This is not a review of any sorts, but just my impression on the Canon G1X point and shoot. I wanted to see what Canon had come up with in this new G series camera, so I decided to take it around the Pier 39 area in San Francisco. I attempted to give the footage a vintage feel of Old San Francisco so I tried using a few Cinegrain film scans, boosted saturation, and added more contrast. I also cooled down the shadows and warmed up the highlights. I don't know if anyone really cares, but if you want to see the original footage, let me know.
I tested a variety of different scenes with the G1X and found plenty of aliasing and moire in video mode. The G1X probably serves better as a stills camera. The still images coming out of this camera are very sharp and has decent dynamic range in just JPEG. I haven't tried shooting RAW with the camera.
The G1X does not have full manual controls for video to adjust shutter speed or aperture, but you do have the option to lock the exposure before hitting the record button. Once you lock the exposure, you can adjust exposure compensation if you're trying to bring back some shadows or pull down some of the highlights in your scenery. The G1X also has a built in ND filter which helps slow down that fast shutter speed look on bright days. For HD you only get [email protected] or [email protected]. Even though it lacked 60 frames, there's a flag clip in the video where I slowed it down 50% and it didn't look too bad.
The swivel LCD of course makes it so easy to frame a shot up high or down low. The boot up time is very quick, so I never felt like I was missing a shot when the camera was powered off completely. For a point and shoot camera, I was hoping it would have more zoom. Consider the extended digital zoom feature for video worthless. For wide angle in crowded San Francisco, there were plenty of times I felt like I wasn't getting a wide enough shot. Canon decided against making a mirrorless camera, or even joining the micro four thirds party. Instead they designed this G1X with a larger and better sensor than most other point and shoot cameras. It might do well in some areas, but the aliasing and moire is terrible for video. I really wanted to like this camera, and gave it my best shot, but the price and lack of features don't really add up here. For a cheaper price, I think you'd be better off with something like a Sony NEX5n.
Canon PowerShot G1 X Digital Camera 
