Canon PowerShot SX280HS

I have said this before when reviewing cool travel accessories, but we're both self-confessed gadget freaks. We love trying new things on the road, and on a recent romantic getaway to the Blue Mountains, we got to try a new camera - the Canon PowerShot SX280HS.

Anyone who's ever been to the Blue Mountains will know it's one of the top holiday destinations in NSW as well as being extremely photogenic. Blessed with a stunning landscape and plenty of wildlife, and being keen fans of hiking, it's the ideal spot to put a camera packed with features through its paces.

The PowerShot SX280 HS is powerful, compact and versatile, with a host of features tailored specifically towards the needs of travellers. Among them are a 20x Super Zoom with brilliant image quality, Wi-Fi and GPS; not only can you upload your images directly to a smart device, but it will also track where in the world the image was taken!

Its sleek, compact design with soft, curved edges is also a bonus, eliminating any extra bulk while you’re on the road; this is a camera you can slip easily into a shirt or pants pocket if you are on the move and don't want to carry much.

There are so many features on this camera, and whether you're a professional who doesn't want the bother or weight of a pro camera for a particular activity or location, or simply an amateur enthusiast, the basics perform sufficiently well to produce lovely images. 

You switch the unit on using a small black button on the top far right, while the shutter button (while a bit close to the on/off button) is larger and chrome so it stands out. There's also a dial with a wide variety of settings for Auto, Manual, Video etc, and the flash can be set to be automatic, or off, and a slim handgrip running up the front on the right hand side to help with stabilisation.

Key features of this camera include Canon's DiG!C 6 image processing technology, a 12.1 megapixel SMOS sensor, a 25mm wide-angle 20x optical zoom with 4-stop optical Image Stabiliser, and Full HD 60p video, ISO sensitivity up to ISO 6400. The DiG!C 6 system is designed to help the camera to capture top quality images in dimly lit conditions, as well as movies up to 60 frames per second, with 30 per cent more detail than the model's predecessors.

With cameras, however, the key question is how does it perform? The answer is very well, even in low light. We shot a range of images while hiking across several days in the Blue Mountains, with a combination of conditions including perfect weather (see the holiday destinations gallery here), dimly lit conditions deep in the Jamison Valley, and early morning foggy conditions.

We mostly shot outdoor images with and without flash; while descending the Giant Staircase from the Three Sisters in Katoomba, we photographed in what was the equivalent of indoors. If you've ever used a zoom lens, you'll know that shooting anything situated a long way off can be tricky, both in terms of stabilising the camera and getting a fully focussed, clear image. Add moving wildlife, in this case crimson rosellas, and you have an even greater challenge!

The camera, however, performed really well producing some excellent long distance images which were focussed and clear. Neither of us are big fan of shooting with cameras without a viewfinder, but the large and super sharp LCD made composing and executing images easy.

This is the sort of camera you could easily leave on auto and achieve great results, but we also pushed the shutter priority to 1/6 second under Katoomba Falls in low light to try and capture the water and give it that classic flowing effect. It worked fine and even without a tripod - the camera was rested on a railing - the surrounding forest was sharp.   

The PowerShot SX280 HS’s Wi-Fi function is great, however, as it allows users to share their photos by transmitting them to social networks, connected devices, or the internet for online back-up. Its inbuilt GPS automatically tags each picture or movie with the local time, and pinpoints the location in which it was taken, which makes it ideal for travellers who want to track their route, or remember the exact location of a perfect shot.

These enhanced functions don't drain the battery either. What else can we tell you about this nifty little camera? It is supplied with one battery and a charger and the power lasted extremely well given the features it has, and the battery recharges quite quickly, but as always we have a spare on hand for longer trips. The media it uses is an SD or SDHC card which isn't supplied, and it comes with with a strap, a USB cable to connect to a computer, and a CD with information, software and manuals.

All-in-all, this isn't one of the cheapest cameras around for its size, but it more than lives up to Canon's claims of having plenty of power, features and producing excellent quality images even in difficult conditions. A great addition to any camera collection, and for any traveller who wants a quality all-rounder which will do a great job as well as connect easily to social media and smart devices.