Camera Recommendations
Many customers ask our opinion on which cameras and other equipment we recommend regarding durability, availability of parts, and expense of servicing.  Below are the cameras and manufacturers that we can recommend, based on the quality of their cameras, the ease of getting parts and price of repair parts, and their cooperation in supplying service information.

                               Specs that Matter
                    Point-N-Shoot                                        Digital SLR
                            Optical zoom, not digital                           8+ megapixels
                            6 megapixels is plenty                             10X optical zoom
                            Optical image stabilization                       RAW file support
                            High ISO for low light shots                     Wide angle/macro lens
                            Fast shutter speed                                   Optical image stabilization


Recommended
Cannot Recommend
Canon - wide range of features, designed for the average consumer, reasonable parts prices, very efficient response times.
Casio - very nice features, small size, but service is VERY expensive due to parts prices and overly complex designs.
JVC - good quality, parts are reasonable and readily available.
Fuji - repair parts almost impossible to obtain, little communication, no response to inquiries
Nikon - very good quality, helpful service and parts departments, efficient response times.
HP - no parts are available for any HP digital camera.  Has to go to HP for trade-up.
Olympus - wide range of models, very reasonable parts prices, efficient response times.
Infocus - no parts are sold by Infocus for their LCD projectors - they charge $150 estimate fee.
Pentax - very helpful service and parts departments, efficient response times.
Kodak - average quality, Kodak factory service is expensive, they charge for estimates.
Sony - huge variety of models, wide range of features, modular design for low repair costs, parts readily available.
Konica/Minolta - Sony has taken over all parts, most are no longer available.
Tamron - repair parts are very reasonable, cooperative parts and service departments.
Polaroid - most parts not available  for digital cameras.

Speaking of repairs and parts, if you have an old car sitting around, you can donate a car for a nice tax deduction in most cases
Samsung - parts almost impossible to obtain