Canon Sure Shot Z155 Review – Fine Workmanship for a Small Price – By Thang Nguyen

The Canon Sure Shot Z155 is possibly the most underappreciated compact camera considering how little it cost now for such an amazing package. The Canon Sure Shot Z155 is a flagship compact camera from Canon released in 2002. Judging by the aesthetic of this camera, you can tell much effort was put into making these precise cuts and curves.

The design philosophy of this camera is circles, similar to the Olympus O-product. There will be circle elements throughout the camera, it is more apparent on the back of the camera where most things you see are circle shaped. The Canon Z155 has a rather glamorous front with an eye catching teal finger grip.

The Canon Sure Shot Z155 is a very sleek looking camera, most of its body is wrapped in aluminum except for the back which is made of plastic. The front of the Canon Sure Shot Z155 has a vinyl groove texture which feels nice to hold. The top of the camera has the brand engraved along with the timer/remote and shutter buttons.

The back of the Canon Sure Shot Z155 is where the interesting bits are. Many things in the early 2000’s had curvy and more rounded designs. Everything on the back is inspired by round shapes, even the viewfinder and the zoom rocker are rounded. I found the rounded viewfinder more prone to black out than the traditional rectangle ones.

The familiar mode dials on Canon DSLRs can also be found on the Canon Sure Shot Z155. The dial also serves as an on/off switch, with the first turn being either Auto or Personal. In personal mode, your custom settings will be saved even if the camera is turned off. The rest of the modes are: fast shutter priority, slow sync flash/night-mode, portrait mode (auto composition zoom), macro mode, and spot mode (there’s a separated button on the left to activate spot focus on other modes as well).

Interestingly, the Canon Sure Shot Z155 lacks infinity focus mode, I suppose that is intentional, as the camera has advanced focusing technologies so an infinity mode is not needed. Also you can use spot focus to supplement the lack of infinity mode.

Being an expensive flagship, the Canon Sure Shot Z155 has impressive specs and some unusual features. Such as a date stamp that lasts up to 2049, various captions that you can imprint on your photos (only on caption model). You also have exposure compensation of ±1.5 EV. The camera has an impressive top shutter speed of 1/790s and slowest of 2 seconds.

The lens on this camera is crazy sharp even at the longest focal length. The exposure is spot on even in tricky situations, preserving both highlight and shadow. The built quality of the Canon Sure Shot Z155 is also solid, the buttons and the dials are clicky and responsive. The shutter button has a positive half press and a satisfying full press.  Below are some sample photos taken on Fujifilm Superia 400.

My experience with the Canon Sure Shot Z155 was overwhelmingly positive. Beside the amazing specs and features, the camera also has a very stylish appearance. Operating the camera using the dial control was a fresh and enjoyable experience, I can quickly access the auto mode for a quick snap or a preset of settings with just 1 turn away.

I am most amazed by the lens quality, while the specification is not that exciting: 37-155mm, f4.8-f11.7, it can focus as close as 45cm in macro mode, or 60cm at the starting focal length. Every shot I took turned out sharp with picture perfect exposure, even at the longest focal length. The focus also works wonders – my shots came out in focus and free of motion blur.

The Canon Sure Shot Z155 is quite compact, the lens housing protrudes a bit from the body, so it can only fit in a coat pocket. Considering the price of the Canon Z155 on the market right now, this camera is a bargain for how little it goes.

You can find my other camera reviews on 35mmc here

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