by Douglas Stevenson
JVC's GC-QX3U ($1,099 MSRP) is a great full-auto digital
camera with plenty of special features to excite any advanced consumer.
The digicam's biggest plus is that it shoots a 3.3-megapixel (MP) image that can be captured totally uncompressed as a TIF file for maximum image quality. The 3.3MP image size translates into a picture that is 2032x1536 pixels. Unfortunately, however, you won't be able to store that big of an uncompressed file on the supplied 8MB SmartMedia memory card. You'll have to upgrade to at least a 16MB or 32MB card to accommodate these large images.
Of course, to fit more images on the supplied SmartMedia, there are several options. You can reduce the number of pixels to either a 1024x768 resolution or go all the way down to the standard VGA 640x480 resolution. The other method is by changing the amount of applied JPEG compression, selecting an image quality of Fine or Standard. Depending on which resolution and compression level you choose, the supplied 8MB media card will store anywhere from three (at IMP) to 87 pictures. Confused? It's simple, just buy a bigger card, and you'll be fine!
Size, Feel & Layout
The GC-QX3U is a moderately sized camera, the body measuring 2 1/4-inches deep by 4 5/16-inches wide by 2 9/16-inches tall. The body seems extra wide due to the lens housing, which protrudes a full half-inch out from the body. Turning on the power causes the lens itself to extend out another half inch in wide-angle mode, retracting back into the body for telephoto. The overall feel is comfortable, with strategically placed finger grooves and protrusions to aid in gripping the camera for capturing your images.
Along the top are all of the relevant displays and controls. There are numerous buttons which give you easy and direct access to various manual features, a plus for the active photographer. The upper back edge of the body is beveled and the home for another array of buttons and controls. To the far right is the rotating dial for selecting Auto or Manual shooting, Video Capture, and the various settings, such as image size and compression. Next to it are the Zoom control, a mode selector button, a four-position joystick-style selector, buttons for executing menu commands and another one for powering the LCD monitor.
Center top is the location of the digicam's LCD information display. This is communication central for vital operation info, like remaining battery power, flash settings, Auto/ Manual modes, and the number of images that you can take before the card is full.
As mentioned before, direct access to features from the numerous buttons delivers some distinct advantages. For example, there is a +/- button, which allows you to bracket the exposure of your photos in steps. First, you rotate the dial to Manual mode, then you press the +/- button to enter the Bracketing mode. The last step is to cycle through the various iris steps, pressing right or left on the joystick control.
Each step provides an increase or decrease of exposure in 0.5EV increments. Watching the monitor display, you can immediately see if making the image brighter or darker can improve your results. 'The range runs front -2.0EV to +2.OEV.
The Iris control, in the same button array, gives you manual control over f-stops. The process is roughly the same. Go to Manual mode, press the Iris button, then cycle through the options, starting at f2.8/3.8 and going to f5.6, f8, f11, or back to the Program mode, which sets iris exposure and shutter speed automatically. Smaller f-stop numbers mean faster shutter speeds, while larger numbers mean slower shutter speeds and greater depths of field. When shooting a night scene, for instance, and selecting the f2.8/3.8 setting, the GC-QX3U will automatically choose a shutter speed of 1/750 of a second to as long as two seconds, in which case you had better have your tripod handy.
There is the usual range of flash options. The built-in flash can be turned Off, Forced On, or set to Auto. There is also the standard Red-Eye Reduction option. As well, Macro Focus is available and uses the traditional flower icon. In this mode, you can capture a subject as close as two centimeters.
Another control to mention is the Self Timer. You can choose between a one-second and a ten-second delay before the GC-QX3U takes a picture. Ten seconds gives you adequate time to join the crowd and get in front of the camera before the picture is taken. But, may I ask, what does one second do for you?
The GC-QX3U has some uncommon shooting modes engineered to give you the highest-quality images, and each utilizes the one-second timer. The 6M Pro-Still pixel-shift mode gives you a picture with double the normal resolution by essentially taking two pictures and combining them into one. The GC-QX31J takes one picture and then immediately takes a second with a one-pixel shift. The two images are then combined together into a single image. (It is similar to the way standard television works, where two separate "fields" of video are combined to create a single "frame.")
