Canon G2 Camera

Introduction

In 2002 I went from shooting with film to shooting totally digitally.   I swapped my Pentax and Nikonos film based systems for Canon digital cameras.   The Pentax gear was replaced by  a Canon D60 and 1Ds, and the Nikonos V underwater system was replaced by a Canon G2 point and shoot camera in an Ikelite housing with an Ikelite strobe.

Features

The G2 is a 4 megapixel camera with a zoom lens which is the equivalent of 34-102mm on a 35mm camera.   The lens isn't very wide at its wide end, but it's pretty fast, f2 at 34mm to f2.5 at 102mm.

One of the main reasons I bought it is that it can use the same BP511 batteries as my D60 camera, and the same 550EX flash as the D60 and the 1Ds camera.

The LCD monitor on the G2 is excellent, like other Canon point and shoot cameras the monitor is usually housed with the glass facing the back of the body so it doesn't get scratched, but you can swing it around to virtually any angle.   One of the nicest bonus features of the G2 is its little wireless remote control, which allows you to zoom the lens in and out and take a photo from up to 5 meters away.   The lens cover is also nice, it comes on a little string which attaches to the body, so it doesn't get lost.

The biggest failing to me is the macro mode, which doesn't produce a high enough magnification.   At best, it covers an area about 3 inches (7.5 cm) across.   You can get an optional closeup lens which improves the macro performance, but this wasn't an option for me because it won't fit into the underwater housing that I was using.   The magnification is a tiny fraction higher if the lens is at its maximum wide-angle setting, but in practice you should zoom in or out purely to help with achieving the best position relative to the subject; so if you're photographing an insect, use a telephoto setting so you can maintain some distance and avoid scaring it.

Quirks

The battery continues to discharge even when the power switch is in the "off" position, so you should remove the battery when you're not using the camera.