Thanks to its easy operation and adroit balance of strong performance, helpful hardware, and fun shooting modes, the 10-megapixel Canon PowerShot G12 ($500 as of January 3, 2011) earned our top pick in a recent roundup of five advanced point-and-shoot cameras. The G12 received the best overall scores in our image-quality tests–a result that merely scratches the surface of the camera’s appeal.

The G12 turned in the best scores of the bunch in PCWorld Labs’ subjective tests for image and video quality, with especially impressive marks for exposure quality, color accuracy, and video quality. It was judged superior in all three of those categories, as well as in overall imaging and in video. The camera’s battery life is good; according to the Camera & Imaging Products Association (CIPA), which conducts standardized battery testing for all major cameras, the G12 captured 370 shots per charge with its LCD turned on.

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Camera · Camera & Imaging Products Association · Canon PowerShot · Image quality · Liquid crystal display · Photography · Pixel · Point-and-shoot camera

The Canon Powershot G11, the latest evolution of the G-cam line, represents a marked improvement over its predecessors — which is really saying something.

It is a point-and-shoot that can take real photos, and quickly has become my near-constant companion. With its hot shoe and easily fudge-able sync speed, it is a great second body for those lighting photographers who also like to travel light.

The huge knock on the previous G camera was their low performance at high ISOs. The G11 has sacrificed the pixel count in favor of fewer, higher quality pixels. I found the higher ISOs to be much better than my previous G9, and did not miss the extra image size at all.

Read the full review on Strobist

Camera · Canon PowerShot G · Evolution · Hot shoe · Light · Pixel · Point-and-shoot camera · Strobist