Covid test (she was negative) I’m not sure why the flash didn’t fire here – maybe there was enough light reflecting off the covid test to fool it

The final feature of the Canon Sureshot Zoom XL that should be mentioned is the little remote control that neatly slides out of the underside of the camera, allowing for all kinds of selfie goodness. The remote shutter allows you to AF at half press and at full press take a shot either instantaneously, or after a 2 second delay. The remote control slides out of the camera’s base. It’s cute and convenient. The whole line of Canon Sure Shot cameras – which ran from 1979 to 2005 and was known as Autoboy in Japan – was designed to give the company a meaty slice of the consumer camera market. SPC for full-auto program EE. Metering range of EV 6 – 17 (at ISO 100). Film speed range of ISO 50 – 1600 (with DX code).The Canon Sureshot Zoom XL wasn’t my first camera, others came before it. I got into film photography shooting a nifty fifty on an Olympus OM body while I was on holiday. I don’t think I even had a battery for the meter. But according to Kirk Mastin’s sage advice I wouldn’t even need one if I shot everything at f4, 1/125 on 400 film in good light. True to his word, the shots were perfect and I fell in love with film.

The Sure Shot A1 model was a big hit, and judging on how many are still available and working with seals which are up to 24 years old at the time of writing, it is quite amazing. Weight: While every model is decently lightweight, the oldest model on the list weighs almost twice as much as the newest model.There is a built-in flash, with a guide number of 7.5m at ISO 100. Obviously, this above water and in the water it is only effective if the camera is set to the underwater/macro/fish setting which tops out at 1.5m. It’s also partly because there are so many variables at play. Was my film degraded? Was the developing bad? Is the camera, which is over 20 years old, in the same condition as yours? Did I expect to enjoy it so much?No, I thought it would be some fun, but it was that, and a whole lot more. The quality that it produces is way beyond what I expected and for such a low price. If you have a chance to buy one, jump on it, regardless of the name printed on it. Buy it, use it, and if you have more than one camera, keep it in your rotation during summer.

Upon a half press of the button the Canon Sureshot Zoom XL meters and focuses with an audible, reassuring whirr. There are two LEDs in the viewfinder, green and red. The red lamp lights solid when flash is charged or blinks to warn of camera shake in flash off mode. The green LED has to do with focus… and things get a little complicated here. If it’s solid, focus has been achieved in the range of one meter to infinity. If it blinks four times a second focus has been achieved in the range of 0.6 to 1 meter, but you should use the parallax correction marks for framing and AF in the viewfinder. Bizarrely, at the closer end of this range the lamp will then turn solid again, presumably still in focus but I haven’t tested it exhaustively. Move closer than 0.6m, however, and the lamp will blink at sixteen times per second, indicating that focus cannot be achieved because it is too close. This last warning light also may appear in general when the camera might not succeed in focusing on low contrast or horizontal patterns. I think Kirk Mastin’s advice was to film newbies – and I was one at the time – to not worry about metering and just get out there and take shots. Coming from the digital world it’s an absolute revelation to realise that you can take shots at totally “wrong” exposures and still get usable results. Six stops over with Portra 400 or Fuji 400H still gives an OK image. I guess it’s the same principle that disposable cameras work on. There’s just one exposure level and the latitude of C41 film does the rest. It was voted Camera of the Year in Europe as it had very advanced features for a camera at this time, and was ergonomically designed, making it easy to use. There is a hand grip that means your fingers are out of the way of the lens when taking a photograph, something that a lot of cameras did not have at the time. Electromagnetic programmed shutter and aperture. EV 6 (f/2.8 at 1/8 sec.) – 17 (f/16 at 1/500 sec.). Built-in electronic self-timer. Use Flash On mode whenever shooting underwater, or when seeking to soften shadows on subjects in bright light (see my examples of my daughter’s portrait at the beach). Flash Off should be used in low light situations (this mode will force the camera to make a long exposure), or in places where flash photography is prohibited (will I take this camera to Disney World? Probably). Red Eye Reduction Auto mode is the standard shooting mode in which the camera does all of the work – most people will use this setting exclusively. And the Underwater Macro mode is for shooting fishies whenever they swim between 1.5 and 3.3 feet away from your face.

Camera Specifics

Its lens is not as good as the Nikon L35AWs, but it’s almost indistinguishably close. It’s much smaller than the Nikon, and the Pentax 90WR. But the Pentax has a zoom lens. It’s not as durable as the Nikonos, but it is much more portable. It’s the cutest camera of the bunch, if that counts for anything. If you see this and don’t want the flash, you can release the shutter button, press the handily-placed no flash button on the front to turn it off, and focus again.