There were so many possible titles that came to mind for this entry...
Confidence crushed...
Why do compromises have to be so large?...
Rats!!!...
So, first, the good news - I received my new Canon S45 yesterday - one day sooner than I had expected. I was so excited. It arrived in perfect condition, brand new, just as promised.
The bad news...
I don't like the camera. And I can't return it.
I was sure that this was the ideal camera for me, so I traded returnability for lowest price.
The vendor I purchased from - OneCall - appears to be an extremely reputable vendor, with an excellent web site, and great customer service. I had to call customer service because of a problem with my credit card (an electronic hiccup) and they were friendly and knowledgeable. Their one apparent quirk is an extremely restrictive return policy.
The big issue with the camera is its maximum aperture at telephoto - f4.9 This is so slow that it creates issues. For example, the auto-focus does not work in low light conditions - even though the camera has a focus assist lamp. It also results in unacceptably slow shutter speeds on overcast days.
There are other issues. I had been under the impression that the electronics of the S45 and G3 were identical, but this does not appear to be the case. In full auto, the S45 does not appear to adjust the ISO to meet conditions. Also, the automatic white balance algorithm appears to be different - and not for the better.
Most of these issues can be compensated for with a little manual intervention, so the issues are more irritants than anything else.
I know it is not the end of the world. At absolute worst, I have wasted $437. $437 is a lot of money, but is not the difference between us being able to eat next week or not. And it is not like the camera does not work at all, it just doesn't quite live up to my expectations. My guess is that for 80% or more of my picture taking situations, it will do great. And I do still have the advantage of a small camera with a sliding lens cover - features that I really did want.
And, I do have options. I could always sell the S45 on eBay. At worst, I figure I would lose about $100. I could also just keep the S45 and buy a G3 too.
I guess the biggest issue from this whole experience was the loss of self confidence that occurred.
I thought I had made the ideal decision regarding my next digital camera. I had done lots of research, weighed what I thought were all of the factors, and made what I thought was the "right" decision.
It sure didn't feel that way last night.
After a few days, maybe I won't be second guessing myself quite as much, but right now, my self confidence in my ability to make a good decision is pretty low. And if I can't even make the "right" decision about something as simple and relatively unimportant as a camera, how can I possibly expect myself to make the right decision about something really important?
Jeanie says that I would be suffering the same angst if I had stuck with the G3. I just would have been beating myself up over a different set of concerns - worry that the lens cap would fall off in the bag and the lens would get scratched, or irritation that the lens stuck out too far in the bag if I purchased the optional lens mount and added a filter for protection, or irritation that the camera was more bulky and made me look like a geek, or the fact that I had spent $200 more, or, or, or...
She says that the problem is that I expect myself to make the perfect decision, and that there is no such thing, because there is no perfect product or answer, and that as much as I don't want to accept it, I am not perfect.
She also reminds me that I make lots of good decisions - it's just that I don't give myself credit for those, and only dwell on the questionable ones.
To me, the biggest kicker is that I just got a new digital camera with all sorts of cool features, and I've been wanting a new digital camera for at least a year. Rather than being all torn up over having selecting the "wrong" one, I should be overjoyed at finally getting me new toy.
The glass is 90% full, I need to learn to stop agonizing over the missing 10%!
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Posted by David at February 22, 2003 01:34 AM | Categorized under: A day in the life