Canon PowerShot S120 Compact Camera
Canon PowerShot S120 Compact Camera
The PowerShot S120 camera puts the world in your pocket with superb imaging, easy wireless sharing and touch-screen convenience. Newly expanded built-in Wi-Fi is a snap to set up; it lets you post to Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr, send to email, and share easily with your tablet, smartphone, networked PC and wireless PictBridge certified printer. Step up to a new level of image quality with a 12.1 Megapixel High-Sensitivity CMOS Sensor and DIGIC 6 Image Processor that together create the Canon HS SYSTEM, delivering rich natural color and beautiful clarity even in low light. Shoot with great definition at ISO speeds from 80 to 12800, and capture brilliantly realistic 1080p/60p Full HD video.
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Overview / Product Description
Advanced Imaging and Sharing with a Touch
The PowerShot S120 camera puts the world in your pocket with superb imaging, easy wireless sharing and touch-screen convenience. Newly expanded built-in Wi-Fi is a snap to set up; it lets you post to Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr, send to email, and share easily with your tablet, smartphone, networked PC and wireless PictBridge certified printer. Step up to a new level of image quality with a 12.1 Megapixel High-Sensitivity CMOS Sensor and DIGIC 6 Image Processor that together create the Canon HS SYSTEM, delivering rich natural color and beautiful clarity even in low light. Shoot with great definition at ISO speeds from 80 to 12800, and capture brilliantly realistic 1080p/60p Full HD video. The cameras bright f/1.8 lens captures the subtle nuances of low light, and the 24mm Wide-Angle lens and 5x Optical Zoom offer a wealth of shooting versatility. Experience incredibly quick full resolution continuous shooting with High Speed AF that focuses nearly the moment the camera is pointed. Operation is highly intuitive with a clear 922,000-dot 3.0-inch touch panel LCD screen with convenient Touch Shutter feature. Intelligent IS prevents blur in any situation. New star shooting modes help you capture the nighttime sky like a pro, and Background Defocus mode creates the beautiful background blur of a classic portrait. HDR shooting is another pro-style technique made easy, with several creative finishing options.
Share Images and Video, Wherever, Whenever
Built-in Wi-Fi gives you more options for sharing with friends, family and the whole world
The PowerShot S120 camera is equipped with built-in Wi-Fi technology for on-the-go convenience when you want to share your photos and videos with friends, family and the whole world. The camera can connect directly to both iOS and Android devices*, and upload images via the free Canon CameraWindow app** without a computer. And because the PowerShot S120 captures video using easy-to-share MP4 format, it's never been easier to upload video files. Easily post your images to social networking and media sites Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and now Flickr through CANON iMAGE GATEWAY# or save them to the online photo album to share anytime, anywhere. Enhanced Wi-Fi makes posting in real time possible, so you can keep everyone up to date with photos even as events unfold. Easily control the destination of your uploads to social networking sites; share with everyone, or send photos to selected groups. You can also add comments, even in other languages^. Transfer images to other Wi-Fi equipped PowerShot cameras, send images to your computer, or print your photos directly to a wireless PictBridge certified printer.
Enhanced Wi-Fi features make connecting and sharing easier than ever
Built-in Wi-Fi on the PowerShot S120 camera has new features that streamline set-up and sharing for a faster, easier, more comprehensive experience than ever. WEP Key input is no longer necessary, and you can even set up and manage your camera/web service transfer preferences without the use of a software CD or USB cable Wi-Fi and a web browser are all you need! And, new Automatic Switching through the Image Sync function makes saving and organizing your images easier##. When the camera finds a linked PC on the same wireless network, images are sent directly to it. Otherwise, images are temporarily stored on CANON iMAGE GATEWAY# then transferred once a connection is made, eliminating the need for cables.
Beautiful Images and Incredible Performance Start Here
12.1 Megapixel High-Sensitivity CMOS sensor
The PowerShot S120 camera employs a Canon 12.1 Megapixel High-Sensitivity CMOS sensor, which delivers state-of-the-art imaging performance and is optimized for use in compact cameras. Utilizing a sophisticated light-capturing design, it provides high sensitivity for improved high ISO capture with reduced noise. It is capable of rapidly capturing and moving image data to the processor, enabling faster continuous shooting and faster autofocus.
