Well, I've put the S3 through more testing, and my opinions are still mixed. Sports mode [unfortunately] isn't showing any signs of being able to be improved upon, at least not with the sensor in the unit we have. Shutter priority (Tv mode) is rounding into shape, based on the testing, but still lags behind the S2 overall. In Tv mode at low ISO, the in-focus subject looks great; no complaints. The soft-focus foreground is virtually noise free, though the shadowing in my test shooting was a tad harsher than with the S2, but equally acceptable, and assuming conditions will vary, not a deal breaker. Getting into the background, noise/graininess really creeps in; much more noticeably than with the S2, and more testing will be done this afternoon. If the background noise/grain can't be improved, that is a deal breaker.

Another contributing factor, is I'm pretty sure the shutter speed is out of whack; its seems to be considerably slower than what it shows. For the test shooting, I just crank the speed higher until it gets the shots they way they should be. My gut says this S3 needs to be calibrated for speed, and have its sensor checked, so I'll call Canon tomorrow to see how to get that done. If it's not possible, I'll probably swap it for another attempt, though before doing that, my little brother suggested I take my S3 down to a B&M camera shop, and shoot a few test pics with one of their S3's and w/ my S3 on the same memory card, to get a side by side comparison of same shots on same card. That will also provide a baseline if/when then camera is swapped out. Will followup later.

Buzz
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would it be rude to ask elmo3 NOT to reply?

I've had a chance to play around with the S3...we have one at work. It's not a bad little camera. Really takes decent pics...but not as nice as my Nikon, of course. ;-)

Overall, for a P&S, it's really a decent camera...took decent pics in low light without flash (but high noise).

If you dont want elmo3 to reply, just do what I do...elect to have all his messages hidden automatically.

GL

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I've got an S2 that I haven't used a lot. I'll change that.

The S2 and S3 are a notch above P&S, though they certainly can be used that way, if desired.

I really like the look of the S3 and was thinking of getting one before I jump up to a 30D. The S2 needs more use before I do anything else.

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Quote
Buzz
would it be rude to ask elmo3 NOT to reply?

Not any ruder than it is to post meaningless gibberish like your first post on this subject.

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It used to be that Sony would jam pack their camera but now that they have the DSLR they will probably stop pushing the envelope on these. I don't see any of the big players really pushing the tech far on these now that DSLR prices are coming down and are more profitable due to accessories and lenses.

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