Picture Perfect....

I'm nothing if not a memory maker! I was the t-shirt chair my junior year for my sorority. My mom used to make so much fun of all of our t-shirts and say we would make one to commemorate going to the bathroom if we had only thought of it. She's a funny one my mom.

But the reality is, I like documentation. I keep this blog for fun, but also because it allows me to write about my life. I keep ticket stubs and play bills, cards and kind notes, and I have huge box full of superbly folded notes saying things like, "Hey girl! Wuz up?? I just wanted to

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you a few lines to say hi!" It basically summarizes junior high. I'm also a picture taker. I come by it honestly as my mom single handedly keeps Kodak in business. She was always there to capture the truly terrible fashion moments of 6-12 grade (1st-5th you can get away with it on the account of being a child), the Friday night football games, the choir performances, the summer camps and the sibling pictures where we had to dress in denim and put our toes in the water. Ahh...life's most precious moments. But truthfully, I enjoy that I can look back on my life in photographs and laugh, cry, point fingers and place blame for things such as scrunchies and Mia sandals, and truly appreciate life and the invention of the Chi.

It is for this very reason that I am ready for a new camera. I'm ready for an upgrade and once I get my new, fine piece of machinery I am going to take some photography classes. Now I need your help in spending my money. What on earth should I get??? Although I enjoy taking pictures, I am a complete novice. I currently have a point and shoot Canon Powershot that I have had for 3 years with a tiny display screen and a sorry excuse for a zoom. I have read several blogs where the photography is amazing. The color is phenomenal and there are no movement issues and the zoom is wonderful. So, if any of you reading this know a thing or 2, please spread your wealth of knowledge! Here are the things I am looking for:

• Decent size display screen
• Good zoom
• Quality photographs
• great color
• features that allow me to take pictures where the image in the forefront is the main image and it can be blurred in the background (I'm sure there is a technical term for this that I don't know!)

What other features should I be looking for? And does a Mac make a huge difference in quality photography? Is it more about the camera, or are there programs and software that really give photos the vivid colors? Here are a couple of cameras I have found in my search. They seem to have gotten very good reviews. They are middle of the road cameras in price. Until I really learn and get into photography I am not going to be willing to spend $1,000 on a camera. Do any of you have either of these cameras or have a strong opinion either way about them? Is there a better camera out there that I haven't found yet? Anything you can share would be appreciated!

This is the Canon Powershot SX10-IS (click the link for product info)

This is the Nikon CoolPics P80

"You see, this is my life! It always will be! Nothing else! Just us, the cameras, and those wonderful people out there in the dark!... All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up." ~Norma Desmond, Sunset Boulevard