[RoyG274]

I am looking for a compact digital camera with as much functionality as possible. The PENTAX Q is touted be the worlds smallest and lightest body camera. According to the specs it has a 12.4 MP CMOS Sensor, Interchangeable Lens Q mount, HD Movie Mode @ 1080p, 5 fps continuous shooting, SD/SDHC/SDXC Memory card slot, and more. I don't fully appreciate what these specs mean but the main attraction is to its size. I thought PCWorld would have had a rating on it but no luck. Would like to hear what others have to say about it.
I currenly have an Olympus Stylus 400 digital that is about 9 years old. Some of the issues I have had with it include cumbersome controls, will not take pictures in auditoriums with flouescent lighting, and the delayed frames. I carry my camera with me most of the time so I can be ready for quality photo opportunities.Thus my quest to find something easy to carry.

[waldojim]

Lets start with the basics, are you buying this to be a camcorder or a camera? For a camera, the CMOS sensor is perfect, as it allows for higher quality night shots than CCD. That said, CCD is far superior for recording video due to how the sensors operate.

If you are buying a DSLR for the picture quality, then my personal suggestion would be Panasonic. They have amazing sensors in their cameras, and terrific glass (Leica makes some darned good glass). Their G2 is a very powerful camera, and well work looking into.

I cannot say much about the Pentax DSLR, as I do not own one, and never used their DSLRs. I have played around with MANY of their cameras in a photo lab though. And I always found their images over saturated myself. Their image processor is also a tad aggressive, softening details. Now this was done on high end point and shoot cameras, as I didn't have access to the DSLRs, and there may be considerable difference.

My suggestion, grab an SD card, go to the store, and pick a couple of subjects, light, dark, high contrast, and something with many DEEP colors (bright reds, yellows, fluorescent colors etc) and test a few different cameras, go to your local printer (be it wal-mart, wal-greens, etc) and see which one you like the best. Make sure the printers there are not re-adjusting your images when you print though. The reasoning here, is that by doing this, you can find the camera that takes pictures closest to what YOU want them to be.

[RoyG274]

Thanks for the feedback Jim. I am interested in "still" photos mainly. I rarely if ever use the video. I will do as you suggest and go and take some photos in the store to use the cameras and compare the results. If you come accross any additional information please pass it along as I will be checking back to provide feedback.I really appreciate your taking the time to respond to my post and maybe others will add their experiences yet.

[LiveBrianD]

I've had good experience with Canon cameras. I have a Powershot A1000IS and it's good enough.

[rain18]

canon is one of the great brands i have ever encounter!