Review Date: April 18, 2011
Category: Point-and-Shoot
IMAGE QUALITY
The Samsung SH100 targets entry-level point-and-shoot photographers and features 14.2MP resolution (on a 1/2.33-inch CCD image sensor), a 5x wide-angle optical zoom (26-130mm Equiv.135) lens, and a maximum aperture of F3.3(W)-F5.9(T).
We find the overall image quality of the Samsung SH100 to be very good at ISO 80 with low noise and good image detail. Image quality is also good at ISO 100; at higher ISOs, images suffer from noise and loss of detail but you may be able to use them at small print sizes and for Web display.
| 5x Optical Zoom | |
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| Wide-angle 4.7mm (26mm, 35mm equivalent) |
Telephoto 23.5mm (130mm, 35mm equivalent) |
The Samsung SH100 has a 5x wide-angle optical zoom lens. In the above pictures, we show the coverage for 26mm and 130mm. We love the 26mm wide-angle coverage that allows us to capture wide landscapes. There is no [mechanical] image stabilization.
Macro can be as close as 5 cm (2 in.) at wide-angle. AF is fast, works very well in good light and in low-light, with the help of the AF-assist illuminator.
There are four metering modes: Spot, Multi-Pattern, Center-weighted, and Face Detection AE. As for auto focus, there are Center AF, Multi AF, One Touch Shooting (touch screen to immediately take a picture with focus set at that point), and Smart Touch AF (touch screen where you want camera to focus).
| Auto White Balance Indoors | |
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| AWB | Custom WB |
As the above two pictures show, the Auto White Balance (AWB) is quite accurate indoors under artificial lighting [I have two energy-saving fluorescent light bulbs on the ceiling]. The Samsung SH100 allows WB to be easily set manually and this brings out the real colors. AWB works very well in natural light.
| ISO Comparisons | |
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| ISO 80 | |
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| ISO 100 | ISO 200 |
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| ISO 400 | ISO 800 |
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| ISO 1600 | ISO 3200 |
The Samsung SH100 has 7 ISO settings going from ISO 80 to ISO 3200. The 100% crops above (area delimited by the white square) demonstrate the noise at the available ISO Speeds. At ISO 80, noise is under control and detail is well preserved. Noise starts to be visible at ISO 100 but is still very acceptable. Images up to ISO 400 have some detail loss but are usable. Images above ISO 400 are quite noisy but may be usable in small prints and for Web display.
CA is under control in everyday shots and is not much of a problem at all even in high contrast shots. The corner delimited by the red square at top left, and reproduced at 100% crop at bottom right, shows minimal purple fringing.
Our Long Shutter Speed test is a torture test for digital cameras. Here we test whether (and how well) a camera can lock focus, provide accurate WB and obtain a correct exposure in extreme low light situations. The SH100 passes this test surprisingly well: it focuses fast and precisely, and gets a correct exposure in Night mode.
The Samsung SH100 allows the use of a long shutter speed of up to 16 sec. in Night mode which surprisingly allows you to manually select a shutter speed (from 1 sec. to 16 sec., or Auto) and an aperture (3.3, 9.4, or Auto), thus acting as a pseudo manual mode. Some night photography is therefore possible. Generally, with image sensors, noise becomes more prominent at long shutter speeds.
To test this noise reduction algorithm, we take an extreme low-light shot. I experiment a bit to obtain the optimum exposure, eventually settling on 16 sec. at F9.4. Even at this long shutter speed, the Samsung SH100’s noise reduction seems to be working well, producing a nice smooth blurring effect of the background.
We find the overall image quality of the Samsung SH100 at ISO 80 to be very good with good details in the shadows and highlights. Images at ISO 100 are also low in noise. I would try not to go above ISO 400, though in a bind, images taken at higher ISOs may still look acceptable in small prints and for Web display.
View the Samsung SH100 Photo Gallery [In the Photo Gallery, click on the picture of the camera to return here.]
Next: Samsung SH100 Handling & Feel
