Canon PowerShot SX10 IS
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When a 12X zoom lens just isn't enough, there's the PowerShot SX10 IS. It packs a whopping 20X, 28 - 560 mm lens, which covers virtually any shooting situation that may come up. Other features include a 10 Megapixel CCD, image stabilization, a rotating LCD, full manual controls, and a nice VGA movie mode. Battery life is excellent when the camera is equipped with NiMH rechargeables, as well. Images do suffer from noise reduction artifacting as the ISO climbs, especially in low light. The SX10 also could do better in the low light focusing department, and the lack of an HD movie mode and RAW image format is disappointing.

Canon PowerShot SD1100 IS Digital ELPH
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The long-awaited follow-up to the SD1100 remains a solid choice for an entry-level, ultra-compact camera. The biggest new feature on the SD1100 is optical image stabilization, which helps to reduce blurry photos. The camera has lost some of its retro styling, but it now comes in several popular colors. In terms of features, it has a 3X zoom lens, 2.5" LCD display, point-and-shoot operation, and a VGA movie mode. As with many ultra-compacts, the SD1100 has some corner blurriness and purple fringing issues. Low light photos are on the noisy side, as well.

Note: This camera has been replaced by the PowerShot SD1200 IS.

Fuji FinePix F200EXR
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The FinePix F200EXR is a compact camera that performs better in low light than any of its peers. It offers a 5X zoom lens (with a useful 28 - 140 mm range), image stabilization, a 3-inch LCD, some manual controls, and generally snappy performance. While photos are on the soft side, they'll have less noise at high ISO settings than other compact cameras. The camera removes redeye automatically, so you don't have to deal with it later. Downsides include the need to lower the resolution for best high ISO performance, the lack of IS in movie mode, and sub-par battery life.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3
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The Lumix DMC-ZS3 is the follow-up to the excellent DMC-TZ5. Panasonic has taken that camera and improved upon it in many ways. The lens is now even wider, covering a range of 25 - 300 mm (12X). The HD movie mode now uses the AVCHD Lite codec which, while great for viewing on a HDTV, is a bit of a pain to edit (though M-JPEG is still available). Other features on this point-and-shoot camera include a large, high resolution (and easy to see) 3-inch LCD, automatic redeye removal, HDMI output, and good battery life. The main downsides are a lack of a manual controls and occasional noise (even at low ISOs).

Nikon D40
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The D40 is Nikon's entry-level digital SLR. It's compact, without being too small like the Canon Digital Rebel XTi. The build quality is also better than that camera. The D40 features a 6 Megapixel CCD, full manual controls, robust performance, and an elaborate in-camera help system that makes it the easiest to use SLR on the market. The main downside is that only AF-S lenses will support autofocus, so that 50 mm prime you have sitting around will be manual focus only.

If you want a higher resolution version of the D40, check out the D60 for a little bit more money.

Olympus E-420
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The E-420 is the world's smallest digital SLR, especially when paired with Olympus' 25mm pancake lens. Its small size means that it's not for everyone, so try before you buy. The camera has a 10 Megapixel sensor, dust reduction system, live view on a 2.7" LCD, full manual controls, and great build quality. Negatives include mediocre contrast detect AF and low light focusing, heavy noise reduction at high ISOs, and the lack of an AC adapter and battery grip.

Note: This camera has been replaced by the E-450.

Olympus E-520
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The E-520 is an inexpensive but full-featured digital SLR. It features a 10 Megapixel CCD, sensor-shift image stabilization, a 2.7" LCD with live view, and plenty of manual controls. There are also some nice features for beginners, including numerous scene modes and a handy Perfect Shot Preview option. Downsides include soft photos, banding at the highest sensitivities, slow focusing in live view mode, and a small optical viewfinder. The camera doesn't support an AC adapter or battery grip, either. Despite that, it's a great value for the money.

