SLR cameras are great but bulky, and in my personal opinion, only justified for serious photography, particularly when wanting to shoot manual. The modern "point and click" can do a fantastic job with a huge number of settings and occasionally with incredible optical as well as digital zoom. I have 2 "point and click" cameras, a Panasonic Lumix and a Fuji waterproof... Both do an excellent job. The Panasonic was fairly pricey but it's a high end model.
