Canon Vixia HG20 Camcorder Review

Of course, you do have the option of recording still photos while you're in video mode, as well – just hit the shutter button. There are only two sizes in this mode: 1920 x 1080 and 848 x 480.

When you're in the dedicated still recording mode, there many more options. You have four photo sizes to choose from: 1920 x 1080, 2048 x 1536, 1440 x 1080, and 640 x 480.

The auto exposure method can be set to Evaluative, Center-Weighted, and Spot. There are plenty of white balance options, as well as Digital Effects and Image Effects that control saturation and sharpening.

Drive modes include Single shot, Continuous Shooting, Hi-Speed Continuous Shooting, and Auto Exposure Bracketing.

Let's take a look at the various menus and what they offer.

The Joystick Menu contains the following items:

The Joystick Menu

The Photo Function Menu contains the following items:

The Photo Function Menu

The relevant portion of the Administrative menu contains the following options:

The Photo Admin Menu

Overall, the still photo controls on the Canon HG20 are quite good, as they mirror the controls found in the video recording mode. It's hard to make any camcorder a substitute for a dedicated still camera, given limited resolution, the mediocre (at best) performance, and the sheer physical size of the body, but the HG20 is decent as a temporary stand-in.

Still Performance (6.23)
The still performance of the Canon HG20 was tested by shooting an X-Rite Color Checker chart at an even, bright light, then sending the images over to Imatest imaging software to determine color accuracy, noise, and saturation.

At best, the Canon produced a color error of 9.63. The noise measured 1.4775%, and the saturation measured 108.1%. The color accuracy was about the same as the previous generation Canon HG10, and the noise was even a little worse this year. Comparatively, the Sony HDR-SR12 had much more accurate colors, but even more noise. The JVC GZ-HD40 produced slightly better colors and more noise. The Panasonic HDC-HS100 produced better color and much less noise. However, the Panasonic's resolution is so much lower than the rest of the bunch that it doesn't stack up in the long run.

Out of the lab, the stills from the Canon HG20 showed that, in a pinch, it could stand in for a dedicated still camera. The sharpness was good and colors popped. However, you can definitely spot the areas in which it would fail to compete with a real camera. The oversharpening is clearly evident where the edges of objects appear too contrasty to make them stand out. Also, in anything less than perfect light, the noise is a problem. Overall, however, it's not a bad performance.

Still Resolution (24.3)
The still resolution of the Canon HG20 was tested by shooting an Applied Image ISO 12233 resolution chart at an even, bright light. The stills are then sent to Imatest imaging software, which measures resolution in line widths per picture height (lw/ph). At best, the Canon HG20 produced a horizontal resolution of 1350 lw/ph, with clipping of 1.07%. The vertical resolution measured 1523 lw/ph, with a 1.31% clipping.

Comparatively, last year's Canon HG10 produced a higher resolution. The Canon HF11, this year's sister model, produced roughly the same results. The Sony HDR-SR12 produced a higher resolution. The JVC GZ-HD40 and Panasonic HDC-HS100 were much lower.