Canon G10 - Closeup Pics Using Macro Mode On The G10

Canon G10 @ ISO 80 12.1mm f5.0 1/2000s

We were up at my Mum's place near Goderich, Ontario to visit, and it was a beautiful day to play around outdoors taking pictures. My Mum has 5 or 6 acres of property, and most of it is forested, so it was a perfect opportunity to set the Canon G10 to macro mode and take some closeup pics.

The G10, like it's predecessor the Canon G9, does a great job with closeup photos. The built-in image stabilization (IS) is really handy when it comes to shooting in macro mode as you want a higher f-stop to make sure all of your subject is in focus.

Closeup pics with macro lenses lose depth of field quickly due to their extreme magnification, so you need to stop down to make sure your whole photo is in focus. When you stop down, the IS is handy as the G10 can lower your shutter speed to compensate for the higher f-stop without getting motion blur from camera shake.

Overall, I found the Canon G10 to be great at taking closeup pics. It's quick and easy to turn on the macro mode on the G10, and the G10's high resolution 14.7 megapixel sensor does an amazing job of resolving fine detail.

Sometimes the G10's autofocus was a little frustrating, but that can be the case with a DSLR and a macro lens too due to the shallower depth of field. Most of the time I had no problems with the G10 locking focus and getting the shot.

Before I bought my Canon G10, I was considering the Nikon 105mm f2.8 VR macro for doing some macro work, but I have to say that the G10 is performing so well for closeups, that I really don't feel the need to buy a Nikon macro lens now. In good light, it's pretty much impossible to tell that a closeup photo from the G10 wasn't shot with a DSLR. In dim light, it's easy to add an off camera flash with a sync cord or radio trigger, again making it hard to believe the resulting G10 closeup photo wasn't shot with a DSLR.

I have to admit that the more I shoot with the venerable little G10, the more I like it. It's a beautiful little compact digital camera, and I can't wait to see how the Canon G11 will compare.

Here's some of the closeup pics I shot with the G10 while I was at my Mum's. All were shot in RAW on the G10 and processed in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2.

I should also mention that most of these were shot in program mode. In hindsight, I probably should've shot them all in manual mode so or aperture priority so I could've controlled the f-stop and ensured a deeper depth of field, but hey... I was having fun just taking pictures and not thinking a whole lot about it. :-)


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 21.5mm f4.0 1/2000s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 15.7mm f4.0 1/320s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 13.8mm f4.0 1/500s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 12.1mm f4.0 1/800s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 30.5mm f4.5 1/1000s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 30.5mm f4.5 1/640s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 30.5mm f4.5 1/500s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 30.5mm f4.5 1/400s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 21.5mm f4.0 1/400s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 21.5mm f4.0 1/400s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 30.5mm f4.5 1/320s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 18.1mm f4.0 1/400s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 18.1mm f4.0 1/400s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 21.5mm f4.0 1/250s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 12.1mm f4.0 1/250s


Canon G10 @ ISO 400 30.5mm f4.5 1/100s


Canon G10 @ ISO 80 30.5mm f4.5 1/200s

I should also mention that I'm totally impressed with the way Lightroom handles the G10 RAW files. I'll talk more on that later when I get into a more detailed comparison of Canon DPP vs Lightroom for G10 RAW files, but suffice to say that Lightroom yields the best quality and fastest workflow you're going to find for processing your Canon G10 RAW files.



More on the Canon G10...

Shooting the G10 at ISO 800 and ISO 1600

Mrs. Ballard Shoots The Canon G10 - Straight Out Of Camera Jpegs

Shooting the Canon G10 With An Off Camera SB-26 Flash

5 Reasons To Sell Your Canon G10 And Buy A G11