Shooting starts without permission just by turning on the power. Canon's automatic shooting camera PowerShot PICK, which can do that, is finally on sale to the general public. Originally, we solicited support from crowdfunding Makuake, and within 10 minutes of the start, we reached 10 million yen and collected a total of 167.85 million yen, which shows the high degree of attention.
The concept of PowerShot PICK, which many people will be interested in, is to leave still images and videos to the camera. Specifically, it automatically recognizes the faces of surrounding people, and while moving the lens up / down / left / right, automatically adjusts the composition based on the position and size of the subject's face, and takes into consideration the subject's facial expressions. Automatic shooting is possible.
Pets such as dogs and cats cannot be recognized, but the biggest attraction is that they automatically record the moments of the family as images and videos.
When I asked a Canon developer who had the most difficulty in designing the automatic shooting function, he said, "I have to chase people who move around freely more than a general camera. I just suppress the blurring of the image when swinging the pan from side to side. Instead, it was necessary to devise the speed at which the bread was shaken. "
It is also said that "when there is a change in the image captured through the camera lens, the shutter is automatically released so that you do not miss a photo opportunity", and it can be seen that it was designed with an emphasis on leaving it to the camera. ..
By the way, the hardware is the same as the product sold in advance by crowdfunding, but the product scheduled to be released at the end of November is said to have improved the accuracy of automatic shooting and subject recognition due to the firmware update.
Many camera manufacturers have used the phrase "not to miss an important moment or a photo opportunity" (a technology that allows the camera to quickly focus on the subject and not delay the cameraman's judgment) in product promotion. But does the cameraman really want to capture an important moment by leaving it to the camera? The question came across my head. The point is that you don't want to rely on the camera's automatic shooting as much as a cameraman who is confident in his skills.
Regarding this point, Canon is proud to say, "I wanted to add a camera to the lineup that even beginners of cameras can handle, rather than professional photographers." PowerShot PICK is not just a matter of leaving it to the camera, but the fact that the subject itself can leave (record) videos and still images in a natural way without being aware of the camera is also an important factor hidden behind the slogan.
As I listened to the story, I came to understand the issues. First, as noted in the press release notes, it may not recognize that the mouth, nose, eyes, or contours are covered.
For example, if you have a party with PowerShot PICK while wearing a mask with Korona-ka, even automatic shooting will not work well, let alone recognition. However, it can be said that this point is within the permissible range because there should be few scenes in which people do not wear masks at this time and are crowded with family and acquaintances and appear together.
I thought that the fact that pets could not be recognized was the point I wanted to improve. Especially in the case of the author, I have a dog, so I wanted to take a picture of my precious memories / videos together. As of November 9, 2021, it was not possible to answer whether or not a next-generation machine will appear.
Another request for improvement is the data transfer method after shooting. Since PowerShot PICK does not have a display, all captured images / videos are checked with the app.
During the initial setup, he connects the PowerShot PICK to his smartphone via Bluetooth, but uses Wi-Fi for remote control and image / video transfer. According to Canon, some users want to connect both by wire to transfer images / videos, but at present this is not possible (software updates cannot solve the problem).
In addition, PowerShot PICK can be used not only at home but also outside, but it is not waterproof and dustproof, so it seems better to avoid using it in harsh environments.
There are also points to keep in mind regarding still image shooting and video shooting.
Regarding still image shooting, the point is that the image may deteriorate in the dark. Since the shutter speed is prioritized, the ISO sensitivity tends to increase. Also, since it is a product that is left to the camera, the shutter speed and ISO sensitivity cannot be changed by the user, of course.
When it comes to video recording, the time you can shoot at one time is limited. In official information,
It has become. Switching between automatic and manual is done in the app, not in the PowerShot PICK.
In addition, there are likely to be users who want to keep shooting with the PowerShot PICK, which has a palm size of 60 (width) x 90 (height) x 60 (depth) mm that can be used for fixed-point shooting and weighs about 170 g. However, Canon says that it is not a product that is intended for long-time shooting. Shooting will stop automatically when the specified continuous shooting time is exceeded.
Shooting data is recorded on the SD card, scores are given to the composition of photos and videos, and those with a low rating are automatically deleted, but it is also possible to keep only the ones that the user likes.
Photos and videos can be viewed on the smartphone (Android / iOS) app "Connect app for Mini PTZ Cam" (hereinafter referred to as the same app). With this app, you can change the shooting conditions according to the user's preference, and operate while looking at the screen of the smartphone.
Also, since the screw hole of the tripod is located on the bottom, it seems that you can attach the tripod to the PowerShot PICK and use it for outside location. That's where the travel log shooting function comes in handy. This is to attach location information to the captured image, so you can check where the photo / video was taken later.
However, this travel log cannot be confirmed with the same app, and it seems that it can be confirmed by removing the SD card of PowerShot PICK and inserting it into the smartphone. It's a tricky method, but at present, you can check the shooting location with the iPhone gallery or Google Photos app.
Among the functions installed in the app, the one that I liked was the one that gave me advice. For example, if you want to change the shooting location, the message "Why don't you change the location of the camera now?" In addition, even if you are alerted that the battery is dead or if you fall down due to an accident, you will be notified by a notification to your smartphone such as "Please check if the camera has fallen down". It's a beginner-friendly feature.
One of the selling points of PowerShot PICK is that it can be operated hands-free by voice.
If you call it like this, you can operate the above four types of operations only by voice. However, some users who purchased through crowdfunding are requesting that they respond to the call to "turn here" .... I would like to expect an update for this.
In addition, it can also be used as a webcam by connecting PowerShot PICK and his PC via Wi-Fi. It is a specification of Imadoki that telework is becoming commonplace due to Korona-ka. The condition is to install the PC application "Wireless Webcam Utility for Mini PTZ cam" (released in October 2021). The supported OS is Windows. A separate microphone is required as audio cannot be transmitted.
As I mentioned above, if you check each function of PowerShot PICK, let's overturn the conventional camera concept of holding the camera, focusing on the object and releasing the shutter, and leave it to the camera. Canon's idea is embodied. I felt that his PowerShot PICK was the most suitable camera for the purpose of taking pictures easily and leaving memories.
