buying a camera -- opinions?

[blrn1]

We're looking for a camera in the $250 - $300 range; neither of us really knows much about photography so we need something pretty simple to use that will take decent pictures on vacation and around the house...
Any suggestions?

[DeeK]

I have a Canon S2IS --- it is a few years old, but is extremely easy to use and has some nice features.

The newest version is even spiffier!

I also have a Nikon Coolpix L-18 --- it was very inexpensive (under $100 on sale) and takes pretty nice pictures, but of course, not as many features as the Canon.

[Kevlar]

My son recently bought the Canon SX110LS. It takes the best photos! We went to the circus last week and his photos are great. It is easy to use. If my own camera wasn't just two years old, I would get this one.

[LadyWild]

I don't have a specific camera in mind but there are some important things to look for. Check out the flash range. This is how far you can be from your subject and have the flash work. In some cameras this is as 6 ft. That's pretty close. Also look at the flash refresh time. I you are doing a lot of indoor photos this is important. You can't take a second photo until the flash is ready.

If you have kids or want to use this at the beach, look at some of the new waterproof cameras. Olympus makes a few. There are others as well. Those can be dropped 5ft+ and get sandy an wet without getting ruined.

[blrn1]

Thanks for the advice and suggestions! I'm going to share them with my husband.