Canon DIGIC 6 Image Processor
The PowerShot S120 camera is equipped with the very latest Canon proprietary processor, the DIGIC 6 Image Processor, which makes several important advancements to image quality both in stills and video. Improved light sensitivity allows for higher resolution with less noise when shooting in dark conditions, and Dynamic IS now detects and compensates for tilt and parallel movement (shift blur) to create video that's exceptionally free of distortion. The DIGIC 6 Image Processor also enhances the performance capabilities of the PowerShot S120, powering full resolution high-speed continuous stills shooting (see dedicated section for more details). And video recording is better than ever, as the DIGIC 6 Image Processor enables Full HD at 60p, as well as MP4 recording. Highly compressed MP4 video not only preserves space on your memory card but also improves playback on mobile devices. Plus, with MF Peaking possible thanks to the new processor, you'll have a pro-level focusing tool at your disposal.
Canon HS SYSTEM for exceptional low-light performance up to ISO 12800
The PowerShot S120 camera gives you the power to create images with spectacular depth, detail and emotional resonance. The 12.1 Megapixel High-Sensitivity CMOS sensor works in concert with Canon's own latest-generation DIGIC 6 Image Processor to create the renowned Canon HS SYSTEM. With the Canon HS SYSTEM, you'll experience excellent tracking performance even in low light, and achieve gorgeous still image quality even at high ISO speeds all the way up to ISO 12800; beautiful low-light shots are possible with minimal noise and maximum detail in highlight and shadow areas. The Canon HS SYSTEM lets you use higher shutter speeds to capture clearer images with reduced noise and blur in a variety of situations for incredible photos and videos.
Full HD Video That's Better Than Ever
1080p/60p Full HD video
With the camera's advanced DIGIC 6 Image Processor enabling MP4 format recording, the PowerShot S120 camera lets you shoot Full HD video at a selectable frame rate of 60 fps or 30 fps (or 15 fps in Star Time-Lapse Movie mode). 1080p/60p Full HD video is extraordinarily smooth and rich in playback, ensuring that your important memories and creative film clips look their absolute best. Video recorded at 30 fps has also been improved through the combination of the DIGIC 6 Image Processor and Fine Movie Detail Processing, with reduced noise and high resolution. It's possible to use the full range of the zoom when capturing video, and sound is recorded in stereo for high-quality audio that complements the outstanding images. Plus, a dedicated movie button prominently located on the camera body and HDMI terminal enabling immediate output to an HDTV make the entire process of shooting to sharing convenient and easy.
A Bright and Powerful New Lens
A bright f/1.8 lens with 5x Optical Zoom and wide angle of view
Newly engineered for the PowerShot S120 camera, the 24mm Wide-Angle 5x Optical Zoom lens with a focal length of 5.226.0mm (35mm film equivalent: 24120mm) achieves f/1.8f/5.7, giving the user exceptional versatility. The large f/1.8 aperture achieves shallow depth-of-field for creating portraits with beautiful, soft background blur, and incomparable Canon optical technology delivers a high performance lens enabling incredible images, even in low light. The Wide-Angle lens gives your images a distinctive sweep and grandeur, capturing landscapes, cityscapes, tall buildings and wide groups of people with ease.
Continuous Shooting Gives You Exactly the Shot You Want
Full Resolution Continuous Shooting and High Speed AF
Powered by the DIGIC 6 Image Processor, the PowerShot S120 camera gives you a seamless, pro-like continuous shooting experience that's fully available in P, Tv, Av and M modes. Shooting and processing are now performed in tandem, eliminating buffering time to deliver speeds up to 9.4 fps***. Streamlined new processing makes the camera's High Speed AF the fastest in Canon compact camera history, achieving focus nearly the instant the camera is aimed. With no separate mode setting and no reduction in image quality, you can freeze brilliant action shots with ease.
