The current crop of digital point-and-shoot cameras delivers an incredible level of imaging performance and value for your customers. That’s why they appeal to a wider range of consumers than ever before, from novices to serious enthusiasts, and even some pros. Their remarkable level of sophistication has blasted beyond all previously established barriers, rivaling many DSLRs in terms of sheer technological prowess.
Much of this has been made possible by the rapid advances in computerized electronics, the technical foundation of the digital revolution. However, it’s partially attributable to the extremely broad nature of the point-and-shoot camera category itself, which ranges all the way from pocket-size compacts to ultrazoom cameras with electronic viewfinders that are functionally equivalent to DSLRs. In short, any camera without optical through-the-lens reflex viewing or interchangeable lenses can be defined as a point and shoot, and this huge class is now bristling with technical innovations.
We’ve compiled this guide to give you a better handle on some of the cool features and capabilities your customers will be inquiring about at your counter as the spring shooting season approaches.
Fast Lenses and Enhanced Performance at High ISO Settings
Most P&S shooters have seen camera ads showcasing available-light images that capture the atmosphere of indoor and night scenes with far more realism and vibrancy than pictures made with flash. Many are highly motivated to try available-light shooting, and the top camera makers have responded by offering faster lenses with f/2 maximum apertures (notably in enthusiast-aimed P&S models from Canon and Panasonic), and vastly improved imaging performance at high ISO settings. Most recently announced point and shoots provide ISO settings up to 3200, and most can deliver remarkably good low-noise imaging performance in the ISO 800–1600 range. Fujifilm’s FinePix F80EXR employs an EXR sensor and high sensitivity & low noise priority mode to capture subjects with minimal noise in available light with ISOs as high as 6400 and extending to 12,800.
GPS Geotagging
This fun feature records the GPS coordinates of the location where each image was taken in the EXIF data as it is shot, enabling users to later place their pictures on a world map or, even more important, to organize groups of images based on where they were shot. Nikon pioneered GPS geotagging in P&S cameras, but Samsung, Panasonic and others now offer compact cameras with this exciting feature. Panasonic’s Lumix DMC-ZS7, for instance, records latitude and longitude in the EXIF data while also displaying location information real-time while shooting and during playback. The geotagged images can be pinpointed on maps common at photo-sharing websites and social media sites. The Samsung HZ35W’s GPS function records geotags of the location where images are captured based on latitude and longitude; then, with its visual map-view feature, users can check the photos’ locations on a map without uploading images to the Internet.
HD Video Capability
This is definitely the hot button feature for 2010, and there’s been a veritable HD explosion in the latest P&S cameras, ranging from 720p HDMI output with mono sound to Full HD 1080p in Motion JPEG and AVCHD Lite formats, complete with Dolby stereo sound. Models ranging from compacts to ultrazooms from top makers are now HD video capable, and the list is expanding exponentially. Among these models are Sony’s Cyber-shot DSC-HX5V and DSC-TX7, which provide Full HD (1,920x1,080 60i) AVCHD video capability. Many HD-capable cameras also provide basic in-camera movie editing functions, and can also grab still images from a video. Examples: Panasonic’s video divide function allows users to cut videos into two sections to shorten them or delete unwanted clips; and Samsung’s TL350, which offers 1080p Full HD video recording at a max speed of 1,000 frames per second (and a burst mode that takes 10 full-size stills per sec), has a dual capture mode that lets users simultaneously take 10MP images while recording Full HD video.
Bigger, Higher Res LCDs
The new standard for P&S LCD screens is now 3.0 inches with a few up to 3.5 inches, like Fujifilm’s FinePix Z700 EXR with its 16:9 touch screen. Those in many enthusiast-aimed models now provide 460,000-dot resolution to aid precise composition and assess fine image details, and some have touch control or swivel to enhance convenience. The Nikon Coolpix S8000 even delivers a 920,000-dot LCD image that rivals DSLRs, and Samsung has several models with AMOLED touch screens said to have higher contrast ratios and lower power consumption, and provide a more intuitive user interface. Olympus, Samsung and others also offer P&S models with live-view screens that swivel and tilt, and provide touch-screen convenience.
And when speaking of LCDs, we have to mention Samsung’s innovative DualView cameras that sport a 1.5-inch LCD on the front of the camera body, as well as the standard LCD on the back, to make taking self-portraits easier. The front LCD screen also has other cool functions, like playing an animation with sound to attract the attention of young subjects.
Megazoom Mania
We are also seeing a growing number of manufacturers offering “bridge” ultrazoom and megazoom models into their compact point-and-shoot lineups, with optical zooms ranging from 15x to 30x. Included in this category, to name a few, are Samsung’s HZ30W with a 15x Schneider-Kreuznach optical zoom lens, Pentax’s Optio X90 with a 26x optical megazoom and Nikon’s Coolpix P100 with a 26x Nikkor optical zoom lens. At the top of the zoom range is Fujifilm’s DIMA award-winning FinePix HS10, which offers a Fujinon 30x (24–720mm equivalent) manual optical zoom lens and other bridge category features—sophisticated photographic controls, advanced functionality and DSLR-like handling.
