Experience the world up close with the Canon PowerShot ZOOM

Nature lovers, sightseers and sports fans can transport themselves into the heart of the action with the new Canon PowerShot ZOOM. A pocket-sized, monocular-shaped compact camera offering optical zoom to the equivalent of 100mm, 400mm and a digital zoom to 800mm, this camera enables you to capture subjects from a significant distance – all while remaining in the moment.

The Canon PowerShot ZOOM is an exciting, easy-to-use camera for anyone looking for long zoom features that they're not getting from their smartphones and mobile devices. It's ideal for both amateur photographers and families. Katy Stern, the blogger behind family travel site Otis and Us, which journals her outdoor adventures, tested the Canon PowerShot ZOOM on a woodland walk with her husband and three young children. Here she reveals what she thought of the new kit.

At just 145g, this pocket-sized camera won't weigh you down, making it ideal for taking with you on days out when you know you'll want a versatile zoom in addition to your smartphone camera. "I love the fact it's so small and compact," says Katy. "It's so easy to take out and about, and you can just grab it whenever you need it. Leaving the house can be difficult with kids because you have to carry so much – bags, coats, food, water – that sometimes there's not enough space for a big camera and lenses. This is the perfect solution."

For ease of use, the Canon PowerShot ZOOM has been designed with flexible charging in mind. You can power the unit at home via a USB-C connector using a compatible charger, or with a compatible portable power bank while out and about.¹ Once charged, it's capable of taking up to about 150 shots or shooting up to 60 minutes of video footage in total (10 minutes at a time).²

Because it's designed for one-handed shooting, Katy found the camera really simple and straightforward to use. "It's a great entry-level camera because it doesn't have loads of buttons or complicated instructions. You can just shoot and go," she says.

The electronic viewfinder (EVF) has the same specs you'd find in a mirrorless camera such as the Canon EOS M50 (2.36 million dots, 60fps refresh rate), so you simply point at the subject, compose the scene, zoom in to the required distance, and shoot. This makes the PowerShot ZOOM ideal for photographers of all ages and abilities. "Our eldest has been asking if she can have a camera like that for her birthday," says Katy. "She has really taken an interest in photography, which I'd like to encourage."

While out in the depths of a forest enriched with autumn colours, Katy found the camera's 1/3-inch sensor with 12MP resolution enabled her and her children to capture fast-moving wildlife by shooting stills at up to 10 frames per second. "I am by no means a professional photographer," she admits. "But I love taking pictures – that's what made me start the blog. I love taking photos of the kids and of our outdoor life, and I hope over the years I get better. This camera is good for all levels of ability, so hopefully it will help me to achieve that."

Although this compact camera is as light and as portable as a smartphone, that's where the similarities end. "This camera is as easy to carry around as my smartphone, but has the added benefit of a really impressive zoom" says Katy. Smartphone cameras typically have limited optical zoom, meaning no long focal length reach with effective image stabilisation. The Canon PowerShot ZOOM packs the equivalent of a 400mm telephoto lens into its compact form, with the option to use digital zoom up to 800mm, which takes you closer than is possible with a regular smartphone.

The resulting range should help nature enthusiasts, sightseers and sports fans to close in on those special moments which happen at a distance, such as skittish birds in the garden, lions lounging in trees in the Serengeti, intricate details of iconic landmarks, or the triumphant expression as an athlete accomplishes their goal.

Impressive range requires impressive image stabilisation, and the Canon PowerShot ZOOM's Optical Image Stabilizer is up to the task of keeping images steady and subjects sharp, even at these longer focal lengths. "The photos and footage from our adventure in the woods came out really well – really clear!" says Katy, who often finds herself surrounded by nature. "It was great to take photos, both of wildlife and the kids, that were so sharp."

While walking through the woodland, Katy and her family spotted a variety of wildlife to capture, often switching between 12MP stills and Full HD video footage. "I feel we often miss out on life because smartphones can be so distracting," says Katy. "The Canon PowerShot ZOOM is a very simple, non-distracting piece of kit that enhances the experience of being in nature. The zoom takes you that much closer, so you're as much in the moment as it's possible to be."

The camera's autofocus (AF) is great for focusing on main subjects quickly in good lighting conditions. Which other features did they find most useful? "Face recognition AF was an unexpected surprise," Katy says. "It meant I could follow my kids as they ran in and out of trees, just as easily as I could capture a rabbit hopping through ferns in the distance."

As well as bringing nature into the palm of her hand via the camera's EVF, Katy discovered that the camera could also share the live view to her smartphone via the Canon PowerShot ZOOM's built-in Wi-Fi and app connectivity using the free Canon Camera Connect app. This enabled the whole family to see the shot, get involved in framing or even trigger the shutter remotely.²

"It was really straightforward to connect to the app – we didn't even have to wait until we got home," Katy says. "We all loved the live view feature. Being able to use remote shooting brought the whole family together. You can all enjoy the moment and see what's taking place on screen as it happens. It was perfect for when the kids couldn't see what I was looking at. I could show them what I'd found hiding in the trees, simply by using live view in the Canon Camera Connect app on my phone – that was brilliant."

As well as saving stills and video on a microSD card you insert in the Canon PowerShot ZOOM⁴, you can also take advantage of the camera's connectivity to save content wirelessly to your smartphone, and from there share images with friends and followers on social media.

Written by Natalie Denton