Canon Legria HF S100

Motion (9.8)

The Canon HF S100 captured very good motion in our tests. Artefacting was minimal, its image is smooth, and the motion is consistently sharp. Interestingly, however, the camcorder's test footage does not look any better than the cheaper Canon HF_S100. Both capture motion very well, but we expected the HF S100 to have a slight edge in performance. When watching the videos below, keep in mind they have been heavily compressed by YouTube in the uploading process. Check out the linked HD versions of each video to get a better idea of their quality. (More on how we test motion.)

The Canon HF S100 has two frame rate options: 1080/50i and 25p. The 50i mode is its default frame rate and it produces traditional-looking video. The 25p mode is a slower, more film-like setting that produce a completely different aesthetic. The 25p mode on the HF S100 works well and will dramatically enhance the camcorder's low light sensitivity (due to the slower frame rate) if you choose to use them.

Both the Sony HDR-XR520 and Panasonic HDC-HS300 also produced very good motion. There was a bit more artefacting present in the Sony, but overall it looks just as good as the Canon HF S100. Other than a low quality slow motion mode, however, the Sony does not have any alternate frame rates, so all your footage must be shot at 50i.

The Panasonic HDC-HS300 also has an alternate 25p frame rate, although Panasonic calls it Digital Cinema Mode. The mode produces a decent effect, but it does not give the camcorder a dramatic boost in low light sensitivity that we saw with the Canon HF S100.

As with much of our video performance testing, the motion captured by the JVC GZ-HD320 is not on the same level as the other three camcorders in this set. Its motion is still quite smooth, but there is more trailing and artefacting all around. Still, the JVC GZ-HD320 is considerably cheaper than the rest of the camcorders in this bunch (by approximately £500) and it's motion performance is equivalent to or better than some of the other HD camcorders in a similar price range (like the Panasonic HDC-HS20).

Video Sharpness (11.32)

The Canon HF S100 records a crisp video image. We measured its video sharpness at 800 lw/ph (line widths per picture height) horizontal and 650 lw/ph vertical. Interestingly, this vertical resolution is slightly lower than what we measured on the Canon HF20, even though that camcorder has a lower effective pixel count. There must be an issue with the HF S100 lens or processing that makes it produce a worse vertical sharpness than its little brother. Nevertheless, the HF S100 still recorded moving video with splendid clarity. (More on how we test video sharpness.)

Video Sharpness Score Comparisons

The Sony HDR-XR520V and Panasonic HDC-TM300 are not far behind the Canon HF S100 when it comes to video sharpness. All three camcorders performed exceptionally well in this test, with the HF S100 scoring just ahead of the other two. The JVC GZ-HD300 is the obvious exception here, as its video image quality clearly cannot stand up to the other three camcorders in this set. Take a look at our crops from our noise test to get a better look. Still, the JVC did put up excellent colour accuracy in bright light and we should again remind everyone of its comparatively low £499 price tag.