Canon PowerShot Pro90 IS

The camera is comfortable to hold and the controls are well positioned for easy access when holding at eye level. LCD screens are sometimes difficult to see in bright sunshine, however, the TTL viewfinder is particularly good in sunny conditions. A ring on the lens controls the electronic zoom, although I feel a rocker switch would have sufficed. The zooming is also very slow, and there's no indication to show what focal length has been selected.

The auto focus is continuous and slow, which in some way reflects the best uses for this camera. While the Pro90 IS isn't a fast action camera for those into sports photography, the camera performs superbly for portraits and other static subjects.

Power is supplied by a rechargeable lithium ion battery, which will last for approximately 200 shots per charge. The battery is recharged in the camera with the supplied AC adaptor, although a separate battery charger is available. A 16Mb CompactFlash memory card is included and will capture about 12-15 images at the Super-Fine setting. This will get you started, but a higher capacity card, or an IBM Microdrive is an essential buy.

The Pro90 IS has an excellent setup menu, offering JPEG compression settings, image quality settings (contrast, sharpening and saturation), digital zoom, LCD brightness and so on. As with other Canon cameras the menu is clear and easy to follow. The only problem is the location of the menu button, which can be accidentally pressed while shooting.

Although the Pro90 IS is built to high standards, it's not built to professional requirements and wouldn't stand up to heavy professional usage. However, it's an excellent choice for a keen photographer or for company usage, providing they can stomach the high price of £1,100 that is.

Author: Vincent Oliver