Best Digital Camera - Saint Paul,MN

I have the Nikon D5000, and I love it. Yes it's a bit bulky, but totally worth the trade off for the pictures we get. My sister in law who is a photographer swears by the Canons, but says that the Nikons are good to. For a hand-held we have always owned Canons, but there have been plenty of times where the pictures don't come out when it's dark and as the camera gets older the battery life gets less and less. Now that we have the Nikon, I'll never go back to a handheld.

I have a Canon Power Shot and LOVE it...this is our second. It's small and fits inside your purse, diaper bag and even a pocket very easily! It takes good pictures and is pretty durable (read I'm very clumsy!). It's about $200, which is middle of the road and I've had lots of comments on both its size and quality of pics!

I love my Canon Power Shot A590. It is just the right size to throw into my purse. It has a setting specifically for kids and pets that works great for action shots. Flash pictures turn out great unless the camera is focused on something far away (but that is true with any camera). I've had mine for almost three years, so I'm not sure if it is still available. Look for something that has image stabilizer and a setting for kids and pets. That is the best way to avoid the blurry action shots.

I had a Nikon Cool Pix that broke with in 2.5 months (Thank Goodness for extended warranties I got this time around) This time I have the Panasonic Luminix LOVE LOVE LOVE it!!!!!

I really like my Kodak Easyshare Z812. It may be a little big for your handbag but maybe you can start there with the features. It may have more than you need.

If you're worried just about the flash on yours I wonder if something as simple as taping a small piece of tissue paper or something over the flash that softens it a bit but still lets light through would work. I think the technical term for this is diffusing....-). I also have a similar little canon that I think is a little older than your camera that I passed on to my daughter. I love it, it has good reaction time for a digital.

Added: OMG someone already thought of this
http://www.ehow.com/video_###-###-####_diffuse-light-digi...

I have owned four different digital cameras. I love my Canon Digital Rebel, but it is so bulky that isn't not very practical or versatile.

I recently bought the Nikon Coolpix S8100, and it's the perfect compromise. It's small, takes great pictures in low light, doesn't take long to turn on, doesn't pause too long between pictures, and takes HD video. You should be able to get it for around $270 now. There is now a S9100 model, but I don't know what the upgrades are and whether or not they are worth it.

If you have a Costco membership, you should try out another camera. If you don't like it, you can always return it within 90 days.

I used to be a Canon loyalist, but now that I've seen how well my friends' Nikon SLR cameras and my own Nikon take pictures, I'm now a huge fan of Nikon. Good luck to you!

I have had a Kodak Easy Share, a Polaroid digital, and we not have the Canon PowerShot SD1100 IS DIGITAL ELPH, 8.0 MP. The Canon is by far the best fo the three - longest battery life, clearest picture, longest video time, clearest video sound, most compact of the three and nearly indestructable...it has been dropped 4-5 times, on concrete and wood floors, and has been closed completely in the tail gate of our Minivan, and survived all with minimal scratches, and no difference in performance, no cracks in screen, lenses or viewfinder. It is about the size of a deck of cards, easy to throw in a pocket, purse or diaper bag. Takes great pics of my kid sin all kind of light and action shots, too. Great close ups of still lifes, too.

Good Luck! Lots of friends and family have this camera too, and they love it.