Canon PowerShot A2000 IS

Canon seems to be firing on all cylinders, continually expanding their PowerShot A-series of budget and mainstream digital cameras. The latest additions to the series are the A1000 IS and A2000 IS which feature a 10 megapixel sensor and a sleeker design, but come minus some of the useful features that have so far been standard on the A-series. We took the A2000 IS outdoors for a photography session to find out how well it clicks.

Older A-series cameras had a boxy design with a bulge on the right side for a firm grip. The new models are slimmer but less comfortable, with a wedge-shaped design. Also traditionally present in the list of features were an optical viewfinder and lots of shooting modes including Aperture Priority (Av), Shutter Priority (Tv) and Manual.

Now, in a quest to make digital photography simpler, Canon has decided to omit the more control-friendly modes as well. The A2000 IS is equipped with a 6x zoom lens (36–216 mm) which is a big bonus for outdoor photography and shooting close-ups. An optical image stabilizer reduces the possibility of blurry images caused by shaky hands.

The control panel is quite elaborate with hotkeys even for face detection and ISO speed

You can choose between 10 shooting modes using the dial placed to the left of the shutter release button. These include Program, Portrait, Landscape, Night scene, Fireworks and Kids and pets. Shutterbugs will be very disappointed as the list of modes excludes Av, Tv and Manual modes—you don’t have any control over the exposure except for the ISO speed, white balance and exposure compensation settings which can be adjusted only in the Program mode.