Trade off between megapixels and optical zoom? —Henry Seva

Im deliberating on which to buy among the two canon powershot models (given that both are within my budget)

S5 IS (8megapixels and 12x Optical zoom)
A650 IS (12MP & 6x Optical Zoom)

we may include the G9 (12MP & 6X OZ)

Most of the product comparisons I have are mere tabulations and does not discuss about the tradeoff.

Considering that I will be printing in the usual photo size.

Best Answer —anthony h

Actually, it’s not a question of tradeoffs, but one of the physical size of the sensor and the features of the cameras.

The G9 and the A650 IS appear to use the same 12mp sensor, which is 7.6mm x 5.7mm in size.

The S5 IS has a significantly smaller sensor, only 5.76mm x 4.29mm in size. This means that it will be more noisy and less effective at higher ISOs.

So, it’s more than megapixels at stake here; the sensors themselves are inherently different.

If it were me, I’d go for the G9, primarily for the flexibility of having a hot shoe flash option, raw shooting, all metal body, multiple scene modes, manual capabilities, and the ability to add accessories. I believe you could even add a 2x teleconverter if you really needed the extra zoom (which I don’t think you need).

If you don’t need that flexibility, then the A650 IS will be enough. Notice that megapixels don’t matter to me; once you hit 7 megapixels, anything higher doesn’t make a lot of difference for normal, usual photo size. It’s the physical size of the sensor and the features that are more impt. once you hit a minimum sensor size.

Unless you plan on always shooting in good light and NEED the zoom, don’t go for the S5 IS. The sensor itself is physically too small and while the zoom is nice (432mm equivalent), the sensor is not up to the quality of the zoom.

The 210mm equivalent of the A650 IS or G9 is plenty for 99.99% of shooting. And frankly, if you need more zoom than that, you really should look at an SLR and a really good lens, rather than a point and shoot.

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