SLR digital cameras have taken the world of photography by storm, with many "prosumer" models rivaling all but the very best of the old-fashioned film-based designs. Today's offerings are simple enough to use for point-and-shoot newbies who have the money to spend on these generally expensive cameras, but are chock full of the advanced features demanded by professionals for fine-tuning and even on-the-fly image editing. While important distinctions still remain between the class of SLR digital cameras and those falling under other categories, the dividing line has become greatly blurred with each new product cycle and business quarter. Overlaps abound, to the point where the age-old debate between SLRs and "P&Ses" may no longer be valid.
Digital SLR cameras are certainly more affordable than ever before, with the least expensive models available for only a thousand dollars. Though such cameras are vastly downgraded in terms of their feature sets, they are still recognizably SLRs due to what features still remain on board! But technological advances will surely continue to level the playing field until a typical camera will be capable of a typical set of tasks, broad in the scope of abilities and "deep" in the quality of their performance.
So is it worthwhile to continue paying premium prices for the SLR label? As a mid-level consumer who needs more than a point-and-shoot but isn't likely to do a lot of fancy features such as built-in image manipulation, what should the choice be?
Whatever you're comfortable with. It's easy to try out a camera in the store before committing money towards purchasing it, and even then many retailers these days still offer fairly generous return policies that in effect allow you to rent the camera for just fifteen percent of its retail value so long as you return everything in mint condition within the month (also known as the "restocking fee" on "store returns").
Start with a consideration of what you'll actually be using the camera for. Do you seriously want to compose award-winning shots - or would a thin, lightweight P&S serve you much better? And even within the class of P&Ses, you'll have to choose between factors such as optical zoom, shutter speeds, and other technical criteria to ensure a camera that truly meets your needs. One of the remaining characteristics of digital SLR cameras is that they still tend to be bulkier, seeing how they are jam-packed with the kind of advanced electronics unavailable to simple P&Ses.
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