As seen in the video, the PowerShot G16 can shoot continuously up to 522 shots at approximately 9.3 fps, and the PowerShot S120 can continuously shoot up to 635 shots at approximately 9.4 fps when using an SDHC/SDXC UHS-I card based on Canon's standard test method.
Enhanced Touch Panel Capabilities
Capacitive 3.0-inch touch panel LCD with a sharp, clear display and easy operation
Anyone familiar with today's touch screens will feel comfortable using the PowerShot S120 camera right away. The big 3.0-inch capacitive touch panel LCD responds to familiar one- and two-finger touch operations. Users can spread and pinch to change the magnification in playback, drag two fingers to switch display, use the easy interactive Touch Shutter, and quickly select camera settings. You can even adjust the panel's touch sensitivity to your liking. The camera's sophisticated control ring, located at the base of the lens barrel, can be used in conjunction with the Touch Panel to conveniently access a range of additional actions. Plus, an impressive 922,000 dots of resolution allow you to review your images in crisp, clear quality.
Capture the Night Sky Like Never Before
New star shooting modes
Starry skies were formerly out of reach to all but experienced SLR camera users, but new star shooting modes on the PowerShot S120 camera make these wonderfully impressive images accessible to all. With just a tripod and simple settings, you can capture exquisite Star Nightscapes, Star Trails, and Star Time-Lapse Movies. The modes can be performed fully automatic or with manual controls for extra versatility. Support functions including Night Display and Star Emphasis have also been added, making any starry sky easier to capture.
Give Any Snapshot the Look of a Professional Portrait
Background Defocus mode
Professionals emphasize subjects by creating beautiful background blur with a wide aperture lens. The PowerShot S120 camera lets you achieve this effect digitally with Background Defocus mode, even in scenes with noisy backgrounds or backlighting. Choose AUTO, or take more creative control over the degree of the effect with Low, Medium and High settings to imbue regular snapshots with the soft, pleasing background found in classic portraits.
Optimal Image Stabilization in Any Situation
Intelligent IS automatically chooses from six different modes to optimize image stabilization for the shooting condition
It's easy to capture clear, steady images with the PowerShot S120 camera, even in low light without using a tripod. That's because the camera is equipped with Canon's innovative Intelligent IS. The system analyzes camera movement and applies the best shake correction method for the shooting situation allowing you to focus on framing and capturing your shot. For stills, the system automatically selects among Normal, Panning, Macro (Hybrid) and Tripod IS modes. When shooting video, the system automatically selects among Dynamic, Powered, Macro and Tripod IS modes.
- Normal Corrects for a wide range of camera movement when shooting stills.
- Panning Panning motion is detected so that IS does not interfere with desired camera movement.
- Macro (Hybrid) Corrects for shift-type camera shake, which typically occurs in macro (close-up) shooting.
- Dynamic Effective for video shooting at wide-angle focal lengths, eliminating the unwanted shaking that typically occurs while walking.
- Powered Compensates for hand movement when shooting video at the telephoto end of the zoom range, where camera shake is magnified.
- Tripod When tripod use is detected, the Image Stabilizer is stopped because it is not needed.
High Dynamic Range Scene Mode with new sub-modes
Shooting in high-contrast environments can often result in photos with overexposed and underexposed sections. To tackle this problem, Canon developed the High Dynamic Range shooting mode to make shooting even more intuitive. Under High Dynamic Range, the camera will shoot three different exposures in a succession (underexposed, overexposed and normal) and then merge them into a single image. Underexposed areas are combined with the overexposed and vice versa, resulting in an evenly detailed image with flattering shadows and highlights. With the PowerShot S120 camera, a tripod is not always necessary, plus the camera features artistic sub-modes Art Standard, Art Vivid, Art Bold, Art Embossed and Natural, which add dynamic, creative effects depending on the ambience you want to convey.
