It all depends on how and what you want to shoot. I'm an amateur photojournalist who specializes in landscape and nature photography. I have a Minolta SLR with a 300mm lens that I never use anymore since I got a Canon Power Shot SX 50. This camera suits my needs perfectly with the 50X optical and digital zoom out to 200X, without the costs and added weight of additional lenses. I bought it on sale at Best Buy recently for $462.00 that included memory card, battery, charger, manual, CD, and tax. It can zoom out to the equivalent of 1200 mm. I am thrilled with the pics and ease of performance of this smart camera. I have attached some photos. It is a12.1 megapixel camera.