On Mon, 08 Oct 2007 03:54:13 -0700, Fotos4web
wrote:

You should DEFINITELY use the camera for a couple of weeks before you
go on a whalewatching cruise. and take along a couple of spare cards
too - I went whalewatching and almost ran out of cards myself (I took
5 spares)
As to which camera - apart from the price (discussed earlier) get the
one that feels best in your hands - don't just buy on price as ease of
use is really more imprtant. If you wear spectacles make sure you can
still see through the viewfinder (sometimes you can't) - if its a
model where you compose through the viewing screen then take along
lots of battereies - you'll need them.(Or buy a couple of sets of
rechargeable batteries and a high speed charger.) If you are going
somewhere cold to watch whales then remember that batteries HATE cold
and tend to flumph when you need them most (like when that tail comes
up out of the water).Keep your camera warmish but check it's not
fogged up when you are about to start shooting.
Keith (fotos4web)
There's more stuff on my website
http://www.squidoo.com/Camerachoice/

All good advice and mostly already known and considered. As for the
feel of the cameras, I have a basic problem with every one of them,
since they are virtually identical in design... I happen to be LEFT
HANDED!

They do NOT seem to make a left handed version of any of these cameras
and thus are deliberately ignoring our 'disability', which I think is
in violation of the Americans with Disability Act and the legislation
in Canada too, but I cannot convince those in Japan that they need to
produce a left handed version a bit tongue in cheek...

Lighter has advantages, since I am getting arthritic, but even the
heaviest of these cameras is only about 18-19 U.S. ounces or 510-530
grams in weight, so I've eliminated that as a consideration.

Ability to save images in RAW is a consideration, but since I am NOT
trying to produce art level images, and the superfine JPG mode is
'almost' as good, for my purposes it matters but little.

Panorama mode is one I use, but there I can use the M setting for
those cameras that are lacking a stitch assist or panorama mode, to
accomplish the same thing, with a tripod, etc. I've done that many
times with other cameras that lack this mode, including a FujiFilm
A101 for 12 image panoramas!

So the real issues become speed of the camera when taking several
images in a limited amount of time, and the degree of zoom available,
optical being foremost, and extended optical as long as quality is not
lost, even if the image is reduced to 4 megabit from 8 megabit, and so
on.

The real problem is that I cannot find reviews on most of these
cameras, so which is best for my purposes becomes a bit of a guessing
game...

RsH