Having just got one of these cameras as my latest attempt to find a lightweight alternative to the DSLR, I snapped a couple of collared doves in the garden this afternoon.
It was overcast here at the time, so this was really a test of high ISO performance, which, let's face it, is where this sort of camera usually falls down. Both of these were shot in RAW at ISO 1250, minus one third EV, and had a couple of passes through Neat Image. The vertical crop was shot at full zoom, the other one at about half way.
Admittedly, collared doves are fairly large, pale-plumaged birds, but I still think this is pretty good for a compact-sensored camera at ISO 1250.
Another thing I noticed was how much quicker the camera saves RAW files compared to my Panasonic GH2, which was nearly twice the price.
I've had a couple of Panasonic "superzooms" in the past (FZ18 and FZ38) and the SX50 is streets ahead, and not just in the zoom stakes. Mind you, I wish it had the constant 2.8 aperture of the FZ200. The slowness at the tele end is a pain.
Malcolm