Oh golly!!! I thought I was overwhelmed with just looking at the options my Canon Power Shot S3IS offers. Now that I opened up the manual, my head is spinning. Well, instead of getting frustrated and annoyed, let’s just take this one step at a time.
First, get those batteries in! Okay, I realize I don’t have to be that simplistic, but it is reassuring that I can complete this single task without having to read the manual!
My camera comes with two different manuals. I’m assuming most cameras will do this. One is a basic user guide and the other is an advanced user guide. I think the smart thing to do, is start small and end big. I have a feeling these manuals will be my best friends for a few weeks!
Now I already installed the batteries and memory card and figured out how to open up my LCD monitor. If you look at the Canon S3IS, you will notice it is one of the few digital cameras that offer an LCD monitor that flips open and rotates. I can see this being a very handy feature for me. I’ve used friend’s cameras before and you always have to be right behind the camera to really see what you are photographing. I will be able to use this in a variety of ways.
Now that I have my display set up, it’s time to see what this camera can do. One thing that excited me about this camera was the movie mode. A bonus, I don’t have to stop and switch modes to start recording, which is great for those spontaneous moments. There is a handy record button on the back of the camera next to the viewfinder. After recording my first clip and downloading it onto my laptop, I was amazed by the stereo sound.
Another setting I have already played with is the super macro. This is a photo I took of my daughter’s eye in super macro mode.
It amazes me to see the details in her eye that I can hardly see with my own eyes. I can see that I will have a lot of fun with this setting in the spring and summer when all the flowers are in bloom!
After the initial anxiety, I am very impressed with my camera. I can see that it will take some time to really learn all the settings and perfect them though.
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