It ~is~ really hard to choose a digital camera, isn't it? I was shopping for one this past fall, and what a nightmare! I didn't even know what the different megapixels were all about. Cena's advice is really good. Play with it in the store, so that you can decide if the zoom and clarity are good enough for your needs. But even though you say that most of your pics will be plants, I think that you'll likely find that you end up taking more and more pics of other things, too - friends, family, outings, sunsets, whatever. I find that I take way more shots of *everything* now, since I can easily delete them. I ended up getting a Canon Powershot A510 (3.2 megapixels). It's a good little camera for the price (somewhere around $250), but I have two problems with it. One, I find that the flash is WAY too bright, even when I set it to the lowest intensity, so that if I take a closeup shot, the people/plants look washed out. This means that unless I have optimal natural lighting, my shots are either dark or super-bright. And two, unless I have it on the "action" setting (for action shots), my shots come out a little fuzzy. Now, I know I'm not *that* spastic, so I clearly chose a camera that was too sensitive. Also, I wish it had a delay so that I could get into some of the family/friends shots that I take. And I would have liked a bigger screen to preview the photos. The pluses are great, though: the price was excellent for the product I got; the camera has a panorama setting, so I can take shots of an entire garden, or group photos of my gigantic extended family; and transfer from camera to computer is quick and almost effortless. For what it's worth, though, I've never heard anything bad about Nikon cameras... I just couldn't afford one. As for fussing around with the photos once they're taken, I've been told that it's much better to use a computer program, rather than do it on your camera. I only have Kodak Imaging on my computer, and I absolutely hate it. I can't do anything - resizing is minimal, I can't really play with colour. Also, with Kodak Imaging, the photo quality is really poor when I look at the shots on my computer (although they print out fine). And finally, I can't modify any shots (not even rotate them!), and then save them again in jpeg. Kodak Imaging is the absolute WORST. I'm getting Photoshop with my next computer, no question. Friends of mine use it, and it's wonderful. But because Kodak Imaging is so horrible, I tried zooming photos on my camera (after I've taken the shot), and they looked rather pixelated. I asked a friend about that, and apparently it's pretty standard. He suggested that I only edit photos on my computer, because even with a crappy program, it's generally better than editing with the camera itself. If you want to take a look at some of the shots I've taken with the Canon Powershot, I'll link to my yahoo photos account. This shot is of my tattoo - it was taken without a flash, and with no zoom. I just held the camera really close, maybe a foot away. Here is a link that might be useful: Canon Powershot close-up shot, with no flash

Al!!! I can't believe you said that - because I *do* have cataracts! Oh, no big deal, you might think.....except I'm only **40 years old**!!!!! The opthalmologist told me a few years ago I had the beginning of cataracts (when I was in my 30s), and I had a routine exam this year. I'll tell you - I had a hard enough time dealing with turning 40, but when he told me I have CATARACTS to boot....well, now that made me feel old. Especially when he says the cataracts are progressed enough that the insurance will cover removal - they're at the stage that it is an option to have them removed. I asked him if computer monitors are the reason why, since I spend 8-12 hours a day, 5 days a week in front of a computer at my job, plus a lot of hours of personal time for doing school work, personal stuff. He said there has been no conclusive evidence that the computer monitors are causing an increase in cataracts BUT he has seen a definite rise in the number of younger people with cataracts over the last few years, whereas previously cataracts were limited to the elderly for the most part, and he personally feels there may be a connection between the computers and early cataract development. And yes, I wear sunglasses when I go outside, even on cloudy days up here in Michigan, my ugly "old man" sunglasses - since I know sun exposure is a contributing factor to cataracts - so that's not it. My night vision is getting a little tough - halos around any sort of light.

It has been a while since I have been on the conversation side of the FN. So, I totally was missing this thread. Congrats Sharon and Susan on getting Canon cameras like mine. You both will love them!!! Good choices you made! I bought two sets of 4 AA rechargeable batteries in 2005 when I got my camera and kept recharging them over and over again. I just threw out one of the sets about a month ago. They sure lasted a long time! The other set is still going. The third set I used at the start were batteries I found at home but I misplaced one or two of the batteries and so, never used that set much. Now, everytime I go somewhere with my camera, I throw the recharger in my purse with the 4 freshly recharged batteries in it. It is amazing how often I will be in the middle of the Westman Gardeners meeting taking pictures and the batteries will die then or in the midst of another function and they die. Just taking the few extra seconds to throw in the freshly recharged batteries in the purse sure has been a lifesaver. I have now taken about 25,000 pictures with my camera...it rolls over at the 9999 number to 0 again....of course, I haven't kept all of them but have a lot in the computer though! Thanks Susan for the fun sites to explore this winter. I have all the pictures I took this summer to label, crop, adjust lighting on, etc etc. this winter when I can't work outside anymore. It will be fun to work with some of the pictures with the fun techniques. I was given a Manfrotto tripod with a joystick head (pistol grip) for my birthday in June to use along with my camera and haven't taken the time to experiment with it and my camera. I am hoping for time this winter. Just wait...that will be the next thing on your wish list, Sharon and Susan. Brenda

I think I finally found a winner. I am going to be posting shots from the other cameras too. The Nikon coolpix S8200 does great zoom shots and can get good closeups of flowers and that wasn't even on the macro setting. I posted some pictures here. Great detail on the sweet alyssum and that was a zoom taken from a standing position. The gazebo close up one was taken from the deck at the top of the property. The gazebo is almost at the bottom. You can see the difference between using the zoom and taking it wide open. Also see the property denuded of trees. DH has been cutting down all the Monterey Cypress but that is another story. Clare Here is a link that might be useful: Camera comparison