Canon PowerShot S90 Digital Camera (10 Megapixel, 3.8 Optical Zoom) 3.0 inch LCD

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But the Canon S90's lens and sensor combination do some amazing stuff in low light, so much so that it's a Dave's Pick for that reason alone. What became apparent as we studied images from the two competing cameras was that the LX3's files had a lot of pretty large-radius sharpening applied to them.

I find its image quality desirable overall with good to excellent looking raw files, all the way up to its highest ISO setting of 3200. I'd have liked having Program shift as an option on the front Control ring, but that's handled by the rear Control dial, after you half-press the shutter, then the EV button, a convoluted process. The CR2 raw files don't have this correction applied, so if you use non-Canon software, expect to see a load of distortion at the wide end which you will have to correct.With the vivid colors I set next, I usually prefer the look of images made outdoors when set to -2/3, which I set as my default. Canon kept the S90's sharpening quite conservative starting at ISO 800, resulting in a Gaussian-blur appearance which sharpens quite well, it turns out.

However, the S90s performance makes it best suited for portraits, landscapes, and the like--but not for fast-moving subjects. But that's good news for us, the consumer, because Canon's also a massive company capable of turning on a dime to introduce an array of cameras to answer any challenge, giving us more choices. Having the Control dial default to Program shift would be more useful, and a more expected option, I think. I'm fine with that customizability, but by default the Control ring's uses change with the exposure mode as well.According to ISO 12232:2006 (20th April 2006) which specifies the method for assigning and reporting ISO speed ratings for digital still cameras. Crucially it also offers some of the best image quality we've seen in such a small camera for a long time, sensor limitations aside. The big story with the Canon S90 is its lower-resolution sensor and a faster lens than is normally included on a small camera. The Canon S90's Mode dial is nice and firm, just the way it should be, reminding me of the dials on the Canon G11. It's bright aperture on the wide and, included image stabilization allow me to shoot in low light hand held.