Canon PowerShot G9 - Lens & Flash
I am pleased to see that the silver ridge around the lens has made room for a black one with a miniscule metal edge. It surely is less noticeable and it gives the camera an even more traditional look. Removing the ring lets you use optional lens converters. When the camera is turned off the lens is nicely hidden. A small built-in flash and an auto focus assist lamp mark the lens. The optical viewfinder is also placed here, but to me it seems that it is only there for showing off because it shows only a small part of the actual image. The LCD monitor in fact took over the function of an optical viewfinder.
Canon G9 camera - LCD monitor & Dial
You'd think that the Canon PowerShot G9 is not equipped with a good handgrip, but a small edge and a rubber strip give it the perfect hand-fit, thanks to the addition of a thumb-grip on the back. The G7 did not have this grip and in practice it was perceptible. The back of the camera contains a huge monitor that nearly covers the entire back. |
The viewfinder has become even smaller than it already was. The dial with the tilting button inside has been altered just enough to increase the user friendliness. In fact many small details have been adjusted in order to offer a lot more comfort in practice. An additional detail that has been changed is the door that covers the connections on the left side of the camera. It now opens with a different mechanism which keeps it better shut.
Canon PowerShot G9 - Two command dials
The top of the camera remains to be special. Not so much because of the hot shoe (attach a 430 EX II Speedlite for fun and then take a look at the camera: the flash is larger than the camera!) but because of the two command dials that are found here. The right one lets you select a program, which is not surprising. But the commend dial on the other side lets you adjust the sensitivity as if you were working with a traditional camera. Unfortunately the dial is too easy to turn so you have to make sure to see that the camera is still on the ISO you selected. |
