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A series of comparison shots from the showdown of smaller "big" cameras from Canon, Olympus, and Panasonic Canon PowerShot G10, Olympus E-420, Panasonic Lumix G1 Size is an issue with cameras . I miss a lot of good shots when I don't feel like lugging around a hefty SLR (such as my current fav, the Nikon D90). And while my pocket camera (presently a Canon SD800) is easy to tote, the image quality is more for "snapshots" than "photographs." I, and a few other shutterbugs around the office, have been looking into the middle category of cameras : big enough to take good pictures, but not so big that it's a burden. Now is a good time to look, since several camera makers have fresh midsize camera offerings . Recently introduced, the Canon G10 ($450) is the latest in its long-running series of "serious" point-and-shoots. At the heart of the camera is a tiny (about 40 square millimeters) image sensor similar to what you get in a pocket model....

Prosumer, enthusiast, advanced amateur. Whatever you call it, there is a class of photographers who are not pros but are serious about picture taking -- committed enough to spend a grand or more on an SLR body and at least several hundred dollars more on lenses. Those shutterbugs recently got two new choices from the big guns of digital photography. In September, Nikon released its veeeeerrrry long-anticipated D90 (a winner in our latest Best of What's New honors). In August, Canon released the entirely expected but very welcome 50D . Technically, these cameras are not direct competitors. The Canon has a magnesium-alloy body, esoteric adjustments such as vignette correction, and a higher price tag (about $1,200 online); the Nikon is around $900. But after lugging each of them around for the past several weeks, I think they're quite comparable. So the question is, which one should you get? Image Quality If you're this serious about photography, quality is mainly what you ca...