I bought this lens with my FM3a and was pleased with the results. However I recently purchased a D7100 and decided to run some tests on the lenses I already owned and a couple of zooms I recently acquired. It did require pixel peeping at 100% but I found the 50mm was decided soft at 1.8 and 2.8 but sharp at 3.5 and smaller apertures. The softness was not obvious on images covering my 22" screen so I am probably nitpicking! :) I should mention that my copy is the AF1.8D. I don't know if the optics changed between the D and non D versions.

My wife and I use Black Diamond Storm headlights for early morning runs. Also for reading in our tent after dark. We really like them. The light beam can be tilted as required. There are three modes, single led (can be adjusted from very bright to somewhat dim), dual led (much less bright), and dual red LEDs which may be set as constant or flashing. They use four AAA batteries. Cost <$50. Check out Outdoorgearlab.com for best headlamps. Sorry, I couldn't create a link.

There is a British birding site which has a forum on equipment including Canon and a very long thread on the SX50. There are many great photos taken with this camera as well as guidance on settings and techniques. Here is a link :

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=240202

Forgive me if this site has already been mentioned.

A DSLR would probably yield more technically advanced images with an appropriate lens but it seems that the SX50 is a very capable camera!

Here is a pretty good tutorial right on UHH.
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-69708-1.html

There's a difference?

My daughter lived in Phoenix for six years and we never missed an opportunity to visit Sedona. It is truly beautiful! We haven't been there since 2004 but a must visit for me was a photo gallery in the Tlaquepaque shopping area. I don't remember the name but looking up the website for Tlaquepaque there is an Eclectic Image Gallery that seems to be what I remembered. I was most interested in the black and white images. Really worth a visit for a photographer! Enjoy your trip.

I recently bought a Nikon D7100 and was upset that Elements 11 could not open the .nef files. After doing some reading it seems that the viewnx2 program on the CD included in my package corrupts nef files when it downloads them. I downloaded the latest viewnx2 program and also updated the Camera Raw associated with Elements (click on Help and the submenu lists Updates). Everything seems to work now.
If you didn't change cameras then I have no explanation for your difficulties! I previously used a Canon S90 so the cr2 files were supported since the S90 is of vintage 2009!
It seems that if you download camera files using Windows Explorer the problem doesn't exist. I assume a similar procedure would apply with a Mac.
Hope this helps.

The Canon Powershot S series capture in RAW. I have had the S90 since 2010 and love it. It is very compact and there are more recent versions (S120 is the most recent I think)!
I'm pretty sure Nikon has equivalent models.

Good luck. That is a beautiful area winter and summer!

Well, it seems that the consensus is to buy now! My wife shares that sentiment so as most of you say "what am I waiting for?"
It seems that the refurbished price is the same at Cameta, Adorama and B&H Photo at $913. Any preferences? I have purchased from B&H in the past and been satisfied.
I am thinking that Nikon's 18-105mm would be a good start on lenses. I have an AF 50mm F1.8D and several manual focus lenses including a 200mm F4 for longer shots.
Thanks for taking the time to give me your valuable insight.

Very poignant points Greg! As far as we know my wife and I are in excellent health but two weeks ago my 64 year old sister died from a massive heart attack with no forewarning. Definitely a reminder of how tenuous life can be!
As far as a vacation we are vacillating between returning to the Alps for another long trek or repeating a 1968 tour of the Canadian Maritime provinces and Quebec's Gaspe peninsula that we did as a very young couple. The former would not benefit from a DSLR due to our self-imposed weight restrictions but the latter definitely would. Just another factor to put into the decision.
Thank you to everyone who responded!

:)

I understand your point but if I buy now I will still own an "old" model when the new one comes out. Just trying to get the best bang for the buck!

When I bought my iPad I ordered a "Camera Conversion Kit" along with the iPad. It consists of two converters one for a USB connector and another for an SD card. They plug into the dock connector port where you connect your charger. They work great!

I've seen that price at both Adorama and Cameta. Just hoping for a reduction in the near future. Thanks for the information.

Thanks Haydon, that is a link I was not aware of! I'm inclined to buy a refurbished camera from an authorized dealer.