Canon PowerShot A620

A little over a year ago I went on what I thought would be an impossible search for an affordable, digital, point-and-shoot camera to replace my old film SLR. I wanted a camera that was compact enough to be practical on long backpacking trips without sacrificing too many of the features I loved on my SLR. I ended up spending an insane number of hours pouring over various reviews on dozens of cameras but one kept ending up near the top of everyones list: the Canon A620.

I spent about $350 on the camera in 2006 but the price has come down considerably since then. I must admit it was love at first shot. The functionality of the camera is great and the true-to-life image quality is great. It's simple enough for a beginner to use while at the same time affords the more seasoned photographer enough manual settings to shoot in virtually any condition. I also like the fact that it uses the more affordable SD memory card along with AA batteries for a power source. The four AA batteries do make the camera a bit on the heavy side but I enjoy the piece of mind that I can find replacement batteries for it at any corner store. Battery life is great as well as long as you invest in the higer powered NiMH batteries. The camera also accomodates memory cards up to 2GB in size. This, combined with the numerous size and resolution options available on the camera allow you to store anywhere from 500-8,000 images!

On top of all this the A620 has been remarkably durable as well. I've taken it with me to on countless wet hikes to waterfalls (though I'm not saying its waterproof) as well as on numerous winter hikes in temperatures down as low as 0'F without any noticable problems. I even accidentally dropped the camera about 10' onto a rocky ledge on Grandfather Mountain on one accasion about two months after I purchased it. The drop bent the wriststrap loop causing some separation in the case. I can't bring myself to part with the camera long enough to send it in for repair and a year later it is still shooting photos with no problems at all.

All in all this camera has been everything I've wanted it to be. There are very few things I consider lacking on the camera and would highly recommend it to anyone.

PROS:
-Ecxeptional image quality (colors are very true-to-life)
-Lots of available manual settings
-Great battery life
-Durable

Cons:
-Zoom is somewhat limited (though telephoto lens mounts are available).
-Needs a greater f-stop range (ex. shooting waterfalls in anything but a thick overcast is tricky)