Looking for suggestions on a new digital camera.

Okay!!!! Get a fujifilm S2500 or similar. I used to onlyshoot DSLR, and I am soooo impressed with this little gem! It also records HD video with sound, crappy sound, and when you zoom you can hear the motor LOUDLY! But it's a 14 mp, and I've fallen in love with it.

One thing not mentioned here that should be is another difference between consumer level and good DSLR's. In the point and shoots the post is done inside the camera. With a DSLR you shoot in RAW mode, meaning you can actually change setting like exposure and other after the fact and the sharpening is done at that time also. vignetting can be removed easily as can most noise or the rare aberrations.

Unfortunately uploading to ATS destroys quality but here are a couple of examples. These I took with a D200 testing it and a Nikkor 70-300mm VR Lens right after they first came out. Most testing labs could not say enough good about this camera and the sensors are two generations ahead of this now. I saw a like new, used one the other day for $400, it sold new for $1,799.00.

These were shot from the back of a stake-bed truck at the SanDiego Wild Animal Park.

I'll post the whole shot reduced in size and then a small crop at full resolution from two photo's of Giraffe. The first from about twenty feet and the second from about ten feet with the VR lens, handheld.

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Unfortunately the lossy compression hides how beautiful of a job this camera does. In full quality the detail is stunning for a handheld shot taken while standing on a flatbed with other people moving around.

As you can see this fellows opinion of me is being expressed in the first shot In the second he decides well maybe this guy has some food in his back pocket.

On the same tour our truck got stuck and we were surrounded by some kind of wild cattle from Africa that were so dangerous they had to send a second truck that started literally hitting them to protect us while we got unstuck. It was quite wild. While we waited they surrounded us and started charging towards the truck with only some lumber protecting us. I did not know that such aggressive Cattle even existed, I'm used to the Cattle I grew up with. Oddly enough the Rhino's were very timid and friendly. Odd how we get wrong idea's about animals.

Yes, I'm rambling and bored I've confused you enough. Sorry I don't have any files here at my house from newer models, but this should show you that even an older high end DSLR can be a good choice.

As to film, not anymore. I have a closet full of old Nikon Pro-Level Bodies and since the new sensors are finally the equivalent of what you can scan from negatives, I'd say go digital. If you go film, you'll also need to lay out money for photo scanner. I use a high end epson for that in that case Epson is better than Nikon as far as scanners go.

I havent worked out the RAW mode on my camera yet, i know it can do it but the many buttons confound me

Very nice pictures by the way