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A solid camera with a strong weight for comfortable handling and easy functionality, the Canon Legria HF S10 is a camera that sits in the top reaches of the middle-range it has been slotted into. This Legria has 32 gigs of flash memory built into its body. You can also make use of a memory card slot if you require additional space for your recordings. When you include the largest memory card available (a 32 gig SDHC memory card, available for purchase from SACamera) you have a total of 64 gigs of recording space. You will need to tell the camera to switch over to the card once you have filled up the internal memory. If you keep the recording setting on the lowest (long-play, 5 mbps), you can record a total of 12 hours on the internal flash memory and another 12 if you choose to include the 32 gig card.

The Canon Legria HF S10 has many of the same features as its sister models the HF10 and the HF11, as well as a number of additions. The key difference is the 32 gigs internal memory.

The 2.7 inch LCD is able to rotate in order to record at different angles. There is a plastic protective layer over the LCD and the bottom frame is equipped with a record button and all the usual play back options as well as a mini joystick to navigate through the menus and a menu Func access button.

The Legria has incredibly fast Auto Focus and a Super Range of ISO options. The camera is able to operate freely on automatic, but for the more creative at heart there are a number of manual controls to play with.

You are able to take video snapshots during recording and still images are captured at 8 MP.
The Legria is equipped with Face Detection enabling it to adjust lighting and contrast and colour settings in order to priorities skin tones during filming and still image capture.

Canon’s new DIGICDV III image processing allows for better colour reproduction and sharper image clarity. There is also a 1/2.6” CMOS image sensor and a feature called PRE-Record which caches 3 seconds of video before the recording starts. This it does by continuously recording and then deleting anything older than 3 seconds. It is a great feature for recording children and wildlife and sporting events. Just be warned that when this feature is turned on it will eat your battery and it is recommended that you take a spare battery with you.

There are colour bars which assist with lining up your output on external devices like monitors and TVs. There is also a Zebra Pattern which lets you know which areas of the screen are close to their brightness peak on red, blue, green and white channels.

The five recording modes on the Canon Legria HF S10:
MXP (High Quality, 24 Mbps)
FXP (High Quality, 17 Mbps)
XP+ (High Quality, 12 Mbps)
SP (Standard Play, 7 Mbps)
LP (Long Play, 5 Mbps)

The Canon Legria HF S10 has a Mini Advanced accessory shoe for adding external devices like lighting equipment, this shoe slides away on a hidden draw when it is not in use.
There is no viewfinder on this model, but where you would usually find a view finder, you will find the main power dial.

The Lithium Ion battery hides neatly and snugly on the back of the camera body.
On either side of the lens there is a left and right stereo microphone. The sound recording is high quality with excellent recreation of real life. On the rear upper side you will find the zoom toggle, Power button and the photo button.

There is editing software on the camera to assist with you your video after shooting.
On the front lower left of the zoom barrel you will find a manual Custom Control dial which you use to take control of the camera and adjust functions such as Aperture, audio input, Focus, white balance etc.

All in all I enjoyed using this camera and would recommend it for both experienced and new users alike.