Canon PowerShot SX500 IS 16.0 MP Digital Camera with 30x Wide-Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 3.0-Inch LCD (Black) OLD MODEL

This is my first Camera ever, bought in 2nd January 2014, and it still works. Only the display has some issues now a days, but other than that its working absolutely fine. Thank you my first love for staying with me for almost 12 years.

Really love this camera! It's great quality. The pictures are sooooo clear! Much better than my previous camera, definitely an upgrade. And good price too! A couple things to keep in mind: you ARE going to want a second battery if you're taking pictures often. I hate running out of battery and then having to wait for it to charge. And the self timer isn't quite the same as other self timers. I've figure out ways around both of those but just things to keep in mind! Overall, I'd definitely recommend this camera!

I got the SX500 IS as an upgrade from my 8 year old Lumix, not wanting to go full DSLR, but maybe something in between. Portable, inexpensive, yet with a high optical zoom and good image stability. There are undoubtedly other models with better features that take higher quality pictures, including Canon's own SX50, but none for under $200 that I could find. Checking on reviews at various sites also led me to believe the SX500 IS was at least comparable, and usually better than the other 30x "ultra" zoom cameras. After playing around with it a few days, mostly on the Auto setting, I'm very happy with the optical zoom and the image stability you get at 30x, better than I got with the Lumix at 10x. Macro shots at an inch or less look great, at least in good light. Low light shots get very grainy as the ISO kicks up to 800 very quickly so I'll be playing with the manual settings more there. Tons of those settings that I'll have to really study--as another review pointed out, this isn't a beginner's camera, but then I didn't want one and am willing to dive into the details a bit. Possible cons: movies are "only" at 720, but look plenty good (for 1080, maybe consider the SX50?). The aperture speed was rated low for this camera at just under 1 sec. Haven't taken any high speed shots yet, say a bird in flight, so I can't comment on it yet. The battery life is also supposedly short, but I always get a spare (2 for $15). My maybe biggest gripe is the awkward shape, which is to say the lens is very long, so the camera is very boxy. I don't want to get yet another dedicated camera bag, and it doesn't fit into any of my laptop backpacks or satchels very well. It's not a big camera, it's just not very flat in any 2 dimensions, so just... awkward. All in all, this was a fantastic value, and hopefully a gateway into better photography. I'll update this review after delving more into the finer points of the camera. Update (9/3/2013): I see the price has gone up past $250, and the "super zooms" have gone to 50X. Having done some sports stadium shooting from the back fence to full zoom on the field, I can capture closeups of plays, even fastballs leaving the pitcher's hand from 200-300ft away, so I'm more than happy with 30X, and the stability is very impressive, at least in full daylight (perfect conditions). Still need to test at, say, nighttime concerts, but I still think this is an excellent value, even in the $250 range, and a steal for under $200.

I am not sure what the mixed reviews are but this is a great fully functional camera. I am not a photographer, but I do love to take pictures. I started out with my iPhone and a Sony point and shoot. I realised I love taking pictures. So I did a lot of research this camera stood out. There is mixed reviews, but I continued to look at best buy, Walmart and amazon. The majority was anywhere from 4-5 stars all across the board. I even watched YouTube. So I decided for the price and just starting out I would give it a shot. Amazon sent it out and I began to use it. I have to say I love it, pictures are clear, movies are amazing. I began to take pictures at the lake, nature and my dog. Came out great. I know most are saying that the camera is not good for action shots and Lowe light, if you play around with the settings it's much better. It's not a fast camera but again you can play around with that setting as well. What I found to help me is that I ordered books like canon power shot digital photography and digital photography for beginners. They have helped with the understanding of this camera. This camera is small and compact, and it does a little of everything . It's great for me for just starting out and not mention I have has three back surgeries and unable to lug all that equipment around. Overall this is great camera small easy to use, great pictures and a lot of fun. Like I said I am no photographer by doing a little research you can have a wonder camera. One more thing order the tri pod and extra battery it helps for the 30 x zoom it is amazing. So if you are someone looking for great camera that takes great pictures and enough settings to feel as though you are a pro, this is worth every penny.

I love it very easy to use and the focus is amazing, pictures are very very clear and easy to download to pc.

Let me start off by saying, I'm not a photographer and I know this is not a professional grade camera. I purchased this camera so I could take nice pictures of my kiddos as they grow throughout the years, but my iPhone seems to take about the same quality of photos. However, when I purchased this camera, I didn't have an iPhone so it was a good investment at the time. This is a pretty lightweight, not so bulky camera that takes decent images for day to day capture. It has a nice zoom range, without compromising image quality too much. There's also a slot for a memory card and another for the rechargeable battery. For the price, it's a good camera and it's basic features makes it an easy one to use for most anyone.