Canon Digital Rebel XSi
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The EOS Rebel XSi is a very capable digital SLR that bridges the gap between entry-level and midrange. It features a 12.2 Megapixel CMOS sensor, live view on a 3-inch LCD display, full manual controls, and great performance. Straight out of the box, images are quite soft, though with a few tweaks, you'll get excellent results. The XSi's high ISO performance is top-notch. Downsides include a relatively high price, redeye, slow contrast detect autofocus, and a body that may be too small for some folks.

Note: This camera has been replaced by the EOS Rebel T1i.

Nikon D5000
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The D5000 is the baby brother to the stellar Nikon D90. The two cameras share the same 12 Megapixel CMOS sensor, and both have first-rate high ISO performance. The D5000 supports all Nikkor lenses, though only AF-S and AF-I lenses will support autofocus. Other features include a rotating (but low res) 2.7" LCD display, full manual controls, and a plethora of easy to use point-and-shoot features. The camera supports live view, but the autofocus performance in that mode is poor. While the D5000 can record movies at 720p, the quality isn't wonderful.

Nikon D90
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The D90 is an excellent camera that bridges the gap between entry-level and midrange D-SLRs. It features a 12.1 Megapixel CMOS sensor with top-notch high ISO performance, a beautiful 3-inch LCD with live view, plenty of manual controls, and a high definition (720p) movie mode. Other niceties include HDMI output, support for an optional GPS receiver, and best-in-class battery life. The only real downsides are slow autofocus in live view mode and a poor bundled RAW editor.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1
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The Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 is a compact interchangeable lens camera. Since it lacks a mirror, it's not a digital SLR. Still, it offers all the benefits of a D-SLR (great image quality, fast performance, expandability) with a live view experience that's second-to-none. Downsides include a rather high price, limited lens selection, sluggish burst mode, and a few ergonomic annoyances. The camera lacks a movie mode, as well, though Panasonic promises that such a camera will be released in 2009.

Canon EOS-50D
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The EOS-50D is a fairly minor update to the very popular EOS-40D. Highlights include a 15.1 Megapixel CMOS sensor, support for EF and EF-S lenses, a super high resolution 3-inch LCD display, full manual controls, three different RAW sites, and very good performance. The 50D's noise performance is top-notch, as are its continuous shooting abilities. Downsides include the 50D's occasional highlight clipping, and overall soft look to its images.

Canon EOS-5D Mark II
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The 5D Mark II isn't just a full-frame digital SLR -- it's also capable of recording Full HD video, as well. Since its full frame, you can use any Canon EF-mount lens that you want, with no focal length conversion ratio to deal with. The camera isn't made for beginners -- you won't find any scene modes here. What you will find are full manual controls for every possible camera function. The 5D's movie feature lets your record 1080p video with full manual control (via a recent firmware update). As you'd expect from a camera in this price range, both photo and video quality are stellar.

Nikon D300
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The D300 is a phenomenal digital SLR, and perhaps the best one in its class. It features a 12 Megapixel CMOS sensor, live view on a stunning 3-inch LCD display, a dust reduction system, impressive performance and build quality, and much more. Being a D-SLR, the D300 can be expanded to your heart's content, with a wireless transmitter and battery grip being the notable accessories. The only real weak spots are soft, occasionally overexposed images, a few missing live view features, and its hefty price.

Nikon D700
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The D700 is Nikon's "budget" full frame camera. Featuring a 12 Megapixel FX-format CMOS sensor, the D700 produces photos of stunning quality. With most Nikon lenses, you have no focal length conversion to worry about. With DX-format lenses, there's a 1.5X conversion ratio, and the camera shoots at a lower resolution, as well. As you'd expect, the D700 is packed with manual controls, and it's a pretty complex camera, too. Other nice features on it include an ultra-sharp 3-inch LCD, a built-in flash, HDMI output, and a handy virtual horizon feature.

Olympus E-30
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While I do think it's a little too expensive, the Olympus E-30 is still a solid and very capable midrange D-SLR. It features a 12 Megapixel Live MOS sensor, image stabilization, a rotating 2.7" LCD display, and snappy performance. Other nice features include live view, a pitch/level meter, nine different aspect ratios, and the ability to take multiple exposures. The E-30 also has built-in support for wireless flash control, and excellent battery life.