In-Camera Image Enhancements
It’s not exactly built-in Photoshop, but some of the latest P&S cameras include, in effect, post-production capability in their feature mix. This ranges from creative image controls that yield more vivid pictures by increasing color saturation to backlit scene HDR (high dynamic range) that merges different exposures of the same scene to create a single image with full tonal detail, to advanced night mode (in the Nikon Coolpix P100) that combines a series of consecutive shots taken at fast handheld shutter speeds into a single sharp image. In the same vein, Sony’s Cyber-shots now offer “intelligent sweep panorama,” which captures wide landscapes or tall buildings in one press-and-sweep motion, taking up to 270º panorama shots horizontally or vertically. These cameras perform up to 100 separate captures, detect faces and subject motion and adjust the width of each picture while stitching them together.
Let’s not overlook special effects, like digital filters. Olympus continues to lead here with all its spring 2010 models providing magic filters to transform images into artwork. These filters include: pop art to saturate colors to create high-impact pictures reminiscent of ’60’s Pop Art; pin hole, which reduces the peripheral brightness of an image as though it were shot through a pin hole; fisheye, which emulates the wide angle of a fisheye lens by taking extremely wide, hemispherical images and magnifying the center of the frame; and drawing, which turns images into a sketch outline for children to color.
Some makers, such as Casio, offer proprietary features like dynamic photo function for in-camera composite moving image creation that can be used to produce animated electronic greeting cards. Dynamic photo lets users cut out images of a moving subject and combine them with a different still image as the background. Animated characters, like a heart, can also be used to decorate images in-camera.
New Scene Modes and Auto Scene Mode Selection
Most of the latest P&S cameras offer “intelligent auto” or iA mode selection in which the camera itself determines the type of scene being shot and sets the proper scene mode accordingly. This is a great feature for newbies that takes automation to a new level. In addition, there’s a profusion of new scene modes that go well beyond the classic portrait, scene and sports modes. Some examples: poster, fisheye, my colors, miniature (it gives images a miniature look that emphasizes the perspective by limiting depth of field), happy mode (it boosts brightness and color saturation at the same time), and high dynamic mode (a controllable option that captures moderate exposures of high contrast scenes and provides a range of artistic to realistic effects). Nikon offers skin softening mode that smoothes out skin imperfections at three selectable levels—just the thing for the silver-haired set.
The mode list is virtually endless and the specific names vary depending on the manufacturer.
Advanced Face Detection & Recognition
Detecting faces in the scene and setting the exposure and AF point accordingly is old technology. New wrinkles include blink detection, which warns of blinking subjects or prevents shooters from taking the shot when a subject’s eyes are closed, and smile detection, which takes the shot only when the subject is smiling. Many cameras can now detect and optimize the picture for virtually all faces in the frame. Automatic red-eye reduction is yet another corollary of face detection that is much appreciated by shooters of all stripes, especially those who shoot kid pictures. Fujifilm even offers three models with pet detection, claimed to detect and optimize focus for up to 10 dog or cat faces. And Pentax’s improved face detection spots up to 32 faces, including dogs and cats. No word yet on gerbils or budgies—maybe next year!
And, new face recognition features allow cameras to recognize faces already registered in the camera to prioritize their focus and exposure whenever they are detected.
Advanced Image Stabilization
In the past, most P&S cameras offered either optical image stabilization (essentially a motion detector coupled to a moving, shake-compensating optical group within the lens), electronic image stabilization (which sets higher ISOs and/or faster shutter speeds when camera shake is detected) or a multi-exposure system that records the subject’s outline and light level in separate exposures and then combines them into a sharp, well-exposed image. Nowadays, many cameras provide both optical and electronic image stabilization simultaneously, and a few use all three systems. Result: Far fewer pictures ruined due to handheld camera shake, still the leading cause of unwanted images.
Higher Speed Burst Modes
Almost all P&S offer burst capability these days, and many can shoot pictures at 3 to 5 frames per sec or even faster, making them the hot ticket for soccer moms and football dads. The ultimate demons of high-speed shooting are the ultrazoom cameras. One example is the Nikon P100, which has a 26x (26–678mm equivalent) zoom lens and can shoot full-res (10MP) images at 10 fps. And Casio, known for its high-speed cameras, offers the EX-FH100, which can take 30 shots of 9MP images with high-speed burst shooting at a maximum speed of 40 shots per second—and also record movies at 1,000 fps to capture motion ordinarily too fast for the human eye to see. Cameras like this are great for capturing sports action or even analyzing a golf swing. Canon, Olympus, Sony and Fujifilm offer competitive models in this exciting all-in-one, do-anything category that seems to be gaining steam even in this age of the DSLR.