Canon PowerShot A590IS 8MP Digital Camera with 4x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom

Overall this camera is great. It takes better pictures than my friends 10 megapixel Samsung camera. I bought this when the price was $200 and now that it's only like $120 it's an even better deal. Picture quality is the best thing by far but the thing that sets it apart is the features that allows you change many aspects of the shot. I'm not a professional and need the camera only for fun but found the features nice to just play around with... Great buy overall. Plus Canon is known for it's camera's.

As a casual photo taker, I am after an affordable and reliable camera for everyday use. The first DC I brought was a Pentax Optio 230 back in 2002. It was a 2MP camera but cause me A$566 (about US$400)! It served me well, the outdoor pictures with a lot of light is quite good and it still works okay for occasional family shots. 6 year down the track I think it is time to upgrade to newer technology. I brought the Canon A590IS based on its good review in Amazon and I like the feature set on spec. I brought it at a local camera shop at A$163 a couple of months ago and it came with Canon's leather case and photo printing voucher.

I would not hesitate to recommend it to others. The good points about the camera are:

Excellent pictures with "ease mode" especially outdoor and not bad for indoor under normal lighting. A bit noisy for indoor when the lighting is dim, better use the flash to compensate.

If you have time, the manual controls are great and let you create your own effects. The Canon Browser record all the camera parameters for each photo which is great for budding photograher. Despite some review's caution against poor battery life, I was pleased with what I can get from a pair of 2650 mAH NiMH rechargables, I used it for over 200 photos before feeling the need recharging.

The only down side for the camera, is its physical size, it's not a camera you can put in your shirt pocket. The original Canon leather case is great, you can wear it in your belt.

Overall, I am extremely pleased with my purchase.

I read a lot of reviews while selecting this camera. Kudos to RLSd, F. Gillett, & Molly P., among others. Forget the stars - it was their accurate realistic detail that really helped. Lacking their expertise, I'll confine myself to a few areas that concerned me until I actually used the A590IS. This was partly due to other reviews that weren't as well done.

First is the size and "chunkiness" issue. It's chunkier than some of its peers, but only a bit. It slides into a jacket or jeans pocket very nicely. In exchange for the chunkiness you get a camera you can grip securely and hold steady. You also get a shape you are far less likely to drop, even holding it in one hand while scrambling over the rocks. Finally, you get a view finder, not just a screen. During a recent two weeks in Greece, that was a Godsend, as the bright Aegean sun totally wiped out the electronic image.

Second there is the battery issue. I read complaints from folks who said the camera ate batteries and died after too few shots. I'm not sure what was going on there, but you need to research the batteries the way you did your camera. The new Energizer lithium batteries got off about 400 shots, half with flash, before I had to replace them. And because it was a new toy, I was constantly using the camera to show my shots to my wife, which burned still more power. Hard to beat that. Are they the right choice for everyone? Maybe not. They are not rechargeable, so there's an ecological price to pay. Around the house I may switch to something greener, but for overseas trips, I'll stick with them.

Another issue is the lag time between flash shots. Let's be real. If you want instant turn-around time, you shouldn't be looking at a $130 camera that uses a pair of AAs. If you want a camera for fast-breaking sports and photo-journalism, don't get an A590IS. That said, I didn't think it took insufferably long. I can't think of any shots I failed to get due to recycle time.

Some folks had tales of woe about taking all these wonderful shots, only to have them disappear from the chip. When the camera arrives, read the little book, esp. the part on formatting your chip. That should prevent such sorrow from striking.

Incidentally, one little discussed but really cool feature is the zoom capability when examining photos already in the can. You can zoom in to an incredible degree and find things in pix you've already taken that you didn't even know was there. (Honestly, honey, I had no idea she was topless.) I was stunned by the clarity.

Do I have any complaints? A few. The manual is good but it has one of the worst indexes I've ever seen. Don't assume it omits a topic just because it isn't in the index. Flip through the pages and you'll find what you need. On occasion, I was disappointed in the inability of the camera to handle sharp lighting contrasts. Granted, Greek sunlight and shadow can create some extreme challenges, but it's still a limiting factor. The flash is useful but don't ask too much of it. You have to be quite close to your subject, esp. at night. If you are outdoors, it's easy to be too far away without realizing it.

I guess that's about it. My bottom line is that I love this camera and I'm pleased and amazed with the shots I brought back from my recent trip. It's a great transitional camera for someone like myself who finally decided to leave his old 35mm gear and give in to digital. The auto setting is really good, but it permits manual control as well. Am still experimenting with that but am encouraged by what I see. I would buy this camera again in a heartbeat.

Fine instrument for a casual snapshot taker. It's simple, easy to use, reasonably priced and takes good pix. It hasn't all the features of a fancy SLR but it is conveniently sized and it's just right for this household of amateur snapshooters.

Received the camera right away. Will deal with this merchant again. I am no photography expert, although, if I were, this camera gives me the option of manual settings. However, it also has an automatic setting that gave me FABULOUS photos. Just got back from vacation and reviewed the photos today. I can't believe that I took them, they look too good!!
I would recommend this camera to anybody and everybody.

Thanx-
JE