Canon LEGRIA HF S30 Video & Picture Quality Review

3 July 2011, Singapore – After using and testing out the Canon LEGRIA HF S30 for 2 months, here’s our verdict. Focusing on its PROs & CONs from a general consumer’s perspective, the Canon LEGRIA HF S30 is a high performance camcorder packed in a small and light body, except that it comes with a hefty price tag too.

We’ve listed the simplified specifications of Canon LEGRIA HF S30 for our non-techie readers.

Full HD AVCHD video recording
8 megapixels still image recording
10x optical zoom
Stereo Condenser Microphone
3.5″ widescreen touch display panel
Electronic View Finder
32GB internal memory + Dual Card Slots for SD / SDHC / SDXC card
Auto Focusing: High-speed AF (Instant AF), Face Priority AF, Touch Focus, Manual AF
Dimension: Approx. 75 x 74 x 148mm
Weight: Approx. 470g

For the full specifications click here.

Here’s a short clip of some of the videos we took with the Canon LEGRIA HF S30 under various conditions. They are not digitally enhanced. (Or that’s a better way of saying that we’re not that advanced yet).

Here’s the clip:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wI5CypiXfwM

Table of Contents

Video quality:

The Canon LEGRIA HF S30 has impressed us as a high end camcorder that takes crisp & sharp videos under almost any type of lighting condition or event. The deers in Singapore’s Night Safari, under extreme dim lighting condition, is still captured in decent quality without being grainy. This camcorder comes packed with fantastic automated features that even amateurs like us can capture the moments with ease.

Auto & touch to focus:

With a touch panel display, you can touch any area you wish to focus while you are filming. It also has a subject tracking feature whenever you select a focus subject. The Automatic focus will work well for most scenarios, which also comes with face detection focus.

Image stabilizer:

My hands are not as stable as I wish they were. I was very impressed with the stabilizer when recording without a tripod. As long as you do not make big and sudden movements, the videos you take will not have that Blair Witch Project effect i.e super shaky videos that will caused viewers to throw up.

*Note: if you are using 10x zoom, its best to use it with a tripod for video recording, as any slight movement will be magnified 10 times (the videos will be a bit shaky even with stabilizer on).

Audio:

The microphone is very sensitive. It can pick up sounds made by insects from the surroundings which you usually would not notice (see the first part of the video above), and yet it can take fantastic sound bytes without any noise or distortions even when filming in front of a blasting speaker during an outdoor event (see Singtel AMPed Lady Gaga clip below). This is because the camcorder comes with Automatic Gain Control which will automatically adjust the sound recording when its too loud or when there is too much feedback (noise).

SingTel AMPed Lady Gaga – Lil’ Monsters GO GAGA @ Singtel

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_axC6WEoxGE

Manual controls:

There is also a customizable dial allowing for manual exposure, focusing, shutter speed, aperture and mic volume while filming. The only thing is there is only one Custom Dial for all these adjustments making multiple settings changes a little longer than usual. The Program mode saves videography newbies as it automatically adjusts the settings. So you do not need to worry which settings to use in which conditions.

Battery life:

The standard battery that comes in the package when you purchase the Canon LEGRIA HF S30 allows you to use the camcorder for less than 90 minutes on a full charge. That is never enough for us as the video footage that we take so that readers such as yourself can get to watch a more representative one of the event we are covering for SUPERADRIANME.com. It is best you carry with you extra batteries especially if you are traveling or if you are attending an important event. The package also comes with basic video editing software that lets you start your video projects immediately.

Conclusion:

The Canon LEGRIA HF S30 is simple to use and a great camcorder for any amateur who wants to take sharp and beautiful videos to keep or share them with friends and families. Canon LEGRIA HF S30 retails at S$2,299. In our opinion, even though that is a pricey but you get your money’s worth through the great quality video memories. Below are a few more videos captured with the Canon LEGRIA S30 and some still images that I’ve captured using the camcorder while filming at the same time. Oh yes, that is yet another great feature of the camcorder. It allows you to capture photos while you are videoing simultaneously.