All cameras work and yes I do use them. I do volunteer photography for the Theler Community Center in Balefair, WA. I use the Fuji and the Olympus when photographing at events. The center uses the photographs as a fund raising opportunity and events like Easter, Halloween and I print the photos at the site. So, I use one camera at a time to print out the photos of the children and families. When I need the highest zoom I bring out the Panasonic camera. Video, I use the Fuji waterproof camera and the Panasonic as they have really great video resolution. Right now, the weather here is rainy, rainy rainy and the weatherproof camera is the camera of choice when outside; for obvious reasons. When it is not raining I will use the other cameras. I kept getting a different one as I wanted to get the features I wanted. Not all cameras are the same. I just ended up with five good and working cameras.

I have 5 cameras at the moment all point and shoots and a bridge camera. The smallest I have is a tiny Nikon Coolpix I27 point and shoot, it takes nice photos but it did not get the zoom factor I wanted. Then I bought a Fuji FinePix S2980 18x zoom. It worked for a while but I was not getting the wildlife I wanted at The Theler Wetlands and trails in Belfair, WA. I bought an Olympus SP62OUZ bridge camera with a little more bells and whistles but not much and with an 21x zoom. I wanted the zoom to take nature and animal photos and get the close-ups. Then I wanted to try the video on the cameras and I was only getting 720 fps. The video is grainy and not to my liking. I then bought a Fuji FinePix XP75 a weather and waterproof point and shoot that took 1020 fps video and that is what I bought it for and I can say it does not disappoint. It takes killer video but it is only a 5x zoom which is OK as I use the video for scenery and it does a great job. The last camera I bought is a Panasonic DMZ70 bridge camera which I love as it does have 50x zoom and it shoots raw and jpgs and I am having fun dealing with the raw feature. I do use the other cameras. Why five? I wanted features and I got better ones with each purchase. They are all good and if you go to my flickr site you will see a macros I took years ago with an Olympus 3.2 MP I bought second hand used. It took millions of photos and died five years later.

I will definitely second that opinion.

These series of photos are absolutely gorgeous. that is one favorite perch.

Here are some of mine

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I now do the same thing you do. My camera shoots both raw and jpgs. I process the raw first and save them as jpg's. I make files for the raw files and the jpgs. It works well for me.

The one thing that gets mentioned a lot is that many of the photographers mention DSLR's. My pocketbook for a very long time would not let me get anything than a point and shoot. I use bridge cameras as that is in my price range but the point and shoots forced me to look at photography using the limited range of the cameras. I will have to say, those point and shoots got me to take photos I will never probably get again in this lifetime. It has influenced how I look at photography and I realized that I do not have to travel far to get great photos. I looked at my yard and serendipity became my catchword. I have a post here that shows my serendipity photos. They were taken with the small point and shoot cameras. I got the experience and used my imagination to make what I had work. I looked at macros as I could not do that with my SLR, but, could with a used Olympus 3.2 MP camera I bought on Ebay in 2005. That camera was my first foray into digital and in the learning process I ended with great photos, not so great photos and the ranges in between. But in the ten years of using digital, my photographic skills have evolved. Like I have been saying photography is a personal journey and if I decide to share which I do, I have to take criticism in all forms weather it is nice or not. I have run the gamut and I have to take it in stride. I can choose what to accept and not. But, I will always be looking for that next shot. And, it may be a post of one of my many paper mache projects were the imagination went south on how to finish the project. Not art, but who knows, I may get good ideas on how to do just that, finish it. And, that will be on a different site than UHH.

Yes, but if one is not knowledgeable about the technology, how can some one be artistic. The tools of the trade let the artistic side come out. What good is a good composition if the photo is so over exposed that it is useless. I have to know what my camera does before I can create works of art. I have to know which features I will use the most so that I can quickly and confidently take that photo I hope will win awards. To say that technical aspects can be learned quickly, who is to say how fast one learns? We all learn in our own way and not on a set timetable. We are all unique and approach photography on our own terms as well. And how do we define artistic? Art is in the eye of the beholder, what is artistic to one may not be to another. We take the time to define our artistic side so to speak. It takes a beginner to get a feel for his/her style. That takes time. It is the journey to that art side of us that makes photography fun.

I do agree, that learning the technical aspect of photography slowly is the best way to go. In 2005 I bought a used Olympus 3.2 MP digital camera for $75.00 Until that time I was using an SLR. I took thousands of photos, macros which I could not do before. That little camera had a sensor to die for and gave good photos; great composition, well that was my job. It lasted 5 years before it gave up the ghost. In those years, I learned the different functions of the camera and when it was time for a new one, I was an experienced user. I have since bought several bridge cameras with different features and I take the time to take good, soso and bad photos to test the waters and see what works. That is how we all learn. In modern society, patience is becoming less of a virtue.

I find that photography finds the people, and talent, skill are things that you learn and talent is what you have or learning improves your photogrpahic skills. I got my first SLR in 1978. I was so glad that I loaded it up and I was going to take the world by storm. I was living with my grandparents at the time and my parents had just moved from the Philippines and were staying at a small apartment on the grounds. My mother was outside under an acacia tree in Tucson, Arizona. I thought wow! That looks so good, with the shadows on my mother that will take a great photo. I took a lot of photos of my mother drawing under the acacia tree and with the shadows and one photo of a rose. Well, I got the photos back and that great idea I will wow the photographic world will have to wait. The only acceptable photo was the rose. So much for taking the photographic world by storm. I have not stopped taking photos since 1978. I have taken bad photos, great photos, so so photos and the ranges in between, but I learn. Cell phones are now cameras that will be the only way many will take photographs and I have seen some spectacular cell phone photos. Are they not photographers? I think they are but we who are experienced have developed a sense of superiority. Every one come to photography with their own ideas what constitute a great photo. If they decide to really learn, time will grant them the skills they need to advance. My photo skills, interests have changed in the over 40 years I have been taking photographs and I laud the beginner for trying. the fact they tried I say "Good Job!"

I am an eclectic photographer. If you go to my flickr site at www.flickr.com/photos/kitkaphotogirl you can see my interests and I have many. As an avid crafter, I look for diversity in my photographic endeavors.

These are my serendipity shots, I posted quite a while back.

http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-41423-1.html

Don't you just love it when all the elements just fall into place? This is truly a once in a lifetime shot and I love the humor in it. I have had several serendipity shots my self and when I see them again and again, I can't believe I even got the shots. So, congratulations.

Very lovely series and would make some great wall hanging photos.

This are a beautiful series of shots.