Canon SX720 HS review – biggest ever 40x zoom in a compact

Image quality

Photo quality is what really matters for most people, and in the majority of my test shots the SX720 HS punched well above its weight. Colours were vibrant and flattering, although even in bright conditions there was some evidence of noise, particularly in skin tones, and dense foliage and grass lacked clarity. These problems are hard to avoid with a small 1/2.3in sensor.

Focus was pretty good through most of the zoom range but telephoto shots weren’t so impressive, with a distinct haziness to details. I also found that the autofocus in telephoto shots was often slightly off the mark, and sometimes completely off.

Overall exposure levels were expertly judged but the camera sometimes chose odd shutter and ISO speeds. This appears to be down to the camera attempting to raise the shutter speed to avoid motion blur in moving subjects. Sometimes this worked well, but on other occasions it appeared to be confused by camera shake just before taking a picture.

Another issue was that the ISO speed rarely ventured beyond 800, which sometimes meant excessively slow shutter speeds, particularly for telephoto shots. Raising the ISO speed manually to its maximum 3200 setting resulted in heavy, detail-smudging noise reduction, but the results were still on the right side of acceptable.^ A perfectly exposed shot with flattering colours and plenty of detail in the clouds and shadows. The castle looks sharp but focus deteriorates a little towards the edges and the grass texture is lost to noise reduction.  (1/800s, f/4, ISO 80, 24mm equivalent)^ Another successful exposure, although there’s a slight graininess to skin textures on close inspection. (1/640s, f/4, ISO 80, 52mm equivalent)^ The subtle textures in this wide-angle shot are smudged by noise reduction but it’s not a bad result. (1/50s, f/4, ISO 80, 24mm equivalent)^ It’s a different story at the long end of the zoom in overcast weather. The narrow f/6.9 aperture has pushed the ISO speed up to 800, and combined with slightly soft focus, it’s a bit of a syrupy mess. (1/30s, f/6.9, ISO 800, 960mm equivalent)^ Shooting at the long end of the zoom in direct sunlight gives much better results. There’s enough light to keep the ISO speed at its minimum setting. Focus isn’t pin sharp, though. (1/320s, f/6.9, ISO 80, 960mm equivalent)^ Considering that some noise is visible even in bright conditions, image quality holds together well in low light. (1/20s, f/3.3, ISO 1000, 24mm equivalent)^ I had to raise the ISO speed manually to 3200 to avoid motion blur in this telephoto shot in shady conditions. Details are smudged but it’s a surprisingly respectable result nonetheless. (1/20s, f/6.9, ISO 3200, 960mm equivalent)^ For some reason the camera chose a 1/1,000s shutter speed for this static shot, pushing the ISO speed up to 250. There’s more noise reduction than is necessary but it’s far from a bad result. (1/1000s, f/3.3, ISO 250, 24mm equivalent)^ This shot, on the other hand, could have done with a faster shutter speed to avoid motion blur. (1/60s, f/5, ISO 100, 131mm equivalent)

Conclusion

I’m not convinced that the 40x zoom is a big asset compared to the 30x and smaller zooms in other pocket ultra-zoom cameras. Personally, I’d much rather have a Panasonic FZ330 (or its more affordable predecessor, the FZ200) with its 24x zoom and constant f/2.8 aperture, but then that’s a bulkier camera so it’s an unfair comparison. I did manage to capture a few telephoto shots where everything came together — direct sunlight, a relatively sedentary subject with high contrast to help the autofocus — and the 40x zoom proved its worth.

Ultimately, though, the record-breaking zoom isn’t this camera’s defining feature. Its best photos are taken at more modest zoom positions, and these shots were generally excellent. The extra bit of zoom is there when you really need it, but don’t expect pixel-perfect shots. There’s not much to choose between this and the Panasonic TZ80 for image quality, so it’s more a question of whether to spend more on the TZ80’s superior video mode, touchscreen and electronic viewfinder.