The result is a super high-resolution image with superior clarity and detail. This option automatically sets the camera to its highest 2032x1536 resolution, hence you'll need to have a 16MB or higher memory card on hand, because the resulting file is so huge.
The DR Pro mode uses two exposures to create an image. One shot judges exposure from the brightest portion of the subject at hand, while the other registers its setting from the darkest areas. The two exposures are then combined into a single image with greater dynamic range, eliminating the washed-out white or dark-black areas, often common with other digital camera images. Again, the self timer is activated, so a tripod is suggested, and a 16MB card is a must.
In the NR Pro-Still mode, the NR stands for Noise Reduction. When shooting in low-light conditions, a captured image can often appear grainy due to the amount of noise that is amplified in order to boost the signal enough for the camera to get any image at all. With the NR Pro-Still mode- the GCQX3U uses several exposures to collect more information about the setting being captured. Then, it compares them to extract the signal and eliminate the noise. The resulting picture is much cleaner, in shot, a much better image.
The GC-QX3U gives you a few special effects common in most digicams, such as shooting in B&W or applying a sepia tone to the image. The Collage mode is something different, however. It allows you to combine two images into one, using a bit of digital magic known as luminance keying. Place your subject in front of a white wall and take a picture. You can then place your subject on top of another picture you have captured, and the white wall becomes transparent, revealing the new background. Of course, your subject better not have on a white shirt or that will disappear too!
White balance is a very important feature on digicams, and on many models is an automatic function. It determines the quality and type of light present during image capture and adjusts the camera's internal settings so that all colors are true and accurate. The color temperature of full sunlight is much different than that of a cloudy day. Incandescent, or indoor, light has a much lower color temperature than outside light and so on. A digital camera must compensate for color temperature fluctuations.
By making these adjustments manually, you can better insure that your pictures will look their best. The GC-QX3U offers presets for Outdoor Sunny, Outdoor Cloudy and Indoor lighting, or you can do a true manual white balance adjustment. Zoom and focus on a white object, be it a wall, a shirt or a piece of paper. Upon capturing the white image, the GC-QX3U uses this as the reference for white, and it will make and save the necessary adjustments. Just remember that if you change locations, yon may need to reset the white balance again.
If you are shooting in low light but don't, or can't, go to all of the trouble of the NR Pro mode, the GC-QX3U does give you another option. In the digicam's Manual mode, you can select the Sensitivity gain and choose between three levels of signal boost. Granted, there will be some noise introduced into the image, but at least you'll get the shot.
The GC-QX3U's optical lens range of 2.3 to 1 is a bit less than what you find on most other digital cameras, but it is adequate. There are, however, digital zoom options that can be applied to increase your magnification. If you drop down from the 2032x1536 resolution to the 1024x768 image size, you can perform a digital zoom magnification of 2X without much notice of pixelization. Go down to 640x480, and you can easily engage the 2X or 3.2X zoom magnification.
While the Continuous Shooting mode is nothing extraordinary, you do have some flexibility with this digicam. Again, you must drop down to the 1024068 resolution. You can then shoot two continuous photos. You must press the Shutter button for one full second and if there is need for a flash, it will only flash for the first picture.
You have a few different focus options on the GC-QX3U. Of course, there is basic Auto. This uses a Mufti-image analysis to judge the entire scene, making sure that the subject stays in focus and you don't run into a situation where the background is in focus and foreground is out of focus. However, if you are still having trouble getting the subject to be in focus, you may want to try out the Spot metering. This narrows down the area the camera uses as a reference for adjusting the lens focus to a small spot in the center of the picture.
You also have the option of making manual focus adjustments. Basically, you enter the Manual mode, choose the Focus option, and press the joystick to run the lens through the range of adjustments. As well, you have the option of selecting a fixed focus of 8 feet or infinity.
