I would appreciate any thoughts on this camera. I never did serious photography before, never had DSLR (G10 is not DSLR), but would like to get into the hobby. The reveiws of G10 on Amazon and dpreview are pretty encouraging but I wanted to know opinion of the Caedes people since your work is so impressive.

Thanks!

As you say the reviews look pretty promising. The camera has a lot of nice features that are similar to a DSLR. However you will have the limitation of using it at low ISO settings to get sharp clear ( noise free ) pictures. This works out ok if you use it for out door shots and or in good light but you will not get great picture quality at the higher speeds required for stopping action or for low light.
Most of the pictures in my gallery were taken with a Pentax Optio S10 and the last seven with a Nikon coolpix s550.( I miss the Pentax) I had the ISO set between 84 and 200 all the time. Usually 84 to keep the images as noise free as possible. Most of my pictures were taken with the camera on a tripod. Hand held shots are always a little blurry with such a low ISO. With the G10 you would probably want to keep it between 100 and 200 for the clearest pics and 400 only when you had to. Keep in mind I have never had one in my hand so I am guessing based on the review and my personal experience with the small sensors in smaller cameras.

A quote from the DPReview Review-
"Around the same price of the G10 you could get a Canon Rebel XS (1000D), a Sony A200 or a Nikon D40. Any of these would give the user better image quality, better ISO performance, and the flexibility that a DSLR brings. With pressures from both sides, Canon really had to hit a home run with the G10, and in the image quality department it rounded second, maybe even a standup third, but just could not quite get to home plate.

If you look at my gallery you will see it is possible to get some technically high quality shots with lesser cameras than the G10. So then it boils down to more research. Would one of the alternate DSLRs be the way to go or would it be over budget? Would a $200 camera do? probably not. The cameras I have are too limited in functionality to satisfy. If I had to choose between what I have and the G10 I would go for the G10. But if I could afford to get a low end DSLR I definitely would. Do the research, ask the questions, then walk away for a week and let it simmer. Then go back and look again. A camera can be a major investment and a great hobby or just a toy to have fun with. It is all a mater of what you want to make it. I have a new Cannon DSLR on the way next week. I am looking forward to the upgrade.
And since dpreview mentioned the D40 I will give you this link to Ken Rockwells sight and his take on the Nikon D40. He is a rabid fan of the D40.
Good luck. I hope this helps.
DP

Thanks for such a thorough reply. I have to admit, I just loved how retro G10 looks. Reminded me of my old Russian "Zenit." But you are right, for about $75 more I can get Canon Rebel XS. It would allow me to experiment with higher ISO. Plus I will be able to get different lenses later if I get hooked. Thanks again.

I have a Powershot G5 and it takes better photos than my expensive Canon 40D. It's who is behind the camera.!!!

I bought the G10 because it's the only "compact" camera which allows me to follow my normal workflow (that is:shoot RAW, and then edit in Canon DPP).
I use it when I don't want to/can't carry with me the DSLR.
Good sides IMHO: raw support, decent noise performance, fits in a pocket (winter jacket), pretty large screen
Bad sides: pretty useless viewfinder, does not fit in a pocket (summer shirt).
This photo was taken with the G10.