Arkansas,

I have to recommend the Olympus Ultra Zoom models.  I have had the
C-750 for almost 2 years, but they have newer ones out now, the C-765
and C-770.  This camera takes such good, crisp and clear pictures
because the lens is so much bigger than other cameras.  I think the
shutter speed is quite fast too because I've never noticed having any
problem with it.  I do notice it on Dennis' Sony though.  And the 10x
optical zoom is awesome, it's practically a spy-cam!  I honestly think
that it's the best digital camera you can get withough going digital
SLR.  Here are some prices, you could research more from here:
http://shopper-zdnet.com.com/4007-6501_15-0.html?tag=srch&orderby=&qt=
&100021id=&1000036id=6250974&501375id=&501071id=3338490&501936id=&5004
09id=

or

http://tinyurl.com/8cfm7

About the meeting in the summer, I'd love to, but am a little far away
;-)
--
Britta
"There is no snooze button on a cat who wants breakfast." -- Unknown
Check out pictures of Vino at:
http://photos.yahoo.com/badwilson click on the Vino album

Check out the Canon series.  We have their G3 and love it - I believe
the G2 has dropped in price but may be a little more than your budget.
You can't beat their features and performance - we liked our so much we
bought their mini-DV camcorder.  The G2 is a camera with a lot of
flexibility for growth.

-L.

I have a Sony DSC-S85, but there are newer models available now.

What I like about it is that, along with having an automatic mode, it has
manual modes where I can set the shutter speed, aperture, white balance,
and other things myself.

That helps a lot because I like to use the camera to take photos at hockey
games. BOY, are hockey games tough to photograph, thanks to the speed the
games move and the glare of the white sheet of ice.

I like the features of the Sony camera, and the shutter lag on this
particular model is improved, compared to earlier Sony cameras. I suspect
that the models that have come after it might have improved even more.

Donna