sony DSC H5. Canon, I hope you are listening - if it weren't for the viewing screens and the crazy button layout, this would be my camera.

Very pleased
This is the best camera out there...at any price. It is easy to use and takes wonderful pictures. It is simple enough for beginners to just point and shoot, but has all the options for a real photo buff. I highly recommend the camera. The movie option is also simple and creates nice, clear movies, with no time limit.

Highly over-rated
I decided to get an ultra-zoom digital camera this summer. After many weeks of reading online reviews and visiting electronics and camera shops, I finally decided to order the Canon S3 when the price finally fell to under 400 dollars. I have had the camera for two weeks now, and I must admit that I do not understand what all the glowing reviews are about. The camera is not terrible, but it is cluttered with tiny, flimsy buttons marked with icons or abbreviations that are not at all intuitive. It is virtually impossible to hold the camera without hitting one of them by accident. The manual is incredibly frustrating. This is not a minor problem. Nearly every entry has a parenthetical reference or footnote telling you to jump to another page. When you do find what you are looking for, it is usually written in the defective, non-native English that has become all too common in product manuals these days. I suppose the camera has all the wonderful options, settings, and features that I've read about hidden somehwere behind all those buttons or in all those menus and sub-menus, but I'll never figure out where they are or how to use them from this horrible manual. The LCD screen is OK, but smaller in reality than it seemed in the store. The viewfinder is perhaps the most disappointing feature of the camera. The resolution is very poor. The image is so heavily pixelated and fuzzy that I have no idea if the subject is in focus or not. As others have pointed out, the lens cap is cheap and falls off for no apparent reason. I didn't realize how annoying this would be. Even at the reduced price, this just should not happen. Most of the pictures that I have taken using the factory settings are OK, but not that much better than my old 3-megapixel Pentax Optio point-and-shoot model. Overall, I am not completely disgusted by the camera, but, so far, I feel no great enthusiasm for picking it up and using it. I can't help but wonder if I would have been happier with the Panasonic FZ7 or the Sony H5.

stopped working after 2 weeks!
I'll admit, the first two weeks I used this camera it was great. However, I never really had the chance to find out for sure b/c after two weeks my camera stopped working. It shut down during use and wouldn't turn back on. I sent the camera back to Canon Factory, hoping it would be fixed or for a replacement, however, I was told that it was unrepairable and I was SOL - basically. Reason? corrosion. From what? - Canon wouldn't say. How is this possible after two weeks and only 3 uses?!?!?!?! So i'm out $500 and I'll be sure never to buy another Canon product. I feel I've been had by the Canon people. After reading reviews/complaints I found that this was a common problem among Canon products. Advice for consumers - keep your camera in bubble wrap and don't use it. This way it will last at least a few months. Good luck!

Fine camera but with a few limits
After taking 400 shots I find the camera excellent all around, and have only one major complaint: its maximum f-stop is 8.0, and the default f-stop in Auto mode is low, typically 2.x. So the depth of field you can get is modest at best, particularly for closer work. As a minor complaint, I find you can't capture RAW images with this camera -- as a first-time digital photographer I didn't know anything about the uses of this format, so didn't know enough to look for it in a camera. These two complaints are not against the high quality of the instrument; they are only a caution that if these two features (shooting at f/16 and having your choice of image format) are important to you, look for a different camera.

Almost Perfect!
I've been using this camera for a few weeks now, and I've taken at least a thousand photographs with it. It is easily the most versatile piece of photographic equipment I have ever owned, and I grew up using film SLRs. This camera has almost all of the features I love in SLR cameras, including fairly intuitive control over exposure settings. I also love the video feature.

My favorite features are:

- The 12x zoom lens which can easily capture close-up subjects from the opposite side of a large room.

- Super-macro mode shoots clear pictures less than an inch from the lens.

- Excellent TV quality video with good stereo sound (no HD).

- A variety of shooting modes let you capture a detailed close up in vivid color one moment, and a fast action shot seconds later with the turn of a dial.

- Adjustable flash output.


That said, there are a few things that really irritate me about this camera. For instance, the manual focus is a pain to use. Instead of twisting the lens, you are forced to hold down one button while you press up and down keys. Autofocus is essentially worthless when you combine low light and fast action (such as a lively concert, like the one I shot pictures at tonight). A usable manual focus is essential for any serious photographer!

Another thing that bothers me is the lack of an external flash hook-up. It makes it difficult to avoid red-eye when photographing people in low light.

I don't understand how such basic features were overlooked when this camera has everything else but the kitchen sink. While this is certainly the most versatile camera I've ever owned, and I love it for what it is, I would not buy it again. I would look for a similar camera that includes a twist-lens manual focus and a flash hot-shoe.

One more critique - photographs are often unusably grainy with ISO settings at 400+. You'll want to stick to the 80 - 200 range, if you can. The lowest ISO setting possible for the situation will deliver the best image the camera is capable of.

Excellent for upgrading from basic point and shoot cameras
This is an excellent camera, especially if you have previously owned a simpler Canon. The Icons and buttons are very easy to understand and the camera is very logically set up, again, especially if you have owned a Canon. The camera has a comfortable feel and the zoom is just spectacular for a very reasonable price.

now they came out with yet another
Just when you thought all was going well
Canon comes out with a new one S4 IS (Oct 13-06)
that is why the S3 have got