Additional Features
Full range of shooting and recording modes including 12-bit multi aspect RAW+JPEG, as found in Canon DSLR cameras, for the ultimate creative control
As with many EOS DSLR cameras, the PowerShot S120 camera uses a 12-bit converter to process the output of the CMOS sensor, resulting in true color, smooth tonal transitions and natural gradations. The PowerShot S120 lets you shoot in RAW mode, which records all the information captured by the sensor, giving you outstanding flexibility and complete creative control when editing your images with Canon's powerful bundled software, and the camera allows you to record in RAW and JPEG formats simultaneously. Now in RAW mode, you can even select among several aspect ratios, including 16:9, 3:2, 4:3, 1:1, and 4:5.
Hybrid Auto creates a beautiful and steady 720p HD video clip every time you shoot a still image
Hybrid Auto records up to four seconds of video every time you shoot a still image, then automatically joins the clips and pictures* into a video that captures the essence of special days: vacations, important occasions, any time you're shooting many shots in a day. With Hybrid Auto, this highlight reel is more beautiful than ever. Hybrid Auto automatically recognizes the scene and optimizes camera settings to capture the highest possible image quality. The resulting 720p HD video is properly exposed, crisp and steady.
* Pictures can be withheld from the resulting video via menu settings.
Control Ring
Focus, aperture, shutter speed, ISO, step zoom, exposure compensation, aspect ratio, i-Contrast, or white balance can be adjusted more quickly and conveniently with the PowerShot S120 camera's control ring. Located at the base of the lens barrel, the ring is more intuitive than other types of controls for many experienced photographers. The functions that can be assigned to the control ring vary with shooting mode, and you can set your preferences quickly using the dedicated ring function selector button.
Shooting Modes
The PowerShot S120 camera offers shooting modes that make it easy to take perfect photos in a wide range of shooting situations by providing intelligent presets with optimized settings.
- Custom Define and store your own settings to achieve the effects you prefer.
- Manual You have complete control of exposure, selecting both aperture and shutter speed manually.
- Aperture-priority You set the aperture, controlling depth-of-field. The camera automatically selects the shutter speed.
- Shutter-priority You select the shutter speed to stop or blur action, and the camera finds the appropriate aperture. With slow exposure times, Canon's noise reduction system activates to ensure low image noise.
- Program Access advanced exposure compensation features while shooting mostly automatically.
- Movie Digest & Hybrid Auto Automatically selects shooting settings for optimal quality and records a video clip every time you capture a still image. One day's worth of clips and images are then combined into a single video.
- Smart AUTO The camera automatically selects the best shooting settings for optimal quality based on subjects and environmental factors to provide point-and-shoot simplicity.
- Portrait The camera sets a large aperture, focusing the subject and artistically blurring the background to make your subject pop.
- Smart Shutter The camera automatically takes the photo when people smile, wink, or get into frame.
- Star shooting modes Capture beautiful images of the night sky with three different modes: Star Nightscapes, Star Trails, and Star Time-Lapse Movies.
- Handheld Night Scene Take clear and steady pictures at night without the use of a tripod.
- Underwater Capture underwater images with reduced backscatter effect. Optional Underwater Case required.
- Snow Shoot clear snow scenes without darkened subjects or an unnatural bluish tint.
- Fireworks Grab brilliant images of skyrocketing fireworks.
- Creative Filters This setting provides easy access to special filter effects and scene modes, such as Toy Camera Effect, Poster Effect, Monochrome and more.
- High Dynamic Range The camera combines three different exposures to get one evenly lit image.
- Nostalgic Create the look and feel of old photographs using sepia tones and black-and-white.
- Fisheye Effect Add a classic photo distortion without a fisheye lens.
- Miniature Effect Emphasizes perspectives for a miniature effect by blurring upper and bottom portions of the image.
- Toy Camera Effect Simulates photos taken with toy or pinhole cameras, darkening the image at the edges to create a vignette effect.
- Background Defocus Creates attractive background blur, selectable in three different levels, to imbue photos with the look of a classic portrait.
- Soft Focus Creates a hazy ambiance that's perfect for portraits and wedding photos.
- Monochrome Choose from three single-tone effects: Black-and-White, Sepia, or Blue.
- Super Vivid Super Vivid intensifies existing hues, saturating the scene with bright colors.
