Yo,

Just interested to know peoples thoughts on the new point and clicks. I've heard that the lumix gf3 and Sony Nex are supposed to be good? I currently have a Nikon D60 with it's standard lens and I enjoy shooting with it, but it is bulky.

Any thoughts?

Not too sure about point and click cameras but if you do decide to buy one, or any other photographic equipment, have a look at the link below. It’s a photographic price comparison site to show you what the best price available is.

CAMERA PRICE BUSTER

Depends what you call bulky? I keep looking at the 4/3rds systems, but something decent is about the same price as an entry DSLR and if you factor in a decent zoom for them they're not exactly 'small' any more.

A bridge camera may be a better bet, less options lens wise but reasonably compact, and most have full manual controls.

Thanks for the replies. I've been tempted by the Panasonic DMC-G3. Looks like it could be good alternative to my D60

This will depend on the budget,

There are lots of cameras better and smaller than my d90 but a hell of a lot more expensive!

I shoot extensively with mirrorless cameras, currently the Panasonic GF3 and the GH2 coupled with a Nikon D700. The GF3 is my pocket system as coupled with the impressively small 14-42mm X it will fit in a jacket pocket with the 20mm F1.7 slipping into another pocket to give a low light option, the problems with this package are that it's expensive (I think Panasonic need to be more aggressive on price) and the old 12MP sensor is showing its age. While it's still much better than compact cameras, it's noticeably behind the newer Panasonic sensors (such as used in the G3, GX1 (same 16MP sensor) and the GH2(oversized 18MP sensor) and moreso behind some of the superb new Sony sensors. People frequently criticise the EVF mirrorless cameras to be pointless as they're not much smaller than existing DSLRs however looking at both camera and lenses, the package can be quite a bit smaller. In my shoulder bag I can pack the GH2, the 14-140mm (or 100-300mm), the 7-14mm, fisheye and still have the GF3, 14-42mm X and 20mm F1.7 easily in my jacket as backup whereas previously I could only fit a DSLR (even the smallest available) and single ultra wide lens.

The Sony NEX cameras boast stunning APS-C sensors, beautiful small bodies, excellent software features (auto-panorama, 3D photos, handheld modes for low light) and very good prices. Because of the big gap between the Panasonic micro 4/3 sensors and the D700's sensor I have been tempted by the Sony cameras many times but the big catch for me is the size of the lenses, the trade off for the small bodies is that the lenses are larger and Sony don't have any clever power zooms like Panasonic and Nikon offer. That means the only combination that will fit in the pocket is an NEX and the 16mm lens (24mm equivalent), the other zoom lenses are fairly big as are the primes unfortunately. An NEX with the 18-55mm lens will still be a smaller package overall than the D60 so may be worth looking into.

John