Why Buy the Canon IXUS 95 IS?
The biggest reason for buying is picture quality. This camera outperforms many of its rivals especially when it comes to the sharpness of the photos it produces. The IXUS 95 IS also had the fastest start up time of any camera I have tested to date.
Image Quality Canon IXUS 95 IS test shots
Outdoor 1 (Medium Zoom)
All in all this is a good photo for a small compact camera. Sharpness is well above average and there is very little fall off in focusing as you move out towards the edges. Where the sun strikes the boats one or two of the blue lines have taken on a purple tinge. There is also a slight haze effect happening in places around the brightest areas of the shot.
Outdoor 2 (No Zoom)
This photo is noticeable sharper than I am used to seeing. When no zoom is being used most digital cameras, especially the smaller ones, find accurate focusing a big challenge. The IXUS 95 IS passes this test well and you should be able to produce sharp looking, larger prints.
Outdoor 3 (Maximum Zoom)
There are similarities with the first two test photos. The shot is very sharp, much sharper than is typical. Some of the blue lines on the boats have taken on a purple tinge, but this will only be noticeable at this distance if you make extreme sized prints.
Outdoor 4 (Building)
Taking all four of my outdoor scenic shots into account I would say you will be hard pressed to find a pocket camera that takes sharper shots than this one. It is also impressive just how sharp these pictures remain as you move out towards the edges of each photo.
Outdoor Portrait
I am happy with all three of my portrait shots. Starting off with this outdoor one I have boosted the warmth in the colour by using a white balance setting of cloudy. I would recommend using this setting if you are taking portrait shots either under cloudy conditions or in the shade.
Indoor Portrait with Flash
The flash unit emits even light. This helps to lighten the whole photo rather than just the face in the centre. There is only minimal light bouncing back off the face as the IXUS 95 IS is able to judge accurately the amount of light required.
Indoor Portrait without Flash
All pocket cameras find it difficult to produce a truly crisp photo once lighting levels start to fall. The IXUS 95 IS produces a creditable effort suggesting you should at least be able to produce window light, portrait shots.
Colours
The colours produced by the IXUS 95 IS retain a natural feel to them. You should find you are able to take bright, colourful photos.
Macro
There are a few areas where Canon digital cameras always tend to do well. Macro shots are one of them. It does not seem to matter that much what size of lens is being used. Canon models are consistently able to take good quality close up shots.
ISO 400 and ISO 1600
My higher ISO tests are in line with expectations. Noise becomes more and more evident as you increase the ISO setting, especially once you go above ISO 400.
Overall
The IXUS 95 IS is one of the very best pocket cameras when it comes to picture quality.
Shutter Lag and Recycling Times
Shutter lag times are a little faster than average, but the start up time was stunning. To take one picture took 0.3 seconds. Five took 10.19 seconds. With flash turned on times were slower at 1.01 seconds for one photo and 17.73 seconds for five.
I was able to turn the camera on and take the first shot in 1.19 seconds. This is much faster than any other camera I have ever tested. I repeated the test a number of times and achieved more or less the same result each timer. This is very impressive.
You can compare this camera to other models by taking a look at the Shutter Lag Comparison Table.
Style
In terms of shape this camera has a roughly standard, rectangular look. The area around the lens is highly reflective. It is available in silver, grey, blue and pink.
Dimensions
88.5 x 54.8 x 21.8mm
Weight
120g
Batteries
Lithium ion (NB-6L). Canon suggests you should be able to take up to 260 shots in between charges.
Memory Cards
The IXUS 95 IS is compatible with SD, SDHC, MMC, MMCplus, HC MMCplus memory cards, Canon does not supply a card with the camera or build in any internal memory.
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Ease of Use Rating
Good. There is nothing overly demanding about this camera. The menu contains a few extra items and controls compare with other cameras and it will take a bit of extra time for you to learn them all.
Points I Like
Picture quality, style, build quality, start up time, viewfinder
Where it Could Improve
A longer zoom could come in handy
Alternatives
Canon offer some good alternatives in their range. The next camera up in this series offers High Definition movies: Canon IXUS 100 IS.
Verdict
I would say that the Canon IXUS 95 IS offers the best value for money out of the three pocket models introduced by Canon in the spring of 2009. It offers very good all round picture quality and has a great start up time.
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