Review of the Samsung GX-IS Digital Camera

The Samsung Company is one the pioneer of digital cameras global. My review is base on the Samsung GX-1S. I would start by giving the handling of this spectacular camera below.

Handling of the Samsung GX-IS

Grabbing of the Samsung GX-1S in my hands feels both secure and comfortable. The camera is light in weight (less than 520 g) and its dimensions (125x92.5x67 mm) are small enough to bring the camera with you all the time. The front of the Samsung GX-1S features the standard Pentax K lens mount with AF coupling. On the lower right side of the lens a lock button unlocks the lens from the mount. The self-timer LED can be found in the grip, while the Focus mode switch is located on the opposite side. The top of the camera features the pop-up flash compartment, external flash hot-shoe and a rather small status LCD panel. To the left you will find the mode dial with diverse exposure modes and scenes. The rear of the Samsung GX 1S holds the controls and the LCD monitor and optical viewfinder.

Several command buttons can be found left and right of the 2.5-inch monitor. The Secure Digital (SD) card slot is located in the grip. On the opposite side, behind a solid lid, the USB is hidden, as well as the A/V, DC input and cable switch interfaces. The Samsung GX-1S uses the very common Secure Digital flash card for storage. This type of memory card comes in various models. First of all you have the storage capacity, running from 16MB up to 2GB, secondly you have a difference in speed. Some manufacturers like Scandisk have even transformed the SD card into a dual function flash memory card: memory and USB interface in one package. Very handy! The captured images are recorded on the Secure Digital memory card. Before you open the SD compartment you have to make sure the camera is switched off. You need to press the unlock lever of the card compartment upwards in order to open the card cover. Insert the card all the way until you hear a click. Close the door and you are ready to capture your first shot. To remove the card, just push it until you hear a click. The card is now released and can be removed from the camera. The Samsung GX-1S dSLR is able to shoot 2.8 frames per second up to 8 frames (JPEG) or 5 frames (RAW).
GX-1S External flash GX-1S AE-L function GX-1S Focusing

Features of the Samsung GX-IS

The Samsung GX1S features an effective 6.1 Mega pixel resolution, incorporates an 11-point AF sensor, includes a high-speed consecutive shooting mode of up to 2.8 frames per second, up to eight frames in JPEG shooting and up to five frames per second when shooting in Raw Mode.

The External Flash of the Samsung GX-IS

At the side internal flash the Samsung GX 1S dSLR camera features a hot shoe so you will be able to use an external flash. Samsung offers an external flash, the Samsung SEF-36PZF. Using the optional SEF-36PZF external flash enables a variety of flash modes, such as P-TTL auto flash mode, high-speed flash sync mode, and wireless mode. Sometimes you need to lock and maintain the exposure to get the best result. The aperture and shutter speed are automatically adjusted to the appropriate exposure at that moment if the AE-L button is pressed in M (Manual) mode. One can then choose from the following three adjustment methods in (AE-L button on M exposure) in the C (Custom Setting) menu. In front, right below the lens, you find a button for the MF/AF mode. Selecting the AF mode lets the Samsung GX 1S dSLR focus when the shutter release button is pressed halfway. The MF (Manual focus) adjusts the focus by hand. In the AF mode you can choose from AF-S (single mode) and AF-C (continuous mode). Pressing the shutter release button activates focus, in MF mode the shutter release button for focus is deactivated.

Give it a try by buying this product and also take a look at this review.