- Poster Effect Poster Effect combines several similar shades into one color, turning subtle gradations into eye-catching, scene-popping contrasts.
- Movie Record video in stereo sound. Unwanted scenes can be deleted in playback mode.
- Super Slow Motion Movie Record your clips in high speed (approx. 240 fps), and then watch your videos in slow motion.
Direct Connect to Your Printer
It's quick and easy to make beautiful prints from your PowerShot camera with Canon's Direct Print system. Directly connect your PowerShot camera to a Canon PIXMA or SELPHY photo printer with a USB cable and simply press the button to print; turn every favorite moment into an amazing photo.
Available in 30 Languages
There are now a total of 30 display languages from which you can choose: English, German, French, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, Italian, Norwegian, Swedish, Spanish, Simplified/Traditional Chinese, Japanese, Russian, Portuguese, Korean, Greek, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Turkish, Thai, Arabic, Romanian, Ukrainian, Farsi, Hindi, Malay, Indonesian and Vietnamese.
Specifications
Type
Compact digital still camera with built-in flash, 5x Optical, 4x Digital and 20x Combined Zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer
Image Capture Device
Type
12.1 Megapixel, 1/1.7-inch CMOS
Total Pixels
Approx. 12.8 Megapixels
Effective Pixels
Approx. 12.1 Megapixels
Lens
Focal Length
5.2 (W) - 26.0 (T) mm (35mm film equivalent: 24-120mm)
Digital Zoom
4.0x
Focusing Range
Normal: 2.0 in. (5cm) - infinity (W), 12 in. (30cm) - infinity (T)
Auto/Manual: 1.2 in. (3cm) - infinity (W), 12 in. (30cm) - infinity (T)
Macro AF: 1.2 in. - 1.6 ft. (3-50cm) (W), 12 in. - 1.6 ft. (30-50cm) (T)
Quick: 4.9 - 66 ft. (1.5 - 20m) (W,T)
Autofocus System
TTL Autofocus, Manual Focus
Viewfinders
Optical Viewfinder
Not available
LCD Monitor
3.0-inch TFT Color LCD with wide viewing angle capacitive touch-screen panel
LCD Pixels
Approx. 922,000 dots
LCD Coverage
Approx. 100%
Aperture and Shutter
Maximum Aperture
f/1.8 (W), f/5.7 (T)
Shutter Speed
1-1/2500 sec.
15-1/2500 sec. (in Tv mode)
250-1/2500 sec. (in M mode)
Exposure Control
Sensitivity
Auto, ISO 80-12800 (in P mode)
Light Metering Method
Evaluative*, Center-weighted average, Spot**
* Facial brightness is evaluated in Face Detection AF
** Metering frame is fixed to the center
Exposure Control Method
Manual Exposure, Program Shift, Safety Shift, AE Lock
Exposure Compensation
Still Images: 3 stops in 1/3-stop increments
Videos: 3 stops in 1/3-stop increments (not available during shooting)
White Balance
White Balance Control
Auto*, Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Fluorescent H, Flash, Underwater, Custom 1, Custom 2
* Camera automatically sets the optimal ISO speed according to shooting mode.
Flash
Built-in Flash
Auto, Flash On, Slow Synchro, Flash Off
Flash Range
1.6 ft. - 23 ft. (W), 1.6 - 7.5 ft. (T) (50cm - 7m (W), (50cm - 2.3m (T))
Image brightness may diminish depending on the shooting distance.
