I don't know about Canon, I never had one myself. But you're right about Nikon. Ever since digital cameras took over, Nikon's quality has really hit the skids, especially their point and shoot cameras. I got my Nikon FE (film) SLR used in 1980; and in the almost 40 years I've had it, it has been on a two week safari through Egypt, Kenya, Tanzania and in a bicycle bag during a 7 month, 8,400 mile bicycle tour across the country and back. It is still working great,and takes fantastic pictures.
On that same trip I went through 5 Nikon P&S cameras (or should I say POS cameras?) in just the first four months! Finally a salesman in Carson City sold me an Olympus point and shoot, which actually had a metal(!) case. It lasted the rest of the trip and still works today, five years later!
Thx for sharing! Sounds like you had some fantastic travels! I've never been out of the U.S. but then I've enjoyed being a homebody. Love your sample pics -- do you use filters either to get clearer pictures or to keep the camera lens cleaner? I'm dabbling in getting one to protect the lens from our often windy days before I start using the camera and I'm always paranoid about fingerprint oils. There is so much to learn about DSLR.
At one point in time all the film cameras were on an equal status as I once had both Nikon AND Olympus but in reality, it was mostly the interchangeable lenses that made the picture quality plus the expertise of the photographer behind the shutter. After film started going out of style and computers bloomed and digitals took over, some brands went in different directions as to what their best specialty was. At one time you could pick up any P&S and it was the same as the other 6 P&S brands on the store shelf until they started the mega pixel wars of who had more mps than the other guy. Then DSLRs really took over because of their computer compatibility, better mp quality, and vast array of lenses and accessories to choose from. Now there's the mirrorless (out of my price range LOL). It's so mind-boggling. One thing I know for certain is that I prefer still-photography over motion -- but I like my DSLR for having the motion feature should I really need to catch something moving -- like chickens!
