Canon SX40 HS 12.1MP Digital Camera with 35x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 2.7-Inch Vari-Angle Wide LCD

I purchased this camera because I wanted one that could zoom in onwildlife, birds, insects and so forth and give me good photos. A long time agoI had a Pentax SLR, the old film kind but have not done any photography since, untilnow. I did not want to have to mess with different lenses either so after someresearch online I decided on this camera, being the best mix of what I wanted in a camera andwhat I could afford.I am impressed!! I know it does not do RAW, and you cant really put filters on the frontand it has some other issues with not being able to go manual for a few things and it could be a bit faster and better here and there,BUT it does take some kickin' nice photos!! and I LOVE the zoom. For me its fairly quick to pull out ofthe bag and start up if I see some critter I have to snap on the fly. It has been easy to work with and I have been really having fun and getting some great shots!!. I find that the battery charges pretty quick and lasts a fair while. I will probably get a second battery though, just to have a fresh one handy. I think for the money it is an excellent camera and unless you require RAW data, or have a lot more funds available for something more professional you cant go wrong with this camera.10/7/2012 UPDATEStill enjoying the camera. I had taken awesome(for me) pictures of the "Blue" moon we had on August 31st. unfortunately positioning the camera in the grass and everything else took some patience and just rightness. There are some limitations on the selections in full manual, I could not select an F11(as recommended on a website 'how to photograph the moon"). I just had to pick the widest f-stop available and set the shutter speed to turtle, but not too slow since the moon is a moving object. Anyhow the photos are never the less very cool. My first celestial photos!! I am now trying to get a picture of my favorite constellation, Orion!! but I need a real tripod, so I'm searching around.One thing I will say is, if you put a filter on the front or an adapter ring to accommodate a larger filter, be careful when threading it on(others have mentioned this). I put my adapter ring on and it is slightly crooked and I cant seem to budge it with out using some force, so I have just left it for now. I plan to take to a camera shop to see if they can find a safe way to dislodge it. but it is not interfering with my photo taking just annoying knowing its not exactly straight. grrr.

I decided to upgrade finally from my Sony H2. I looked around to see what was out there available. I knew what I wanted on the next camara. High zoom, at least double more pixels, viewfinder, great macro, HD video, better than a point and shoot but not quite a DSLR. I don't want to mess with a bunch of to expensive to afford lenses.Started doing some research. Got very overwhelmed at first. It had been awhile since I really took a look at camaras. I wanted to make the right choice in one because this is a purchase that had to last for a time. I read alot of reviews and then got more overwhelmed because once I made a decision I would read a contradictory review on it. So then I became frustrated and wondered if there was a camara made that professionals could agree on and that consumers loved.After a couple of weeks I narrowed down to three. And after reading the feedbacks here and researching the web for those "professional" reviews I decided on the SX40 HS. So off to Sears to handle the item. Came home and ordered. Had it in a week.I have not been let down or dissapointed in this thing. It does as everyone says. One thing that I did have to let go in my "wants in a camara" was the AA's. I just ordered a two battery, charger kit here. It can charge them in the car so I can always have batteries ready. If it used the AA's the camara would be to heavy. As it is now it is about the same weight as my sisters DSLR was. Feels like it when handling it too.Zoom is awesome. Digital zoom is a bit grainy/fuzzy at times. But that's digital for you. When taking picture of the moon it doesn't do it. Why? Don't know. But I zoom in and the full moon can't all fit in the photo and I expect someone to wave back at me. Macro hasn't let me down. I do need to add here though that focus is a bit to get use to. But be patient and let it do it's thing. Hold shutter half down to focus. Let it focus then snap and you'll get a great photo everytime.The special effects are cool to have. The fisheye was a surprise to see. I love the black and white with your chosen color. And the toy camara I use often. This is loaded with a ton of features that you can't get bored with. Also this can splice photos together! Many people I see are looking for that feature. Along with bridging. Way to many things to get into here. But alot of camara for your money.The flip LCD was another surprise and I had only seen it come out on the higher end camaras. I usually use my viewfinder so it's turned in to protect the screen (I am getting screen protectors). But I find myself taking advantage of it's capability to turn out and twist up or down. I have been using that feature to get our baby robins pictures. There is a nest over our porch light. I simply open it, turn it down towards me as I am holding camara up. Zoom a little hold shutter to focus and snap away.You get a CD for you computer. Load it on it as you can't views photos without it. There is a small starter manual to get you going. But hey Canon, get real. It would be nice to get a whole book featuring all the functions of the camara. It least make one available to buy! Even though I found this SX easy to use right out of the box (easier than my Sony but still think it's an awesome camara). But to get to know all the functions it would be nice. Who wants to carry their computer around to look something up?All in all. You can't go wrong. You are getting a heck of a camara! BUT, learn to use it. Once you do that you'll not want anything but this fella. And for those that have DSLR's this would make a great back up to carry around. It doesn't dissapoint.