Recycling Time
10 sec. or less (battery voltage: 3.7 V)
Flash Exposure Compensation
2 stops in 1/3-stop increments
Shooting Specifications
Shooting Modes
C, M, Av, Tv, P, Hybrid Auto, Auto, SCN*1, Creative Filters*2, Movie*3
*1 Portrait, Smart Shutter*4, Star*5, Handheld Night Scene, Underwater, Snow, Fireworks
*2 High Dynamic Range, Nostalgic, Fish-eye Effect, Miniature Effect, Toy Camera Effect, Background Defocus, Soft Focus, Monocrhome, Super Vivid, Poster Effect
*3 Standard, Super Slow Motion Movie
*4 Smile, Wink Self-timer, Face Self-timer
*5 Star Nightscape, Star Trails, Star Time-Lapse Movie
Photo Effects
My Colors Off, Vivid, Neutral, Sepia, Black & White, Positive Film, Lighter Skin Tone, Darker Skin Tone, Vivid Blue, Vivid Green, Vivid Red, Custom Color*
*Adjustment of contrast sharpness, saturation, red, green, blue and skin tone are available
Self Timer
Approx. 10-sec. delay/approx. 2-sec. delay/custom*
*Delay time (0-15 sec. (in one-second increments), 20/25/30 sec.) and number of shots (1-10 shots (in one-shot increments)) can be specified.
Wireless Control
Not available
Continuous Shooting
- Normal: Approx. 12.1 shots/sec.; 9.4 shots/sec* (in P mode)
- AF: Approx. 5.5 shots/sec. (in P mode)
- LV: Approx. 5.6 shots/sec. (in P mode)
- Under conditions where the flash does not fire automatically
- Differs depending on the zoom position *From the sixth shot
Image Storage
Storage Media
SD/SDHC/SDXC and UHS-I Memory Cards
File Format
Design rule for Camera File system, DPOF (Version 1.1) compliant
Image Recording Format
Superfine / Fine
JPEG Compression Mode
Still Image: Exif. 2.3 (JPEG)
Video: MOV (Image: H.264; Audio: Linear PCM (Stereo))
Number of Recording Pixels
Still Images:
1) 16:9 - Large: 4000 x 2248; Medium 1: 2816 x 1584; Medium 2: 1920 x 1080; Small: 640 x 360; RAW: 4000 x 2248
2) 3:2 - Large: 4000 x 2664; Medium 1: 2816 x 1880; Medium 2: 1600 x 1064; Small: 640 x 424; RAW: 4000 x 2664
3) 4:3 - Large: 4000 x 3000; Medium 1: 2816 x 2112; Medium 2: 1600 x 1200; Small: 640 x 480; Raw: 4000 x 3000
4) 1:1 - Large: 2992 x 2992; Medium 1: 2112 x 2112; Medium 2: 1200 x 1200; Small: 480 x 480; RAW: 2992 x 2992
5) 4:5 - Large: 2400 x 3000; Medium 1: 1696 x 2112; Medium 2: 960 x 1200; Small: 384 x 480; RAW: 2400 x 3000
Videos:
Full HD 1920 x 1080: 60 fps (59.94), 30 fps
Full HD Star Time-Lapse Movie: 15 fps
HD 1280 x 720: 30 fps (29.97)
Miniature Effect HD 1280 x 720: 6 fps / 3 fps / 1.5 fps
Miniature Effect 640 x 480: 6 fps / 3 fps / 1.5 fps
Super Slow Motion Movie 640 x 480: 120 fps
Super Slow Motion Movie 320 x 240: 240 fps
640 x 480: 30 fps (29.97)
Number of Recordable Images
Image data
16:9 | 3:2 | ||||||
File Size (KB) | 8GB | 32GB | File Size (KB) | 8GB | 32GB | ||
Large (L) | SF | 4,507 | 1,729 | 6,980 | 5,134 | 1,515 | 6,118 |
F | 2,915 | 2,640 | 10,659 | 3,247 | 2,384 | 9,624 | |
Medium 1 (M1) | SF | 2,630 | 2,923 | 11,801 | 2,914 | 2,640 | 10,659 |
F | 1,814 | 4,234 | 17,091 | 1,945 | 3,961 | 15,989 | |
Medium 2 (M2) | SF | 1,095 | 6,822 | 27,537 | 899 | 8,187 | 33,044 |
F | 604 | 12,280 | 49,567 | 496 | 14,448 | 58,314 | |
Small (S) | SF | 188 | 35,089 | 141,622 | 221 | 30,703 | 123,919 |
F | 113 | 49,125 | 198,271 | 133 | 40,937 | 165,225 | |
RAW | RAW | 17,680 | 442 |