For general Auto operation, you press down the Shutter button half way and give the GC-QX3U a moment to adjust the focus. The green standby lamp blinks and then stays on, indicating the focus is set, and the camera is ready. You then press down the rest of the way to snap the picture. Another Auto-Focus mode, AF-C, works in a similar fashion in that you press down half way before taking the picture, but the camera continues to adjust and never locks. Use this mode when in Continuous Shooting mode or while shooting and zooming at the same time.
The GV-SP2The GC-QX3U also has a companion dye-sublimation printer, the JVC GV-SP2. It connects directly to the GC-QX3U via a special cable, enabling you to make hard-copy prints of your pictures directly from the camera without the necessity of a computer. Special features include your ability to place a white frame around an image, print multiple copies of the same picture, and print a thumbnail page placing small versions of all your images on a single sheet of paper.
DPOF stands for Digital Print Order Format, and in this mode you can place information on the memory card that will instruct the printer to automatically print one copy of each picture, or it can be programmed to print different numbers of copies for each picture. DPOF is a system which has been adopted by several digital camera manufacturers.
On the supplied 8MB SmartMedia, one can record up to 20 seconds of video, quite suitable for Internet use. The video is saved in JVC's proprietary video format at a resolution of 160x120. For video playback, PC users need to download JVC's Video Player 1.0, included in the software bundle, while Mac users are required to install the JVC Video Decoder and then use the QuickTime Player. Note: This is video only; there is no audio.
A USB cable is provided for a direct digital interface to a computer. A CD-ROM supplies the appropriate USB driver for both the PC and the Macintosh platforms. The package also includes the video players, one of which will need to be loaded on to your computer's hard drive. The JVC Picture CD-ROM includes software programs for creating photo albums and basic image manipulation.
The JVC GC-QX3U has a lot going for it. Professional image processing, lithium-ion rechargeable batteries, easy access to important features, extensive manual control, a companion printer -- all of these make it clear that JVC is pursuing an obvious commitment to digital photography with the GC-QX3U.
Image Sensor: 1 1/8 in. CCD, 3.34-million pixels.
Maximum Resolution: 2032x1536.
Lens Focal Length: 7.5mm to 17.5mm.
Focusing Capability: Auto, Fixed 8-ft., Auto Continuous.
Display: 2-in., cool polysilicon TFT, 200,000 pixels
Zoom: 2.3X optical; 3.2X digital.
Manual Focus Control: Yes
Exposure Metering: Yes -2.0 EV -1.5 EV, -1.0 EV, -0.5 EV, 0 EV, +0.5 EV, +1.0 EV, +1 .5 EV, +2.0 EV.
Shutter Speed: Programmed AE; f2.8/3.8, f5.6, f8, f11
Flash: Off Auto, Forced On, Red Eye Reduction.
Image Storage: SmartMedia, 8MB card included.
Image Playback: Images can be displayed one at a or in a sequence by holding down the Play button for 2 sec.
Image Delete/Protect/Edit: Yes
File Formats: TIFF, JPEG & JMM (JVC's video format)
Sound Recording: No
Computer Required: PC or Mac.
Other Features: Image effects (B&W, Sepia, Negative, Collage); Direct to companion JVC dye sublimation printer; Video Out, DPOF (Digital Print Order Format).
Bundled Software: USB driver CD for PC and Mac, JVC Digital Photo Utility with Mr. Photo, PhotoAlbum, ImageFolio, Video Player (Win), Video Decoder (Mac).
Computer Interface: USB direct printer interface to the JVC GV-SP2 printer.
Recording Clarity: Excellent resolution, reasonably accurate color in good lighting.
Ergonomics: Good grip and basic design; clear button layout; resembles 35mm film camera body style.
Provided Accessories: Lithium-ion battery, AC adapter/charger, DC Cable, USB cable, Video Cable, Software CD-ROM, 8MB Smartmedia, handstrap and lens cover.
Power Source: Lithium-ion removable battery pack and charger.
Size/Weight: 4 1/16-in. W x 2 9/16-in. D; 0.64 lbs.
Warranty: 1 yr. parts, 90 days labor.
MSRP: $1,099.95
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